How does college based AFROTC work?

New person here, so sorry if you've heard this a million times.

I've recently become interested in joining the Air Force ROTC for my school, as well as the scholarship. The problem is, I wasn't able to get it in by the due date my senior year. This doesn't bother me much, as I know it went deserving and capable applicants. I was not organized, so I got what I deserved. But now I know I'm going to try to get the 3.5 one this coming fall. I'm absolutely ready to work my butt of for both college and the work that comes after, but I do have some questions.

How does the process work? I take Military Science and then what? I've been through their site, but I'm getting a growing feeling that I'll have to actually go through with it before I truly understand what committing entails.

Does AFROTC have a quota for each language they allow for the foreign language major? I'm going for a major in Russian (and hopefully get to double with Econ), so I want to know if that will help any.

And what about my grades? I'm definitely above the minimum requirement, but I'm not the 4.0, captain of the soccer team, president of debate type of person either. I've got a 1970 SAT score, interesting ECs, lots of clubs, and was even asked to review a woman's book before it got published, but seeing other people's stats make me feel like I'm going against Ivy League students. I know they look at your first semester grades, but I don't think they'll entirely overlook my four years of high school.

My parents, who both went to West Point (being a legacy doesn't help, does it? I told my mom that this couldn't be true), have been able to open some insights, but really just confuse me more. For example, my mom says that ROTC students would secretly hate West Pointers, because they would get all the army jobs. This would lead to ROTC students being left to serve their required four years on the Reserves, meaning they would leave one weekend a month and two weeks in the summer. Is that true? I assume this would apply for the Air Force Academy as well if it is. It just seems a little strange to run out of positions for serving one's country.

And before I forget: My school did not have a JROTC program and I my life has basically been as affected by my parents Army life, other than moving every two years. Will that leave me at a disadvantage? I know some students have been preparing to join for years, and I honestly don't even know what to expect when I join.

Youre right that its hard to get a full understanding of how it all works until you actually join. But the good thing is that its not hard to join, and you can quit if its not for you.

What you'd do is sign up for a one-credit class, a one-credit lab and go to PT twice a week. Thats the basic structure of it. As a sophomore, youll compete for a slot to attend field training in the summer and once thats completed, you're in the POC. Then, you start worrying about getting selected for your job and preparing for active duty.

Scholarships are a pretty complicated issue. What you need to do and how competetive they are change constantly. Best advice...contact the detachment at your school and schedule an appointment. In less than a half-hour, the recruiting officer can have you filled in and ready to get started.

CarterJay said:

This would lead to ROTC students being left to serve their required four years on the Reserves, meaning they would leave one weekend a month and two weeks in the summer. Is that true? I assume this would apply for the Air Force Academy as well if it is. It just seems a little strange to run out of positions for serving one's country.

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AFROTC is different from Army ROTC. Everyone commissioning from AFROTC goes on active duty these days. You just might have to wait a few months after commissioning.

CarterJay said:

Will that leave me at a disadvantage?

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Not at all.

CarterJay said:

my mom says that ROTC students would secretly hate West Pointers

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As an ROTC cadet, I've never felt or heard any serious animosity towards academy kids.

The reality is once you go AD nobody cares where that commissioning source comes from.

Yrs ago, now decades ago, if you weren't an SA graduate, your chances of making General were slim. Now that is just a fallacy. I think Colin Powell proved that theory was wrong.

As far as legacy, it doesn't help. Getting into an SA or a ROTC scholarship is about your Whole Candidate Score (WCS). This score is created by attributing certain points to specific aspects. Your academic record (PAR) is the bulk of the points. They not only look at your GPA, class rank, SAT/ACT, but also the rigors of your course curriculum. You don't have to be a 4.0 uwgpa student if your schedule is filled with AP's and Honors. They also look at your EC's, this includes things form NHS to part time jobs to Eagle scout. They want to see you can manage your time and still carry good grades. Your final part will be recs from the ALO and your PFA scores. Add them up together and you have your WCS. The board states we have X amt of scholarships, people above this line are in, people below are out.

The same for WP, but with a twist. The person with the highest WCS on the noms list gets the apptmt. Then there is the National List, and that is when the SA draws the line to fill the remaining class. Many legacy children attend SA's, but you shouldn't confuse that with giving them extra points. What typically occurs is the SA grad understands the program and knows how to fill in the holes so the candidate is not behind the 8 ball. Additionally if the parent served long enough, the child is eligible for one more source, Presidential, that a non-military child is not eligible for when applying to any SA.

As far as foreign languages everyone on AFROTC scholarship must take 3 foreign language classes. However, in your situation this is where the real problem comes in. @95% of the full ride scholarships will go to math/science fields, which leaves you in a very competitive area for a small amount of available scholarships. DO NOT despair our DS is Govt and he got one. Yet, I won't lie, his stats were stronger. Retake that SAT until you are in the strong 2000-2100+ marker.

