ROTC + AmeriCorps

army4life

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Mar 24, 2015
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Hello, I recently posted the following under the thread for those waiting on the third AROTC board, but it may need its own thread...

Waiting on the third round. My son didn't apply until after the first board. (Being an army family for going on 21 years now, you'd think we would have been more informed about the process, but we didn't even realize there was more than one board until I discovered it on this forum - so thanks to all of you who post great info here.)

On to my question...

Our son is passionate about ROTC and the Army and fully intends to be a lifer (do we still call it that?) However, he was so inspired by GEN Stanley McChrystal's call for American youth to complete a service year between high school and college that he decided to concurrently apply to AmeriCorps.

http://www.franklinproject.org/stan_mcchrystal_a_million_young_people_to_empower_america

AmeriCorps receives approxamately 500,000 applications each year for only 80,000 slots, so you can imagine how overjoyed he was to recieve his acceptance a few weeks ago. He has already responded and committed the upcoming year to them as he knows that if he commissions in the Army right after college, this will be his one chance to serve America in this unique way. He hopes that if he is awarded a scholarship in this board, there may be some avenue for him to defer for one year. If anyone has any insight, I would greatly appreciate it.

Additionally, if he is not able to defer, could he reapply next year using the high school application again?

Thank you.

PS - If the efforts of GEN McChrystal and the Franklin Project succeed, I imagine this might become a more common issue.
 
I don't think there is any way to defer it, but I would check with official sources. He would be able to re-apply the next year. Having Americorps on his resume then might be helpful.
 
He would have to reapply next year. From previous threads and discussions on this forum, it appears there are no deferments or delays for scholarships.
 
He would have to reapply next year. From previous threads and discussions on this forum, it appears there are no deferments or delays for scholarships.

If it's true that even service to America is non-deferable, it makes me kind of sad. The kind of go-getter that does this and the leadership and teamwork they learn in the process seems like EXACTLY the kind of candidate you want in ROTC.
 
If it's true that even service to America is non-deferable, it makes me kind of sad. The kind of go-getter that does this and the leadership and teamwork they learn in the process seems like EXACTLY the kind of candidate you want in ROTC.
Yes it is. But they want you the year you were awarded a scholarship, not the next year. There is a thing called 'pipeline' management and next year the needs of the service may be entirely different. Good luck to your DS. He is definitely a hell of a guy.
 
Sounds like it's going to make a great essay and interviews for his reapplication next year. He took a message from someone he admires and took action. The lessons he learned I am sure will show in the process.
 
Yes it is. But they want you the year you were awarded a scholarship, not the next year. There is a thing called 'pipeline' management and next year the needs of the service may be entirely different. Good luck to your DS. He is definitely a hell of a guy.

Thank you so much. One thing I've truly come to understand as a 21 year Army spouse is budget and I'm guessing that any kind of deferment would completely screw that up...
 
Sounds like it's going to make a great essay and interviews for his reapplication next year. He took a message from someone he admires and took action. The lessons he learned I am sure will show in the process.

I don't know if I'm hoping more that he doesn't make it this board, or that he does. Either way, I agree it would make for a great essay. More than that, his experience will be invaluable.
 
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