Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets - Overview

Overview

The Corps provides leadership training for all of its cadets. A cadet will have the opportunity to receive an academic minor in Leadership when they graduate through the Rice Center for Leader Development which is in the Pamplin School of Business. This is a unique endeavor in Senior Military Colleges.

While not mandatory for membership in the Corps, many members of the Cadet Corps also participate in the Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) and become commissioned officers in the U.S. Military upon graduation. Around 80% of the corps' graduates choose to participate in ROTC and receive a commission in the military as officers after graduation. If a cadet is enrolled in an ROTC program at Virginia Tech, they must also be enrolled in the Corps of Cadets. However, a cadet does not have to be enrolled in an ROTC program in order to participate in the corps. There are a few exceptions made for active duty enlisted students participating in programs like the Army's Green to Gold program.

Women entered the VTCC in the Fall of 1973 and created a single unit called L Squadron. By 1979, women were integrated into the line companies, though they still lived separately from the males in their units. In 1981 that changed and the dorms became co-ed and women were allowed to live in the same unit area as their male counterparts. In 1987, the first female Regimental Commanding Officer (CO) was appointed. To date, the Corps has had 4 female Regimental Commanding Officers. Today the Corps is nearly 14% female and females hold a number of positions throughout the Corps.