FY18 OML Model

Jcleppe

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What a difference a year and new leadership at Cadet Command makes.

https://i.redd.it/rxwcpw7d32mz.jpg

I wonder if they will go back to calling it LDAC since it now seems to be an assessment course again.

MS1's should probably take this with a grain of salt since by the time they are ready to go through accessions the new leadership at Cadet Command will probably change the whole thing again.
 
I still think too much emphasis is placed on GPA. When things go down the toilet in a combat zone, a high GPA isn't going to help you and for damn sure doesn't make you a leader. Getting an opportunity (and being rated properly) in field combat type scenarios such as the old LDAC is much more helpful in determining and training leadership skills in cadets that doing well on their English Lit paper. They also need to get away from being afraid to hurt people feelings and/or weeding people out that aren't cutting it as a leader.
 
They have don a lot over the past couple years to lessen the impact of the GPA from previous years. This year the academic portion of the OML has dropped from 50% to 40% with only 26% toward GPA. Changing the way they calculate the GPA score has really lowered it's impact. Gone is the old system where the score was out of a total of 40 points, if you got a 3.6 you received 36 points. With that old system a good GPA gave you a real boost.

With the new system they take the average GPA for the year, if that's 3.3 then that is the medium and that would score a 13 out of 26. Now if you get that 3.6 you may get just 16 points for the GPA score, far less then you would have gotten with the old system. The rest of the academics are made up of the CLA, Language/Cultural, and ADM (a nice way to try and level the field between majors)

I agree in someways that they should have evaluations at Advance Camp, the seem to have brought that back, although I have a feeling it will still be as subjective as it used to be with grading standards all over the place, but that's another thread for another time.

I think the days of just needing a great GPA and APFT score to get what you want are gone, which I agree is not a bad thing, The PMS has more juice now then they have had in years past.

As far as GPA goes, I would agree 100% that a great GPA doesn't automatically mean they'll be a great leader, but the study habits needed to get that GPA can be of great benefit for many areas in the military. Both by sons went Aviation, Flight School was like getting an engineering degree in 14 months. Without those study habits it would have been a long 14 months, and there were plenty that struggled to keep up because this school made college feel like Kindergarten. These Aviation officers never stop studying, they are tested all the time and have to study to keep up throughout their career.

My older son switched from Aviation to Civil Affairs, during the SOF Captain's Career Course 20% failed out and had to go back to their original branches, my son told me he was positive it was because they did not study enough or efficiently and that hurt them. He is now deep into Russian language training and the studying is even more intense. Once completed he will then start the main CA course for nearly a year and that will be again like college on steroids.

Don't get me wrong, I still agree that the old system of awarding so many points for GPA did not give enough weight to the other aspects of leadership and I am happy the new system has toned that back. I do think that doing well in college academically still has a place in the over all evaluation since the learning doesn't stop once they pin on their bars.

The new system of awarding branches now that they have got rid of that dreaded dead zone has helped spread out the branching process giving more the opportunity to branch in all branches. The ability of the PMS to have more say in the leadership quality of the cadets is also a good step forward.

I'm sure the system will never be perfect and good leaders will sometimes fall through the cracks, but at least they have made some, if only a few, moves in the right direction.
 
I would like to see more emphasis on branch education, not just on evaluation. We're getting new LT's in our support unit that are shocked when they see that we still move and communicate tactically, still go to ranges to qualify with everything from M9's to MK19's to Claymores, still make contact with OPFOR in the field, and, most surprisingly to the new guys (officers and enlisted), that when we actually send out a logpac/recovery/troop trans mission we are physically in the exact same grid square as the maneuver units shooting things and generally were expected to shoot back just as well. Being in the rear with the gear isn't QUITE as relaxing as alot of guys thought it would be. /endrant
 
