Nrotc Scholarship Denied

JHitt27

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Feb 26, 2015
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Just checked my portal for the first time to see "We are sorry, you were not selected for a scholarship. You will receive a letter explaining other options available to you."

Very upsetting to see considering I felt confident that I had a chance. 29 Act. Captain of Soccer Team. Wrestling All-District. Baseball. Student council. Tutor 4 hours a week. Treasure of computer club. President of science research. National Honor Society. In chess club and science club as well, not that it matters. Top 15% of class. Have a science journal wanting to publish my research paper on solar energy. Majoring in a their 1 major. Workout 5 days a week every week. Whole family has been in the navy. Sorry for my rant but I am very very upset considering I don't see how I will be able to even attend university now without the financial aid and will have to enlist.

And the worst part of it all is that I was scanning over the portal and noticed it said my sat equivalent is my old score back in august of a 25. My recruiter, however, said he inputed my new scores of a 29 in September or so? I'm really not sure what to do as of now... Do you think this could be a reason? Would I still be able to fix that and resubmit it?

Sorry for the rant :/
 
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Seems to me you have nothing to lose by making some phone calls if you think an error was made. At least you would know for sure. I'd move quickly as I think there might be a few boards left where they could re-access after a correction.
 
Recommend you apply for other scholarships - there are many out there.

If you want to be a Naval Officer you shouldn't give up. As your notification advised, you will have other options to pursue. There are many paths towards the same goal.
 
That is extremely surprising that you didn't get picked, solely off of your extensive and impressive extra-curriculars. You should call them and find out if a mistake was made, and if so, see what they can do about it. You seem to be leader material, so don't give up on being an officer, good luck!
 
I don't see how I will be able to even attend university now without the financial aid and will have to enlist.

No, you do not have to enlist. You may choose to enlist because your Plan A failed and you lack the resiliency to get back on the horse, but you do not have to enlist. You are not the first person to go to school without a sugar daddy. There are other scholarships, there are student loans, there are jobs. Figure it out. That's what junior officers do.
 
To echo what mbitr said, apply for scholarships. Scholarships through a university, local scholarships, scholarships through your high school, the list goes on and on, and you will be able to find endless scholarships to apply for. I received a 3 year AROTC scholarship but I have still applied for countless other scholarships to help pay for the rest of school. Don't let the declination of an NROTC scholarship prevent you from being a part of ROTC.
 
Just checked my portal for the first time to see "We are sorry, you were not selected for a scholarship. You will receive a letter explaining other options available to you."

Very upsetting to see considering I felt confident that I had a chance. 29 Act. Captain of Soccer Team. Wrestling All-District. Baseball. Student council. Tutor 4 hours a week. Treasure of computer club. President of science research. National Honor Society. In chess club and science club as well, not that it matters. Top 15% of class. Have a science journal wanting to publish my research paper on solar energy. Majoring in a their 1 major. Workout 5 days a week every week. Whole family has been in the navy. Sorry for my rant but I am very very upset considering I don't see how I will be able to even attend university now without the financial aid and will have to enlist.

Have you/your parents filed the FAFSA forms? What colleges have you applied to / are interested in attending? If you don't think you can even attend an in-state public college without a scholarship (because of financial need), I strongly suggest you file those FAFSA forms. You may be eligible for Federal grants (they do not have to be paid back), need-based scholarships, subsidized student loans (lower interest rate), work-study, etc. There are other financial avenues than just the ROTC scholarship. Once you show up in the fall, you can compete for an in-school ROTC scholarship if available (and if you receive it, it may help with the remaining semesters). Good luck!
 
NROTC Scholarships can sometimes be harder to get then an appointment to the USNA, a lot can depend on the schools you selected for your scholarship and their availability of scholarships.

Your stats are good but realize that there are many applicants that have ACT scores above 30 and are in the to 10% of their class. You didn't list your u/w GPA or the number of AP courses taken in high school, all of this factors into the application process.

Finding an in state school that has a NROTC unit would be the first thing you should look at, if there are none in your state look at schools that you may be able to receive scholarships or aid. Some schools such as Texas A&M offer in state tuition to students enrolled in ROTC, I believe there are others as well. Finding a school you can afford and then working toward receiving a sideload scholarship would also be something you could look at.

The majority of ROTC cadets and mids start ROTC without a scholarship.
 
1) Don't make any emotional rash decisions.
I had to have the same talk with my son last year. Long story short, he didn't rush down and enlist. He enrolled as a college program midshipman and reapplied for the 4 year scholarship. (I believe the rules changed in the last couple of years -- as long as you have less than 30? hours of credit, you can still apply for the 4 year scholarship. You also have another chance for a sideload as well.) He continued to do well the first semester and was awarded the 4 year Marine Option scholarship during the first board in November.

2) Solicit feedback from those that can legitimately provide it -- i.e. those directly involved in your process and paperwork. I know it's frustrating and the tendency is to want to speculate on stats. My son had a 30 ACT, graduated 53 out of 1100 ish, high first class PFT -- and didn't make it last year. His best friend since elementary got into the Naval Academy -- with virtually identical stats. As JCleppe hinted at, sometimes ROTC can be harder because it's a different mix of competition. My son was bewildered, frustrated, briefly angry, a huge range of emotions -- but he got his scholarship. He had no desire to reapply to the Academy either. Why were your stats not "good enough"? Only those in your recruitment path can possibly give insight. Ask them.

3) Some of my son's friends at school arrived as college programmers for the Navy side -- and I think at least 1 has received a 4 year. No word on any sideloads yet. The key thing is to do well in your unit. The staff will work hard on behalf of you if they see you are working hard and persevering.

