Starfleet Ranks
Starfleet Ranks represent the basic organizational structure of Starfleet, with a grade and insignia for everyone ranging from the Commander-in-Chief herself to the lowest-ranking crewmen. Though a non-military exploratory, defensive, and humanitarian organization, Starfleet uses a hierarchy derived from the space fleets of the Federation's members, which is heavily influenced by the United Earth Starfleet.
Commissioned Officers
Commissioned Officers are the members of Starfleet who have a commission from the Federation Council granting them command authority over lower-ranking commissioned officers and all non-commissioned officers. The ability to command a starship is reserved solely for commissioned officers. Generally, commissioned officers have attended Starfleet Academy, but others earn their rank through Officer Candidate School. Commissioned officers in Starfleet must either have a university education or the equivalent.
Flag Officers
Main Article: Starfleet Flag Officers
Flag Officers are the senior-most Starfleet officers, so-named for the old Earth naval tradition of hoisting a command flag to designate the lead ship in a group of ships, the flagship. Flag Officers in Starfleet command groups of ships (from task groups to entire fleets) and important starbases, and also serve in staff roles at various levels of the Starfleet hierarchy.
| Rank Name | Abbreviation | Command | Sciences | Operations |
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| Fleet Admiral | FADM |  |
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| Admiral | ADM |  |
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| Vice Admiral | VADM |  |
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| Rear Admiral | RADM |  |
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| Commodore | CDRE |  |
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Line Officers
Main Article: Starfleet Line Officers
Line Officers represent the bulk of the members of Starfleet holding officer ranks, with responsibilities ranging from the command of starship to junior staff positions on minor outposts. Line officers are subordinate to flag officers and have authority over more junior line officers and all non-commissioned officers.
| Rank Name | Abbreviation | Command | Sciences | Operations |
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| Fleet Captain | FCAPT |  |
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| Captain | CAPT |  |
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| Commander | CMDR |  |
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| Lieutenant Commander | LTCMDR |  |
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| Lieutenant | LT |  |
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| Lieutenant Junior Grade | LTJG |  |
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| Ensign | ENS |  |
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Commissioned Officer Trainees
Starfleet Academy Cadets rank above crewmen and alongside petty officers, but as officers-in-training, this authority is rarely used in practice. Historically, Starfleet has varied from decade to decade on how it delineates grades of cadets. As of 2399, cadets do not wear distinctive rank insignia or departmental colors to differentiate between their year at the academy or course of study. While on their final training cruise aboard a starship or starbase, cadets are classified as midshipmen and wear a single hollow pip. This may occur before or after their academic graduation from Starfleet Academy and is requisite for their promotion to ensign. Cadets who elect for a six-year program including doctoral work (such as Physicians, Counselors, and Lawyers) are classified as midshipmen once they have completed the portion of their program at Starfleet Academy and move to their graduate studies.
| Rank Name | Abbreviation | Command | Sciences | Operations |
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| Midshipman | MDN |  | ||
| Cadet | CDT |  | ||
Non-Commissioned Officers and Enlisted Personnel
Main Article: Starfleet Non-Commissioned Officers and Enlisted Personnel
Non-Commissioned Officers (NCOs) and Enlisted Personnel are members of Starfleet who serve in technical and specialist roles, working under Commissioned Officers. Though ineligible to hold command, these members are also not required to attend Starfleet Academy or to have a university degree, though many of them in science and engineering specialist roles do.
Non-Commissioned Officers
Non-Commissioned Officers are members of Starfleet are technical experts and leaders of more junior enlisted personnel. All non-commissioned officers are subordinate to commissioned officers as a matter of course, though many commands have them supervising midshipmen, ensigns and even junior lieutenants as a normal part of their training. Non-commissioned officers may elect to become commissioned officers through the completion of Starfleet Academy coursework or Officer Candidate School.
| Rank Name | Abbreviation | Command | Sciences | Operations | Special Services |
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| Chief Petty Officer | CPO |  |
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| Petty Officer | PO |  |
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Enlisted Personnel
Enlisted Personnel are members of Starfleet who have joined Starfleet directly and who have received basic training in their chosen career path. Crewmen are fully trained and able to serve on a starship or starbase, wearing a standard uniform with no rank insignia. Crewmen Recruits are still in training and wear the same uniform as Starfleet Academy cadets, but in silver rather than red.
| Rank Name | Abbreviation | Command | Sciences | Operations | Special Services |
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| Crewman | CN |  |
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| Crewman Recruit | CR |  | |||
Divisional Colors
Main Article: Starfleet Onboard Departments
Starfleet utilizes three uniform colors for officers to designate their division assignments, which are the broader categories under which starship and station departments are organized. Enlisted personnel in special services (such as cooks, waiters, hairdressers, and other non-technical support staff) fall under operations but wear silver uniforms to make them easy to distinguish from their shipmates while performing those functions in spaces that are normally considered off duty areas.
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Starfleet Ranks In-Play
- Any member can create characters up to the rank of Captain or their fleet rank, whichever is higher. This rule can be found in the Canon Policy, and was instituted to give some freedom for folks still starting out to use more senior characters, especially those members who advance to staff roles early in their time here--it wouldn't make much sense for a Lieutenant Commander to be a TFXO or TFCO in-universe, for instance.
- While Starfleet is not a military, some things about the way rank is portrayed are borrowed closely from modern naval tradition, and so modern militaries could be a source of inspiration for realistic/reasonable rank advancement. On the other hand, William T. Riker was a full commander by age 29, so you shouldn't feel beholden to the real world either.
- Each task force has an NPC Commodore in command of the task force headquarters, so this is a suitable character for you to use to get orders from, as members can't create their own flag officers if they do not hold flag rank themselves.
Credits
Credit for the Officers' rank insignia goes to Bravo Fleet. The collars were created by Emily.