The term "military academy" generally covers a range of educational colleges from grade 6 to grade 12. These colleges may also be called colleges or military institutes. The five military junior colleges in the U.S. are Wentworth Military Academy, Valley Forge Military Academy, Marion Military Institute, New Mexico Military Institute and Georgia Military College. These colleges offer tuition to middle school, high school and two-year college-level programs. Graduates do not have to join the service but can become commissioned officers after finishing the two-year college-level course.
The six senior military colleges in the U.S. are located in regular universities and three military-specific universities. The regular universities that act as senior military colleges are Texas A&M University, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and North Georgia College and State University. The military-specific institutions are Norwich University, the Citadel and the Virginia Military Institute. These colleges are designed to train students in a military ethos as part of a corps body, but a graduate does not have to join the service after finishing his degree. He can instead choose to take a completely civilian path. If he wishes to join the military, he is qualified to join as a commissioned officer and not as an enlisted man. A student must pay tuition and fees, but he may also be able to avail himself of scholarships and grants.
The U.S. has four service academies, one of which is the West Point Military Academy. These service academies (the others are the U.S. Naval Academy, U.S. Air Force Academy and U.S. Coast Guard Academy) provide a free four-year education to students, who graduate with a bachelor's degree. In return for the free education, medical care and board, a graduate of one of these academies must serve for five years in her military specialization.
Another group of military academies encompasses the senior enlisted academies. These academies are for enlisted men in the Army, Navy, Coast Guard or Air Force who hold the rank of sergeant or equivalent. For example, the Air Force Senior NCO Academy provides senior master sergeants with leadership and communication training. This type of academy lasts six weeks or less.