Cross Towns
Southern Illinois University Carbondale - Detachment 205

New Cadet Information

Air Force ROTC and Your Future

This country's future as the world's leading military power depends largely on its leaders. The Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps helps support this role by preparing young men and women for military leadership. Our military know-how and your desire for a challenging career make a great combination. We'll provide the training for you to assume positions of increasing responsibility in today's high-tech environment.

We need young officers to fly our sophisticated aircraft, to operate high-speed computers, to work in research and development, and to specialize in fields such as law and medicine. There are many technical and non-technical specailties in the Air Force so even if you're a liberal arts graduate, there are opportunities in the Air Force for you too.

The Air Force ROTC mission has changed very little over the years. We still recruit, educate, and prepare college graduates to be Air Force officers. We continue to provide opportunities for thousands of college graduates each year in ROTC programs around the country.

We offer scholarships to help you complete your bachelor's degree, leadership training to prepare you to meet the challenges of your future, and the pride and prestige of being an officer in the United States Air Force.
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Choose From Three Programs

Air Force ROTC offers a Four-Year Program, a Two-Year Program and a One-Year Program. Most cadets go through the Four-Year Program.  It's tailored for students with three or more years of college left. If you have two years of college remaining, you may apply for the Two-Year Program.  The One-Year Program is for students preparing for occupations for which the Air Force has a special need, such as law and nursing.
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Four-Year Program

General Military Course

The Four-Year Program begins with the General Military Course, which takes about four hours per week.  Here you'll learn the mission and structure of the Air Force and take a look at military life. You'll learn about Air Force career opportunities, educational benefits, and life and work as an Air Force officer.
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Field Training

Once you've completed the Military Course, you'll attend four weeks of field training.  This program will assist you in developing leadership, physical fitness, and problem-solving skills.  You'll also receive junior officer training and career orientation, and you will learn about Air Force aircraft operations.  The Air Force will pay for your travel to and from your field training base.
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Professional Officer Course

The Professional Officer Course offers advanced training in leadership, management, and communication skills, and focuses on Air Force situations.  Class work takes three hours per week and there's a one-hour leadership lab and two hours of physical fitness.  You'll begin this course with an in-depth look at the theories of management and their application.  You'll also analyze the role of the armed forces in today's American society.

You'll examine a broad range of American domestic and international military relationships and the environmental context in which American national security policy is developed and carried out.  This class is combined with the leadership lab where leadership and management theory are applied. You'll take part in group discussions, case studies, and individual and group problem-solving.  Cadets also participate in planning, organizing, directing, and controlling the cadet corps.

You'll prepare briefings and written communications and conduct interviews.  You'll also help design guidance, information, and other services needed to increase the motivation and performance of other cadets.  There will be many opportunities for you to be a leader because the leadership laboratory is run by cadets.  As a Professional Officer Course student, you'll receive a tax-free allowance of $150 for each month you're in school.
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Two-Year Program

The Two-Year Program, also called the Professional Officer Course, is open to junior college transfer students, sophomores and veterans with at least two years of academic work remaining.  This course is highly competitive, and entry is based on standardized test scores, your college major, grade-point-average, a physical examination, and a personal interview.  By successfully completing a six-week field training course you'll be eligible to enter the Professional Officer Course.
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One-Year Program

The One-Year Program is designed to attract students majoring in fields in which the Air Force has a shortage.  Cadets in the One-Year Program complete the Professional Officer Course in 12 to 15 months.  This lessens the impact Air Force ROTC has on students with a heavy academic schedule. The summer before entering Air Force ROTC as a contract cadet, you'll attend a field training encampment.  During your last year of college, you'll complete the Professional Officer Course by enrolling in both aerospace courses, or you may complete the second course, AS 400, through independent study.  After graduation you'll attend a four-week encampment to complete the equivalent of the second year and will be commissioned an Air Force second lieutenant.


To qualify for the One-Year Program you must meet all the qualifications for the Professional Officer Course and:

  • be majoring in a subject in which the Air Force has a shortage such as law and nursing
  • have one academic year of college remaining. (Law students in their first or second year are eligible to apply.)
  • attend a six-week field training course before enrolling as a contract cadet.

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    Post-Field Training Opportunities

    Flight Training

    If you're a pilot candidate, you'll go through a flight screening program the summer before your senior year of college.  This training includes ground school, 14 hours of flight instruction, and one solo flight.  You'll fly a single-engine, propeller driven T-41--the Air Force version of the Cessna 172.
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    Operation Air Force

    A select number of students are chosen for the Operation Air Force program where they spend three weeks on an Air Force base.  If selected, you'll be paid to work and learn.  Your housing and meals will be provided, and the government will pay for your transportation.  It's a great opportunity to see the Air Force in action.  You'll see officers doing the same work you'll be doing after you graduate.
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    An Air Force Close-up

    Because we realize the scope and operation of the Air Force is difficult to visualize in a classroom, we make opportunities for you to see the "real" Air Force close-up.  There will be field trips to Air Force installations and you'll be able to talk with officers in a variety of career fields.  We think these visits help you appreciate what a challenging future lies ahead of you.  Travel is often on Air Force aircraft.  While at an Air Force base, you may stay in on-base visitors quarters and eat in base dining halls.  Your trip may be across town or across the country.  On these visits, you'll receive mission briefings, tour the base, and inspect aircraft and technical equipment.  You'll go back to your studies with a better understanding of how we work.
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    Qualifications For Air Force ROTC

    To qualify for the General Military Course, you must:

  • be a full-time student at a school offering Air Force ROTC
  • be a United States citizen (to receive a scholarship)
  • be in good physical condition
  • have a good moral character
  • be at least 14 years old (17 to receive a scholarship appointment)
  • To qualify for the Professional Officer Course, you must:

  • meet all the qualifications for the General Military Course and
  • have two academic years remaining (undergraduate, graduate or a combination of both)
  • be a United States citizen
  • be 18 years old, or 17 years with a parent or legal guardian's consent
  • be physically qualified
  • pass the Air Force Officer Qualification Test
  • be interviewed and selected by a board of Air Force officers
  • complete a four-week field training course if you're in the Four-Year Program, or a six-week field training course if you're in the Two-Year Program
  • complete all graduation and commissioning requirements
  • Pilot or navigator candidates - before age 26 l/2
  • Scholarship recipients - before age 25 as of June 30 of the year you plan to be commissioned
  • (Waived through age 29 if you have prior service)
  • Non-flying, non-scholarship students - before age 30

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