The United States military academies, sometimes known as the United States service academies, are federal academies for the education and training of commissioned officers for the United States armed forces. There are five or six U.S. military academies, depending on how strictly one defines the term: There are eight federal academies run by the United States government. ... In military organizations, a commissioned officer is a member of the service who derives authority directly from a sovereign power, and as such holds a commission from that power. ... The armed forces of the United States of America consist of the United States Army United States Navy United States Air Force United States Marine Corps United States Coast Guard Note: The United States Coast Guard has both military and law enforcement functions. ...

• United States Military Academy, also known as "West Point" and "Army", founded 1802
• United States Naval Academy, also known as "Annapolis" and "Navy", founded 1845
• United States Coast Guard Academy, founded 1876
• United States Merchant Marine Academy, also known as "Kings Point", founded 1942
• United States Air Force Academy, founded 1954
• Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, founded 1972

There is no dispute as to the status of the first five listed. The status of the sixth, the Uniformed Services University (USU), is more complex. USU specializes in training health care professionals for the U.S. military. However, the only program at USU that truly functions as a military academy is its F. Edward Hébert School of Medicine. While it accepts military and civilian students, its graduates have a 7-year service commitment upon graduation. The graduate nursing program at USU is open only to commissioned officers. USU also operates graduate programs in biomedical research and public health; some of its specialties are only open to military personnel, while others are open to civilians as well, with no postgraduate service requirement. The Chapel at West Point The United States Military Academy, also known simply as West Point and USMA, is a U.S. military academy and former Army fort. ... Teamwork: Fourth Class Midshipmen lock arms and use ropes made from uniform items as they brace themselves climbing the Herndon Monument The United States Naval Academy (USNA) is an institution for the undergraduate education of officers of the United States Navy and Marine Corps and is located in Annapolis, Maryland. ... The United States Coast Guard Academy, located in New London, Connecticut, is a U.S. military academy that provides education to future officers of the United States Coast Guard. ... Seal of the US Merchant Marine Academy The United States Merchant Marine Academy is one of the five United States service academies. ... Air Force Academy cadets celebrate after graduation The United States Air Force Academy (USAFA), is an institution for the undergraduate education of officers in the United States Air Force. ... The Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, established by the United States Congress in 1972 and graduating its first class in 1980, is a center for military medical education and research. ...

The term service academies can be used to refer to all of the academies, apart from USU, collectively; however, in popular use, it is more often reserved for the three academies that play NCAA Division I-A football: Army, Navy, and Air Force. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA, often said NC-Double-A) is a voluntary association of about 1200 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletics programs of many colleges and universities in the United States. ... United States simply as football, is a competitive team sport that is both fast-paced and strategic. ...

See also

Staff Colleges

• US military staff colleges

State-supported military universities: Naval War College Command and General Staff College National War College U.S. Army War College Defense Acquisition University See also Staff College Military Academy United States military academies Categories: University stubs | United States university stubs | Military stubs | Staff Colleges | United States military academies | U.S. military training and education...

• The Citadel
• Virginia Military Institute

Privately-chartered military universities: A Cadet color guard at a Friday afternoon parade. ... The Virginia Military Institute (VMI), located in Lexington, Virginia, is the oldest state military college in the United States and the nations only classical state military college, meaning all VMI students are cadets. ...

• Norwich University (now has a Corps of Cadets and a traditional, non-military student population)

Major civilian universities with an established military cadet corps: This article needs to be wikified. ...

• Virginia Tech - Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets
• Texas A&M University - Texas A&M Corps of Cadets

General Information/FAQ The Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, or Virginia Tech for short, is a university in Blacksburg, Virginia, USA, in the New River Valley of western Virginia near the Appalachian Mountains. ... The Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets (VTCC) is one of only two military organizations established as an integral part of a major United States civilian university, the other is Texas A&M University. ... Texas A&M University Texas A&M University, often Texas A&M, A&M or TAMU for short, is the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System. ... The Texas A&M University Corps of Cadets (or the Corps of Cadets or, often, just The Corps) is an organization at Texas A&M University that trains students in the ways of the military with the option of a commission to the military upon graduation. ...