Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Strategy Essay Competition

An annual event since 1981, the CJCS Strategy Essay Competition is managed by NDU Press on behalf of the Chairman to select the best essays written by the students of the staff colleges and war colleges of the U.S. Armed Forces (National War College, Industrial College of the Armed Forces, Army War College, College of Naval Warfare, Air War College, Marine Corps War College, Armed Forces Staff College, Army Command & General Staff College, College of Naval Command and Staff, Air Command and Staff College, and Marine Corps Command and Staff College).

Each service's senior service school (or war college) manages the semifinalist stage of the contest for its own students and for the students of its associated intermediate service school (or staff college). In May of each year, judges drawn from each of the senior service schools assemble at the National Defense University in Washington, DC, to select the very best essays from the eleven participating schools.

In June, the Chairman personally awards certificates to the winning essayists in a ceremony in Washington. Afterwards, the winning essays are published as part of the annual Essays on Strategy series by NDU Press. Several of the Essays on Strategy volumes have won national awards for writing, editing, and book design. For further information on the contest or the Essays on Strategy series, contact NDU Press at ndu_press@ndu.edu, or (202) 685-4210.

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