Chanves of getting a scholarship from one of the next two AROTC boards?

jonny813

Jon Simmons
Joined
Nov 22, 2014
Messages
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I just found out that I was not offered an AROTC scholarship for the October Board. I'd like to know what anyone thinks as to any major reasons why I wasn't offered one, and what my chances are for getting one for one of the next 2 boards.

Schools listed:
Penn State
Ohio State
American
Georgetown
George Mason

Creds:

17 yrs old

Pitt PMI said I had a great interview and that I would get close to a perfect score, if not a perfect score.

Scholar:

UW GPA: 3.5 (almost all Honors, AP, or IB classes)
SAT: 2080
High Honor Roll: 4 times
MYP Certificate (Sr Year)
Dean's List (Jr Year)

Leader:

VP of Men's Ensemble
Boy Scout since '08
Likely to become Eagle Scout
Troop leadership position for 3 yrs of HS
Lead in Jr Year Musical
Lead in Fr Year Fall Play
3 time student of the year nominee

Athlete:

Winter Track 2 time varsity letter winner
Spring Track 3 time varsity letter winner
Cross Country 3 time varsity letter winner
Marching Band 4 time varsity letter winner
(12 total, will have 13 by the end of HS)

Other:

Musical last 3 yrs and will participate again
Chanteclairs (elite auditioned choir) 3 yrs
Drumline 4 yrs
Church Youth Group 4 yrs

Fitness Test:

push-ups: 65
sit-ups: 55
Mile run: 4:53
 
I think it is because you applied only to what many would call powerhouse units. IOWS, the competition is stiff for those colleges. The first board gives a very low number of scholarship, mainly only to the superstars that they know would be top scorers even when the entire allotment was completed.

Your only IS is PSU, and the rest would all be considered private because they are private or OOS. That plays into the selection process too.
~ For example, George Mason is one of the most popular colleges in VA. They had over 33,000 applicants for admission last year for an incoming class size less than 5000. In VA all state colleges because they receive state funds have a limit of how many OOS applicants can be admitted. It varies between 25-30%.

For the board they will have to ask at a college that has so many IS applicants where total cost IS is 21k and over 30k for OOS which candidate should we give the scholarship to? I bet for GMU 75%+ of the scholarships go to IS just because in VA GMU is on almost every kids apply to list, be it as a safety, match or reach. Honestly, I don't know of any of my kids and their friends in No VA that did not apply to GMU. If you go into a mall parking lot the car stickers are GMU, VT and UVA that is how popular those schools are here.
 
I don't think your choice of majors is helping. My DS had lower test scores but higher GPA. He was awarded 4-yr to out of state private colleges. His major is going to be mechanical engineering.
 
I thought AROTC was not like AF/NROTC where majors mattered.
~ IE for both AFROTC and NROTC 80-85% of ALL of the scholarship awarded go to STEM majors.

Is this something new for AROTC. I know they have been trying to move more towards STEM, but I didn't think they had gone to the point where they have a % goal/target like the other two.

If so, than I agree the major is going to be the issue for the first board.
 
In the worst case scenario just be aware that Hoya battalion (AU, GU) has had a number of campus based scholarship award winners the past three years. You may still have a shot if you're accepted and enroll in AROTC. However both are big $$$ if you don't get the scholarship. Oh, and make sure you get that Eagle Scout award.
 
You are correct, Pima. The Army does not care about major when selecting for scholarships.
 
I just found out that I was not offered an AROTC scholarship for the October Board. I'd like to know what anyone thinks as to any major reasons why I wasn't offered one, and what my chances are for getting one for one of the next 2 boards.

Relatively few AROTC scholarships were offered by the first AROTC board, so don't be discouraged.

Overall, you look competitive though more leadership positions would have made your application stronger.

The mile time is not too shabby. If you could bring it down by another minute or so, that would be something.
 
Pretty strong conjecture. Unless you are on the board...

