Warrior Leader Course
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Warrior Leader Course (or WLC), formerly Primary Leadership Development Course (PLDC), is the first course of study in the US Army Non-Commissioned Officer Education System. It is open to specialists, corporals and sergeants. Candidates to WLC are chosen on the basis of several factors, including rank, time in grade, promotable status, promotion zone, time in service, and physical fitness. The next level of education is Basic Non-Commissioned Officer Course (BNOC), followed by the Advanced Noncommissioned Officer Course (ANOC).
The course of study is non-specific to the soldier's military occupational specialty and includes leadership, problem solving, developmental counseling, map reading, land navigation, physical fitness, survival, first aid, drill and ceremony, and many other skills. The course includes a field exercise with hands-on training. Students are required to stay at the WLC campus for the duration of the four week course. Alternatively, there is an abbreviated two week version of this course that is offered periodically to support rapid deployments of personnel. The school is not centralized, and many of the larger Army installations of Non-Commissioned Officer Academies (NCOAs) that offer WLC. Sergeants are required to attend this course before consideration for promotion to Staff Sergeant.
The course is generally considered to be an "intense" course, where the soldier is given little time to accomplish many different tasks, with a Small Group Leader (SGL) closely supervising nearly everything the student does. The SGL provides motivation through both negative and positive reinforcement. Personal time is kept to a minimum, especially in the abbreviate two week course.
Graduates of WLC are awarded the NCO Professional Development Ribbon.
