“...officers to get a college degree if they didn’t already have one. Now I believe it IS a requirement...”
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While Highly recommended, not a requirement.
Enlisted personnel can go through “OCS” (Officer Candidate School) to be commissioned. However, they won’t go very far without a degree.
Depends on the service, I would guess. I had assignments at the Signal Corps Officer Basic Training company before going to RVN, and at the Artillery Officer Candidate School after I came back. Even then, in the late sixties, an Army officer had no career without a college degree. Sure, you could get a commission without one. Fifty years ago. Infantry platoon leaders were in, shall we say, short supply.
Today, you need a degree to earn promotion to senior non-commissioned ranks. Do they really commission people without one?