10 U.S.C. § 7448 — Cadets: service obligation

(a) Each cadet must sign an agreement about their length of service, agreeing: (1) to complete the course of instruction at the Academy; (2) upon graduating, to accept an appointment as a commissioned Regular Army^* or Regular Air Force officer^* if offered, and serve at least 5 years of active duty^* right after that appointment; (3) if that appointment isn't offered, or if allowed to resign as a regular officer before finishing their commissioned service obligation, to accept a Reserve commission in the Army Reserve or Air Force Reserve instead, and stay in that reserve component until finishing the obligation; (4) if an appointment described in paragraph (2) or (3) is tendered and the cadet takes part in a program under section 2121, to finish, on active duty, whatever obligation under this section is still unserved — regardless of what type of appointment they hold — after finishing, and on top of, any service obligation from section 2123 for that program; and (5) not to take a job as a professional athlete until two years after graduating from the Academy.

(b) (1) Subject to paragraph (4), the Secretary of the Army may transfer to the Army Reserve, and order to active duty for up to 4 years, a cadet who breaches an agreement under (a); the length of that active duty period can be set without regard to section 651(a)'s usual rule. (2) A cadet transferred to the Army Reserve under paragraph (1) gets an appropriate enlisted grade^* or rating^* the Secretary sets. (3) For purposes of paragraph (1), a cadet is considered to have breached the agreement if they're separated from the Academy under circumstances the Secretary determines amount to a breach of their promise to complete the course of instruction and accept a commission upon graduation. (4) Each academic year, the Secretary may transfer up to five cadets who obtain employment in violation of (a)(5) to the Army's Selected Reserve. Each transferred cadet must (A) serve as a commissioned officer^*, in a grade or rating the Secretary sets, for up to 10 years the Secretary determines, and (B) while serving, help recruit and retain members of the armed forces^*.

(c) The Secretary of the Army must prescribe regulations that include: (1) standards for what counts, under (b), as a breach of an agreement under (a); (2) rules stating that a cadet who obtains professional-athlete employment (A) in violation of (a)(5) has breached the agreement unless transferred under (b)(4), and (B) hasn't breached it if the employment starts at least two years after graduation; (3) procedures for determining whether a breach occurred; and (4) standards for how long a person may be ordered to serve on active duty under (b).

(d) "Commissioned service obligation" means, for a cadet, the period from their appointment as a commissioned officer to the 6th anniversary of that appointment — or, if the Secretary of Defense chooses, a later date up to the 8th anniversary.

(e) (1) This section doesn't apply to a cadet who isn't a U.S. citizen or national. (2) A cadet who is a minor with parents or a guardian may sign the agreement required by (a) only with a parent's or guardian's consent.

(f) A cadet or former cadet who doesn't meet every term of the agreement under (a), or an alternative obligation imposed under (b), is subject to the repayment rules in section 303a(e) or 373 of title 37.