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No Ordinary College.
Virginia Military Institute graduates have never settled for ordinary. They’re always striving for a higher standard.
Do you have what it takes?No Ordinary Cadets. No Ordinary Life.
Leading with Courage, Competence, and Integrity
Throughout its storied history, VMI has produced leaders and individuals whose daily lives reflect the integrity, fairness, and appreciation for the value of hard work that is instilled at the Institute. For the individual who wants an undergraduate experience more complete and transformative than an ordinary college or university can provide and more versatile in its applications than a military service academy affords, VMI offers a superb education.
I chose VMI over other schools because of its rigorous and intimidating nature, its long-standing traditions, and its exceptional history of producing the best this country has to offer.
#1
Liberal Arts College Nationwide for Return on Investment
#3
Best Small College -
Fewer than 2,500 students
#4
Top Public Schools of National Liberal Arts Colleges
#3A Common Purpose. A Connected Corps.
I have grown as a leader at VMI by learning my strong suits, but also by being resilient in times of failure and learning from those mistakes. I have continued to apply myself to different opportunities and tried to involve myself in different ways of cadet life consistently, leading to strong involvement in the corps and many different teaching environments that have strengthened my leadership capabilities.
I’m just really lucky to have gotten the chance to come here - every single day I was grateful to be here and to be doing whatever I got a chance to do… I’ve never had so many people genuinely care about me and want to see me do well.
Major: International Studies | Commissioning: United States Navy
Why I VMI 📹
Diverse
43 states, Puerto Rico, Guam, DC, and 7 foreign countries are represented in the Corps
Strong
Cadets have ROTC, fitness training, by-stander intervention training, & weapon training.
Dedicated
Over 50% of VMI's graduates commission into the Armed Forces yearly.
Where will you find your place at VMI?
VMI's academic program offers a rigorous education that includes carefully selected majors in engineering, science, liberal arts, and social sciences. Athletics at VMI form an integral part of the school's aim to educate the whole person. The athletic program, managed honorably over many years, is critical to VMI's determination to encourage "the sound mind and sound body."
I will Academics
At VMI, you will find that things are done with purpose and that when it comes to class size - less is more. Find your passion within our 14 majors across the arts and humanities, engineering, information and social sciences, as well as life and natural sciences. Faculty-mentored undergraduate research opportunities reward and enhance the cadet experience from cadet travel grants to present at professional meetings to conducting research in the field.
Military Training & ROTC
VMI frames a relevant education within a military environment. By attending VMI you will develop confidence and become an honorable citizen-soldier who leads with competence, courage, caring and Integrity. At VMI there is a regimental system, there is an honor code, and there are tremendous leadership opportunities amongst the Corps of Cadets. Continue your four years of military training in ROTC in the armed services or take your self-discipline and leadership skills into the working world.
Athletics and Fitness
VMI cadets are required to take seven semesters of physical education classes. These programs are designed to enhance self-esteem, leadership characteristics, and ignite a passion for life-long physical fitness and health. If you’re an athlete, you have the opportunity to participate in NCAA Division I athletics or choose to compete in one or more of our 20+ club sports. Extracurricular activities do not stop there, cadets can also serve, compete, or develop their skills in other interest activities and services clubs such as scuba diving, civic engagement, performing arts, and military skills.
Challenge. Competition. Camaraderie.
Special traditions like Breakout, parades, Old Yells, Ring Figure, and the march down to Foster Stadium are just some of the ways that VMI takes the best aspects of a life at college and stamps them with a uniquely 'Institute' flair. In addition to leadership courses, military training, and academic work, your time at VMI will also offer you the chance to compete in NCAA and club athletics, be a published author, serve in the community, rock climb, box, be trained as an EMT... the list goes on!
Forging a path of leadership and honor.
VMI graduates leave the Institute demonstrating the ability to apply the art and science of leadership to inspire, motivate, and develop subordinates, accomplish organizational goals, and lead in a complex and changing world. Each year, approximately 50% of the graduating class commissions into the armed forces following four years of ROTC in one of four branches of the U.S. Military at the Institute.