4) I know it sounds cliche, but you're young. You'll have other "opportunities" to overcome other things that may get you down. This is only a bump if getting a commission is something you really want.

Hang in there and keep moving forward.
 
I don't know what state you are from, but in VA and NC both states have a program that if you maintain a 3.0+ from any CC and receive your associates degree it is basically automatic acceptance to any instate college. IE, UNCCH and UVA which are considered public ivies.

There are cadets/mids that attend to the CC and travel to the host college.

Think about going to the CC for a year and applying for the ICSP next year. You can request a transfer.

Honestly if it about money and the ability to afford college, this would be the path I would tell my child to investigate. You could live at home, use the Stafford loan to pay for college, get a job and save money for the next few years.
 
I understand my son did not receive a scholarship this year either. He has a 30 on his act, captain cross country, track, marching band, Honor Society, student council and a lot of clubs in school. Has a un weighted GPA of 3.99 and is 7th in his class. He was accepted to all the schools he applied to for NROTC. He has also taken his oath and is in the Navy Reserves. We have tried to get a answer why he didn't receive a scholarship but can't get a answer from anyone. He will leave in September for Basic and do his A school and reapply to NROTC next year and start college in fall of 2016.
 
I doubt you will ever get an answer. It brings no comfort, but the fact is only about 16-18% of all candidates receive a scholarship. It is a national pool from the start and intended majors play into the equation too.

I am not 100% positive, but I believe NROTC is like AFROTC. They request a school profile. Everyone wants to believe they attend a very competitive school, but what is competitive where you live and what is competitive to another state can be different.
~ Fairfax county VA spends more on their education budget than the bottom 8 states in the nation. The avg SAT is 1300+.

If your school has 0% that go Ivy, and 25% go CC, with you being top 15% that is different than the kid that attends a school where 25% go Ivy and 0% go CC. It shows them that it is a rigorous school.

The same can be said about when posters post their cgpa. That is all well and good, but NROTC has their own algorithm ...7 point grading scale or 10 point.
 
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I hope NROTC will post some statistics at the end of this scholarship cycle. It seems like it was an extremely competitive pool of applicants and I will be very interested to see if they awarded fewer scholarships this year.
 
JHitt27--Sorry about your bad news. I do really feel for you. My son also received the same news a couple of days ago that he was not selected for a Navy ROTC scholarship. His stats are 1350 CR/M SAT and 3.7 GPA. He is a varsity lacrosse player on the state's championship team and has quite a few extra-curriculars and volunteer hours. His stats were good enough to get into a number of excellent schools (i.e. Ohio State engineering) and to get some decent scholarships. . .but obviously, not good enough to get the Navy ROTC scholarship. I told my son I was proud that he applied for the ROTC scholarship and that he reached for a lofty goal; you should be proud too. There really are lots of paths to get to both college graduation and to commissioning in the military. (I went to college on an enlisted Army College Fund and then was commissioned into the Air Force.) Good luck. While I know this is a Navy ROTC post, I would advise to always "Aim High." If you don't, then you will never know what you can achieve. . .
 
we received the same bad news last week, and like your sons, my son had a 4.0 GPA , varsity letters, 660 math/780 reading SAT, top 10 percent of his class , great pft , numerous extra curricular and community service, I am truly perplexed.
 
I'm not familiar with the NROTC scholarship application process, but it seems like a lot of strong, promising candidates have not been awarded scholarships. My thought is that this might be because there aren't as many schools that offer NROTC as there are schools that offer AROTC and AFROTC, which could directly influence the amount of scholarships awarded by the Navy
 
The competition for the Navy ROTC scholarship is obviously very intense. I showed my son this thread so he could see that he was certainly in good (maybe great) company in that some very qualified applicants were not selected for the scholarship. However, as a retired Air Force officer, I do know that the military is looking for far more than scholarship and athleticism in its officers. The Air Force (and I am sure, the Navy) is looking hard for future leaders in high school students and while that is probably very hard to assess based on an application package and an interview, I think this intangible aspect may sometimes result in great high school students being passed over for what appear (to the selection board) to be better future leaders. Best of luck to those scholarship awardees and also those (like my son) who at least applied. . .even if they did not "win" this time. . .
 
I agree with Marci Lawson. Anyone who did not win a scholarship should keep their head held high and stay focused on the goal of commissioning. A scholarship is not needed in order to participate in ROTC, and a lot of universities will offer campus based scholarships to ROTC cadets. To anyone who did not win a scholarship, you should be proud of yourself for aspiring this high. Keep up your hard work and dedication, good luck!
 
My son had a 1560 SAT during a difficult pandemic year and 98.5 avg (translates to a perfect 5.0 GPA) at the top high school in the state with an engineering major. Not a single B his entire high school career, multiple AP classes, 2 sport athlete and volunteers teaching classes to kids and he was just denied any scholarship by the Air Force. We are frankly speechless. What went wrong?
What major did he select?
 
My son had a 1560 SAT during a difficult pandemic year and 98.5 avg (translates to a perfect 5.0 GPA) at the top high school in the state with an engineering major. Not a single B his entire high school career, multiple AP classes, 2 sport athlete and volunteers teaching classes to kids and he was just denied any scholarship by the Air Force. We are frankly speechless. What went wrong?
The 4-year ROTC scholarships are a national competition, with thousands of stellar applicants with glowing packages, with many also applying to the Service Academies. That national competition is a tough one, with a limited number of 4-years to hand out.

If a commission through AFROTC is the goal, your son can join a unit, deliver top-notch performance, and apply for scholarships awarded to college students.
 
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