3 year AD AROTC Scholarship

I was awarded and accepted a 3 year AD Army Rotc scholarship to San Diego State University. My understanding is I still contract at the beginning of freshmen year which I am excited about. If this is the case, will I receive a monthly stipend since I am contracted? I understand the scholarship doesn't kick in until sophomore year. Any info on how the 3 year AD scholarship works would be appreciated

You will not contract nor receive your stipend until your sophomore year but you are still required to pass the APFT, etc your freshman year.

newenglandrotchopeful said:

I was awarded and accepted a 3 year AD Army Rotc scholarship to San Diego State University. My understanding is I still contract at the beginning of freshmen year which I am excited about. If this is the case, will I receive a monthly stipend since I am contracted? I understand the scholarship doesn't kick in until sophomore year. Any info on how the 3 year AD scholarship works would be appreciated

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As stated above you will not contract until your sophomore year, you will not receive any stipend or book money your freshman year.

While you should pass your APFT as soon as possible, it is not required your first year. You must however pass your APFT prior to starting your sophomore year to be able to contract and activate your scholarship.

You are likely aware of this already: although the 3 year AROTC scholarship and related financial benefits are for the sophomore through senior years, you are expected to fully participate in the battalion's activities from the beginning of your freshman year. This includes attending the MS1 classes and labs as well as all morning pt sessions.

It would be in your interest to show up on campus in good physical condition ready to do well on your APFT and to exert yourself toward getting high grades in your classes. If you make a favorable impression, there is the possibility that your scholarship could be upgraded from 3 to 3.5 or even 4 years. This would be at the discretion of the cadre, assuming it has allocable financial resources.

A surprisingly high percentage of MS1s with 4 year scholarships do fail their initial APFT or even the first few tests. This failure does not result in the forfeit of the tuition portion of the scholarship but it does delay it. Their monthly stipends, however, begin only when they have contracted.

Congratulations on your scholarship and best wishes for your success at SDSU.

"A surprisingly high percentage of MS1s with 4 year scholarships do fail their initial APFT or even the first few tests. This failure does not result in the forfeit of the tuition portion of the scholarship but it does delay it."

It will result in forfeiture of the scholarship if a cadet has not passed the PT test by Dec. 15th. In OP's case, this would technically be Dec 15th of sophomore year. However, a 3-year advanced designee scholarship winners needs PMS approval to validate their scholarship. If one hasn't managed to pass the PT test during their MSI year, that approval might be hard to come by.