January 4, 2011 AROTC Board

A friend of my DS wants to play football in college. He is pretty good and would have a good shot at walking on. He was told he would not be able to do football and ROTC. Football is a ridiculous commitment time wise. My DS did around 22 hours a week in high schhol. That was all summer and even on public holidays. Thanks Giving.......so what be here at 7:00am.

DS's friend has a place at Naval Academy and they will support him if he makes their team.
 
Know what you are up against

patentesq said:
If your main purpose for attending college is to obtain a quality education and do well and set yourself up for graduate school before entering the military, this is something to think about. That is NOT to say, however, that you can't do ROTC, play sports, AND do very well at a civilian college.

Okay, I have to go brace myself now for the flaming response that I am likely to receive shortly from clarksonarmy and Marist College ROTC!
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Three schools told my DS that an athlete would/could be given special accomodations as they understand the balancing act involved. All said that it was a "positive" for them as this was a plus from the university's perspective. They also realized that competitive athletics are only available for a few years and then the opportunities are gone. We did understand there could be a conflict one weekend each semester but that it had been done many times. One school actually saw a sports photo of the DS and was impressed in a different way....guess a picture can be worth a thousand words.
 
I will state this, if you look at all of my ROTC posts regarding chances, I always say if you want to be truly chanced go onto the SA threads.

I state this because ROTC will be reviewing them too, and they cannot take the leap of faith that the SA candidate will go SA.

ROTC scholarships are recruitment tools for the military. They are trying to recruit the best of the best.

I suspect that as bad as this yr is, next yr will be worse. We are looking at a large deficit and the DOD will take a hit. For class of 16, when you want to ask chance me, before you do look at the USMA chance me threads, try to create a resume better than theirs.

Start right now and plot your sr yr academically to be aggressive. Join something athletic...TKD, Lifeguarding, whatever. Practice not only the PFA, but the CFA too. Go for max scores.

Every point matters.
 
They are setting themselves up for a crazy May and June if the send the bulk of the offers out early April. Most people will have commitmented to schools.
 
FloridaDad said:
They are setting themselves up for a crazy May and June if the send the bulk of the offers out early April. Most people will have commitmented to schools.
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My DS cannot go beyond May 1 to make a decision. He is not alone.
 
Carefull who you ask

In regards to getting info from any "ROTC Unit at...." we have found that many folks at the units are providing info that later turns out to be incomplete or just plain wrong. When DS contacted one of his schools ROTC offices in early Feb, he was told.."well, if we havn't called you with an offer by now, you must not have got one". Thank goodness for this forum!! I advised him not to panic...yet...that it doesn't appear ANY offers were made from 04Jan2011 board.

I guess my point here is...the Army is big..very big...and only a few are really in the know. Just because answers and says "ROTC office, how can I help you" doesn't mean they CAN!!
 
To patentesq

patentesq:

Just a note to let you know what a great service you are providing to the users of this Forum...Your methodical approach to problems that come up are both informative and very calming. My oldest DS is a second year (AROTC-Niagara:thumb:) pre-law student, and could learn a lot just by following your posts!!

Thanks again...
 
I would also caution folks not to "out" ROOs at particular ROTC units by posting on SAF what particular folks at particular schools (by name) might have said. These folks are truly great Americans and are simply trying to help people. It is one thing to talk to an applicant one-on-one, but by posting a particular school, everyone with an Internet connection can find out who the ROO is and that may have adverse consequences for the Soldier in an Army that has decided to remain tight-lipped until a formal announcement is made.

I am certain that wasn't at all the intention here. (this post is simply a reminder for folks).

A better practice might be to say something like, "the ROO at my #1 school said" or "I've heard the following from a ROO" or "I've heard from a reliable source". That's fair game and one of the purposes of SAF to provide information.

Donia's point about only a few folks in the Army knowing -- who were NOT PMSs serving on the Jan.4 selection board -- what's really happening is very, very well-taken.

P.S. Donia, didn't see your latest post until after I had posted. Thank you for the kind words. "Pre-law"? Your DS is a VERY smart boy!
 
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It is a DOD issue...anyone who believes one branch is immune over another, please PM me because as a realtor I have a great Bridge in NY to sell you, if bridges aren't your thing I have some land in FL, that is considered a bit wet, but we can work it out!:wink:
 
patentesq said:
Interesting article about the Army budget issues.

http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i=5636887

For those also following other services, check out AF link about running out of money.
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Interesting as well as a bit depressing. If the Army budget issues indeed effect the scholarships offers this year, it will be a very interesting spring. With only 400 accepted scholarships as of right now, the batallions across the country will be very small.

I don't think there is a reason for outright panic yet. If we start to hear of batallions closing up shop and current scholarships offers being recinded, then the panic will begin. Right now my son is the only confirmed scholarship winner at his school, without some change soon it will be a very lonely class. Lets hope SMP and non scholarship cadets can pick up the slack.

