AFROTC/ROTC "Model Cadet"

chucky2767

Member
Joined
Apr 21, 2015
Messages
20
Hey Guys. (Disclaimer: This is my first post on a forum...ever. So please forgive me if I'm not doing something right)

Synopsis: I began AFROTC (no prior ROTC experience/USAF knowledge) in January 2015 as a AS100 and started learning of USAF customs/courtesies/commands etc. The majority of AS100's were in the second semester and up to speed with USAF basics, while I'm playing catch up. My drill wasn't as sharp; verbiage/responses were incorrect at times and I haven't been given a chance to demonstrate leadership yet. I'm keeping all of this in mind that the Cadre may notice this. (Most Cadre members don't even know my name) I learned of how competitive it is (even with Cadets within the Detachment) for SFT. and I basically want to be a "impressive" Cadet to attract the Cadre and hopefully gain a EA slot (but by not being a kiss-a**). I'm currently a AS100, with a 3.0 GPA (tech major) and 90PT score. I have improved in USAF basics as a Cadet.

Question: I want to be seen as a "committed/model" Cadet, but like I said not "kiss-a**". I however want to feel relaxed and accepted by other Cadets and not a "Mr. Goody 2 Shoes" or "that guy". Can you guys give me some tips for being an impressive cadet?

For example: I greet a member of the Cadre on a non-AFROTC day (I'm in civies), an Officer responds "Hey, how are you doing?" do I say "Outstanding sir/ma'am" or "Pretty good (or other more relaxed term).

NOTE: I know no one can be perfect; but I had a life-changing experience by almost not graduating from high school on time, after years of accepting mediocrity. I'm now committed to the "Excellence in all We *I* Do" core value.

Thanks.
 
A good attitude and helpful spirit, with follow-through, will take you far in life. If it's fake, they'll see right through you. If it's genuine, and you are the happy-spirited, smiling guy with a get-it-done reputation, this will be valued.

So be yourself, your best self.
 
This is meant with kindness.... don't wrap yourself up in that aspect. Wrap yourself up in the 90 PFT.
~ 90 is considered low. 95-96 would be avg. Your goal during the summer is to train to the point that a 98 would be an off day for you.

They get you are learning, don't for a second believe they believe you know it all. ROTC is 4 years.

I would suggest the answer to the question be exactly like they do in the South.
~ Fine, good, pretty good...sir/ma'am.

I would also suggest to look into the military organizations.
~ Honor Guard, Arnie Air, Silver Wings or Angel Flight.
~~ This will help not only from a social bonding aspect, but also from a mentoring aspect.
~~~ DS was married last May. Many of the out of town guests were friends that were in Arnie Air with him during college.

Does your unit have GMC nights?
~ If they do, I would suggest you attend them whenever possible. GMC is for 100/200/250s. It creates a bond, and can even be a mentoring aspect come next year.
~~ IE 200/250s that attend now have been selected for SFT. They can give insight to you because it was only last year they were 100s.
 
Great advice above, but focus on your life as a whole to include ROTC. That means bringing your GPA up, your PFA, and your overall knowledge of the cadet wing. Ask POC how to excel in your detachment, they are all different, some are hardcore about PT, some care more about leadership and drill. Stay involved, if there is a volunteer event and your not busy with school you should be there, no matter how boring it is. Volunteering brings money to the det and cadre usually see who is attending. To address your concern on speaking to them our cadre had a open door policy, meaning you can talk to them whenever you need to. If I run into them on campus or anywhere I always greet them with whatever time greeting and ask how they are doing that day. Normally they will return the favor, this is your chance to spark a conversation. Get to know your cadre, let them get to know you. Show your interest in the Air Force, seek out mentorship!

Your stats are not that far from previous years averages, but you are on the lower end, avg. gpa was about 3.2, PFA 91 from my year selections. There is ALWAYS room for improvement.
 
To add on to Zero.

I agree you are on the lower end.

The PFA matters in many ways.
~ If you get it to 98 with a 3.0 cgpa you might feel better than if you still are at a 90.

Something you might not want to hear, but the fact is the PFA is something you have 100% control over. Cadets at your school know that prof that gives out easy As and that prof that getting an A means you worked your butt off. IOWS, they get there is wiggle room for the cgpa, but when it comes to the PFA it is pure stats.

Additionally, CWC, CFCC, PT instructors talk. They have weekly meetings for their job. You don't want them talking about your PT scores.
~ DS as a 100 was a PT instructor. His job was to be the guy in the back of the pack for the run screaming names to motivate them.
~~ IE Cadet Chucky move it, I am going to beat you.
 
This is meant with kindness.... don't wrap yourself up in that aspect. Wrap yourself up in the 90 PFT.
~ 90 is considered low. 95-96 would be avg. Your goal during the summer is to train to the point that a 98 would be an off day for you.

They get you are learning, don't for a second believe they believe you know it all. ROTC is 4 years.

I would suggest the answer to the question be exactly like they do in the South.
~ Fine, good, pretty good...sir/ma'am.

I would also suggest to look into the military organizations.
~ Honor Guard, Arnie Air, Silver Wings or Angel Flight.
~~ This will help not only from a social bonding aspect, but also from a mentoring aspect.
~~~ DS was married last May. Many of the out of town guests were friends that were in Arnie Air with him during college.

