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Military Reserves

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Members of a country's military reserves pursue full-time civilian careers and are not on active duty, though they may be called upon at times of emergency. RAND provides military and political decisionmakers with objective research and recommendations on how to attract, train, and maintain an effective military reserve force.

Commentary
A Framework for Building a Civil Reserve Space Program
If the United States were to create a civil reserve space program, what factors should the Department of Defense consider to balance potential benefits, risks, and costs?
Nov 29, 2023
Report
Soldier Preferences and Retention Effects of Changes in Army Reserve Training Requirements
Soldiers in the U.S. Army Reserve have traditionally been required to attend 39 days of training per year. However, across the readiness cycle, units may have their requirements changed with minimal notice. How do changes in training requirements affect a soldier's interest in staying in the Reserves?
Nov 16, 2021

Explore Military Reserves

Report
Reducing Rework in Officer Appointment Processes
Appointment scrolls are required for initial appointment of officers and for reappointment in a different grade, military service, or component. But the appointment and promotion scrolling process takes time. What improvements could increase the efficiency of these processes?
Apr 19, 2021
Report
Examining Career and Technical Education in National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Programs
The authors examined career and technical education opportunities for participants in the National Guard Youth ChalleNGe program, a residential, quasi-military program for youth ages 16-18 who are experiencing difficulty in traditional high school.
Apr 12, 2021
Report
National Guard Youth ChalleNGe: Program Progress in 2019–2020
The National Guard Youth ChalleNGe program serves young people experiencing difficulty in traditional high school through a 5.5-month residential program. The authors of this report document the progress of program participants in 2019 and 2020.
Mar 15, 2021
Report
Characteristics and Duty Limitations of Service Members Transferring Between the Active and Reserve Components
The authors analyze characteristics and duty limitations of service members who transfer between active and reserve components and make recommendations to reduce the number of personnel who transfer with medical conditions that limit deployability.
Dec 15, 2020
Report
Benchmarks for Success: Expected Short- and Long-Term Outcomes of National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Participants
National Guard Youth ChalleNGe is a residential intervention program to help teens who have dropped out of high school. Sites can compare the outcomes of their cadets with this set of population benchmarks derived from public datasets.
Dec 10, 2020
Report
National Guard Youth ChalleNGe: Program Progress in 2018–2019
In the fourth annual report on the National Guard Youth ChalleNGe, a residential, quasi-military program for youth struggling in traditional high school, researchers provide information on participants who entered the program in 2018.
Nov 6, 2020
Report
The Evolution of U.S. Military Policy from the Constitution to the Present, Volume II: The Formative Years for U.S. Military Policy, 1898–1940
The authors show that there is no such thing as a "traditional" U.S. military policy. Rather, the laws that authorize, empower, and govern the U.S. armed forces emerged from long-standing debates and legislative compromises between 1903 and 1940.
Jun 23, 2020
Report
Strengthening Total Force Culture and Facilitating Cross-Component Integration in the U.S. Military
While all U.S. military services have strived to achieve greater total force integration and a stronger total force culture across their active and reserve components, significant impediments limit the achievement of these objectives. What policies can foster cross-component integration?
May 28, 2020
Report
National Guard Youth ChalleNGe: Program Progress in 2017–2018
The National Guard Youth ChalleNGe program is a residential, quasi-military program for youth ages 16 to 18 who are experiencing difficulty in traditional high school. An ongoing program analysis seeks to understand how the achievements of ChalleNGe graduates compare to similar youth who do not participate in the program.
Oct 15, 2019
Report
Manpower Alternatives to Enhance Total Force Capabilities: Could New Forms of Reserve Service Help Alleviate Military Shortfalls?
Changes in employment stability, family structure, and economic pressures have created challenges for the U.S. military reserve component. Modifying assumptions about Reserve duty can improve recruitment, performance, development, and retention.
Sep 11, 2019
Report
Main Command Post-Operational Detachments (MCP-ODs) and Division Headquarters Readiness
Researchers identify the effects of Focus Area Review Group II headquarters design and its new unit type -- the Main Command Post--Operational Detachment -- on division headquarters readiness.
Jun 3, 2019
Report
Service Member Separation: Updating the DD Form 214
This report offers suggestions for updating DD Form 214, which is used to characterize separating servicemembers' service, military history, and the reasons for separation, for electronic delivery.
May 14, 2019
Report
A Stated Preference Analysis of the Determinants of Unit and Soldier Operational Effectiveness
The authors assess the relative importance of component status relative to a number of potential determinants of operational effectiveness, including but not limited to unit type, training level, experience in country, and associated costs and risk.
May 13, 2019
Report
A Throughput-Based Analysis of Army Active Component/Reserve Component Mix for Major Contingency Surge Operations
This report examines how changing the way in which the Army executes mobilization and contingency planning can affect the ratio of reserve component to active component units deploying in the early weeks of a major crisis.
May 8, 2019
Report
Effects of the Blended Retirement System on U.S. Army Reserve Participation and Cost
The new Blended Retirement System (BRS) represents the first major change to the armed services' retirement system since the end of World War II. An analysis assesses the potential impact of the BRS on the U.S. Army Reserve participation and continuation pay cost and provides predictions of opt-in behavior.
Apr 15, 2019
Report
Officer Career Management: Steps Toward Modernization in the 2018 and 2019 National Defense Authorization Acts
In this report, the authors summarize departmental views on the military officer career management policies examined in the two reports required by the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act and provide data to inform potential policy changes.
Mar 25, 2019
Report
Integrating Active and Reserve Component Staff Organizations: Improving the Chances of Success
A RAND Corporation study undertook a literature review and analysis of several case studies to examine factors that could increase the likelihood of success in integrating active and reserve component military staff organizations.
Feb 11, 2019
Commentary
Planning an Army for the 21st Century: Principles to Guide U.S. Army Force Size, Mix, and Component Distribution
In this Perspective, the authors seek to provide criteria for an effective and efficient Army for the 21st century and lay out principles to help guide leaders in making contemporary force-planning decisions.
Dec 3, 2018
Report
National Guard Youth ChalleNGe: Program Progress in 2016–2017
This report presents information on recent participants of the National Guard Youth ChalleNGe, a quasi-military program for young people lacking a high school diploma. It also documents program progress in academics, fitness, and other areas.
Aug 20, 2018
Report
How Does Deployment Experience Compare Across the Services?
Deployments are a key aspect of U.S. military service. Since 9/11, 2.77 million service members have served on 5.4 million deployments. Accrued time deployed is a relevant metric for measuring military experience, but also for measuring service member and family well-being.
Mar 6, 2018

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RAND Topic:
Military Reserves

Research conducted by

Researcher Spotlight

Kelly Atkinson

Political Scientist

Kelly Atkinson (she/her) is a political scientist at the RAND Corporation. Her research interests include human security, international security, gender policy, the Women Peace and Security policy agenda, diversity equity and inclusion, childcare, and military personnel readiness issues. She has…
Daniel B. Ginsberg

Associate Director, Personnel, Readiness, and Health Program

Daniel Ginsberg is the associate director of the Personnel, Readiness, and Health Program (PRH) of the RAND National Security Research Division, and a senior international and defense researcher at the RAND Corporation. His research has centered on organizational assessments of federal agencies,…

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