In November 1945, Anderson returned to the United States and served in a wide variety of post-war assignments, including as a student at the Marine Corps Command and Staff College, Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia; Administration Officer, Division of Aviation, Headquarters Marine Corps (HQMC); and as the administration assistant to the assistant commandant for air, HQMC. He was promoted to lieutenant colonel in July 1949 and assigned to the Office of the Judge Advocate General, where he served in various branches while a post-graduate student at The George Washington University Law School.