The National Defense University (NDU) is an institution of higher education funded by the United States Department of Defense, intended to facilitate high-level training, education, and the development of national security strategy. It is chartered by the Joint Chiefs of Staff, with Vice Admiral Fritz Roegge, USN, as president. It is located on the grounds of Fort Lesley J. McNair in Washington, D.C.
The university's mission is to support the joint warfighter by providing rigorous Joint Professional Military Education to members of the U.S. Armed Forces and select interagency civilians in order to develop leaders that have the ability to operate and creatively think in an unpredictable and complex world. The school's master's program is a one-year intensive study program.
History
The College of International Security Affairs - The College of International Security Affairs (CISA) is located at National Defense University in Washington, D.C. CISA's mission is to educate and prepare ...
Before 1946, the U.S. military relied on specially-created programs to meet specific needs. They also made use of smaller training programs elsewhere. The closer integration of military forces and increasing complexity of strategy and technology necessitated the foundation of The National War College and the Industrial College of the Armed Forces.
To better integrate all the education programs, Congress created the National Defense University in 1976. In 1981, the Joint Forces Staff College was created, followed by the Department of Defense Computer Institute (DODCI) in 1982, which later was renamed the Information Resources Management College. In 1984 the university created the Institute for National Strategic Studies to meet the demand for military research.
After the Goldwater-Nichols Act and the House Armed Services Committee Skelton Panel Report, the University decided to seek authority to grant master's degrees. In 1993 President Bill Clinton signed into law a bill that allowed NDU to grant the degree of Master of Science in National Resource Strategy upon graduates of the Industrial College of the Armed Forces, and the Master of Science in National Security Strategy upon graduates of the National War College. The university is accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools.
Colleges and centers
The National Defense University includes:
- Colleges and Schools
- College of International Security Affairs
- Dwight D. Eisenhower School for National Security and Resource Strategy (The Eisenhower School), formerly the Industrial College of the Armed Forces
- College of Information and Cyberspace (formerly "IRMC" or "iCollege")
- Joint Forces Staff College
- National War College
- Research Centers and Components
- Institute for National Strategic Studies
- Center for Strategic Research
- Center for the Study of Chinese Military Affairs
- Center for the Study of Weapons of Mass Destruction
- NDU Press
- Center for Applied Strategic Learning
- Institute for National Strategic Studies
Publications
NDU Press publishes Joint Force Quarterly (JFQ) four times per year. As stated on their home page "JFQ is the Chairman's joint military and security studies journal designed to inform and educate national security professionals on joint and integrated operations; whole-of-government contributions to national security policy and strategy; homeland security; and developments in training and joint military education to better equip America's military and security apparatus to meet tomorrow's challenges while protecting freedom today."
See also
- Air University (United States Air Force), Alabama
- Defense Acquisition University, Fort Belvoir, Virginia
- Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, California
- Naval War College, Newport, Rhode Island
- U.S. Army War College, Carlisle, Pennsylvania
- National Intelligence University, Washington, D.C.
References
External links
- Official website
- National Defense University publications on the Internet Archive
