When you get a Cadet in? Should they just stay with Officers? Or come to the Enlisted side?

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 12 Jun 2014 20:13:34 -0400

Im a firm believer that even though you have your degree in whatever you went to school for, In the army that means next to nill. You need to talk and converse (with the lower as in myself too) and start your leadership skills EXP with them. I.E. Listening to the issues, team building, Mentor-ship and such. Just cause you got a degree that doesn't mean you can train the force and LEAD. No im not saying they cant do-it or not worthy "I'm saying they are new to the Army or Uniformed Services and need to see all aspects "

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 12 at 2014 11:26 PM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 12 Jun 2014 23:26:18 -0400

I had a decent experience when I was a PSG with a cadet. I rotated him threw the squads attached him to a SL and let them go. When they weren't out with the SLs, they were with myself and LT. We explained how are jobs were different and how they were the same and how we as a Platoon team ran things to get the mission accomplished. We had a good cadet. On the weekends the LT kept watch over him and made sure there was minimal fraternization with the joes.

We had zero issues, we even let him lead a few missions and he was pretty adept so it worked out in the end.

Response by SGT Craig Northacker made Jul 31 at 2014 4:48 PM

SGT Craig Northacker — Thu, 31 Jul 2014 16:48:06 -0400

They used to be put in splinter city barracks and kept to themselves.

Response by MAJ Robert (Bob) Petrarca made Aug 2 at 2014 8:10 PM

MAJ Robert (Bob) Petrarca — Sat, 02 Aug 2014 20:10:19 -0400

The goal of being a cadet is to become an officer so they need to be groomed as such. That being said, being taught by NCOs on the value of NCOs is and should remain a big part of that grooming. Simply being left among officers could lead to not getting the full picture and not learning the basic philosophy of supervising vs. managing, that can be confusing. This used-to-be-newbee got stuck on it once or twice. You are correct in that Os need to understand the E structure and the NCO CofC and how it all fits together.

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 6 at 2014 11:04 AM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 06 Aug 2014 11:04:56 -0400

Your new cadet should have some sort of a training plan that the company commander has blessed off on. In that training plan that cadet needs to spend time with the Officers, any Warrants, and the NCO's in the company. This way they are exposed to each of our layers of leadership and gain a working understanding of what the roles at each level are.

A degree simply means that you have been trained/educated to think critically at a higher level. Leaders at all levels need to actively listen to Soldiers at all levels - at all ranks. A senior leader who isolates himself behind their desk in their office and never leaves the office does not get a first hand true account of what is actually going on in their command. The Private and Specialist is going to tell you exactly how life in the field and give you their true opinion. They may not have a view of the bigger picture but they are apt to be more honest in telling if the food is subpar, or if they have been standing around and not actually training.

Response by COL Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 6 at 2014 11:22 AM

COL Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 06 Aug 2014 11:22:22 -0400

SGT Martin; we've had 23 cadets this summer so far. I think that cadets get a decent amount of exposure to the officer corps at West Point or ROTC. All of their teachers are officers, their TAC's are officers, the camps they go to are all officer led. One of the biggest learning points from the cadets that I talk to when they do their OER counseling is that they are glad to have spent so much time working with the NCO's and Soldiers in the platoons. It's formative. It's one of the biggest concerns on the minds of cadets..."How will I interact with my NCO's and my platoon sergeant." They are told to be in charge, but they have a battle buddy with 12-14 years of experience under their belt. This short time needs to be spent with the NCO's on the line. I and the other officers will pull them in for developmental counseling and they will work with the rest of us in order to get a holistic experience, but I believe that working with Soldiers is MUCH more important for a cadet.

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 1 at 2015 12:16 PM

LTC Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 01 Sep 2015 12:16:39 -0400

Next to nil? Engineering, artificial intelligence, linguistics, political science, nursing.... the list could be endless, and I would argue bring real value from Day 1. Should they see all aspects? You bet. Be cautious your "firm belief" doesn't lead to stereotypes. I have met some amazing privates with amazing life experiences, deployed with lower enlisted with Ivy League pedigrees and some SMP cadets with more deployments than the Commander.

Response by MAJ Ken Landgren made Sep 1 at 2015 1:37 PM

MAJ Ken Landgren — Tue, 01 Sep 2015 13:37:15 -0400

You have a fantastic point. Good leaders are wiling to suffer with the troops and the troops will respect that immensely.

Response by MAJ Ken Landgren made Sep 11 at 2015 1:03 PM

MAJ Ken Landgren — Fri, 11 Sep 2015 13:03:19 -0400

I was a cadet once in a Reserve unit. The LTs always stayed in the officer and stressed "looking like an officer". It was disgusting.

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Mar 8 at 2016 4:00 PM

LTC Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 08 Mar 2016 16:00:38 -0500

They need both. Part of being an officer is knowing the expectations of your commander and learning how to translate that into action among your troops. As a platoon leader, I spent the bulk of my platoon time with my troops, but when I did deal with the other officers, I took my cadets with me. That way, they got to see what I saw in terms of receiving our missions and then executing them. I also made sure that they did some of the same tasks as the enlisted Soldiers. It never hurts to know how to maintain a vehicle or weapon, or how to set up a fighting position, and enduring the same field conditions built unit cohesion.