I would like to see more emphasis on branch education, not just on evaluation. We're getting new LT's in our support unit that are shocked when they see that we still move and communicate tactically, still go to ranges to qualify with everything from M9's to MK19's to Claymores, still make contact with OPFOR in the field, and, most surprisingly to the new guys (officers and enlisted), that when we actually send out a logpac/recovery/troop trans mission we are physically in the exact same grid square as the maneuver units shooting things and generally were expected to shoot back just as well. Being in the rear with the gear isn't QUITE as relaxing as alot of guys thought it would be. /endrant

Don't blame that on ROTC...thats the fault of the OBCs. We're teaching them the basic tactical skills of a team/squad leader. I've never told a Cadet they should expect a job in the Army that doesn't require them to "stand ready to close with and destroy the enemies of the United States in close combat" and that they should be "trained and proficient in their warrior tasks and drills"
 
On a similar note, 100% of eligible captains will be promoted to major in the next promotion phase per the secretary of the AF! It's good to be on the AF right now for sure
 
On a similar note, 100% of eligible captains will be promoted to major in the next promotion phase per the secretary of the AF! It's good to be on the AF right now for sure

So, it looks like everyone gets a trophy in the USAF.
 
I wonder if they will go back to calling it LDAC since it now seems to be an assessment course again.

Actually, MG Hughes changed the name back to "Advance Camp", and it is closer to what is used to be back in the 90s when it was called Advance Camp.

CIET is back to being called Basic Camp.
 
I wonder if they will go back to calling it LDAC since it now seems to be an assessment course again.

Actually, MG Hughes changed the name back to "Advance Camp", and it is closer to what is used to be back in the 90s when it was called Advance Camp.

CIET is back to being called Basic Camp.
Oh knowledgeable ones, My Son is getting conflicting stories about Basic camp and the Army sites are less then clear, Who goes to Basic camp?

Also What are the opportunities for summer for a 3 year AD in their freshman year?
 
The only ones that have to go to Basic Camp are those that do not have basic course credit and will be a junior the upcoming Fall semester. Other underclassmen can go on a space available basis. 4YR and 3AD scholarship winners have higher priority among the volunteers.

The only Summer opportunities for non-contracted cadets are Basic Camp and Project GO (http://www.rotcprojectgo.org/).
 
Generally LDAC and Advance Camp were very similar. The only significant changes I recall are that Advance Camp had BRM, CWST and full platoon patrols and more field time. LDAC had no BRM, no CWST, 2x squad size patrolling and living on a FOB instead of in the field. There are probably a few other changes that I don't recall.
 
Generally LDAC and Advance Camp were very similar. The only significant changes I recall are that Advance Camp had BRM, CWST and full platoon patrols and more field time. LDAC had no BRM, no CWST, 2x squad size patrolling and living on a FOB instead of in the field. There are probably a few other changes that I don't recall.


This is interesting because I went to CLC, the "softer" training. CLC had both BRM and a gunnery range for firing the M249 and M240, though that was not a full blown qualification range. Videos of LDAC from around 2013-2014 show CWST training, and for us we had to "qualify" during a school-conducted CWST in order to attend CLC. We spent about a week in a patrol base but the rest was on a FOB or in barracks. Land Navigation WAS conducted as a squad however.
 
This is interesting because I went to CLC, the "softer" training. CLC had both BRM and a gunnery range for firing the M249 and M240, though that was not a full blown qualification range. Videos of LDAC from around 2013-2014 show CWST training, and for us we had to "qualify" during a school-conducted CWST in order to attend CLC. We spent about a week in a patrol base but the rest was on a FOB or in barracks. Land Navigation WAS conducted as a squad however.

LDAC and Advance Camp has US Weapons range as well which included LMG, AT-4, M203 and hand grenade. Both also conducted the APFT at Camp as well, which I believe CLC eliminated. I am not sure if they do it anymore but during the old Advance Camp you also got to serve as a crew of the M105 howitzer to load and fire it. Once cadet did an actual call for fire mission with binos, while the rest of the squad served as the gun crew. That was a lot of fun when I went through.
 
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