Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps (AFROTC) classifies cadets into the following basic categories of training with respect to Field Training attendance and commissioning:

Initial Military Training (IMT): Cadets who are part of the GMC but are not scheduled to attend FT. Normally AS100 cadets.

Field Training Preparation (FTP): Cadets scheduled to attend FT in the upcoming summer. Normally AS200 cadets, or if dual-enrolled in AS100 and AS200 classes, AS250 cadets.

Intermediate Cadet Leader (ICL): Cadets who have successfully completed FT but are not scheduled to commission in the upcoming year. Normally AS300 cadets.

Senior Cadet Leader (SCL): Cadets who have satisfactorily completed FT and are scheduled to be commissioned in the upcoming year. Normally AS400 cadets.

Extended Cadet Leader (ECL): Cadets who have completed the AFROTC curriculum but need additional time to complete their academic degree, such as 5-year engineering program students. Normally AS700 cadets.

Detachments organize cadets after the active-duty wing structure to the best of their ability, compensating for variable sizes and circumstances. GMC cadets participate as the underclassmen while the POC cadets participate as the upperclassmen. POC cadets have completed Field Training and are assigned leadership positions in the corps. Cadets are classified and assigned rank commensurate with their position and level of responsibility within the cadet wing and with respect to FT completion.

Cadet Airmen

Cadet Airmen are all cadets who have not satisfactorily completed FT. Cadet Airmen are members of the GMC. AS100 IMT cadets hold the Cadet Fourth Class (C/4C) rank while AS200 FTP cadets hold Cadet Third Class Rank (C/3C). Cadet Airmen are not committed to joining the Air Force unless on AFROTC scholarship. If contracted, AS100 cadets receive a monthly tax free stipend of $300 while AS200 cadets receive $350.

GMC cadets on contract are also considered to be inactive enlisted members of the Air Force Reserve serving without pay, ranging from Airman Basic (AB, pay grade E-1) to Staff Sergeant (SSgt, pay grade E-5) with higher grades based on prior enlisted military experience in the Active or Reserve Components or other qualifying credentials (i.e., senior Civil Air Patrol cadets or former high school AFJROTC cadets with four years of participation enlisting at Airman First Class {A1C, E-3}, etc.).

Cadet Officers

Cadet Officers, AS300 (ICL), AS400 (SCL), and AS700 (ECL), are cadets who have satisfactorily completed the AFOQT and FT. Cadet officers are members of the POC. Cadet officers wear cadet officer rank (Cadet Second Lieutenant (C/2d Lt) - Cadet Colonel (C/Col)). Unlike the Air Force Academy, for juniors and seniors there is no rank of Cadet Second Class or Cadet First Class, respectively. All cadet officers are considered to be "on contract" and are committed to joining the Air Force upon completion of their academic degree.

Like GMC cadets on contract, all POC cadets are considered to be inactive enlisted members of the Air Force Reserve, serving without pay between the grades of E-1 and E-5, with said enlisted status terminating upon commissioning. As contracted cadets, AS300 cadets also receive a monthly tax free stipend of $450 and AS400 cadets receive $500. POC cadets are required to meet USAF height and weight standards, pass the Physical Fitness Assessment (PFA) each academic semester, and meet a minimum cumulative and term GPA requirement of 2.50. Repeatedly failing to meet the standards may result in disenrollement from AFROTC. All POC cadets also must hold at least one leadership position within the cadet wing or group as designated by the detachment cadre's Commandant of Cadets (COC).

In some cases, students with academic requirements that exceed four years (usually engineers and other technical majors in five year programs) continue the AFROTC program for additional semesters as needed. During these additional years these cadets (AS700) are only minimally required to participate in LLAB and maintain retention standards. It is important to note that this is not the case for schools with co-op programs that entail a total of four years of classes and one year of cooperative experience. In these cases the cadets are classified as AS300's their first POC year and AS400's their second and third POC years. The cadets will not attend aerospace classes, Physical Training, or Leadership Lab during their co-op blocks (they will be on Periods of Non-Attendance) and otherwise complete the program like any four-year major.

Cadet Wing

The cadet wing (cadet group at smaller detachments) is organized to mirror the active-duty objective wing structure and is composed entirely of AFROTC cadets. Cadet rank is determined by the positions and levels of responsibility in which they hold. Cadet wings strive to include positions similar to those found in active-duty wings but additional positions may be added at the discretion of the detachment cadre's COC. Each wing is headed by a Cadet Colonel and has subsequent groups, squadrons, and flights. The only position that is directly appointed by the Detachment Cadre is the Cadet Wing Commander (Cadet Colonel), who is interviewed with the other applicants for the position. Cadet officers rotate positions each semester and cannot hold the same position for two consecutive periods without approval. Cadets returning from Field Training may not hold a rank above Cadet Captain (C/Capt) until one semester in the POC has been completed. Cadet officers are required to serve at least one term in a leadership position. Leadership positions include wing, group, squadron, and flight positions and others named by the COC.

Cadet Fourth Class	C/4C		AS100
Cadet Third Class	C/3C		AS200
Cadet Second Lieutenant	C/2d Lt		AS300
Cadet First Lieutenant	C/1st Lt		AS300
Cadet Captain	C/Capt		AS300/400
Cadet Major	C/Maj		AS400
Cadet Lieutenant Colonel	C/Lt Col		AS400
Cadet Colonel	C/Col		AS400