Should I Join Civil Air Patrol

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To begin, I am currently a junior in high school and have began the initial applications steps (SS/ PCQ). I only discovered Civil Air Patrol very recently, and was mainly wondering if it would be too late to join and have a meaningful impact, both on my academy application and actual experience. While I would like to gain "points" for the admissions process, that is not really the main reason for my interest. I have read the application process on the site, and should be able to be a cadet before my 18th birthday. However, my main concerns of joining are twofold. First, would I get to actually have enough time in CAP to go beyond the introductory level and would being a member for quite a bit less for a year even benefit me in USAFA admissions. Second, I have a pretty busy schedule already, with two concurrent sports all year, and many 'a' AP. From what I have seen on the local squadron's site, they meet about once every two weeks, which would be manageable. So, to all of y'all that are currently or have been in CAP please give me your wisdom on what I should do going forward. Thanks

TLDR; Would joining CAP for less than a year give me tangible benefits?
 
Heck yes, I would do it.

rotcconsulting.com

Five Reasons ROTC Scholarship Applicants Need to Join Civil Air Patrol - ROTC Consulting

The Civil Air Patrol Cadet Program enhances ones "propensity for the military" and can help applicants obtain an ROTC scholarship.
rotcconsulting.com rotcconsulting.com

And you have enough to time to promote quite a bit. Maybe enough to do an encampment this summer which would really help you. It gives you a real experience to talk about in your interviews. And don't neglect AFROTC! Apply to MANY thing simultaneously. My daughter got a bunch of yeses and a bunch of no's this month. But we had little idea who would say yes and no.

I will say, anecdotally, that she got full ROTC offers from 2 branches + 2 SA offers and was in CAP 3 yrs. It helped her a lot.
 
I definitely would. I joined CAP in my junior year too, and I am almost an officer already. It gives you a lot of great experiences that will be helpful and valuable to USAFA. (I believe it also helped me get into USAFA this year) I had like 5 APs and multiple extracurriculares but I found time for CAP. The time commitment isn’t crazy, trust me you have time. Good luck!
 
CAP would be a great place to take on a leadership role, it’s an auxiliary of the Air Force so you become familiar with many of the customs, plenty of chances to volunteer and give back to the community. Yes, I believe it would be a wise choice for you.
 
I joined pretty late - summer before my junior year - and got a whole lot out of it. If you can go to encampment this summer, that alone would be worth joining for the experience (even though you will be OLD hahaha - it was definitely fun getting yelled at by a 14 year old at 17...)

As for time - that's the main reason I did CAP vs other similar programs. It had a minimal "base" time commitment (we met once a week for about 2.5 hours). I was a highly competitive tournament tennis player and did musical competitions/marching band/wind ensemble on top of that, plus all the usual tough classes. That said, you get out of CAP what you put in. If you join and promote every 2 months on the dot and really commit to learning as much as you can (particularly all the drill and ceremonies elements) you'll definitely benefit from being in for even one year. I used some of my weekend time to practice/study for CAP, but it was nice to be able to just add it to the list and do it when I had time (rather than having more frequent required time commitments).
 
My son really enjoyed CAP. Even if your involvement in CAP doesn’t directly impact your application package, you will get exposure to so much that may help you focus your career path. Interested in getting a rated job? Jump in that little 172 or 182 on your O flights and see if you even like it. Learn Air Force ranks, drill, PT, etc (if you’re not in JROTC or otherwise exposed to the AF way). Meet some really interesting people. Look into the Cadet Special Programs for this summer and Fall. My son soloed at a CAP flight academy and spent a week at SUPT at Maxwell AFB.
To see what’s required to rank up, and map out a plan, put some target dates on a Cadet Personal Tracker and see what rank you can potentially achieve:

https://www.gocivilairpatrol.com/media/cms/Personal_Tracker_26E409B4B484D.pdf

Good luck!
 
Do CAP if you want to gain exposure to aviation and confirm your interest. Some people swear by it, but my experience with it is that it varies wildly from unit to unit. There were a bunch of CAP kids in my AFROTC unit and they did really well the first month because of their familiarity. Not a single one got a slot and were done after Sophomore year. It can be a nice add-on if you have a good unit and enjoy it, but some folks put way too much emphasis on it to the detriment of their grades and other development and this is a mistake. Everything I just said btw, can be applied to every extra-curricular. If you have a great teacher, coach, faculty guide involved, any extra-curricular can be amazing, and a poor/weak coach/teacher/facilitator can ruin the experience.
 
