The Elective Program complements the core curriculum by providing courses tailored to the diversified needs of students in joint education. The objective of this program is for students to develop fuller understanding and depth of knowledge in areas relating to their combatant command and their joint staff functions, and to better prepare themselves, in general, for joint duty.
Each student takes either two four-week or one eight-week elective. Students assigned less than six months or en route to one of the ten Combatant Commands take the elective specific to their assignment.
The Elective Program permits students to conduct in-depth study of an issue or issues they find particularly useful or intriguing during their education at the Joint Forces Staff College. Members of the faculty, adjunct professors from the local area, and regional guest speakers teach an elective. Normally they teach an elective on Wednesday mornings. Students assigned less than six months or en route to one of the ten Combatant Commands take the elective specific to their assignment , i.e., if you are en route to CENTCOM, you take the CENTCOM Elective.
Assignments to an elective are NOT made during the registration process.
Elective assignments are made during the first week of class.
During the registration process in the JFSC Data Enterprise System (DES), each JCWS student selects and prioritizes their electives IAW the DES instructions.
The following is a list of electives normally offered.
The electives offered may change based on enrollment and/or availability of faculty.
| Course Title |
| USAFRICOM Regional Studies |
| USCENTCOM Regional Studies # |
| USEUCOM Regional Studies |
| USJFCOM # |
| USNORTHCOM # |
| USPACOM Regional Security Studies |
| USSOCOM Joint Special Operations in the 21st Century # |
| USSOUTHCOM Regional Studies |
| USSTRATCOM: Expanding Global Missions # |
| USTRANSCOM Defense Transportation System |
| *********** *********** *********** |
| Air and Space Power Integration and Employment for the Joint Force Commander# |
| Campaigning at the Operational Level of War |
| Combating Weapons of Mass Destruction (CWMD) # |
| Command and Control of U.S. Forces: The Heart of the Art |
| Command Leadership Team: A Focus on Command Senior Enlisted Leaders |
| Counter-Terrorism: The Interagency and Intelligence* |
| The Far War: A Strategic Overview of Homeland Security, Transformation and the Nature of Militant Islam |
| From Small Wars to Next Wars: The Role of the Interagency Coordination in Policy Implementation |
| Intelligence Community Perspectives |
| Introduction to Information Operations (IO) # |
| Irregular Warfare 101 |
| Joint Center for Operational Analysis Case Studies# |
| Joint Command, Control, Communications, Computers * |
| Joint Intelligence, Surveillance, & Reconnaissance * |
| Joint Logistics |
| Low Intensity Conflict: Insurgency and Counterinsurgency Warfare: Theory, Case Studies and Applications |
| Military Ethics: Just War -- Just Peace |
| NATO, The Combined Command and Issues |
| Operationalizing Knowledge Management in an Information Age |
| Perspectives on Islam and Islamic Radicalism |
| Stability Operations : Concepts and Planning Considerations |
| Strategic Vulnerabilities |
| U.S. Interagency* |
| WMD: Joint Consequence Management |
| Yorktown Campaign of 1781 |