In a major shift in military education policy, the US Department of Defense has dropped 22 universities from its approved Professional Military Education (PME) list which means that Army officers will no longer be able to attend Senior Service College (SSC) fellowships or other Pentagon-funded programs at these schools beginning in the 2026-27 academic year.
The move also cancels 93 SSC fellowships that had been set aside for these schools.
The order was issued by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth as part of a wider review of the Pentagon’s partnerships with civilian universities. Under the new policy, military officers will no longer be able to attend PME or fellowship programs at the affected schools using Pentagon funding.
Check list of elite universities and think tanks removed from PME
Several Ivy League and leading research universities are among the institutions removed from the approved list including,
- Harvard University
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Yale University
- Columbia University
- Princeton University
Other US institutions that are removed from the list include:
- Tufts University
- Georgetown University
- Brown University
- Saint Louis University
- Carnegie Mellon University
- Middlebury College
- George Washington University
- College of William and Mary
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The decision also affects several major think tanks and academic programs including,
- Center for Strategic and International Studies
- The Brookings Institution
- New America
- Atlantic Council
- Center for a New American Security
- Council on Foreign Relations
- The Henry L Stimson Center
- Johns Hopkins University SAIS West
There is also one international institution that is impacted, which is Queen’s University.
New criteria for future Pentagon partners
According to a Pentagon memo, any institution that wants to work with the US Department of Defense in the future must meet certain standards. These include “intellectual freedom, minimal relationships with adversaries, and minimal public expressions in opposition to the Department of Defense,” and they must also offer strong national security or public policy programs that match Pentagon priorities.
Officials said that officers who are already studying at the affected schools will be allowed to complete their programs. However, no new officers will be sent to these institutions under the cancelled fellowships.
As part of the change, a new list of possible partner schools has been suggested. These include Liberty University, George Mason University, Pepperdine University, University of Michigan and University of Florida as potential options for future PME programs.