Actually JCC123 is correct. You do have a point in that 'underwater basket weaving' is not going to cut it as a major, but international relations would certainly make the grade. It is far more likely that in OP's case they want to see a bigger pool of candidates prior to making an award. They may have done this because the OP's application is considered weak in some areas. For example, it's not whether you have leadership, it's do you have enough leadership to beat out your competition?
 
The school choice matters less now with AROTC scholarships than it used to. Last year they started something new, which was to give scholarship winners the choice to their top 3 schools (as long as the school still had scholarships available) without looking if they were in-state, out-of-state or private. It appears they are doing the same thing this year based upon the results from the 1st board. As each board goes by, the units are filling up with scholarship winners, so they may move down on the list to the next available school when they make the next round of offers. This is much more similar to how NROTC does it. In OPs case, I believe the leadership category is your weakest link. For example, "lead" in a school play, while showing strong commitment to your art, would not necessarily qualify as a leadership position. I still think you have a strong chance of getting a scholarship, however. The one thing that many people seem to be discounting in the AROTC process is the CBEF. This is worth 250 points of your total score on the application! Nobody knows the score they received on this and you can have a great application, but a low score on this and it can severely impact your chances on getting the scholarship.
 
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So is the overall consensus that I still have a good shot at receiving a scholarship from one of the next two boards?
 
So is the overall consensus that I still have a good shot at receiving a scholarship from one of the next two boards?

You have a fair shot of getting a scholarship. Continue working plans B, C, D,and E. Always be prepared for a 'No'. Happened to us but because we were prepared all worked out for the best in the end.
 
So is the overall consensus that I still have a good shot at receiving a scholarship from one of the next two boards?

Your stats are Average among applicants.

The board only looks at the Math and Reading for the SAT, what was that score?

You have good athletics but looks like you were not Captain of either team. Letters in Band don't count but band participation does. Were you a section leader in the band?

You leadership is lacking but not terrible, again average. Likely to make Eagle is not Eagle and won't count toward leadership unless you made it before you submitted your application. Lead in a school play does not count toward leadership but being in the plays may help some.

Your school choices are pretty competitive. What you have to realize is you are completing with applicants that have listed the same schools, it will come down to what all the stats are in that cohort.

I would definitely have a plan B and C, I would say you have a shot, not a "Good" shot but a shot. Just keep all your options open and have plans for those options in the works.
 
Your stats are Average among applicants.

The board only looks at the Math and Reading for the SAT, what was that score?

You have good athletics but looks like you were not Captain of either team. Letters in Band don't count but band participation does. Were you a section leader in the band?

You leadership is lacking but not terrible, again average. Likely to make Eagle is not Eagle and won't count toward leadership unless you made it before you submitted your application. Lead in a school play does not count toward leadership but being in the plays may help some.

Your school choices are pretty competitive. What you have to realize is you are completing with applicants that have listed the same schools, it will come down to what all the stats are in that cohort.

I would definitely have a plan B and C, I would say you have a shot, not a "Good" shot but a shot. Just keep all your options open and have plans for those options in the works.

620 math
690 reading
 
AROTC is changing, new cadets 2015 face new rotc

Maj. Gen. Smith of Cadet Command and AROTC, 2013summary of his views:

AROTC is looking more to STEM; increasing ROTC classroom hours, decreasing college lab time; new CIET b/t freshman and sophomore; and another 4 weeks summer trg. b/t sophomore and junior summer; and still Leader Development and Assessment Course, now at Ft. Knox.

"...today's Army needs more officers versed in science, technology, engineering and mathematics."
Smith sums up the ROTC transformation with four bullets:

-- Transforming cadet leader development
-- Developing a world-class cadre
-- Improving cadet recruiting, selection and branching
-- Adjusting the ROTC footprint

Sounds like candidate's major will play a large role in selection. May lose a little in devaluing officer candidates with different backgrounds.
 
And yet the front runner for SECDEF has a degree in Social Studies, but then again she doesn't have to push a lot of buttons and work with gizmos.
 
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