WHAT WE DO:
LEADERSHIP TRAINING
Classroom
Studies
...Army ROTC classroom instruction covers two basic areas.
First, you'll learn about the history, structure, and functions of the Army. Then, you'll
learn how to think and act like a leader. Role-playing and management exercises will teach
you how to organize tasks, make decisions, and use time efficiently. Best of all, after
teaching you a particular leadership skill, ROTC will give you plenty of opportunities to
use it--a fact which can make all the difference to future employers, and also improve
your performance as a student.
Leadership Labs
...Leadership labs involve military skills training, physical
training and adventure activities such as rappelling, orienteering and marksmanship. The
labs meet every Thursday. Seniors plan the labs and juniors lead and execute the labs.
Field Training
... Army ROTC field training will teach you how to set goals
and achieve them. You'll participate in hands-on exercises such as land navigation and
platoon tactics. During these exercises, you'll develop judgment and decisiveness, while
directing and earning the respect of others under a range of challenging conditions.
Physical Training
... The Army ROTC program at Vanderbilt is designed to
challenge you both mentally and physically, preparing you for lifelong fitness in any
career. You can look forward to activities which will help build your coordination,
stamina, and physical strength.
Ranger Challenge
... Each year, top cadets from area schools gather to compete
in Army ROTC's varsity sport: the ROTC Ranger
Challenge. This voluntary competition offers
outstanding teamwork training while demanding your best physical and mental efforts.
Events for this competition include physical fitness test, hand grenade assault course,
weapons assembly, river crossing event, 6 mile road march with ruck sacks, orienteering,
and weapons qualification. Vanderbilt has fielded an extremely strong team the past
eight
years. In fact, Vanderbilt's Ranger Challenge team has placed first four
times and second once out of thirty schools from Tennessee, Kentucky, and
Ohio.
Other Activities
... On campus extracurricular activities include intramural
sports, Color Guard
and Society of American Military Engineers. Cadet social activities include a
dining out and dining-in, plus picnics and special trips.
Summer Leadership and Adventure Training Cadets enrolled in Army ROTC also receive opportunities to continue their education, expand their horizons, and expand their career options by attending numerous Army schools or training programs.
Leader's
Training Course
... Students joining ROTC at the
end of the sophomore year attend a four-week basic leadership course
during the summer before their junior year. LTC is a fully paid program that is
designed to teach the basic skills required of leaders.
Warrior
Forge
... As a part of the Advanced Course, cadets attend a
four-week advanced leadership camp - normally in the summer between their junior and
senior years. Warrior Forge is a fully paid program that is the culmination of
three years of training.
This school is located at Ft. Benning, Georgia. Cadets begin their first week on the ground, learning the basics of parachute landings, and start a vigorous training program. During the second week, called tower week, proper exiting of the plane is mastered, and cadets are given the opportunity to parachute from a 250 foot high tower. The third and final week is the jump week. Cadets make five jumps from either a C-130 or C-141, including one night jump and two combat jumps with full combat gear. Are you brave enough to be AIRBORNE?
This is available at a number of installations, but the largest is located at the air
assault home of Ft. Campbell, Kentucky. This eleven day course is very demanding both
physically and mentally, involving obstacle courses and several long ruck marches.
Students learn the basics of aircraft familiarization and recognition, slingload
operations, and rappelling. Can you see yourself rappelling out the side of a hovering
Blackhawk helicopter? AIR ASSAULT!
Cadets also may find themselves anywhere in the country, or overseas, involved in the Cadet Troop Leadership Training Program. This internship program places cadets in actual Army units acting as real Lieutenants! This two or three week challenge is a definite learning experience, and allows cadets to gain a perspective on what they will be facing as future officers. Generally, cadets are placed in platoon leader positions, leading 30+ soldiers and responsible for millions of dollars of equipment!
Mountain Warfare, located in Jericho, VT, introduces cadets to the techniques and tactics required to operate in a mountainous environment under hostile conditions. The emphasis is on field exercises where the students learn mountain-related skills. The instruction includes advanced navigational training, special mobility training (with special operations forces mountaineering equipment), and mountain tactical instruction.
The Northern Warfare Basic Military Mountaineering Course is located in Ft. Greely, Alaska. The course is three weeks long with emphasis on mobility in mountainous terrain, rappelling, and climbing skills. The training is demanding both physically and mentally but also extremely rewarding. Those who live up to the challenge come away with not only a vast knowledge of climbing skills but also a new level of self confidence born from facing adversity and overcoming it.