Dan Knudson

Lieutenant Colonel Dan Knudson is the 2025-2026 U.S. Marine Corps' Fellow at MIT's Security Studies Program. He graduated magna cum laude from the University of Missouri-Columbia with a Bachelor of Science and a Master in Accountancy. After passing the Certified Public Accountant exam, he worked as an financial statement auditor for PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC). He received a commission in the United States Marine Corps in December 2005. As a company grade officer and Air Support Control Officer, he served at Marine Air Support Squadron (MASS) 3, where he deployed twice in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. While serving as an instructor, graduated from Marine Aviation Weapons and Tactics Squadron 1's Weapons and Tactics Instructor Course. He deployed once in support of Operation Enduring Freedom while serving at MASS-1. He graduated with distinction from the Naval Postgraduate School with a Master of Science in Information Technology Management, after which he worked at Headquarters Marine Corps coordinating modernization efforts for the Manpower IT portfolio. He subsequently served for five years in Okinawa, Japan, including command of MASS-2 for two years. 

Dan's awards include the Meritorious Service Medal, the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal with two gold stars, the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal with one gold star, and the Army Achievement Medal.