About Bill Taylor Expertise I can answer questions about admissions to West Point; about the history of West Point; about how to travel to West Point, where to eat, where to stay, etc.; and about West Point`s alumni organization, the West Point Association of Graduates.
Experience I am a 1970 Graduate of West Point. I served six years on active duty and another 8 years in the active reserve. I have been actively involved as a Field Admissions Representative for over 15 years and have participated on my Congressman's Academy Selection Panel for over 20 years. I am actively involved in West Point Alumni affairs, serving in roles both with the West Point Association of Graduates and the local alumni chapter in Annapolis, MD. I also have two sons who graduated from West Point in 1995 and 2001. Both are veterans of the Iraq war and continue to serve on Active Duty in the Army.
I am doing some research on West Point and have come to a road block. Unfortunately, I am unfamiliar with the chain of command; the military jargon is a bit daunting. Can you please tell me how the chain of command in the corps of cadets is organized? I see that the highest command a cadet can hold is the "first captain" role; however, from there it's sort of ambiguous information online. In addition, the titles/ranks are foreign to me.
Thank you in advance for your efforts.
Best,
Carmen
ANSWER: Hi, Carmen, it's good to hear from you. Thanks for your interest in West Point.
The United States Corps of Cadets are organized as a Brigade consisting of four Regiments (First, Second, Third and Fourth Regiments). The Regiments are each divided into two battalions of four companies each.
The Brigade Commander is the top ranking Cadet and is also known as the "First Captain". Each of the Regiments is commanded by a Regimental Commander. Each Battalion is commanded by a Battalion Commander. And finally, each company (32 total) is commanded by a Company Commander.
That is the chain of command from the First Captain (Brigade Commander) down through the Regimental Commanders, Battalion Commanders and Company Commanders.
I hope this helps. Ask a follow-up if you have any specific questions remaining.
Best Regards,
Bill Taylor
Gambrills, MD
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Hi Bill,
Thank you so much for your response. It was very helpful. Are there any other leadership positions aside from the Regimental, Battalion, and Company Commanders? Anything below the Company Commanders? One maybe a sophomore could hold? And, could a sophomore be a battalion commander, or are those relatively designed for juniors and seniors?
In addition, could you tell me how the cadets refer to one another? If a freshman were speaking to an upperclassmen, they wouldn't call them by their first name, right? And, if an upperclassmen were speaking to their battalion commander, how would they refer to them?
Thank you in advance for your knowledge.
Best,
Carmen Golden
Answer Hi again, Carmen. Sorry for the delay in responding to your follow-up as I have been traveling extensively.
To provide some perspective of the leadership training at West Point, they follow a Cadet Leadership Development System whereby in each succeeding year cadets have increasing responsibility. The first or Plebe year is a "follower" year; the second or Yearling year they each have responsibility for the development of one or more Plebes; the third or Cow year they serve as the non-commissioned officers (sergeants if you will); and in their senior or Firstie year they serve as the officers.
As such, below the Company Commander there are Platoon Leaders who are Firstie officers. Then there are Platoon Sergeants and Squad Leaders who are Cow non-commissioned officers. The sophomore Yearlings hold no official positions, other than as mentor for one or more Plebes.
Plebes refer to upperclassmen as "Sir" or "Mr/Ms Lastname". Upperclassmen refer to Plebes as "Mr/Ms Lastname." Upperclassmen (everyone but Plebes) generally refer to each other by their first names, regardless of rank.
