Starfleet Academy
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Starfleet Academy is Starfleet’s in-house university, intended to train officers to join Starfleet. A part of Starfleet Training Command, this institution spans multiple campuses across Federation space, educating tens of thousands of cadets each year. The original flagship campus is located on Earth in San Francisco, within walking distance of Starfleet Command.
Admissions
Admission to Starfleet Academy is exceptionally competitive, with academics, physical fitness, and character references all being considered in the initial application process. Even after an applicant is selected, they must go through an entrance examination, which includes intense psychological scrutiny, exams covering a wide range of subject areas, and in-person interviews. Applicants not scoring high enough to attain admission but above a certain range are allowed to take the exam again after twelve months had passed.
Non-Federation citizens are allowed to apply to the academy with the sponsorship of a command-grade officer. Unlike citizens, however, they were required to complete the Starfleet Academy Preparatory Program (SAPP), which was six weeks of classes set between the San Francisco campus's spring and fall semesters. This is an intensive, grueling experience with a high attrition rate. If the applicant successfully completes the program, they are then able to take the entrance examination itself.
Some secondary schools within the Federation also offer the Starfleet Academy Preparatory Program, allowing students to prepare themselves for the entrance examination while still in high school or its equivalent.
In-Play
- Delinquents don't get into Starfleet Academy. It's for the best-of-the-best, as evidenced through the application process. If your character had a troubled adolescence or found academic success late, the only way they'd be likely to gain admittance is raw talent.
Campuses
Starfleet Academy’s main campus is located in San Francisco, California on Earth. This is considered the most desirable campus to earn one’s commission from, and it is the largest campus (by enrollment) of the system. Subsidiary campuses are located on most member worlds and some colony worlds. These subsidiary campuses are smaller. Some have limited program offerings, and/or specialize in a particular area: for example, the Mellstoxx III campus (aka the Fourth Fleet Academy) specializes in counseling, as it is in a Betazoid colony with a strong tradition of training mental healthcare professionals.
While all Starfleet Academy campuses follow a single, unified curriculum, they can differ in terms of how long it takes to complete a program based on the cultural traditions concerning academics of their host planet: for example, ‘summer breaks’ are a North American tradition in higher education, so some planets do not have them. Others break the academic year into three or four parts, rather than into two parts. This variation is considered desirable, both to offer different schedules for individuals’ preferences, but also because it results in new officers being commissioned at many different dates throughout the year, keeping a constant stream of new officers flowing into the fleet.
The Fourth Fleet's primary training facility is located at Mellstoxx III, and this is the subsidiary campus that provides this fleet with the majority of its new officers.
In-Play
- Everyone wants to go to Starfleet Academy’s main campus. It’s the most elite, selective institution in the Federation. That doesn’t mean that admissions standards at the other campuses are laxer, but just in terms of the number of seats available only the best and brightest end up in San Francisco.
- The main campus is very diverse. Satellite campuses might have a majority of people born on that planet or from nearby systems, so they would have a different atmosphere. Thus, people graduating from these other campuses might respond in unique ways when placed on multi-cultural starships.
- Someone born on Earth might want to apply to an academy far from home!
- Someone wanting to specialize in a particular area might be directed towards a particular campus: Mellstoxx III for counseling, Telar Prime for engineering, Vulcan for science, etc.
Academic Program
The time it takes to complete a particular program at Starfleet Academy depends on several factors, ranging from the individual’s age and prior experience to which campus it’s being taken on to the program itself. Generally, it takes four years to graduate from most programs as an Ensign with a bachelor’s degree. Specialized programs such as medicine and counseling take an additional two or four years. In addition, individuals may opt to spend longer at the academy to pursue a master’s or doctoral degree, especially in the sciences.
While cadets wear the branch color of either Command, Engineering, or Sciences during their time at the academy based on their intended career path, they receive degrees in an academic area during their time there. All cadets receive training in starship operations and self-defense, alongside a rigorous core curriculum of science, history, mathematics, and the arts, to become well-rounded critical thinkers.
