Marine Corps Plans Rigorous Warfighter Test for Future Generals
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The Marine Corps said Thursday that it has started developing plans for a new test of “demonstrated warfighter ability” within the screening process for colonels eligible for promotion to brigadier general. The planned evaluation will add another measure to the service’s existing promotion process.
The service is developing the evaluation following guidance from Secretary of War Pete Hegseth. Hegseth announced the Joint Warfighter Evaluation, known as the JWE, in late September.
The Marine Corps intends for the JWE to complement the performance evaluations already used to assess officers. It will provide an additional measure focused on whether an officer can develop plans, communicate those plans and demonstrate critical thinking.
Lt. Gen. Thomas B. Savage, commanding general of Training and Education Command, called the JWE “an objective data point that complements what we already know about an officer’s performance and potential.”
Savage framed the planned evaluation as an addition to a selection system that the Marine Corps already views with pride. It will give eligible colonels another way to demonstrate the abilities expected from the service’s future general officers.
“The Marine Corps has always taken pride in its talent management and selection processes, which have historically produced some of our nation’s greatest leaders,” Savage said.
According to Savage, the test will provide “another opportunity for our rising leaders to confirm that they have assimilated the skills necessary to epitomize the next generation of general officers who will excel at the highest levels of command.”
Image Credit: DoW
The Marine Corps is activating training units on both the east and west coasts to focus on drone warfare. Above, Cpl. Calvin Burke with the 1st Marine Division controls an unmanned aircraft system at Marine Corps Air-Ground Combat Center, Twentynine Palms in 2024. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Enge You
Brig. Gen. Matthew Tracy, commanding general of the service’s Education Command and president of Marine Corps University, described how the evaluation will challenge participating officers. He said the Marine Corps JWE will provide “a complex, realistic environment” for testing their capabilities on an evolving battlefield.
The exercise will place each officer in the role of a senior Marine commander. In that role, the officer will conduct an all domain operation supporting a joint task force against a peer threat.
The scenario is intended to test more than an officer’s ability to review information. It will require the participant to plan, make decisions, communicate and respond from the position of a senior commander during the execution of an operation.
Image Credit: DoW
Marines fire an FGM-148 Javelin during Resolute Dragon 25 at Hijudai Maneuver Area, Japan, Sept. 15, 2025. The U.S.-Japan exercise strengthens the countries’ command, control and multidomain maneuver capabilities in key maritime terrain.
The officer will “respond to commander-centric requirements during planning and execution and provide written products and decisions,” the service said. Those materials and choices will become part of the officer’s evaluated performance.
The Marine Corps will administer the test through the Marine Corps e-Learning Ecosystem. That delivery method will allow eligible officers to complete the evaluation from their assigned duty stations rather than reporting to a single location identified in the announcement.
After an officer completes the work, a specially selected board will evaluate the results. The board will consist of experienced subject matter experts drawn from across Marine Corps University.
Image Credit: DoW
Low altitude air defense gunners aboard the USS Portland in the Balabac Strait, May 4, 2026. (MCS Adam Bishop/U.S. Navy)
Either a brigadier general or a major general will chair the evaluation board. The structure places senior leadership over the review while bringing together expertise from across the university.
The JWE will therefore examine how an officer handles the demands presented in the operational scenario and the written requirements that follow. Its stated areas of assessment include planning, communication and critical thinking.
For promotion candidates, the evaluation will become another data point alongside existing records of performance and potential. Savage’s description makes clear that the Marine Corps sees it as a complement to its established approach, not a substitute for what the service already knows about an officer.
Image Credit: DoW
A Marine sergeant low crawls during a small unit leadership exercise at Marine Corps Base Hawaii on July 16, 2015. Marine Corps photo by Gunnery Sgt. Aaron S. Patterson.
Tracy’s description also points to realism and complexity as central features of the planned test. Officers will be expected to demonstrate their capabilities while facing a scenario built around an evolving battlefield, a joint task force and a peer threat.
The Marine Corps expects to implement its version of the Joint Warfighter Evaluation no later than February 2027. Development is now underway as the service prepares to add the warfighter assessment to screening for colonels seeking promotion to brigadier general.
