JPSY_V2_N2_RP3 Brian Roller Lee E. Doerries Journal on Educational Psychology 2230 – 7141 2 2 43 46 Military, U.S. Military Academies, Occupational inheritance, careers Occupational inheritance refers to the phenomenon where sons and daughters follow in the career paths of their parents. Historically this has been documented in the areas of engineering, medicine and education. This study investigated the phenomenon of occupational inheritance as it pertains to military service. Archival data provided by the United States Military Academy (USMA), the United States Naval Academy (USNA), and the United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) totaled 15,831 cadets and midshipmen for the classes of 2002-2005 at the USMA and USNA and for 2006-2009 at the USAFA. Results confirmed the existence of occupational inheritance in the military but found no difference in graduation rates between military dependents and non-military dependents. Analysis also revealed statistically significant differences in the number of military dependents attending the three academies. August - October 2008 Copyright & copy; 2008 i-manager publications. All rights reserved. i-manager Publications http://www.imanagerpublications.com/Article.aspx?ArticleId=348