Cadets in a traditional four-year program will spend most of their first two years going through the core curriculum, with their second two years spent specializing. Interspersed throughout classroom studies are practical excursions, such as survival training, zero-gee training, and the all-important cadet cruises performed on actual starships. Ensigns who graduate in this manner are qualified to serve as bridge officers immediately upon their commissioning without taking the Bridge Officer’s Exam, as this is built into the program.
| Years 1 & 2 | Years 3 & 4 | Graduation | |
|---|---|---|---|
| General Education
Basic Starship Operations |
Specialization in major content area
Advanced Starship Operations |
Bachelor's Degree
Ensign Bridge-Qualified | |
Some programs, including nursing, and interstellar relations where the academic requirements are too rigorous to allow for completion of both advanced starship operations and their discipline's requirements within four years. Cadets in these programs take just one year of general education and basic starship operations, followed by three intensive years in their discipline. This is also an option for cadets in other areas who wish to add another major or minor while completing their degree. Cadets who take this path must take the Bridge Officer’s Exam later in their career to qualify for bridge duty and be eligible for promotion beyond the rank of lieutenant commander.
| Year 1 | Years 2, 3, & 4 | Graduation |
|---|---|---|
| General Education
Basic Starship Operations |
Specialization in major content area | Bachelor's Degree
Ensign |
Medicine, counseling, and the law have two options: an accelerated six-year track which allows them to earn a bachelor's degree and a master's or professional doctorate at the same time without bridge officer qualification, and an eight-year track with the two degrees earned separately, with or without bridge officer qualification, depending on their career path. A law student, for instance, might find it useful in their future role advocating for Starfleet officers to be fully qualified for bridge duty, while a physician might take on a xenobiology major alongside their pre-medical studies in preparation for studying xeno-medicine. A counselor would take the eight year path to become a psychiatrist, and thus a medical doctor. Counselors, Judge-Advocates, and Doctors end their studies as Lieutenants Junior Grade, with the eight year track including an initial commission as an Ensign before professional school.
| Year 1 | Years 2 & 3 | Years 4, 5, & 6 | Graduation |
|---|---|---|---|
| General Education
Basic Starship Operations |
Specialization in pre-professional area | Professional studies | Bachelor's Degree
M.D., J.D., or M.S. Lieutenant Junior Grade |
| Year 1 | Years 2, 3, & 4 | Graduation | Years 5, 6, 7, & 8 | Graduation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| General Education
Basic Starship Operations |
Specialization in major content area | Bachelor's Degree
Ensign |
Professional Studies | M.D. or J.D.
Lieutenant Junior Grade |
| Years 1 & 2 | Years 3 & 4 | Graduation | Years 5, 6, 7, & 8 | Graduation |
| General Education
Basic Starship Operations |
Specialization in major content area
Advanced Starship Operations |
Bachelor's Degree
Ensign Bridge-Qualified |
Professional Studies | M.D. or J.D.
Lieutenant Junior Grade |
In-Play
- Generally, if your character wants to become a bridge officer, they’ll spend four years at Starfleet Academy, earning a content degree (astrophysics, interstellar relations, engineering, etc.) and robust training in starship operations, resulting in a commission as an ensign.
- If your character wants to become a nurse or enter a field like diplomacy that wouldn’t need as much training in starship operations, they would earn a four-year degree and a commission as an ensign, but would then need to complete the bridge officer’s examination to become qualified to serve on the bridge or move past lieutenant commander.
- Scientists and engineers also have the option of an abbreviated general studies program, with three years in the specialized study of their content area. This is the track that researchers who don’t intend on becoming bridge officers initially might take. They would also graduate as ensigns and then need to eventually take the bridge officer’s exam if they wanted to progress past lieutenant commander.
- If your character wants to become a doctor, counselor, or lawyer, they would have two options:
- A character wanting to both be bridge qualified and enter a field like this requiring an advanced degree would take a four-year program in a content area (like xenobiology, psychology, or interstellar relations), graduating as a bridge-qualified ensign and then either two or four more years at one of the specialist academies, graduating with an advanced degree and being promoted to lieutenant junior grade. This track would be eight years total.