Does your unit have GMC nights?
~ If they do, I would suggest you attend them whenever possible. GMC is for 100/200/250s. It creates a bond, and can even be a mentoring aspect come next year.
~~ IE 200/250s that attend now have been selected for SFT. They can give insight to you because it was only last year they were 100s.
Sorry, I meant to say 90 with room to improve. (A Capt gave us numbers of the avg. 2013 AS100 scores (EDIT: "WITHIN THE DETACHMENT", not national lol), and they averaged 77 *ouch*). I do have hopes of maxing my next PFAs, by doing a lot of hard training over the summer (mostly running lol).

Our detachment had a "Wing Social", but that was cancelled. Some current AS200s that were selected for field training are giving us helpful advice.

And I will look into the military organizations and volunteering more. Thanks a lot for the helpful advice!
 
Sort of low?

Zero stated that the avg was 91 for SFT. No offense, but I thought in his post that was low.

Just my advice, want to be a leader, max the PFT come next year. They will look to you to get your Det. up for scores.

When SFT comes up, the PFA score is part of the equation. Don't lose any points. 99 with a 3.0 will make you feel more comfortable during the waiting period.

In the 7 years here I have never read a poster that was below 90 for SFT. Not saying they didn't exist, but the PFA will be part of SFT too.
 
Sort of low?

Zero stated that the avg was 91 for SFT. No offense, but I thought in his post that was low.

Just my advice, want to be a leader, max the PFT come next year. They will look to you to get your Det. up for scores.

When SFT comes up, the PFA score is part of the equation. Don't lose any points. 99 with a 3.0 will make you feel more comfortable during the waiting period.

In the 7 years here I have never read a poster that was below 90 for SFT. Not saying they didn't exist, but the PFA will be part of SFT too.
Oh, no. No offense taken. I was shocked at the 77 average as well, even for as100s. I know I've got alot of work to do this summer (and now), to get a EA slot next year. Thanks again
 
What you said enforces what I was getting at, clearly your det does not rate PFA's as high as others, though it will help your ranking nationally for a EA and within your det. Maybe you can talk to your PTL and be a deputy, try to bring the PFA average up and shoot for #1 in the nation. But yea a 77 average? talk to your class and let them know they need to work out. Most of you probably wouldn't get a EA even if you had 4.0 with a 77. But it sounds like your looking to improve which is great, find strong cadets in your det and latch onto them as mentors.
 
