Yes .. by design.
Having people serve as officers after only a few years of the primary military academy is not unrealistic. During timed of war, commissions are expedited to get more officers into the field. However, it seems completely far fetched that a group of cadets would have had so much sunshine blown up their bottoms that they felt they could act independently. They would have been taught--even if they were made to feel special--that different types of leadership must be used at every level, especially above them.
Red Squad is a good thought experiment on how heroism and leadership are portrayed. They took the arbitrary positions given to them in an exercise for truth, but lacked the skill to lead without the support of regular officers. One can't just want to be heroic or be given a seat from which to give commands. Bring right about a few things isn't enough to move a group to successful action.