Stepping off Upper Quad: An Outside Perspective on the Corps of Cadets

By Cadet Kaiden Audy '28

Waiting outside one of my classes at the beginning of the school year, I overheard a first-year cadet describing her recent training to a very confused civilian audience who kept questioning why she had opted for such an abnormal college experience. It was a funny thing to overhear as an upperclass cadet, but looking back at that conversation got me thinking about how the outside community perceives the Corps of Cadets.  

Those new to Virginia Tech might have seen the check box on the application or heard the Corps mentioned in passing, but many are unaware of the role cadets play in Hokie culture. Over time, after sitting next to cadets in class, watching the regiment march to football games, or passing by morning formation, an understanding starts to grow. This understanding doesn’t dive into the specifics of our day-to-day lives — instead, it’s a bigger picture of what the organization represents to the community.  

I wanted to find out how faculty, students, and campus leaders outside the Corps perceive cadets, and what those impressions reveal about commitment, discipline, and service within the broader Hokie community.

To do that, I sat down with Dr. Arachchige, the director of general chemistry at Virginia Tech, to talk with her regarding the many cadets she has taught over the years. Dr. Arachchige brought up the theme of dedication many times in our conversation. Her challenging course requires dedication to succeed, and she shared that dedication is exactly what she witnesses in her cadet students. We talked about the possibility of her daughter coming to Virginia Tech in the coming years, and Dr. Arachchige commented on how she has seen the Corps help cadets make the transition from high school to college, a shift that many students struggle with. She credited cadet academic success to the Corps’ quality learning environment, structured lifestyle, and continuous support mechanisms in place.

 To gain a peer perspective, I spoke with a civilian student majoring in neuroscience. Like Dr. Arachchige, the first word that popped into her mind when asked about the Corps was “dedication.” She had only heard about the Corps in passing when applying to Virginia Tech, but now has the opportunity to learn more about our experience through her cadet co-worker.  

Those same qualities are noticed not only by classmates and faculty, but also by campus leaders who see the Corps as central to Virginia Tech’s identity.  

Coach James Franklin began his journey at Virginia Tech with a backdrop of cadets. He made it clear during his first press conference that he holds a deep respect for the Corps. When I asked him about cadets, he talked about how the Corps makes Virginia Tech stand out from every other school, how no other school has the tradition, discipline, and service so deeply embedded into its culture. And he said the Corps’ idea of shared values is something he wants to lean into with his program.

"When our players see that level of dedication from their peers, it raises the bar in our own building. And when a recruit visits and sees the Corps in the stadium, he understands immediately Virginia Tech is different. This is a place where those values are lived out every day. That's a real advantage as we build this program,” said Franklin.

At the end of the day, cadets are still just students. Like every other student, we are working toward a degree, and maybe the chance to learn a thing or two, but we chose more, and that dedication is seen in our broader community. They see the extra work we put in. They may not know the difference between a fire team and a squad, or why the entire regiment is holding up traffic by McBryde on Thursday afternoons. But our community sees us working hard, serving others, cheering on our teams, and committing to the people around us in the path we chose.