-Bull- said:
How is he signing early? PIMA, help me out, is AF different? Do scholarship cadets sign their contract prior to any initial PFT?
I think what becksgirl is saying is AFROTC at his college reports 1 week before school starts their academic yr. I don't know what college he is attending, but I do know schools like Villanova bring in ROTC students prior to opening the dorms up for traditional students.
At DS's college they did something akin to what becksgirl is stating for freshmen, BUT, like you surmised/assumed PFT did not happen until AFTER the 1st week of classes because every ROTC cadet must pass the PFT, and only freshmen were required to be there prior to classes starting. They didn't do 2 PFTs, 1 for freshman and 1 for C200-400. It was just 1. If this is the case, you are right, he will not contract before the school yr. starts, if it is like an SMC, it is possible that he will.
Just my 0.01765 cents, but typically the reason why is students have X amt of days at the beginning of each semester to drop/add. That is why they wait for the dust to settle.
homewith4,
What I was saying is they maybe saying only CONUS, because as you stated once stateside, the priority level drops, thus if they get the hop to the states, now wherever it drops them this is where they pick up the costs.
You did bring up a great point. The AF will pay for the extra luggage.
becksgirl,
My recommendation is to buy the cheapest ticket out there that is the most convenient.
Here's why:
As an AD military member you already know they will only reimburse you to the equivalent of the lowest bid they can get, regardless of how much you pay.
I am not, nor has ever been a SATO fan. I think you can get much better prices and convenience using the internet.
If I were you, I would make sure I had a credit card that gives flight miles. If you open a new one up now, many give 10's of thousands free miles when you open it up. Add in a flight from HI to MS. He will probably have enough miles within his 1st yr to get at least 1 free ticket. I love AMEX for their system.
I would also be prepared to carry that debt until at least 10/1. DS never got his book allowance reimbursed until the end of Oct. School started Wed. after Labor Day. The 1st few paychecks come in drips...stipend, allowance, etc. One time he had 4 deposits within 2 weeks totaling about 1700 (stipend, book allowance, TDY (SFT) pay and stipend again), but that came in between 10/15 and 11/1
For all incoming AFROTC cadets, you will take the PFT 2X a yr., at the beginning of each semester. For scholarship cadets, you will sign more than once. You sign for the scholarship. You sign when you become a POC (300). You sign if you accept a rated slot. You sign if AFROTC changes anything (i.e. cgpa min went up when DS was on scholarship). It is not a 1 time deal. AF like their sister ROTC branches likes to have in black and white, you agree at all times with what is happening in your life regarding the AF.
Also, for all incoming cadets, remember AFROTC is not like A/NROTC scholarship recipients. C200 yr you must compete for an SFT/EA slot, scholarship recipients get no bonus points, nor does the board know if they are on scholarship. Not selected may equal dis-enrollment, loss of scholarship. If the only way you can afford that college is with the scholarship, have Plan B in place for JIC.
Additionally, if you take the time to research the bowels of this forum, you will understand/realize that even as a 400, they can decide not to commission you, and make you pay back the entire scholarship. (Look up Gojira...they owe 140K back to the Navy, no enlistment option given). DS's best friend went to SFT. Graduated and came back to school with the decision AFROTC wasn't for him. He was a scholarship recipient, and because of that, the AF went after him for @40K.
Always, always, have Plan B in place when you do ROTC scholarships.