My DS has mentioned that if he doesn't get an appointment from the SA or the NROTC scholarship that he might consider just enlisting into the Navy. He's been accepted to all 5 of his NROTC schools and also has received several scholarship offers that are part of each school. Not full scholarships but every little bit helps. I've told him that he can still be part of the NROTC program at school even without the NROTC scholarship but he says he has to think on it. I'm just not sure how I should talk to him about this, I really don't want him to miss out on going to college with how hard he has worked in HS to get where he is now. But he's also 17, and "knows everything". LOL. Any advice on how to discuss with DS would be appreciated.
Advice Needed
- Thread starter MOM2011
- Start date
If he doesn't receive an appointment this year, he can always go to college for a year, take the right courses, work hard at getting good grades and re-apply to USNA next year. If you look at the make-up of the Class of 2014, only about 70% came right out of high school. Also, as you have pointed out, he could participate in NROTC without a scholarship. The NROTC scholarship does not pay for room & board, so unless all his NROTC schools pick up the tab for R&B, he will have to pay for it. USNA does take some prior enlisted, but my understanding is that getting a recommendation from a commanding officer is difficult.
I thought about doing the same thing myself for MC. The recruiter made it out to seem like USNA after enlisting in MCR was a possibility, but I think recruiters tend to put a silver lining on things. My BGO said I would have a much better chance doing college program NROTC, or just taking the plebe curriculum at a civilian school.
I read the re-applying sticky on the forum...they seemed to say the same thing. There is no mention of enlisting. However, I would assume with the fleet, the academy has a much lower quota to fill, and therefore, it is likely more senior candidates would receive an appointment.
I read the re-applying sticky on the forum...they seemed to say the same thing. There is no mention of enlisting. However, I would assume with the fleet, the academy has a much lower quota to fill, and therefore, it is likely more senior candidates would receive an appointment.
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If he doesn't get in, I would not advise enlisting. While it's definitely possible to get here from the fleet, it's kind of a circuitous route. A lot (but not all!) of the priors here came from Nuke school or from commands where it was relatively easy to leave.
I would say if he doesn't get in, just go to a civilian school and do NROTC for a year and apply again. I know several people in my company who did this, and they are all extremely successful here. Or he could just do NROTC, or BDCP, or another commissioning program once in college.
I understand that he probably wants to get out to the fleet and do something useful. I know I did when I was applying and have been frustrated here by a sense that I'm not really "doing anything" right now. But if his final end goal for his time in the military is to be an officer, he should pursue that route rather than enlisting and then trying to get into a commissioning program.
I would say if he doesn't get in, just go to a civilian school and do NROTC for a year and apply again. I know several people in my company who did this, and they are all extremely successful here. Or he could just do NROTC, or BDCP, or another commissioning program once in college.
I understand that he probably wants to get out to the fleet and do something useful. I know I did when I was applying and have been frustrated here by a sense that I'm not really "doing anything" right now. But if his final end goal for his time in the military is to be an officer, he should pursue that route rather than enlisting and then trying to get into a commissioning program.
usna1985
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The question is whether he wants to serve as an officer or as an enlisted. They are very different lifestyles, career paths, etc.
Being brutally honest, if he has the desire and ability to pursue a college education at this stage of his life, I recommend that, if he doesn't receive an appointment, that he pursue another college option. NROTC is one. Or, he can attend a civilian college on his own and then apply for OCS/AOCS. From a college program, he can re-apply to USNA if that is still his desire.
Enlisting is fine in its own right, but I would absolutely not count on it as a path to USNA or to being an officer right away. Yes, it happens for some enlisted men and women but, if it doesn't work out, you're still committed to 4 (I believe) years of enlisted service.
Being brutally honest, if he has the desire and ability to pursue a college education at this stage of his life, I recommend that, if he doesn't receive an appointment, that he pursue another college option. NROTC is one. Or, he can attend a civilian college on his own and then apply for OCS/AOCS. From a college program, he can re-apply to USNA if that is still his desire.
Enlisting is fine in its own right, but I would absolutely not count on it as a path to USNA or to being an officer right away. Yes, it happens for some enlisted men and women but, if it doesn't work out, you're still committed to 4 (I believe) years of enlisted service.