- A character not interested in becoming bridge qualified initially would enter the intended program (medicine, counseling, the law) directly, with three years spent at Starfleet Academy and three years spent at the specialist Academy, earning an advanced degree and a direct commission as a lieutenant junior grade. This track would be six years total.
- There are lots of exceptions and different permutations to these tracks. Many things are possible.
- Someone with service experience in a member world’s exploratory or defensive service (like the Andorian Imperial Guard) might only need three years at Starfleet Academy.
- Someone who wants to be both bridge-qualified and earn a Ph.D. might spend eight or ten years between Starfleet Academy and their graduate program, possibly even earning a commission as a full lieutenant in the process.
- Someone who goes to another university for their bachelor’s degree might be able to enter Starfleet Medical Academy with a year spent first at Starfleet Academy learning the basics of Starfleet, before completing four years at SMA.
- The purpose of this section isn’t to get too far down into the weeds, so just keep it realistic: your character’s not graduating in three years total as a doctor, with no other academic qualifications, but it also doesn’t take ten years to become a flight control officer.
Degrees and Subject Areas
Everyone graduating through Starfleet Academy’s traditional four-year program earns a Bachelor of Science (BS) degree. These degrees are always in an academic discipline, rather than just in a branch of Starfleet or in a position. Starfleet Academy also offers masters and doctoral programs in all of its academic areas.
| Social Sciences | Natural Sciences | Formal Sciences | Applied Sciences | Engineering |
| (Xeno)Anthropology | Astronautics | Computer Science | Agriculture | Aerospace Engineering |
| (Xeno)Archaeology | Astronomy | Logic | Architecture | Bio-Electronic Engineering |
| Art History | Astrophysics | Mathematics | Archival Science | Mechanical Engineering |
| Criminal Justice | (Xeno)Biology | Statistics | Astronautical Tactics | Quantum Engineering |
| Cultural Studies | Chemistry | Systems Science | Cybernetics | Structural Engineering |
| Economics | Cosmology | Education | Warp Systems Engineering | |
| Geography | Geology | Exology | ||
| History | Meteorology | Forensics | ||
| Xeno/Linguistics | Minerology | Interstellar Relations | ||
| Philosophy | Planetology | Nursing | ||
| Political Science | Physics | Public Health | ||
| Xeno/Psychology | Stellar Cartography | Small-Group Tactics | ||
| Xeno/Sociology | Vulcanology | |||
| Rhetoric |
Starfleet Legal Academy offers the degree of Juris Doctor (JD), which is a four-year program covering interstellar law, Federation law, the Starfleet Uniform Code of Justice, and legal history.
Starfleet Medical Academy offers medical doctorates, research doctorates in medical fields, and advanced degrees in fields like public health and nursing. Many new MDs also complete residencies, which do not earn a further degree but do grant additional qualifications.
In-Play
- One does not graduate with a degree in Command or Security, but rather with a degree in a relevant academic area.
- This is not an all-inclusive list; you could drill down much more specifically in almost every scientific area.
General Training
Whether you're meant to be a records officer or a captain, every graduate of Starfleet Academy receives at least basic training in starship operations. No one graduates from the academy without ever having been in space, and graduates of traditional four-year bridge officer programs are among the most capable starship crew members of any power in the Alpha or Beta Quadrants. This training includes wilderness survival, zero-gee training, basic flight control, and self-defense training, all of which is expected beyond any academic program a cadet might be engaged in.
Training Squadrons
All cadets are part of a training squadron while at Starfleet Academy. Despite the name, this is not a reference to them needing to be pilots necessarily, but is a hold-over from earlier Academy structures on a number of Federation worlds. Typically, a cadet will remain with the same squadron for their entire tenure at Starfleet Academy, and squadrons generally include members of all four cadet ranks. Squadrons are typically made up of between 48 and 64 cadets, overseen by a senior cadet who is mentored by a command-grade officer ranked between Lieutenant Commander and Captain.
