Army ROTC

Head: James B. Cogbill, Colonel, U.S. Army
Professor: J. B. Cogbill
Assistant Professors: C. Armstrong, H. Johnson, I. McBride, D. Gallagan, E. Miller
Advisor: (540) 231-6401

Web: www.armyrotc.vt.edu

Overview

The Department of Military Science provides a program of leader development which prepares college men and women for service as officers in the United States Army. After graduation, they serve as commissioned officers on active duty, in the Army Reserves, or in the Army National Guard. To accomplish this, the department:

• Prepares Cadets to be commissioned as Second Lieutenants through a curriculum which develops leadership skills and provides opportunities to utilize these skills in a variety of experiential learning environments.
• Provides an understanding of how to lead and influence small organizations, with a strong emphasis on personal integrity, adaptability, critical thinking, innovation, agility, ethical decision making, goal setting, and mission accomplishment.
• Offers individual training including rappelling, land-navigation, marksmanship, and, for selected students, airborne, air assault, or combat diver training. Army sponsored international programs for cultural awareness and language training as well as internships with Army units and federal agencies worldwide are also offered during the summer.
• In conjunction with the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets, provides programs and experiences which increase self-confidence, self-discipline, physical stamina, resilience, and other attributes essential to the development of a leader of character--one who is prepared to serve the nation or community either in or out of uniform.

The curriculum and leader development programs of the Department of Military Science are mentally and physically challenging. Cadets learn individual soldier skills and participate in physical conditioning for all four years. On-campus instruction is done both in the classroom and in the field environment. Lab training and leadership development exercises expand the general knowledge of Cadets and provide opportunities for practical leadership experience. A six-week Leadership Development and Assessment Course is mandatory the summer between junior and senior year; the course is held at Fort Knox, Kentucky.

• Military Science I (freshmen) includes the semesters Introduction to the Army and Foundations of Agile and Adaptive Leadership. Cadets accept the Army as a Values-based organization and embrace the scholar-athlete-warrior ethos. They examine roles and responsibilities in military problem solving, the Army Leadership Requirements Model and traits necessary for effective small-unit leadership such as critical thinking, time management, and communication.
• Military Science II (sophomores) includes the semesters Leadership and Decision Making and Army Doctrine and Team Development. Cadets become grounded in the fundamentals of the Army Profession (Army Values, The Warrior Ethos, The Army Ethic), the foundational Army leadership doctrine, the Army's eight Troop Leading Procedures, the value of diversity, and an officer's role in leading change.
• Military Science III (juniors) includes the semesters Training Management and The Warfighting Functions and Applied Leadership in Small Unit Operations. Cadets examine and apply the individual and collective leadership skills to lead a platoon formation (up to 40 personnel) and train on giving and receiving peer evaluations, the fundamentals of organizational training management, and how the Army operates through the Warfighting Functions (such as mission command and movement and maneuver).
• Military Science IV (seniors) includes the semesters The Army Officer and Company Grade Leadership.

Army ROTC offers the conventional four-year military science program where a student enters as a freshman. A three-year program for sophomores is also available. Additionally, a two-year program is offered for juniors and graduate students in some limited cases. Placement credit may be awarded to students with prior Air Force, Navy, or Marine Corps ROTC experience, students with prior or current military service, or to those students who volunteer for additional summer training at Fort Knox, Kentucky.

Scholarships covering full tuition and fees are available for entering freshman though a High School National Army ROTC Scholarship Board process. Applications for these scholarships are available on-line at www.goarmy.com/rotc. Otherwise, Cadets enrolled in Army ROTC can compete for Campus Based scholarships through the department's Recruiting Operations Officer. All contracted Cadets (scholarship or non-scholarship) enrolled in the junior and senior years of ROTC are paid a tax-free monthly stipend of $420.00 for ten months during the school year. Membership in the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets is a pre-requisite for all ROTC classes. The cost of cadet uniforms is paid by a special Army uniform allowance provided to each enrolled Cadet.

