About the United States Coast Guard Academy

The United States Coast Guard Academy at New London, Connecticut, is one of the five United States Federal Service Academies offering undergraduate education. It is supported by the Federal Government and operated within the authority of the Department of Homeland Security. Because of this, it is the intellectual powerhouse for the Department of Homeland Security and the principal source of graduates with technical degrees for the United States Coast Guard officer corps. The four years that cadets spend at the Coast Guard Academy build a fundamental foundation of leadership development and intellectual growth. Graduates earn a Bachelor of Science and are commissioned as Ensigns in the United States Coast Guard thus beginning their service to the nation and humanity in the nation’s oldest continuous seagoing service.

Mission

To graduate young men and women with sound bodies, stout hearts and alert minds, with a liking for the sea and its lore, with that high sense of honor, loyalty and obedience which goes with trained initiative and leadership; well-grounded in seamanship, the sciences and amenities, and strong in the resolve to be worthy of the traditions of commissioned officers in the United States Coast Guard in the service of their country and humanity.

Honor Concept

Cadets are expected to conduct themselves in accordance with an Honor Concept, which requires that “Cadets neither lie, cheat, steal, nor attempt to deceive.” Each individual must integrate this concept into their way of life so that it becomes the foundation on which to base interactions with all people, both in the Coast Guard and in society as a whole.

The Honor Concept establishes an atmosphere of mutual trust and integrity within both the Corps of Cadets and the Coast Guard Officer Corps. It is essential that authentic relationships among Coast Guard personnel are established at the earliest point in time, and for this reason, the Corps of Cadets must be guided by the Concept:

“CADETS REVERE HONOR”

The Honor Concept is so fundamental to the qualifications of an individual aspiring to be an officer in the Coast Guard that a failure to adhere to its tenets is considered to be a major deficiency in a person’s suitability for commissioning. For this reason, breaches of the Honor Concept are considered to be serious offenses that potentially result in disenrollment from the Academy.

Academy Milestones

1790 Alexander Hamilton developed fiscal plans and economic policies for the United States. On August 4, 1790, Congress passed the Tariff Act, creating a United States Revenue Cutter Service.

1876 Legislation was passed granting permission to establish a cadet-training program within the U.S. Revenue Cutter Service.

1876 The first home for the “Academy” was established on the Revenue Cutter DOBBIN. Nine cadets were selected by competitive examination.

1902 “Scientiae Cedit Mare” was adopted as the Academy motto.

1915 The Life Saving Service joined the Revenue Cutter Service to form the “U.S. Coast Guard.”

1932 The Academy moved from Fort Trumbull to its present location.

1939 The Academy was accredited by the Engineers’ Council for Professional Development (ECPD) under “General Engineering.”

1940 The Academy was accredited by the Association of American Universities.

1941 The Academy was given authority to grant Bachelor of Science degrees.

1946 The Barque EAGLE, a prize of war, was commissioned into the U.S. Coast Guard.

1953 The Academy was accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC).

1966 First African American and Native American Academy graduates.

1973 Electrical, Marine, and Ocean Engineering programs were accredited by ECPD.

1976 Women were first admitted to the Academy.

1978 The Civil Engineering program was accredited by the Engineers’ Council for Professional Development (ECPD).

1980 Engineers’ Council for Professional Development (ECPD) renamed the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET).

1996 The Mechanical Engineering program was accredited by ABET.

2005 The Academy and its Management degree program received initial accreditation by AACSB International – the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business.

2018 NEASC becomes the New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE).

2021 The Academy installs its first Provost.

2021 The Geospatial Intelligence Certificate Program is accredited by the United States Geospatial Intelligence Foundation (USGIF)

2023 The Marine and Environmental Sciences program was accredited by ABET.

Human Relations Statement

The United States Coast Guard Academy is an equal opportunity employer guided by applicable Federal laws and regulations. The Academy is committed to the principles of fair treatment and equal opportunity. We recruit, educate, train and employ personnel based on merit so that each individual can excel and reach his or her maximum potential without regard to gender, race, color, religion, national origin, reprisal, sexual orientation and/or where applicable, age (over 40) and/or physical or mental disability. The Academy is also committed to achieving and maintaining a multicultural environment that values the richness brought by diversity and encourages the full participation of all its members. To this end, we promote diversity and strategies to overcome under-representation, discrimination, and acts of intolerance, thereby creating a positive and productive place in which to learn, work, and live. You, as a cadet and Coast Guard member, are strongly urged to dedicate yourself to these principles of fairness, valuing diversity, and respect to ensure they are fully embraced and carried out in your day-to-day actions. Furthermore, the Academy leadership fully embraces the Coast Guard’s Core Values of Honor, Respect, and Devotion to Duty.

Information about the U.S. Coast Guard’s Civil Rights Program can be obtained from the Region 1 Zone 2 Civil Rights Directorate, U.S. Coast Guard Academy, 15 Mohegan Avenue, New London, CT 06320-4195.

Inquiries about the U.S Coast Guard Academy’s equity, inclusion, and diversity efforts can be directed to Dr. Aram deKoven, Chief Diversity Officer, 15 Mohegan Avenue, New London, CT 06320-4195.

Disclosure of Information

The Privacy Act of 1974 provides individuals with certain safeguards against an invasion of personal privacy. Specific items of information requested by a person about another person are prohibited from disclosure. Cadets and other government employees shall not disclose the home address, home telephone number, number of dependents, withholdings, allotments, and social security number of cadets or Coast Guard employees. However, the name, rank or rate, date of rank, salary, duty status, past, present, and future duty station, duty station address, office telephone, source of commission, military and civilian education level and promotion sequence number may be revealed to anyone who submits a Freedom of Information Request.