Hey Guys. (Disclaimer: This is my first post on a forum...ever. So please forgive me if I'm not doing something right)

Synopsis: I began AFROTC (no prior ROTC experience/USAF knowledge) in January 2015 as a AS100 and started learning of USAF customs/courtesies/commands etc. The majority of AS100's were in the second semester and up to speed with USAF basics, while I'm playing catch up. My drill wasn't as sharp; verbiage/responses were incorrect at times and I haven't been given a chance to demonstrate leadership yet. I'm keeping all of this in mind that the Cadre may notice this. (Most Cadre members don't even know my name) I learned of how competitive it is (even with Cadets within the Detachment) for SFT. and I basically want to be a "impressive" Cadet to attract the Cadre and hopefully gain a EA slot (but by not being a kiss-a**). I'm currently a AS100, with a 3.0 GPA (tech major) and 90PT score. I have improved in USAF basics as a Cadet.

Question: I want to be seen as a "committed/model" Cadet, but like I said not "kiss-a**". I however want to feel relaxed and accepted by other Cadets and not a "Mr. Goody 2 Shoes" or "that guy". Can you guys give me some tips for being an impressive cadet?

For example: I greet a member of the Cadre on a non-AFROTC day (I'm in civies), an Officer responds "Hey, how are you doing?" do I say "Outstanding sir/ma'am" or "Pretty good (or other more relaxed term).

NOTE: I know no one can be perfect; but I had a life-changing experience by almost not graduating from high school on time, after years of accepting mediocrity. I'm now committed to the "Excellence in all We *I* Do" core value.

Thanks.
I'll speak from personal experience since I joined in the spring semester of 2014. It's really hard having to play catch up with everything but there is no way around it other than hard work. My PFA was 93 and my GPA was a 3.2 (nontech) but I eventually raised it to a 98.5 and 3.42. At the time my only thought was to do as well as I could that week whether it be LLAB or PT. Work hard at the job you're assigned and grow as an individual. As far as getting to know cadre they may not know that much about you for a while. I was in the same boat but they got to know me when they started to notice the hard work I was putting in. In addition to that I was the "friendly" cadet who others could come to with questions. That was the reputation I gained by always having a smile on and it also showed that I really wanted to be there and earn my EA. Also I volunteered for everything I could and that really made others notice me. Here I am now as a AS200 with a field training slot and a scholarship as a nontech.

When a cadre member addresses you with a yes or no question always say "Yes sir." Depending on the situation you may say "Yes sir, (then explain)." When a cadre member just asks "how are you?" you should always include sir in the reply. "Sir, I'm doing pretty good." or "My day has been going pretty good sir." have been pretty good answers.
 
What you said enforces what I was getting at, clearly your det does not rate PFA's as high as others, though it will help your ranking nationally for a EA and within your det. Maybe you can talk to your PTL and be a deputy, try to bring the PFA average up and shoot for #1 in the nation. But yea a 77 average? talk to your class and let them know they need to work out. Most of you probably wouldn't get a EA even if you had 4.0 with a 77. But it sounds like your looking to improve which is great, find strong cadets in your det and latch onto them as mentors.
The 77 average was last year's AS100s (now 200's). This year's/my AS100 averaged around 80-85, which is still not that good. It would be nice to develop and organize some PT's in which all cadets could improve their PFA scores.
 
Everyone always thinks that when a POC or cadre member ask you how you're doing, they want to hear the standard "Outstanding Sir/Ma'am!!". That is NOT what they want to hear. Sometimes things are outstanding, and sometimes they are aweful. If you're doing OK, just say "Sir, I'm doing ok. How about yourself?". Anyone worth their salt is actually interested in how you're really doing. Our Wing commander talks to cadets all the time. When they give the standard answer and he know's they're not being honest, he calls them out and asks "No, how are you REALLY doing?". Be respectful always when you see the cadre whether you're uniform or not, but don't feel like you need to give cookie cutter answers to be a "model cadet".
 
AS400 here commissioning in 3 weeks. The answer to your main question is somewhat simple.

No matter what task you are given, own it. Do it to the best of your ability. It doesn't matter if your job is to lead a flight, or to restock the snacks in the cadet area, own the job and make it your own. From my experience, kiss-a**'s try to talk their way into favor and constantly look for people to notice them. Quality cadets kill whatever job they have and let the results speak for themselves. Do a good enough job and you don't have to talk yourself up, people will already know you are solid.

