Effect of Quality on the Attrition of Enlisted Marines from the Active Reserve

Abstract

Marines who serve in the Active Reserve are vital to the success of the large reserve force. Though small in number, the Active Reserve provides critical support to the various components of the reserve force. Marine Reserve Affairs is concerned about the quality of Marines who access into the Active Reserve. The concern is that non-high quality accessions will have adverse impacts on the future Staff Non-commissioned Officer population. This research seeks to examine the attrition trends among Corporals and Sergeants using various measures of quality and different demographic categories. I conduct the research using 10 years of panel data provided by Marine Reserve Affairs. I use survival analysis to study the relationship between rank, quality, and attrition. I find that high-quality Corporals attrite at lower levels than high-quality Sergeants after meeting initial service obligations. This research could be used in the future to study why Marines in the Active Reserve attrite and which component of the larger reserve force they attrite into.