Minor in Leadership and Service

Satisfactory completion of the 26-credit military science curriculum will qualify each Cadet for a minor in Leadership and Service awarded by the Virginia Tech College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences.

Undergraduate Course Descriptions (MS)

1005,1006: MILITARY SCIENCE I, ARMY RESERVE OFFICER TRAINING CORPS First year of military science. MS 1005: "Introduction to the Army" introduces the personal challenges and competencies that are critical for effective leadership and communication. Student learning focuses on developing individual and interactive skills. Students learn how cultural understanding, goal setting, time management, stress management, and comprehensive fitness relates to leadership and the Army profession. Students further learn the ROTC course structure and progression, and are immersed into Army organizational culture via classroom instruction, physical fitness training, and leadership labs. MS 1006: "Foundations of Agile and Adaptive Leadership" introduces students to basic knowledge required to be a successful member of a military team, to include the U.S. Army’s mission, its role and relationship in the American governance system, U.S. military customs and courtesies, operational terms and graphics, map reading, land navigation squad tactics, the "Army Values" and "Warrior Ethos." This course includes reading assignments, homework assignments, practical exercises, a mid-term exam, and a final exam. Students receive systematic and specific feedback on leader attributes, values, and core leader competencies throughout the course. Successful completion of this course will help prepare cadets for Military Sci II, AROTC. (1H,3L,2C)

2005,2006: MILITARY SCIENCE II, ARMY RESERVE OFFICER TRAINING CORPS Second year of military science. 2005: "Troop Leading Procedures" focuses on operations order production, leadership principles and styles, ethical and moral reasoning, land navigation and intermediate squad and platoon tactics. Required participation: leadership lab, physical training and field training exercises. 2006: "Unified Land Operations" focuses on doctrine and symbology, principles of joint operations, intermediate small unit tactics and leadership, effective communication, team building, counseling and coaching methods, code of conduct and law of land warfare. Required participation: leadership lab, physical training and field training exercises. Pre: 1005, 1006. (1H,6L,3C)

2974: INDEPENDENT STUDY Variable credit course.

2984: SPECIAL STUDY Variable credit course.

3005,3006: MILITARY SCIENCE III, ARMY RESERVE OFFICER TRAINING CORPS Third year of military science. 3005: "Training management and the warfighting functions" focuses on unified land operations, troop leading procedures, operations order production, written and oral communication, training management, squad leadership and tactics, squad and platoon offense/defense, land navigation, after action reviews, leadership, and physical training. Required participation: leadership lab, physical training and field training exercises. 3006: Applied leadership in small unit operations, squad and platoons offense/defense, basic rifle marksmanship, written and oral communication, land navigation, fires support to dismounted operations, leadership, physical training and preparation for advanced camp. Required participation: leadership lab, physical training and weekend field training exercises. Pre: 2005, 2006. (3H,3L,4C)

4005,4006: MILITARY SCIENCE IV, ARMY RESERVE OFFICER TRAINING CORPS Fourth year of military science. 4005: "The Army Officer" focuses on development of the Army officer. It is an academically challenging course where students develop knowledge, skills, and abilities to plan, resource, and assess training at the small unit level. Students learn about Army programs that support counseling subordinates and evaluating performance, applying values and ethics to organizational problems, career planning, and legal responsibilities. Required participation: leadership lab, physical training and field training exercises. 4006: Company Grade Leadership focuses on preparing students to fulfill key leadership roles at the company level. This is an academically challenging course where students study, practice, develop, and apply critical thinking skills pertaining to Army leadership, officer skills, Army values and ethics, personal development, small unit tactics, platoon level leadership. Required participation: leadership lab, physical training and weekend field training exercises. Pre: 3005, 3006. (3H,3L,4C)

4964: FIELD STUDY Pass/Fail only. Variable credit course.

4974: INDEPENDENT STUDY Variable credit course.

4984: SPECIAL STUDY Variable credit course.