Help out your fellow cadets. If someone is planning an activity and desperately needs volunteers, help them out by going. Is one of your buddies sick but is scheduled to wake up early for reveille? Offer to take his place. Is one of your friends overwhelmed with tasks and emails? Offer to take on some of the responsibility if it's possible to do so. Even if no one else sees that you are helping them out, they know. Build these relationships, because that is what helps motivate you through 4 years of the program.

Additionally, it helps to find an area to shine in. Physical fitness is a great way to get noticed. If you keep getting 100's on the PFA, cadre notices. Your fellow cadets notice. When people need help leading workouts, they come to you. That gets you noticed, not because you talked a big game, but because everyone knows that you know your stuff.

At the end of the day, the harder you work, the more you will get noticed in a good way. Don't take shortcuts, go out of your way to help others, don't expect anything in return, and eventually you will be rewarded.
 
Volunteer, speak up, help others around you, be prepared, vocalize your questions, strive to be the best in your class. The other advice is great, but you have to demonstrate a real desire to be there and to excel. That is not being a "kiss-ass".
 
Everyone always thinks that when a POC or cadre member ask you how you're doing, they want to hear the standard "Outstanding Sir/Ma'am!!". That is NOT what they want to hear. Sometimes things are outstanding, and sometimes they are aweful. If you're doing OK, just say "Sir, I'm doing ok. How about yourself?". Anyone worth their salt is actually interested in how you're really doing. Our Wing commander talks to cadets all the time. When they give the standard answer and he know's they're not being honest, he calls them out and asks "No, how are you REALLY doing?". Be respectful always when you see the cadre whether you're uniform or not, but don't feel like you need to give cookie cutter answers to be a "model cadet".
Thanks for the advice. I tend to get stuck sometimes, deciding on whether to be candid/relaxed or not. Or better yet, how candid to be at the time...Your answer helped alot!
 
AS400 here commissioning in 3 weeks. The answer to your main question is somewhat simple.

No matter what task you are given, own it. Do it to the best of your ability. It doesn't matter if your job is to lead a flight, or to restock the snacks in the cadet area, own the job and make it your own. From my experience, kiss-a**'s try to talk their way into favor and constantly look for people to notice them. Quality cadets kill whatever job they have and let the results speak for themselves. Do a good enough job and you don't have to talk yourself up, people will already know you are solid.

Help out your fellow cadets. If someone is planning an activity and desperately needs volunteers, help them out by going. Is one of your buddies sick but is scheduled to wake up early for reveille? Offer to take his place. Is one of your friends overwhelmed with tasks and emails? Offer to take on some of the responsibility if it's possible to do so. Even if no one else sees that you are helping them out, they know. Build these relationships, because that is what helps motivate you through 4 years of the program.

Additionally, it helps to find an area to shine in. Physical fitness is a great way to get noticed. If you keep getting 100's on the PFA, cadre notices. Your fellow cadets notice. When people need help leading workouts, they come to you. That gets you noticed, not because you talked a big game, but because everyone knows that you know your stuff.

At the end of the day, the harder you work, the more you will get noticed in a good way. Don't take shortcuts, go out of your way to help others, don't expect anything in return, and eventually you will be rewarded.
Congrats on the commission. And thanks for your words of wisdom. I tend to stick to the route of "let results speak for themselves", but there's always a bug in the back of my head wondering IF they notice. I'll keep your advice in mind, (as a recently promoted AS200 now).
 
Congrats on the commission. And thanks for your words of wisdom. I tend to stick to the route of "let results speak for themselves", but there's always a bug in the back of my head wondering IF they notice. I'll keep your advice in mind, (as a recently promoted AS200 now).
That's how I think too but just do as well as you can and don't worry about it. Towards the end of the year they kept saying we are really impressed and have noticed all the work you put in. Their job is to pay attention and notice all the things you do. Work your tail off over the summer and you will be just fine. Personally I aimed for running 5 times a week and lifting 6.
 
Back
Top