I realized that if I wanted to go somewhere after graduation, I would have to build myself up and become a stronger candidate. You may think that [the Rat Line] is overwhelming but ‘embrace the suck’ and uncertainty of VMI, [people] are here to see you succeed.
Major: Psychology
Among VMI's alumni are:
- Corporate Leaders
- Members of Congress
- Best-selling Authors
- Oscar Winning Producer
- World-Renown Sculptor
- Anglican Martyr
- Global Explorer
- Mayors
- College Presidents
- NFL Coaches
- Pulitzer Prize Winner
- U.S. Supreme Court Justice
- Members, Joint Chiefs of Staff
- General of the Army
- Secretary of State
- Nobel Peace Prize Winner
- College Presidents
- NFL Coaches
- Pulitzer Prize Winner
- U.S. Supreme Court Justice
- Members, Joint Chiefs of Staff
- General of the Army
- Secretary of State
- Nobel Peace Prize Winner
What can VMI help you achieve?
VMI’s remarkable education will prepare you for honorable success and selfless service. You will do so confidently because you have received an extraordinary education that has prepared you to take on the challenges that you will face. The VMI Alumni Agencies will help you maintain your ties with your Brother Rats and the Institute and forge new relationships with your fellow alumni and other members of the VMI Family.
Alumni Spotlight:
Patrick Henderson ’99 and Chris Copenhaver ’99
Patrick Henderson ’99 and Chris Copenhaver ’99 are brother rats, best friends—and business partners. They started Protos Security in 2006, quit their day jobs in 2011, and two years ago, they sold part of the multimillion-dollar company.
“It’s been a blessing,” Henderson said. “It doesn’t get much better than that … to be brother rats, but also best friends and to be able to build something.”
Their business, Protos Security, through disruption and bringing about needed internal change, turned an industry on its ear. It’s a tech enabled managed services model company—the Uber of the security guard industry, Henderson explained.
The business came together in short order. The brother rats give a lot of credit to the “speed of trust” and their shared background. The entire “fabric” of their business was based on VMI tenets—including the Honor Code. In the early days, the two had to make snap decisions and sometimes take risks with little time for pauses.
Annika Tice ’19
Annika Tice, a Fulbright scholar and the first woman to serve on the Virginia Military Institute Honor Court, was eager to take on new challenges. After graduating from VMI, she spent six months in the Ivory Coast working with students as part of the Fulbright U.S. Student Program.
Tice ’19 was awarded a spot in the Fulbright U.S. Student Program during her 1st Class year at VMI. She is one of six VMI alumni to be selected for program, which was signed into law in 1946. Through Fulbright, nearly 2,000 students travel to over 140 countries annually. Each assignment is unique, while adhering to the principle of international partnership. Tice flew to the Ivory Coast in September 2019, planning to spend the next year creating lesson plans and assisting with U.S. embassy-sponsored after school programs at the American Culture Center. While life and society are ever changing for the better, the Ivory Coast is still recovering from unstable government transitions. Women, particularly, are more able to hold jobs and have status in their communities but still do not have the same opportunities available to women in the U.S.
Carrie McAtee Papke ’07
In November 2019, Carrie McAtee Papke ’07 came back to post to participate in the conference organized by the Center for Leadership and Ethics titled “Disruption: Challenging Leadership at Every Turn.”
Papke, founder and owner of TO & FRO Activewear™ in Ada, Michigan, outlined five steps entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs could take to deal with the challenges of being an entrepreneur. These lessons – which she had formulated over several years – reflected her experience as a communications officer in the U.S. Marine Corps for seven years, a management trainee with General Electric’s aviation division and, since March 2018, as the owner and operator of a retail business.
When she matriculated, Papke planned to become an engineer, in part because “I loved math.” That plan and her love of math did not survive contact with calculus in her 4th Class year, and she switched her major to psychology in her 3rd Class year. “I like math,” she said, “just not the math I needed for engineering.”
Her change of majors was not an indication that Papke shied away from challenges. Hardly. She pursued a commission in the Marine Corps and became the first female volunteer firefighter in Lexington, Virginia.
Ready to take your first step towards a college experience like no other?
Complete the inquiry form today to get a closer look at the Institute and all the advantages it can bring.