United States Army Command and General Staff College - Schools

Schools

The college consists of four schools:

• Command and General Staff School (CGSS) provides Intermediate Level Education (ILE) for United States Army and sister service officers, interagency representatives, and international military officers. ILE is a ten-month graduate-level program; the curriculum includes instruction on leadership philosophy, military history, and the military planning and decision-making processes. There are two ILE classes per year; the first begins in August and ends in June, the second begins in March and ends in December. Both classes complete the same curriculum. In addition to the ILE curriculum, students may complete a thesis-level research paper and receive a Master of Military Arts and Sciences (MMAS). The Masters program is accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, the accrediting body for collegiate institutions in the midwestern United States. ILE students are normally mid-career field-grade officers preparing for battalion command or staff positions at the division, brigade, or battalion level. The most recent class, Class 2011-02, graduated on December 16, 2011 with 335 students. In addition to CGSS at Fort Leavenworth, the school operates satellite campuses at Fort Belvoir, Virginia; Fort Lee, Virginia; Fort Gordon, Georgia; and Redstone Arsenal, Alabama. Students at the satellite campuses complete the ILE Common Core, a condensed ninety-day program without the MMAS option, in lieu of the traditional ten-month program.
• School of Advanced Military Studies (SAMS) provides post-ILE instruction on complex military issues at the strategic and operational levels. Students who complete the curriculum receive a Master of Military Arts and Sciences (MMAS) and are then assigned as high-level military planners. The Masters program is accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, the accrediting body for collegiate institutions in the midwestern United States.
• School for Command Preparation (SCP) provides instruction for colonels, lieutenant colonels, and command sergeants major who have been selected for brigade or battalion command. Courses are normally three to four weeks and focus on special topics unique to assumption of command at the levels indicated.
• School of Advanced Leadership and Tactics (SALT) provides officer continuing education towards developing the Scholar-Warrior-Leader from first lieutenant to selection for major. The result is mastery of branch-specific technical and tactical skills, staff processes in battalions and brigades, direct leadership and command competencies, and initial broadening opportunities.