How to Get Into LTC

[Future2LtMom]

I am a bit confused as to how getting into LTC works. The commander of the ROTC unit at our DS high school made it sound like you just sign up and that it's no big deal to go into ROTC as a junior in college. However, I've read more than one post on this forum about how it is getting more difficult to "qualify" for LTC. The reason I'm asking is that we are debating whether it will be worth it for our DS to apply for a 4yr. ROTC scholarship that locks him in to the military early on in his college "career". Or, would it be better for him to continue on with dual-enrollment while he is in high school until he has earned his A.A. degree, and then enter college as a junior (and also enter college ROTC at that time)? The state pays for all tuition, fees, & books while he is dual-enrolled. Plus, we have a state pre-paid college plan and I feel our son will also qualify for a scholarship program that our state offers. Between the pre-paid plan and the state scholarship most, if not all, of his tuition, fees & books his last two years of school would be covered. We would still be out of pocket for room, board, and general living expenses (which can be substantial) for his junior & senior years. Keep in mind, this is all assuming he would go to an in-state public university. DS has not indicated ANY interest in going to an out-of-state school, but he has indicated some interest in a couple of private schools in our state. It just makes me nervous when I read posts about ROTC scholarship recipients having a change of heart about their committment to the military or getting DQ'd for health reasons, etc. and end up getting out of the program, leaving them with a HUGE financial committment at such a young age. Even though our DS is adamant about wanting to serve our country in the military, he's still a 16-year old young man. Things could change in a heartbeat. Any thoughts or input are greatly appreciated.

 

[dunninla]

well, actually, it IS a big deal to get into "Advanced Course", as ROTC calls the last two years. One needs to sign a service obligation Contract in order to enter into Advanced Course.

Having said that, getting into LTC would require your DS to already be in ROTC at a 4 yr. college, during sophomore year. How else could the Colonel at that school recommend your DS for Advanced Course, and summer LTC? He has to know him and see him operate within his Unit.

There have been a couple of threads from students at Community Colleges, getting ready to transfer to a 4 yr. college, asking about how to get into ROTC. I've never actually seen anybody successfully describe how that would work. I suggest you call the 4 yr. college to which your DS would most likely want to transfer into, and ask the ROO (Recruiting Operations Officer) or PMS (Professor of Military Science) how a JC student would accomplish that.

 

[EDelahanty]

My post was being prepared while DunninLA was submitting his adroit post, so there may be a redundancy. Here's a link to the description of the Army's Leader's Training Course (LTC)

http://www.goarmy.com/rotc/courses-and-colleges/curriculum/leaders-training-course.html

We don't know what the requirements will be in two years. It will depend primarily on the Army's need to add additional cadets suitable for commissioning and secondarily on the need at his school to bolster its number of MS3's I do know that an LTC grad just joined Cadet Delahanty's relatively small MS3 cohort last month.

A few things to keep in mind:

1. 4 year scholarships are generally being replaced with 3 year scholarships.
2. If your son does receive a four year scholarship, he would have until the beginning of his second year to withdraw without obligation of serving or repayment.
3. If he does not receive a scholarship, then he will not incur an obligation until he contracts at the beginning of his third year.
4. By joining ROTC as a freshman, he would develop friendships and relationships with both classmates and more senior cadets from the beginning. If he found ROTC was not for him, he could get out while the stakes were low. By waiting until his junior year to join through LTC, he would be all-in at once.

 

[Jcleppe]

Having said that, getting into LTC would require your DS to already be in ROTC at a 4 yr. college, during sophomore year. How else could the Colonel at that school recommend your DS for Advanced Course, and summer LTC? He has to know him and see him operate within his Unit.

I'm not really sure this holds true for some Battalions.

My son's battalion currently has 2 cadets that transferred from a Comm. College, went to LTC and started their junior year. Last year 2 of the cadets that graduated with my older son did the same thing. The ROO at the battalion has activly recruited transfer students that have contacted the program asking to join. None of these cadets attended the school or ROTC during their freshman or sophomore year.

Your son would definatly want to contact the ROO at the 4 year school and ROTC Battalion well in advance to let them know of his interest and what his chances of getting selected to LTC are. His college course grades/GPA and APFT scores will go a long way in getting accepted to LTC.

 

[Future2LtMom]

Thanks for the information. I was not clear on the fact that a cadet had a year to decide if they wanted to proceed with their committment under a 4-yr. scholarship. I was under the impression that was only possible with a 3-yr. scholarship. That makes me feel better already!