Training squadrons are the locus of most of the training in survival, self-defense, leadership, and discipline at Starfleet Academy. These units function as self-contained residential groups as well, with cadets in the same squadron living, working, and eating together. Mentorships naturally occur and more senior cadets are encouraged to take more junior ones under their wings, which is meant to set up that same behavior within the fleet itself.
There are a number of elite training squadrons for cadets in different areas:
- Red Squadron is Starfleet Academy's most elite squadron. Dominated by command cadets and tactical, this unit is often given extended cadet cruises. All members of this squadron are seen as future captains. Between 2374 and 2384, this unit was disbanded after the ignominious fate of the USS Valiant.
- Gold Squadron is Starfleet Academy's dedicated elite technical squadron, made up of cadets destined for a future in engineering and operations. Cadets in this squadron often see significant secondments to the Starfleet Corps of Engineers during their tenure at the academy.
- Blue Squadron is Starfleet Academy's dedicated elite scientific squadron, made up of cadets destined for a future in the sciences. They receive additional field training assisting with scientific projects in the Sol system.
- White Squadron is Starfleet Academy's dedicate elite medical and nursing squadron, with cadets both from the nursing program and those intending to enter Starfleet Medical Academy. They receive additional hands-on experience at Starfleet Medical's main facility.
- Nova Squadron was an elite training squadron that was disbanded following a disastrous accident in 2368. Unlike other squadrons, it was a dedicated flight team. It was also much smaller than other squadrons, at only 5 members.
In addition, numbered fleets maintain training squadrons at the academies that service them. Notably:
- The Fourth Fleet's training squadron is known as Cadet Squadron Bravo. It prepares cadets for the unique burden of being placed with Starfleet's premiere rapid-response fleet. It is based out of the Mellstox III campus.
In-Play
- Most of your characters will belong to a random cadet squadron, like Cadet Squadron Seven or Cadet Squadron Thirty, rather than one of the elite squadrons noted here. That is, they will unless you assign them to the Fourth Fleet Academy, where they'd be a member of Cadet Squadron Bravo!
- The colored squadrons would be a great placement for someone who truly shines in their disciplinary area. Someone used to getting special treatment and extra opportunities might chafe at the realities of being a junior officer, though.
- Your squadron at the academy would be your Hogwarts House, your tribe, your clan, etc. This is the team that you would belong to, which would celebrate your successes and punish misbehavior.
Training Vessels and Cadet Cruises
Every cadet at Starfleet Academy undergoes at lease one cadet cruise on one of the Academy's training vessels, either following their third or fourth year. While aboard a training vessel, cadets are known as midshipmen and stand in the place of regular officers. The most advanced cadets serve as department heads, while the rest of their class fill in roles all over the ship, with commissioned officers overseeing them the entire time. These cruises last for several weeks at a time, as cadets get accustomed to life aboard a starship and practice practical skills that can't be simulated in a classroom. Without exception, training cruises are commanded by Starfleet captains.
Starfleet Academy employs a number of different training vessels, the most famous being the USS Republic. Subsidiary campuses either have their own training vessel or have active service starships stand in temporarily. The Mellstoxx III campus which serves the Fourth Fleet, for example, has the USS Exeter at its disposal.
Members of specialized training squadrons or who demonstrate particular promise might spend a cadet cruise aboard an active service starship.
In-Play
- The cadet cruise is an integral part of the Starfleet Academy experience. It's something cadets look forward to (and possibly dread?) and serves as the culmination of their training in starship operations.
- If your character wasn't trained as some sort of bridge officer or specialist (like a doctor or nurse), they might have served in roles like records officer or yeoman during their cruise.
- Cadets are never in command of the cruise itself, but might have a stint on the bridge. This is evidenced by Nog's shock that the Valiant was in command of a cadet, given that cadets never had commands of anything larger than a runabout.