DS is not even sure if he will take that long. He will work it out as he goes along. But at least that option is out there.
One more question. He was asking how will a 5 yr plan work with LDAC? Would be go between junior and senior yr? Or after his 4th yr before beginning 5th year?
He should have a very good idea of whether he will need an extra semester or 2 (it can be extended to 4.5 years as well) before his first day of class. There are a few things that can force an extension once the original plan is set.
Here are things that will almost always force an extra semester:
1) Degree requirements that when you add up the minimum number of credit hours to satisfy (plus ROTC) have a number > 130. While many schools "guarantee" that it doesn't take more than 120 credits to satisfy your degree, your Military Science courses may not satisfy any of the requirements within that 120 credits. And that 120 credits include no electives.
Military Science courses add about the equivalent of about 1 semester of credit hours to your requirements (depending upon institutions). Most Cadre won't push their cadets past a 16 credit hour average over their 4 years.
2) Schools that are over-enrolled to the point that you cannot get in the classes you need to graduate on time (happens a lot at publics where they've had lots of budget problems). All schools give priority to the students with the most credits under their belts when it comes time to sign up for classes. It is often difficult to get into upper-division classes as a first semester Junior because of the sheer number of 5th upper classmen who have been delayed before you. When you are in a major like engineering that has many sequenced classes, once you get off-sync because of over-enrollment, you are almost always going to end up requiring an extra semester. This is one of those you cannot know until you get there. And it is one that makes the cadre cringe.
3) Majors with infrequently offered courses. This is a rare occurrence and in generally manageable, and once again something you won't run into until late in the game. Pick an obscure engineering specialty with about 3 or 4 degrees awarded per year. You have a critical requirement that is only offered once a year for Seniors only. Have another critical requirement only offered once a year at the same hour (yes it happens) and OOPS, you're going to have to return for year 5. Almost happened to me when I went through school. Needed only 10 credit hours to graduate and only 3 course requirements. 2 Specific classes in my major (Business) and one upper-division from any science/math discipline. I was a slouch science student (took my lab sciences in meteorology - where you got graded on predicting the weather, believe it or not). Had a couple meteorology courses in my plan. Both conflicted with the 2 business courses (1 time a year for seniors only) I had to take. Doh! Ended up talking my way into a upper-division Stat class (probability theory) that I was a couple pre-requisites short of. Was cruising through the first half of the class (filled with engineering majors who couldn't figure out the odds of winning Powerball if they won the prize for setting up the equation properly). Unfortunately, the other part of the class is where the ability to pound the calculus almost killed me. It was all about the volume under the plane. Could set up the problems with the best of them (understood the underlying Calculus theory), but couldn't solve the problem very well (didn't have the coursework in the techniques). Got my Gentleman's C- and graduated (the D+ would not have counted).
My advice to all incoming freshmen:
1) Get the course catalog for your entering year (it changes every year).
2) Get the list of requirements (general ed, major, specialty) for your degree from that course catalog.
3) Look up and list by requirement ALL courses that satisfy EACH requirement and list them by requirement.
4) As you list those courses, spell out the pre-requisites (or co-requisites - taken at the same time) for the course (class standing, other courses, accepted into major, instructor approval, etc.).
5) Identify the courses at the beginning of the longest pre-requisite chain that you are eligible to take immediately and put them in your first semester plan if at all possible. For you engineering type, there will be math, physics, and chem chains that will be lengthy.
6) Plot these chains out in your 104r (you can find one online and download - google is your friend) starting in the earliest semester possible. Start from the longest chain and proceed to your shortest chain.
7) Add in your MS classes across your first 8 semesters.
8) Fill in other specifically required classes (that don't have pre-requisites - you already did these above). Look at course schedules to make sure they are offered the term you intend to take them.
9) Fill in classes you have choices for (pick 3 from a group of 5). Take special note of classes that have an unusual number of credit hours. Try to schedule those to even out your load across the semesters if possible.
10) If you notice that you need to consistently take more than 16 credit hours to make all the required classes fit into 8 semesters, you will want to talk to your cadre about needing more than 4 years to graduate. (back on topic)
11) Take your filled in 104r (make sure you have the current one from your cadre) when you see your adviser during freshman orientation. Typical orientation advising sessions only cover freshman year. If you give them the filled-out 104r, you can get the required signature on the spot and impress him/her with your planning skills. Your adviser is your friend. Often, they can intervene and get you into a class you might not otherwise get into.