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Academic Calendar and Class Schedule

Academic Year 2026-2027

Note: These dates are subject to change. Students should check their program calendars for the most up-to-date information.

The 2025-2026  Academic Year will begin on Tuesday, 4 August 2026 with U.S. Student Arrival & In-Processing for our Ft. McNair campus. Convocation and orientation will take place the remainder of that week.

The 2025-2026  Academic Year will begin on Tuesday, 4 August 2026 with U.S. Student Arrival & In-Processing for our Ft. Bragg campus. 

Quarter 1 (Q1)

10 August – 9 October 2026

Regional Defense Fellowship Program (Senior Service College – Fort McNair)

  • Joint & Combined Warfighting Course (JCWC – JPME II)
  • Foundations of Irregular Warfare
  • Power, Ideology, and Legitimacy
  • Research & Writing in Security Studies
  • Practitioner Engagement Course (PEC I)

Joint Special Operations Master of Arts Program (Fort Bragg)

  • Joint & Combined Warfighting Course (JCWC – JPME I)
  • Foundations of Irregular Warfare
  • Power, Ideology, and Legitimacy
  • SOF & Irregular Warfare
  • Research & Analysis for Warfighters
  • Triangle Institute for Security Studies – Program 1

Quarter 2 (Q2)

13 October – 18 December 2026

Regional Defense Fellowship Program (Senior Service College – Fort McNair)

  • Joint & Combined Warfighting Course (JCWC – JPME II)
  • International Security Studies
  • Dynamics of Irregular Warfare

Joint Special Operations Master of Arts Program (Fort Bragg)

  • Joint & Combined Warfighting Course (JCWC – JPME I)
  • International Security Studies
  • Foundations Courses (2–3 credits)
  • Research & Analysis for Warfighters

Break

  • Holiday Break: Late December

Quarter 3 (Q3)

4 January – 12 March 2027

Regional Defense Fellowship Program (Senior Service College – Fort McNair)

  • Joint & Combined Warfighting Course (JCWC – JPME II)
  • Strategic Thought
  • Countering Irregular Warfare
  • CISA Elective 1

Joint Special Operations Master of Arts Program (Fort Bragg)

  • Joint & Combined Warfighting Course (JCWC – JPME I)
  • Strategic Thought
  • Broadening Courses – Regional
  • Triangle Institute for Security Studies – Program 2

Quarter 4 (Q4)

15 March – 21 May 2027

Regional Defense Fellowship Program (Senior Service College – Fort McNair)

  • Joint & Combined Warfighting Course (JCWC – JPME II) (final phase)
  • Countering Irregular Warfare (continued)
  • Portfolio Advising and Defense
  • CISA Elective 2

Joint Special Operations Master of Arts Program (Fort Bragg)

  • Joint & Combined Warfighting Course (JCWC – JPME I)
  • Broadening Courses – Applications
  • Portfolio Preparation and Defense

Key Academic & Program Events

  • IF ISMO NYC (International Fellows): May 2027
  • Practitioner Engagement Course II (PEC II): May 2027
  • WARR Week (Writing, Advising, Reading, Research): 17–21 May 2027
  • Irregular Warfare Symposium: Mid-May 2027
  • Capstone Exercise: Late May 2027
  • Outprocessing: Late May – Early June 2027

Capstone Event

  • NDU End-of-Year Exercise: 24–28 May 2027

Graduation

  • JSOMA (Fort Bragg): 4 June 2027
  • RDFP (Fort McNair): 11 June 2027

Notes for Students

  • FIW, PIL, ISS, and Strategic Thought are core courses across both programs
  • JCWC runs throughout the academic year (JPME II for RDFP; JPME I for JSOMA)

Program Calendars

Each program has an online calendar that will be used to coordinate the teaching schedule and important dates/events. For students who would like to view the schedule for specific classes, please log-in to NDU's Blackboard portal which is available here. 

In case of weather delays, CISA follows the guidance from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) on government closing. For information on CISA class schedules for two-hour weather delays, click here for OPM weather delay information.