Flare Sci-Fi Forums: To Become an Officer in Starfleet ...

This is topic To Become an Officer in Starfleet ... in forum General Trek at Flare Sci-Fi Forums.

To visit this topic, use this URL:
https://flare.solareclipse.net/ultimatebb.php/topic/3/438.html

Posted by Malnurtured Snay (Member # 411) on :

You either ...

Go to Starfleet Academy ...

Go to Officer Candidate School ...

What else? How big is Starfleet Academy? Are there branches? I.E.: Starfleet Academy San Francisco, Starfleet Academy Vulcan, Starfleet Academy Rigel III, etcetra. How big is the average class?

Etc. Go on, post damn you!

------------------
"When they come, kill them. We're not here to make friends." -- Connor

"But you're my friend." -- Duncan

"Count yourself lucky." -- Connor

Highlander: The Element of Fire

Posted by Saltah'na (Member # 33) on :

...... or you get special mention by the Captain of your starship, ie. the hated Wesley Crusher.

I'll also point out that some officers also get promoted to the rank of Lieutenant (JG) while still in Starfleet. Kirk was a LT at the Academy, and so was Saavik. Had Wesley Crusher not gotten into the accident and left Starfleet soon after, he would have been able to accomplish the same thing.

------------------
"My Name is Elmer Fudd, Millionaire. I own a Mansion and a Yacht."
Psychiatrist: "Again."

Posted by Brown_supahero (Member # 83) on :

Can't you transfer from Starship Commander Community College**.

Most credits are transferable*

*joke
**reference to Homeboys in Outer Space

Posted by Obi Juan (Member # 90) on :

Though I believe something like it should exist, there has been no canonical mention of a starfleet OCS has there?

[This message has been edited by Obi Juan (edited November 28, 2000).]

Posted by Malnurtured Snay (Member # 411) on :

or an OIS (Officer Indoctrination School).

In the US Navy, OIS is to familiarize "professionals" with the skills they'll need to be an officer ...

Professionals being:

lawyers
doctors
etcetra

------------------
Star Trek Gamma Quadrant

Continuing to boldly go ...

Posted by Timo (Member # 245) on :

Deanna Troi probably went through an OIS of some sort, since she was studying at the apparently civilian University of Betazed two years before graduation, according to the Chronology.

Nevertheless, I guess all the various ways to study for officer commission (and even for enlisted rates) are highly integrated in Starfleet. This way, every character can make generic references about having been in "The Academy" and met the same set of instructors and professors, be this character a line officer from a family of line officers, a nerdy astrophysicist, a sexy doctor of medicine, or a former enlisted infantryman turned engineer.

Timo Saloniemi

P.S. there isn't direct proof for Kirk having been a Lieutenant or even an Ensign during his years of studying at the SF Academy. The Okuda Chronology messes up some things in "Court Martial" and mistakenly believes the incident that broke Kirk's and Finney's friendship took place during Kirk's Academy years, while in fact it happened "Seven/Several years later" according to the dialogue.

Considering this, the reference of Lt. Kirk sharing Academy years with Gary Mitchell ("Where No Man..") probably refers to *instructor* Kirk, not to *cadet* Kirk, and takes place just before Kirk embarks on his first big starship assignment aboard the Farragut (or then somewhere in the middle of his Farragut assignment, during a visit to Earth).

Posted by Lee (Member # 393) on :

That might work. After all, Kirk was supposed to be really bookish at the Academy, becoming a hellraiser later (while Picard was the opposite). If so, it wouldn't be unlikely that his first post-graduation posting was to something educational.

------------------
"I do prefer the arse, but you can't dismiss the leg. They're joined at the hip, so to speak."

- Liam Kavanagh

Posted by DARKSTAR on :

I think that the main academy is on Earth and they're are other sub-academies on Vulcan etc... I think that with the federation subspace network lessons could be broadcasted into these sub-academies from Earth and would be in real time.

Posted by PsyLiam (Member # 73) on :

Except that "Obsession" says something like:

"Garret was my commanding officer from the day I graduated from the academy"

Or something like that. Garret being the commander of the Faragut.

------------------
"I am in one of those rare periods of life where I am convinced I am a sexy devil."- Simon "Sol System" Sizer

Posted by colin (Member # 217) on :

I feel that Kirk met Mitchell in 2250. They didn't become friends until after 2257.
My chronology-
2252 to 2255 Kirk at the academy
2254 Kirk is on the Republic
2255 Kirk is lt.
2255 Kirk is survey mission-Tyree's Planet.
2255 to 2257 Kirk is on Farrugut.
2257 to 2264 Kirk teaches an Academy Class. Becomes friends with Mitchell. Kirk is captain of unknown ship. (About 2261, Mitchell is assigned to Enterprise. He serves with Spock. This helps to date the events of Dimorus and Deneb IV. They occured at or after 2264.)
2264 Kirk becomes captain of Enterprise on SD 1277.10. (Tombstone reads "C. 1277.10 to 1313.70". C. has equivalencies to r. which is given for kings and queens. R. is shorthand for reign. C. is shorthand for captain.)
2265 "Where No Man Has Gone Before"

Above information is based on canonical sources and Mr. Okuda's chronology which is the preferred one.