I joined CAP at the beginning of my Junior year. So glad I did, even though I joined a bit late I was able to learn so much. My CAP Command Staff is very understanding of sports and other extracurriculars. I would sometimes miss a meeting or two. CAP provides so much opportunity. I discovered a passion for I.T. and Cybersecurity by competing in CyberPatriot with my Squadron. I got a leadership role as a Flight Sergeant and learned a lot about myself and leadership. I made really good and determined friends. We supported each other through this Academy and College Application process. The Senior Members are full of knowledge and wisdom and are easy to approach for advice. I would strongly encourage you to join CAP or at least give it a try.
 
theBurnedManwalks said:
To begin, I am currently a junior in high school and have began the initial applications steps (SS/ PCQ). I only discovered Civil Air Patrol very recently, and was mainly wondering if it would be too late to join and have a meaningful impact, both on my academy application and actual experience. While I would like to gain "points" for the admissions process, that is not really the main reason for my interest. I have read the application process on the site, and should be able to be a cadet before my 18th birthday. However, my main concerns of joining are twofold. First, would I get to actually have enough time in CAP to go beyond the introductory level and would being a member for quite a bit less for a year even benefit me in USAFA admissions. Second, I have a pretty busy schedule already, with two concurrent sports all year, and many 'a' AP. From what I have seen on the local squadron's site, they meet about once every two weeks, which would be manageable. So, to all of y'all that are currently or have been in CAP please give me your wisdom on what I should do going forward. Thanks

TLDR; Would joining CAP for less than a year give me tangible benefits?
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Yes, it will help you. Our son recently received his USAFA appointment. He joined CAP in high school, after graduation applied to the academy did not make it in. Enlisted, worked 2 years in AF as enlisted, reapplied, now in class 2025! You need to prioritize your time carefully, sports are good, but CAP really helped our son to experience miltary much better. Every step helps, most importantly don't give up if you really want to be an officer in AF.
 
theBurnedManwalks said:
To begin, I am currently a junior in high school and have began the initial applications steps (SS/ PCQ). I only discovered Civil Air Patrol very recently, and was mainly wondering if it would be too late to join and have a meaningful impact, both on my academy application and actual experience. While I would like to gain "points" for the admissions process, that is not really the main reason for my interest. I have read the application process on the site, and should be able to be a cadet before my 18th birthday. However, my main concerns of joining are twofold. First, would I get to actually have enough time in CAP to go beyond the introductory level and would being a member for quite a bit less for a year even benefit me in USAFA admissions. Second, I have a pretty busy schedule already, with two concurrent sports all year, and many 'a' AP. From what I have seen on the local squadron's site, they meet about once every two weeks, which would be manageable. So, to all of y'all that are currently or have been in CAP please give me your wisdom on what I should do going forward. Thanks

TLDR; Would joining CAP for less than a year give me tangible benefits?
Click to expand...
I am going to be honest with you. The fact that anyone did CAP only lets you check one container on the admission process. The academy cares very little about CAP vs. AP classes, sports, PFA, and SAT scores. CAP is a great program that I learned a lot about basic leadership, communication skills, and time management. However, it is often pitched as a much bigger ticket to the academy than it actually is.

As someone who has been there, done that, gotten a few t-shirts.. I would focus on your grades and sports.
 
I'm having a little bit of trouble trying to find information on CAP. Could anyone give me a quick explanation?
 
Korab said:
Really? Have you even tried? There’s this new thing called google...
Click to expand...
Ok, let me rephrase. I understand that they "Support America's communities with emergency response, diverse aviation and ground services, youth development, and promotion of air, space and cyber power" which is a bit unspecific since I am wondering what a new member would do., and what they're responsibilities would be.
 
Unpopular opinion: If you already have leadership positions in multiple sports and clubs at school, I would say no. This is coming from someone who spent almost a decade in CAP, attended some of the most selective activities, and ended up earning the Spaatz award, the program's highest cadet achievement. I loved my time in the program, but if you're already solid in other areas you probably won't get much out of the program in less than a year. However, if your application is lacking in the leadership category, CAP might be a good way to show you're trying to improve that. There is a spot on the Academy and AFROTC application that asks about CAP, but it doesn't really start adding to your app until you earn your Mitchell award which takes a little over a year on average.

The reason I say it's hard to get something out of the program in less than a year is because the really cool opportunities like national cadet special activities don't open up to you until after encampment, which happens during the first summer after you join, although some winter programs do exist. The first year or so in CAP is you marching under the command of cadet officers and NCOs usually about 14 or 15 years old, maybe a few flights in a Cessna, and possibly some basic search and rescue skills training. If you've got the time and desire to do those things, go for it, but I personally didn't start getting to do the things I really wanted until after my first year in.

With that being said, if you were in middle school or even early in high school, I'd highly recommend joining. CAP helped me get my AFROTC scholarship, but I also balanced it with other activities like Boys State and Student Council, NHS, etc.
 
I'd like to, kinda, +0.5 to Thunderbolt462

Here's what I'm thinking: CAP is a great way to dip your toes into the Air Force culture, learn about some of our rich history, and start to get acquainted with what will be expected of you as a cadet. Might make the commitment easier if you know what you're getting into. It is also beneficial to the resume (though I would caution not to join things just for the credit, USAFA Admissions much rather likes to see involvement over the number of clubs on the resume. Quality over quantity.), so that's a plus for your application.

But, you do have two sports and many AP courses on your schedule, which can be a tough undertaking already, not to mention if you're involved in volunteering, other clubs, etc. Most cadets didn't do CAP, so it's not a requirement, but academic excellence is. I'd say that if joining CAP would negatively affect your performance in academics or athletics, its a no-go. School and sports are high priority according to USAFA, where CAP is not.

So I'd say I think it's a great idea and you could really learn a lot and grow from it if and only if it doesn't negatively affect your other, well-established involvements.
 
My son joined as a Junior and made it to Technical Sargent and yes, it really helped him receive an appointment.

I would say go for it.
 
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