Best route, contact your ALO for guidance. It may be AFROTC HQ will have to re-open the page if you can't unlock it.
Boards have not met yet so you are not too late. Also talk to your ALO for better perspective and guidance before deciding to switch majors. For ex: you want to be an astronaut, well that means you need Test Pilot School (TPS), which only can occur if you are an engineering graduate.
Be forewarned that if you have decided to go non-tech from a tech major it maybe insanely competitive. I am not advocating staying tech major, because nothing makes a kid more miserable in college than attending classes for a major they despise, and most likely do poorly in or eventually change majors anyway. I am saying to understand that non-tech is insanely competitive. Only 5% of Type 1 are awarded, and only @5% of them go to non-tech. Do the math, out of 1000 applicants @3 get it for non-tech. Be honest and real with yourself regarding your application.
Next thing. You need to understand the AFROTC program once you are a scholarship cadet in college
1. GPA matters. Fall under that 3.0, even though they say 2.whatever minimum, you are risking your scholarship. 2 yrs ago at DS school 3 months prior to commissioning they said to a cadet with career in hand, thanks but no thanks, and cut him loose. He had a 2.8 gpa.
2. SFT. This is where the GPA really kicks in. SFT boards do not give extra points for scholarship cadets. It is all OML. You carry under a 3.0, and with the current selection rate hovering in the 50 percentile, you may not be selected. No selection = no POC. No POC = loss of scholarship. DS's school 3.0+ for engineering = SFT, 3.2+ for non-tech = SFT.
It also = no AF commissioning.
You could find yourself at the end of your soph yr trying to figure out how to stay at that school from a fiscal perspective because you took it all for granted that once in college and above the scholarship min., it would mean you could keep that scholarship. Kids walked away this yr heart broken, not only because they didn't get SFT, but because they didn't have plan B in place if they lost the scholarship. 2 yrs of friendships, and school spirit washed away because they never expected it.
AFROTC cadets need to keep plan B on how to pay until they become a POC.
3. Yes, you have the option to change majors once there, but it is not a walk in the park.
See this post:
http://www.serviceacademyforums.com/showthread.php?t=21477
They also have the right to just say NOPE, and you are stuck with that major.
Honestly, if money is an issue, I would not want to go down the path of #3. It will not play into their equation at all. The only thing that does is your stats and major. Colleges don't play into the equation really, because they don't care if 1 school has 100% on scholarship and the other has 0%, unlike A/NROTC. All they care about is if the college accepts AFROTC scholarships, they don't even need to be the host, just accept money from them and they are A-OK.
Hope this helps. Sorry if I was too blunt, but I prefer that you all know the risks that happen instead of saying, NO PROBLEM, GO FOR IT!
captaintexas said:
I'm fairly confident that I will get a scholarship
I have to say, I don't know your stats at all, but unless you are the top 10% of your graduating class, an NMSF (remember AFROTC does not super score SAT or ACT), on an athletic team, EC's up the yahoo, can max the PFA and have no DoDMERB issues, I would not feel confident.
Here is a candidate that is only going AFROTC against you.
http://www.serviceacademyforums.com/showthread.php?t=21434
Please go to post 11 and hit the blue link.
AFA has already stated that this yr will be tighter than LY for apptmts. That means there will be more TWE from the AFA, and 95% of AFA candidates apply AFROTC as plan B. These candidates typically are the top 10% of their class, 85%+ have a varsity letter, high percentage were BSA Eagle Scout, valedictorian, class leadership positions, etc.
Again, my point is keep working on your resume and make it the best it can be, because even that PFA can make a difference between a Type 1,2,7 or nothing. With these economic times I would not take anything for granted. Not saying you are. Just a reminder that to get a true perspective of your competition is to not only look here for stats, but also on the AFA forum. @3500 candidates will get noms, only 1300 will get apptmts, that means 2K+ may be taking that AFROTC scholarship.
AFROTC and AFA boards do not talk. They take the highest WCS and offer appt/scholarships and for AFROTC geographic location is not in the equation at all, as it is for AFA, it is purely based on national. Many AFA candidates will hold onto that scholarship to the last minute, and that is after the last board. In essence, if they do the money goes back into the pot for next yr. There is no wait-list for AFROTC scholarships.
I know I sounded like the wet blanket, but if you now have the knowledge of how competitive it really is, you have the ability to make a plan. If you decide that you are on par with them, than you should be fairly confident. If you feel you are below them, work on your resume you have a lot of time left. If you feel there is no way in Hades regardless of hard you work, than my question to you is did you want bad enough?
These links shows you that there are people who won't take NO for an answer
http://www.serviceacademyforums.com/showthread.php?t=20989
http://www.serviceacademyforums.com/showthread.php?t=21385
Up to you. Good luck.