------------------

takeoffs are optional; landings are mandatory

Posted by Timo (Member # 245) on :

My preferred version is otherwise similar, but Kirk's Republic stint comes after his Academy graduation. There isn't a pressing reason to assume that Kirk was a cadet or yet to graduate during his Republic stint, so I think it sounds better if he is a regular graduate there.

Nice catch, that "C." thing! I'm willing to buy that one. Not that TOS stardates would be very informative or anything, but it does sound pretty good.

Timo Saloniemi

Posted by Alpha Centauri (Member # 338) on :

The "sub-academies" thing...

Some novels/fan-written tech manuals speak of the first Academy to be founded at Alpha Centauri (!), with the next on Earth. Anyway, there are sources which say that every member world has its own Academy, so that nobody who pursues a career as Starfleet officer has to leave his/her home planet for four years. Nice idea, but it's contradicted by canon. Nog had to move to Earth to get to Starfleet Academy. That could be brought in accordance to non-canon when saying that the nearest Federation world was Earth, but since the DS9:TM (canon, despite it's badness as a serious Trekker's bible) confirms that Earth is about 50 lightyears from Bajor/DS9, I don't believe that. There are about 15 star systems in that range which contain a solitary sun-like star, which is thus capable of sustaining life on an Earth-like planet on an Earth-like distance. It's hard for me to believe that *none* of these systems sustains a civilization admitted to the Federation (also keep in mind the small distance to Earth, a civilization with membership potency so close to Earth would have been noticed even in Earth's early starfaring days).

Enough babbled for now (why do I even bother to come up with explanations to bring canon and non-canon on one line, as a canonphile?).

Why do I use so many (brackets) ?

OK, ENOUGH=ENOUGH!!

------------------
Signature.

[This message has been edited by Alpha Centauri (edited November 24, 2000).]

Posted by Malnurtured Snay (Member # 411) on :

Well, it could be that select worlds have an Academy, maybe for a total of five Academies, and they're districted, perhaps? Also, a cadet could choose which Academy they wanted to go to ... ??? It would explain why Nog would be on Earth.

------------------
Star Trek Gamma Quadrant
Rated 7 out of 10 Smileys by Fabrux

Posted by Ritten (Member # 417) on :

What TM was it that had the Academy as a space station, supposedly centered in the Federation??

------------------
**...****...**

Posted by Sol System (Member # 30) on :

The very first, by Franz Joseph.

------------------
What did it mean to you
An early chat with death
To pull your body for a moment from your soul
--
Camper Van Beethoven
****
Read chapter TWO of "Dirk Tungsten in...The Disappearing Planet"! Now with 30% more plot.

Posted by PsyLiam (Member # 73) on :

Maybe the different academies specialise in teaching different things (although Earth seems to specialise in teaching cadets that have TV contracts

)

Or maybe Earth is the "glamerous academy"? No better than the others, but it has an air of prestige, which is why is gets Wesley "served on the Enterprise" Crusher, and Nog, who WAS the first Ferengi in Starfleet.

------------------
"I am in one of those rare periods of life where I am convinced I am a sexy devil."- Simon "Sol System" Sizer

Posted by Ritten (Member # 417) on :

Well, they do say that they do want to go to "THE" Academy. The US does have several schools that will graduate you out to being an officer, but for each branch there is "THE" Academy. West Point, Annapolis, The Air Force Academy....
But there is also that one that the one woman wanted to get into, sued for enterance, got it, and dropped out.
The feasabilty is there, now for the writers to act upon it.....

------------------
**...****...**

Posted by colin (Member # 217) on :

The earliest known academy is the Tri-Planetary Academy of "Where No Man Has Gone Before". Since this academy's name is visible on the DVD, the academy is canon. So far, unfortunately, no one has been able to offer an explanation for this academy.

------------------

takeoffs are optional; landings are mandatory

Posted by Sol System (Member # 30) on :

Uh, why are we supposed to? Or do we have to labor under the assumption that in the future, the word academy has been trademarked by Starfleet, and no other institution of higher learning can ever use it?

Posted by Obi Juan (Member # 90) on :

Trademark violation--set phasers on lawsuit!