Members of the Cadet Unit at a Past Annual Camp
Cadets is seen by some as just a bunch of marching and saluting, and being a military indoctrination program where you will be enlisted into the Army. Personally, I can attest to the fact that no, you will not be drafted into the army (cadets have no obligation to the military both while in the program and once they have left), and, while marching and saluting play a part in cadets, it’s a lot more than that.
The primary goals of cadets are to inspire, discipline, build independence and, despite common beliefs, have fun. This rings particularly true on the camps where you use the skills you learned in cadets to complete fun activities within the camps. With the New SUO (Jared Buckton) taking lead, Cadets shifts toward a newer direction that involves more activity-based learning, where Cadets practically apply their newly learned skills rather than the less exciting classroom learning to make cadets not only more fun, but more engaging. While the classroom classes will not be completely removed, they will be drastically reduced. The future of cadets looks bright as the next year begins, as we look forward to the additional cadets and the host of fun activities to come about. With more exciting events next year, we are able to look back upon what cadets have done this year, despite COVID-19 interrupting a majority of the year.
New Recruits
Every year as cadets starts up again, it is exciting to see the large influx of cadets who join the program and become a full versed part of the cadet program. New recruits are able to attend their first camp, the units annual bivouac, in Term 1 holidays. This is their first opportunity to apply the skills learnt during Monday afternoon parades in a field environment. For many recruits (and seasoned cadets), camps are the highlight of cadets, providing an opportunity to live and work with their mates in a challenging field environment.
Bivouac
Bivouac (often referred to as 'biv') is a short term camp where cadets setup their own hootchies (an open and versatile shelter) to sleep in. Cadets also complete many activities that require them to rely on skills developed during Monday parades and team cooperation to get them through to the end.
Final Words
Is Cadets for everyone? No but it is definitely worth a shot - as cliché as it sounds, the friendships you make are incredible and the skills you learn are invaluable.
Cadets is extremely flexible with both joining in and leaving. If you are interested in joining, you can join at anytime of the year by filling out a one page form and then coming to cadets on Mondays from 3:30pm to 5:00pm. Anyone from year 7-12 may join and the members of rank will gladly assist you in learning the ins and outs of cadets.
If you you join and cadets isn't for you, while its sad to see you go, you'll have to fill out a similar form and deposit it into the office. So why not give it a shot? You get what you put in and the benefits it can bring are numerous, whether this may be in the form of the skills you learn, the preference of employers to hire cadets or the near-guarantee of early entrance to many universities that the cadet name provides.
- Ryan Mitchell
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