When to apply to colleges? Better chances w/less populated area colleges?

CHS11111

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Just curious, when to you start applying to all of the colleges that you list as choices on AFROTC & NROTC applications? Should we make sure he can pass the DoDMERB first? It appears that it is usually about $40 to apply and then another $11 to send ACT scores -- this could get costly but more than worth it in the end, I know, if it anything works out for him. :thumb: Do you choose your housing and all that right away? I am sorry if I sound ignorant; this is my first kid! :redface:

Another question, could he possibly have a better chance of any type of ROTC scholarship if he lists an out of state school in an area with less population? He loves it out West and I know there are some great schools out there w/AFROTC & NROTC units. I realize that we also have to put down one in state choice, be he would definitely be up for an out of state school too.

Thanks so much for any help you can give!! :smile:
 
CHS11111: There is a lot of discussion on strategies for selecting the schools to list on the application on this forum. One recently concluded in the last week with lots of input and opinions.

Some guidance on the subject from the NCSU NROTC office. Source: http://naval.dasa.ncsu.edu/sites/nav...info-2013F.pdf

"Once a board has chosen the hundred or so students it will select, those applications are then sent to a placement department which determines what college/university NROTC unit each scholarship will be assigned to. Obviously, every effort is made to place a student where he/she wants to go, but other factors do come into play. For example, each particular unit (there are roughly 70 total) has a certain ―quota‖ or max number of students that they can accept in a given year. NC State’s quota is usually 30. For us, this means that once 30 students have been placed in our unit and have accepted the scholarship offer, no additional students will be added here. If a 31st student was selected and their application went to placement, they may then be assigned to their number two, three, or four choice of school (again, depending on availability at that school). There are a few ―morals‖ to this story. First, it is very important that you actually apply to all of the five schools that you list on your scholarship application because it is possible that you may not be assigned to your first choice. Second, you want to have your application completed early (before the August board) so that you maximize your odds of being assigned to your first choice (because certain schools, like NC State, tend to fill up fast). Other things that affect placement include whether a certain school would be in-state or out-of-state for a particular student. As you might expect, this doesn’t apply to private schools like Duke, MIT, etc. where there is no difference in tuition and most students come from out-of-state. It does, however, apply to state schools like NC State, UNC-Chapel Hill, University of Virginia, etc. For these type of schools, the Navy requires that a minimum of 50 percent of students placed there come from within that particular state. It is for this reason that you will be required to place at least one state school on your list of five."

Of the 20 or so universities my kids have applied to, you don't even have the option to select housing until you accept enrollment for the upcoming year. This is typically done with a $200.00 deposit.
 
You should start applying as soon as those colleges allow you to - especially ones that are rolling-based admission. ROTC does not check whether you were admitted to said school - that is YOUR responsibility to get accepted.

Regarding AFROTC, the nice part about it is that you can take that scholarship anywhere you want; it does not matter the school list you put down (still not sure why the list is on the application ...). So, finding said school(s) out west to attend on an AF scholarship will not be an issue.

I don't know a great deal about NROTC, but from reading recent posts, you are at a disadvantage applying OOS - since it costs more to put a midshipman through school than an IS midshipman. See this post: does college choice matter?

Regardless of which branch your son applies to, be sure to ask them if your son receives any additional school scholarships for receiving an ROTC scholarship (ie: if you tell the admissions that your son was awarded an ROTC scholarship, some schools will waive your room and board fee).
 
Just curious, when to you start applying to all of the colleges that you list as choices on AFROTC & NROTC applications? Should we make sure he can pass the DoDMERB first? It appears that it is usually about $40 to apply and then another $11 to send ACT scores -- this could get costly but more than worth it in the end, I know, if it anything works out for him. :thumb: Do you choose your housing and all that right away? I am sorry if I sound ignorant; this is my first kid! :redface:

Another question, could he possibly have a better chance of any type of ROTC scholarship if he lists an out of state school in an area with less population? He loves it out West and I know there are some great schools out there w/AFROTC & NROTC units. I realize that we also have to put down one in state choice, be he would definitely be up for an out of state school too.

Thanks so much for any help you can give!! :smile:

DoDMERB doesn't even start until sometime after a scholarship is awarded so that's way too late. As USMCGrunt said, housing choices don't happen until after your child accepts a college's offer.

Basically, your DS should begin the application process now, or certainly soon after beginning school his fall semester. He should certainly make himself aware of application deadlines for the schools on his list, as well as the profile of the freshman that were accepted last year to assess his own chances of acceptance. Many have an Early Acceptance (not early Decision) deadline sometime this fall. (Early Acceptance doesn't legally commit you to attending the school if accepted.) Applying by that deadline can increase your chances of acceptance and also make one eligible for certain scholarships the school offers.

Starting the applications now minimizes school studies and activities interfering with the college application process. But... you need to narrow down your list of schools first. As you point out this can be expensive and one doesn't want to waste money applying to a school you son decides to scratch from his list, or where he has little chance of being accepted. Ideally, you would also visit the college first which can be difficult if not impossible if the school is distant. Also, you son may like it out west but I'm also sure he'd like to get home from time to time. Distance can be an issue. Our approach was only to apply to schools within a reasonable distance for holiday or long weekend travel and that we also had a chance of affording without the scholarship. That limited us to schools in the southeastern seaboard states, but there are certainly many many excellent schools there so it hurt not one wit. YMMV.

Hope my 2 cents is helpful.
 
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FOR AFOTC side.

I would not wait until the DoDMERB exam, AFROTC will not send a candidate until they believe they are competitive. The 1st AFROTC board is December. Many that do get an early exam date, typically are also applying for the AFA, their 1st board meets @ Columbus Day in Oct.

As Thompson stated, the AFROTC board does not place any weight into their decision using cost of school as a factor. The recipient can take the scholarship to any school that accepts them and AFROTC scholarship. They don't care if 100% of the cadets are on scholarship or 0%. Just remember that for AFROTC it is done by Types, and each has a financial aspect to it, but all of them are for TUITION only. Type 1 is no limit for tuition. Type 2 is up to 18K. Type 7 is up to what the IS would charge.

If you look at the sticky on the top of the ROTC page, there is a list of schools that give a financial edge for ROTC students. Contact the school 1st to make sure it is still available since the list is pretty dated. I.E. for TAMU, if you join the Corps you will get a 1K scholarship, which allows the OOS student to pay IS prices.

To me the best edge for AFROTC is your intended major and your whole candidate package (rigorous course load, high school rank, @1300 best sitting SAT, lots of ECs with leadership). 80% + of all AFROTC scholarships are given to tech majors.

Do not game the system. I.E. say you intend to major in computer engineering to get the scholarship, with the thought you will go ECON once in. If you try to change from a tech major to a non-tech major, you will need approval from them to keep the scholarship. In this day and age, it will be hard to get approval to change majors.

One last thing to really consider long and hard about the college choices if finance is going to be a factor when it comes to the AFROTC scholarship. SFT is a must at the end of their sophomore yr (C200) if they do not get selected, they take a high risk of being dis-enrolled and lose the scholarship. The avg cgpa for non-tech majors as 200's is 3.3/3.4, 3.0/3.1 tech. Their SAT will be a factor too, so if his best sitting for the scholarship is 1200, have him keep taking it until he is closer to a 1300. No superscore like NROTC, it is the one best sitting.

Good luck
 
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