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Cornell AFROTCDetachment 520Ever Upward
The full detachment formed up on the Barton Hall track during Leadership Laboratory, seen from the side beneath the arched trusses.

Detachment 520Cornell University

The Detachment 520 experience

Cadet Life at Detachment 520

Cornell's Air Force Officer Education Program combines academic coursework with leadership laboratory and physical fitness training. Exact activities and schedules require current approved information.

Explore Program & CoursesLearn how to join

What cadet life includes

Three things run in parallel through all four years.

  • Academic study

    Academic study

    Cornell publishes Air and Space Studies courses for university credit. The current catalog controls titles, credits, descriptions, and enrollment.

    View the current course catalog

  • Applied leadership

    Leadership laboratory

    Cadets apply classroom concepts through drill and ceremonies, group leadership problems, and confidence-building exercises.

    Explore leadership development

  • Physical fitness

    Physical preparation

    Participants train to meet the applicable current official fitness standards.

    Review current official standards

Detachment 520 does not publish recurring times, training locations, attendance instructions, or detailed internal activities on this site.

A smiling cadet does pushups beside teammates during physical training in Barton Hall.

Explore the experience

Public Cornell and Detachment sources describe a program built around credit-bearing coursework, Leadership Laboratory, physical preparation, Field Training, and joint Cornell ROTC organizations.

The cadet wing stands in formation across the Barton Hall floor.