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South Korea Officers and Noncommissioned Officers
Officers were graduates of army, navy, or air force service
academies, reserve officer training cadet programs offered at
civilian colleges, or were recruited from enlisted personnel for
selected short-term service in noncombat occupational billets.
More than 90 percent of the field-grade officers chosen to
command combat units at battalion and higher levels were
graduates of the Korea Military Academy (in the case of the
army), the Air Force Academy, or the Naval Academy. Applicants
were chosen on the basis of their academic records, performance
in competitive examinations, physical condition, and dedication
to the mission of the armed forces. Each academy offered a fouryear curriculum to provide the cadet with a bachelor's degree and
practical military skills. Graduates of the military academies
were required to serve ten years in the military and made up 5
percent of the newly commissioned officers each year.
Approximately 40 percent of the new second lieutenants were
commissioned from the Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) after
two years' training and a two-year, three-month obligation.
Another 40 percent of the new second lieutenants were from the
Third Military Academy, which had a twenty- to thirty-six week
training course. The remaining 15 percent were directly
commissioned specialists, including personnel in the medical
corps, judge advocates, and chaplains. Most of the recruits of
the Third Military Academy were newly graduated from junior
colleges or regular colleges. At one time the Third Military
Academy was itself a two-year college. Historically, most of the
ROTC officers left after completing their obligation, but the
graduates of the Third Military Academy often stayed on to fieldgrade rank and were the dominant source of commission at that
rank.
Advanced individual training for officers was provided at the
Army's Command and General Staff College, the National Defense
College, and military training institutes in other countries. The
Command and General Staff College prepared selected field-grade
officers for command and staff duties at division, corps, and
army levels. The National Defense College trained a limited
number of selected senior officers of the three services and some
civilian government officials for the highest command and staff
positions.
Each army branch, as well as the air force, navy, and marine
corps, was responsible for selecting NCOs for training in their
occupational specialty. Those selected were required to reenlist
for two to seven years, depending on the availability of
replacements in their branch. Army staff sergeants were selected
from civilian applicants and eligible enlisted personnel who had
completed the required courses of studies in branch schools. The
navy recruited petty officers through examination at the time of
conscription. After finishing basic training, candidates were
trained for their duties in a branch school. The air force
followed a procedure similar to the navy's. Combat marines were
sent to army schools for NCO training, whereas marines in service
branches usually attended navy schools.
Data as of June 1990
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