STRUCTURAL AND CONTENT-RELATED FEATURES OF THE EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM OF THE US MILITARY ACADEMY

Abstract

The aim of the article is to highlight the structural and content features of the educational program of the US Military Academy at West Point in the context of modern trends in the development of American higher education. The study exploited a complex of general scientific methods: analysis, synthesis, generalization and systematization of scholarly sources and regulatory and educational documents, which allowed considering the educational program of the Academy at West Point as a holistic integrated system of professional training of future officers. It was established that the educational model of West Point is based on a combination of academic, military-professional, moral-ethical, physical and leadership training. It was found that the structure of the program consists of a basic general educational component and professional training. The key areas of cadet training are outlined and characterized: communication, critical thinking, ethical judgment, lifelong learning, STEM training, humanities and social sciences, as well as advanced professional training. Particular attention is paid to the integration of language and engineering education into the process of forming professional competencies of a future officer in the USA. It was found that the combination of language training, the development of intercultural communication and engineering and technological knowledge contributes to the formation of an officer capable of acting effectively in the conditions of a modern digitalized and multinational security environment. It is noted that important areas of training cadets at West Point are the development of systems thinking, the ability to intercultural interaction and activity in the conditions of digitalization of the military sphere. The educational program of the US Military Academy at West Point is a comprehensive interdisciplinary system aimed at forming a professionally competent officer-leader capable of acting effectively in the conditions of modern security challenges, technological changes and a globalized environment.