You should also realize that the AF operates differently than the Army or Navy. In the AF system you apply and can take it to any college on their list. They do not assign you to a det. In the Navy and Army you apply for the scholarship to specific dets, and then they award you to that det.

Thanks for your response. My high school grades were decent. Not great by any means, but decent. I know I can do better on the SAT, seeing as I only took it twice, but I was really banking on doing fantastically my first year in college and having that be the primary focus for my potential scholarship.

I'm not aiming for a full ride, though; a 3.5 or even 3 would be fine. Do those go straight to math and technical fields, too?

And I'm just throwing this out there because I'm not sure if I'm reading the website wrong, but would I be competing with the entire nation for 2,000 scholarships made specifically for foreign language majors? I'm tired and I'm not sure if I'm comprehending the page correctly.

I take it you will be applying as a Freshman, if so you will be competing for the 3 yr scholarship. The 3 yr scholarship is very competitive because a new twist is put into the pile. HS students can convert their 4 yr that is not a full ride, to the 18K a yr 3 yr scholarship.

As for the 2K number I don't know where that number is coming from. I would actually believe if they say they award 2K scholarships a yr, it means for every major. Either way it does mean nationally.

I do know at our DS's det every yr there is a freshman who gets a 3 yr while at school, so it does happen.

If you are going to do this as a freshman, on day one at ROTC you need to contact the leadership and make them aware of your intentions because they will have to write a rec for you. They won't be happy if you tell them for the first time on Oct. 1st and say OBTW the rec must be at Maxwell by the 15th. Also, the board will be reviewing your AFOQT score, this test occurs in Sept, and it is comparable to the SAT, but AF oriented. It includes math, science, verbal, etc.

Finally not sure what you mean by 3.5 or 3. Are you saying 3 1/2 yrs? If so there is no 3 1/2 yr scholarship for the AF. That is not how their system works.

Also, remember, the AFROTC is slowing down their pipeline. This yr, some cadets that did not make summer training selection (occurs Soph to Jr yr in college) had their scholarships revoked. Cadets with less than a 3.0 gpa who expected to be commissioned this month were given their walking papers. In his det out of both these scenarios 3 cadets will never be commissioned in the AF.

Pima said:

As for the 2K number I don't know where that number is coming from. I would actually believe if they say they award 2K scholarships a yr, it means for every major. Either way it does mean nationally.
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He may be referring to the foreign language bonus. I'm minoring in Russian and its a great deal to get extra $. The bonus has a $3000/year cap and the amount you get depends on how many credit hours you take and what level they are. You also get paid for summer language immersions.

Pima said:

Finally not sure what you mean by 3.5 or 3. Are you saying 3 1/2 yrs? If so there is no 3 1/2 yr scholarship for the AF. That is not how their system works.

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AFROTC offers an In-College program called the Express Scholarship. It can and is offered for 3.5 (3 1/2) years.

"The Express Scholarship is designed to meet Air Force ROTC officer production requirements in specific fields and year groups. Contact the detachment nearest you for the most up-to-date information on this program.

This program awards Type 1 scholarships. In most cases, these scholarships can activate during the same term as nomination."
http://afrotc.com/scholarships/in-college/foreign-language-majors/

He may be referring to the foreign language bonus.

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Wow, that is very interesting. Congrats on that bonus.

AFROTC offers an In-College program called the Express Scholarship. It can and is offered for 3.5 (3 1/2) years.

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Never heard of it, but I do not want the fact that I never heard of it as it is my opinion that it doesn't exist. There are so many different scholarships out there that it becomes looking for a needle in a hay stack.

I think it is important to assist Carter we give him all the facts regarding these scholarships. Not to be Janie Rain Cloud, but it appears to me that these scholarships are atypical and anyone who has info on the foreign language or 3.5 should pipe in now.

I only know of the traditional scholarships from HS. Carter is going to be reviewed from a very specific position.

Carter, it is up to you whether or not you want to share your resume publicly or privately on this site. I strongly suggest you PM Nick because he would be the best person to answer your questions regarding foreign language major.

Good luck.

The 3.5yr AFROTC "express" scholarships are available to certain specific majors for example Electrical engineering as well as many foreign languages. It changes according to the needs of the service.
It is best to speak with an Air Force rotc unit and get the best advice. You can email them as well and they will be more than happy to give you the information. It is competetive.
Your best bet is to start speaking now to the unit at the university you plan to attend. There are kids that are already planning on applying for these scholarships. You want them to know who you are, that you are interested and want to find out what it takes to get one.