The Pentagon has initiated a six-month assessment of women serving in ground combat positions, according to a memo obtained by NPR.

The memo directs Army and Marine Corps leaders to provide comprehensive data on the readiness, training, performance, casualty rates, and command climate of ground combat units by January 15. The review, ordered by Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel Anthony Tata, looks to determine the “operational effectiveness of ground combat units 10 years after the Department lifted all remaining restrictions on women serving in combat roles.”

The seven-page memo requests that military branches supply contacts to the Institute for Defense Analyses, a nonprofit organization that assists the government on national security matters. The data required includes “all available metrics describing that individual’s readiness and ability to deploy (including physical, medical, and other measures of ability to deploy)”.​

Additionally, the Pentagon is seeking any internal research and studies on “the integration of women in combat” that have not been made public.

The review comes under Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, an Army National Guard veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan and has been vocal in his opposition to women in ground combat roles. During a November 2024 podcast, Hegseth stated, “I’m straight up saying we should not have women in combat roles. It hasn’t made us more effective. Hasn’t made us more lethal. Has made fighting more complicated”.​

However, Hegseth moderated his position during his Senate confirmation hearing, saying women could serve in combat roles if they meet the same standards as men. In a September address at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia, he announced that combat positions must return to “the highest male standard,” adding, “If that means no women qualify for some combat jobs, so be it. That is not the intent, but it could be the result.”

Approximately 3,800 women serve in the Army’s infantry, armor, and artillery fields, with over 150 completing the rigorous Ranger training and about 10 passing Green Beret training. The Marine Corps has approximately 700 women in similar combat positions.​

All female personnel in these roles are required to meet the same standards as their male counterparts, a policy that has been in place since 2015 when then-Defense Secretary Ash Carter lifted all remaining barriers to women serving in combat positions.