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‘Much to think about’: naval academy leaders meet in Dartmouth to discuss recruiting and training future leaders
8 July 2025
Heads of the world’s premier naval academies will converge on the spiritual home of the Royal Navy officer corps to discuss the challenges of recruiting and training the leaders of tomorrow.
Britannia Royal Naval College in Dartmouth is hosting experts and senior officers from some fifteen countries representing the world’s most famous maritime establishments for their annual conference debating the most pressing issues of the day.
It’s the 23rd time they have met as European Naval Superintendents’ (ENASC) and over the three days they will be hosted by Captain Andy Bray and his staff at the world-famous naval college.
Britannia is celebrating its 120th anniversary this year (although training naval leaders on the Dart goes back to the 1860s) and this year will provide the Royal Navy with around 400 newly-qualified junior officers and young leaders for international navies. The Superintendent’s conference is one of many events BRNC will be hosting in celebration of its 120 year history; from hosting former Prime Ministers, opening its doors to the public for its bi-annual open day or hosting the annual fiercely fought inter service collegiate games, the superintendents conference offers another opportunity to mark this birthday in style!
Commanding Officers from the naval colleges and academies represented included: Greece, Norway, Germany, France, Poland, Romania, Sweden, Ireland, Türkiye, plus the US Naval College at Annapolis, and the US Coast Guard Academy in Connecticut. Delegates will be presented with a series of talks/lectures discussions and workshops with the conference offering the chance to share ideas and best practices around officer training. ENASC's aim is to encourage collaboration and idea exchange between the academies.
“Navies work better together,” said Captain Bray. “The opportunity to welcome so many commanding officers and superintendents from across Europe and North America was a privilege.
“I enjoyed the conversation, discussing shared challenges and most excitingly the opportunities. My sincere thanks to everyone who made conversation possible, I know the latest class of Royal Navy leaders will have much to think about."
This was a fantastic collaborative event between Allied navies and educational partners.
Rear Admiral Michael Johnston, Superintendent of the US Coast Guard Academy, added: “Strengthening partnerships with European naval academies is essential.
“Global maritime challenges require unity, trust, and collaboration. I look forward to deepening our ties and working together to ensure a safe, secure, and rules-based maritime order through partnerships in education.”
Keynote speaker Rear Admiral Jude Terry, the Royal Navy’s Director People and Training, opened the conference by providing her insights into the Royal Navy of today, and offering her views on how we train our officers to lead navies of the future.
Admiral Terry said it had been “a real privilege” to deliver the principal address.
She continued: “We all face similar challenges in delivering modern and relevant training and education which is tailored to individuals, recognises societal changes and opportunities and ensures we maintain the warfighting edge in an increasingly challenging geopolitical context.
“It's clear our recruits are committed to delivering our mission, driven by career opportunities and embracing the teamwork and leadership that we all craved when we joined.
“We all agreed we will deliver better sailors and marines by adapting, embracing technology, and challenging ourselves to continually learn, working with allies and partners across industry and academia to deliver relevant training at the point of need. An inspiring and honest conversation over the two days with leaders committed to defence.”
Also, up for discussion was how to instil the art of leadership into a modern maritime force; how we generate the right culture to ensure that all our navies are the best they can be; and the importance of strategic thinking as the cadets passing through colleges and academies, like Britannia, will shape how our navies fight and operate.
“This was a fantastic collaborative event between Allied navies and educational partners,” said Dr Anna Brinkman, Director of Academic Studies and Associate Professor, Maritime Studies Centre Dartmouth, University of Lincoln.
“Great conversations looking at people and culture, how we train, why we train and the intellectual foundations to make all Allied navies fighting and thinking maritime forces.”