Founded 11 November 1839 in Lexington, Virginia, the Virginia Military Institute (VMI) is the oldest state-supportedmilitary college and the first public Senior Military College in the United States. In keeping with its founding principles and unlike any other Senior Military College in the United States, VMI enrolls cadets (uniformed members of the Corps of Cadets) only and awards baccalaureate degrees exclusively.[5][6][7][8][9][10]VMI offers its students, all of whom are cadets, strict military discipline combined with a physically and academically demanding environment. The Institute grants degrees in 14 disciplines in engineering, the sciences and liberal arts, [11] and all VMI students are required to participate in one of the four ROTC programs (Army, Navy, Marines, or Air Force).[12]