The Fifth Army War College: Preparing Strategic Leaders to Win in a Complex World

: The United States Army War College (USAWC) has played an important role in the education and development of strategic leaders for over a century. Throughout its history, the USAWC has adapted and evolved to better prepare senior leaders for a variety of strategic environments and challenges. The history of the USAWC can be divided into four distinct eras, each of which has contributed to the present war college curriculum. This Professional Studies Paper advocates for the beginning of a Fifth USAWC Era to best prepare senior leaders to Win In a Complex World. The Fifth USAWC Era should include some of the best parts of the previous periods that have been recently overlooked, but served the Army and the Nation well in past times of war and peace. This new era should include the four primary recommendations of this study; a War Plan of the Year course akin to the early 20th century Main Problem studies, overseas travel as part of an expanded Regional Studies Program, a dedicated yearlong military history course, and reviving the eight-week Military Research Program of the 1970s.