Any citizen of the United States aged 18 years to 65 years of age, and of “good moral character” willing to volunteer in order to support our mission is welcomed to apply for enlistment.  Please see our recruiting page for more details.

Yes, under current law the VCA may volunteer for federal military service, or be called or ordered to such service, and may also be ordered to State military service.

Under federal law, the VCA is part of the federal organized militia as well as the part of the state organized militia, and depending on the circumstances of its activation, may be part of either the military forces of the State of NY, the US Army National Guard or the US Army. By law, the VCA must conform to “the organization, training and discipline of the National Guard in time of war.”

Federal duty, if under call, is unlikely to be OCONUS (outside the continental United States); however, a state call can be to duty outside the state or OCONUS. The VCA can also volunteer for federal or state duty, in which case there would be no geographic limit on where we could be deployed. 

We remain available for call up as the state or nation requires.

Yes, any soldier in the VCA who has earned federal or state award, medals, devices, tabs, etc. can wear them on their VCA uniform. However, such medals and badges must be reflected on your discharge documents (e.g. DD214), and orders must be cut by the Adjutant specifically authorizing their wear on your uniform. Priorities are established by the specific service in which such decorations were earned. Any member who was entitled to wear a beret (as shown on their DD214) is entitled to wear that headgear instead of the standard U.S. Army beret.

Potential recruits must be US citizens aged 18-65, in good health, and able to attend missions and drills in the NYC area. Also, because we work on active U.S. military installations, all prospective soldiers must consent to a federal background check. Any applicant with a felony on their record must be denied entry in the VCA according to applicable laws.

All applicants are subject to a federal background check. Anyone who does not want to have a background check run should not apply to enlist.