Civil Affairs Officers are experts in acting as a liaison between the Army and civilian authorities and populations. In many respects, Civil Affairs Officers have to share the same skills as a public relations executive in the civilian world. Civil Affairs Officers many times must facilitate relationships between U.S. military forces and the people of the nation(s) in which those forces are operating.
The Civil Affairs officer combines regional expertise, language competency, political-military awareness, cross-cultural communication and professional military skills to conduct Civil Affairs operations and support Civil-Military operations in support of conventional and special operations forces. Civil Affairs involve humanitarian assistance, populace and resources control, support to civil administration, foreign nation support, emergency services and military-civic action. CA officers' unique knowledge and expertise enable them to command and coordinate CA operations that are planned, executed and transitioned to mitigate or defeat on-going or future regional and/or global civil threats. CA forms the nucleus of the Army's CMO expertise for Army Special Operations (ARSOF) and conventional forces.
The responsibilities of a Civil Affairs Team Leader may include:
- Commanding and controlling Civil Affairs operations and combined armed forces during combat and peacetime.
- Coordinate employment of Civil Affairs Soldiers at all levels of command, from platoon to battalion and higher, in U.S. and multi-national operations.
Civil Affairs Officers may continue in the Operations career field, serving in Civil Affairs at ever increasing levels of leadership and responsibility. Responsibilities of a Civil Affairs Captain may include:
- Commanding and controlling team or detachment-sized Civil Affairs units (4-20 Soldiers).
- Coordinate employment of Civil Affairs Soldiers and the execution of Civil Affairs actions across the full range of military operations include U.S., joint, interagency and multi-national operations.
- Develop doctrine, organizations and equipment for unique Civil Affairs missions.
- Instruct Civil Affairs skills at service schools and combat training centers.
- Serve as a Civil Affairs advisor to other units, including Army National Guard and U.S. Army Reserve organizations.
The skills you learn as a Civil Affairs Officer will help prepare you for a future with the US State Department, non-governmental and relief organizations, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Homeland Defense, and public administration. You'll be qualified to pursue a career as a senior executive, public administrator, project manager, or research analyst.
Phone, Fax & E-mail
Phone: 918-444-3067
Fax: 918-444-3065
E-mail: nsurotc@nsuok.edu
