ROTC Training

Classroom Instruction

All George Mason ROTC cadets are required to take certain military science courses in order to successfully complete all requirements to commission as an Army Officer upon graduation from GMU with at least a bachelor’s degree in an undergraduate program of study.  These Military Science courses are required IN ADDITION to the requirements for degree completion of any approved major program of study that the cadet desires to study. Cadets receive their formal instruction on leadership, military doctrine, tactical knowledge, Army customs and courtesies in their Military Science Class which is taught by US Army Active Duty, ROTC Cadre. Classes are taught in the upstairs classrooms of the Recreational Athletic Complex(The RAC).

Physical Training(PT)

PT is conducted three days a week(Monday, Wednesday, Friday) from 06:30 am to 08:00 am in the mornings and at different locations throughout the semesters. During the initial months of the Fall semester, PT is conducted on the RAC Field and around the Fairfax Campus. As the school semester progresses into the winter and the temperature begins to drop, PT is moved indoors to the Mason Field House. The Patriot Battalion continues their physical training indoors until temperatures rise again in the latter half of the Spring semester when the program moves back out to the RAC Field.

Battalion training sessions are planned and led by cadets. The workouts are designed to improve the overall physical fitness of the cadets, and allow them to gain experience in planning, training, and leading formations. We tailor the workouts to be engaging and fun for all cadets and design new more entertaining ways of improving one’s physical fitness through team building and unit bonding workouts.

Army Combat Fitness Test(ACFT)

The ACFT is the standard physical assessment that all contracted cadets are required to take and pass as part of being in the ROTC program. It is the same test that they will take once they are commissioned into the Army as officers and serve in any of the three components. The test comprises of six events, geared towards simulating combat tasks and is a mix of cardio, core, and weight-lifting exercises. Those six events are the following:

1. The 3 repetition Maximum Dead Lift
2. The Standing Power Throw
3. The Hand Release Push Up
4. The Sprint Drag Carry
5. The Plank
6. The 2 Mile Run

Leadership Laboratories

Every week the Battalion has a two-hour lab where the senior cadets teach the underclassmen cadets a variety of different subjects including land navigation, first aid, and tactical movement techniques, field craft, squad and platoon patrols. These labs are primarily hands-on training opportunities where cadets learn all the fundamentals about individual soldier tasks as well as form the skills of officer leadership. Cadets in the MS I and II grade levels are taught the basics about the military, the Army values, and other beginner-level skills. As they progress throughout the semester they begin to practice team-level drills, then work to squad-level patrols, and by their MSIII year, they will be doing platoon-level operations.

Combat Water Survival Test(CWST)

Each semester the Patriot Battalion works in conjunction with the George Mason Aquatic Fitness Center to provide cadets with the proper training and education on water safety so that they know what to do if they encounter a water feature while at Advanced Camp. the ROTC cadre as well as the AFC staff and lifeguards work closely to ensure that all cadets taking the test are doing it in a safe environment with all the necessary precautions taken. All cadets from MSI to MSIV are required to take the test each semester as it is both a camp and commissioning rec. The water test consists of the following four events:

• Dawn and Dash
• 50-meter Rifle Swim
• High Dive Jump
• Two-Minute Water Tread

Field Training Exercise

Here at the Patriot Battalion, we conduct a culminating training event that takes place over a period of 3-4 days outside of our regular campus location. We conduct a Field Training Exercise(FTX) during the Fall semester and a Joint Field Training Exercise in the Spring semester. The FTX in the Fall is kept within our program, where test cadets on the skills they have learned throughout their military science classes as well as their leadership laboratories in the weeks leading up to the FTX. The JFTX in the Spring is just like that in the Fall but with the integration of neighboring ROTC programs in the NOVA area. The two main programs that we conduct the JFTX with are the Hoya Battalion from Georgetown University and the Bison Battalion from Howard University. At the JFTX we work together with these programs to give our cadets a taste of what Advanced Camp will be like when it comes to platoon integration and learning how to work with cadets from different programs. The training events that we test and practice during FTXs include the following:

• Land Navigation
• Obstacle Course Team Movements
• Field Craft Training
• Radio Operation
• Medical & First Aid(Tactical Casualty Combat Care)
• Weapons Familiarization(Assembly/Disassembly)
• Engagement Skills Trainer(Simulated shooting)
• Marksmanship and Shooting
• Squad and Platoon Patrolling
• 12 Mile Ruck March