All of our speculation here is in regard to ROTC. I can't even imagine the effect this will have on the Active Military itself. Tough times all around.
 
You make a valid point about battalions closing. Most of these units have ten plus staff which is a huge expense. Add in the cadet command costs and scholarship money and becomes a very sizable per battalion budget. If they are'nt producing the desired number of officers per year they might be shut down. That might mean scholarships being withdrawn for existing cadets.

The british air force are releasing 100 trainee pilots and some are only a few hours off being qualified. The cut backs could impact a lot of poeple.
 
With only 400 accepted scholarships as of right now, the batallions across the country will be very small.
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Not true at all...there are many cadets who want to serve and the scholarship from ROTC is not a player in the situation. Granted the cadre will be smaller, however, not everyone joins ROTC for scholarships.

I can't even imagine the effect this will have on the Active Military itself. Tough times all around.
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If they can't get the numbers in line, there will be a RIF or VSP, most likely a SERB, 2x your out (promotion boards for 4/5).

Your premise of tough times it true!

A yr ago, candidates that didn't get NROTC or AFROTC were told climb aboard to the AROTC train.

JMPO. but it looks like the AROTC train is Standing Room Only now like the AF and the Navy.

Understand the economy and you will understand why the military is tightening their belts.
 
Pima said:
Not true at all...there are many cadets who want to serve and the scholarship from ROTC is not a player in the situation. Granted the cadre will be smaller, however, not everyone joins ROTC for scholarships.

WOW, you all have been busy today!! I've been reading furiously for 10-15 minutes catching up. DS just went for a run after reading Pantentesq's article. I know he has a lot on his mind.
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Tell us about your visit

Ohio2015Parent said:
Pima said:
Not true at all...there are many cadets who want to serve and the scholarship from ROTC is not a player in the situation. Granted the cadre will be smaller, however, not everyone joins ROTC for scholarships.

WOW, you all have been busy today!! I've been reading furiously for 10-15 minutes catching up. DS just went for a run after reading Pantentesq's article. I know he has a lot on his mind.
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So most of us would love to have a plan B like your DS. How did the visit go?

Your are just in time to cross the 40,000 threshold.
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Donia said:
In regards to getting info from any "ROTC Unit at...." we have found that many folks at the units are providing info that later turns out to be incomplete or just plain wrong. When DS contacted one of his schools ROTC offices in early Feb, he was told.."well, if we havn't called you with an offer by now, you must not have got one". Thank goodness for this forum!! I advised him not to panic...yet...that it doesn't appear ANY offers were made from 04Jan2011 board.

I guess my point here is...the Army is big..very big...and only a few are really in the know. Just because answers and says "ROTC office, how can I help you" doesn't mean they CAN!!
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You have to understand ROTC Battalions do more than just recruit high schoolers. There is actual training going on day in and day out. Usually the first person you talk to is not the ROO or PMS. The person you talk to is someone that is probably doing multiple things that have nothing to do with recruiting.
 
Maybe it would help if someone at cadet command took the initiative and posted updates on the status page. Then ROO and PMS wouldn’t be bombarded by potential recruits seeking information.

I mean how hard is it to give someone at cadet command access to somewhere on the site for useful information. Heck they could even show some initiative and list the dates of the boards and deadlines.
 
In the article that was given it says:

"This led to the Feb. 2 hiring freeze, which is to last 30 days until the Army gets a better sense of what Congress will do for the rest of the fiscal year"

So, does this mean that we may not hear from CC until the 30 days are up?
 
FloridaDad said:
Maybe it would help if someone at cadet command took the initiative and posted updates on the status page. Then ROO and PMS wouldn’t be bombarded by potential recruits seeking information.

I mean how hard is it to give someone at cadet command access to somewhere on the site for useful information. Heck they could even show some initiative and list the dates of the boards and deadlines.
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I am confident that Cadet Command is working very, Very, VERY hard right now on our behalf and using every ounce of initiative at its disposal to help people out. The Army has to be more concerned about making payroll next month than handing out scholarships. This situation is temporary and everything will all work out in the end. It always does.

And the ROOs and PMSs are showing a lot initiative by fielding calls from concerned applicants and providing whatever information they can, which is likely not more than what is posted here on SAF. Frankly, this is where SAF really shows its value because folks share what is known.

Three things for everyone to remember:

1. There is REALLY a silver lining to any delay -- the overwhelming number of folks who are not yet admitted to all of their choices and who will receive a scholarship will not have to guess later on about which school to apply the scholarship. I do recognize that there are some who have admissions decisions already and are just anxious to know, so they can think about other things. But other than having finality right now, does that really change anything?

2. No student has to make a decision about college choice until May 1st -- that is 2.5 months from now!

3. We could all get a pleasant surprise any day now.
 
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