Ike Skelton/Early Commissioning Program

[eljay60]

So, DS got offered this. I've looked over some of the other threads and can't find the answer to a question.

I understand if he accepts it, he is no longer in the running at future boards for the conventional 4 year scholarship - this takes the place of that. My question is, if he refuses the Ike Skelton scholarship now, will the offer be likely to be extended again after the second or third boards?

At this point, this is option J, K or L for us, but at 17, DS is a bit young to predict if he would rather be AD or reserves when he's 25. Dad was enlisted AD, and I was a reservist, but that was before he was on the scene so he really has no direct experience with either.

However, as a parent looking down the barrel of a $100k bill for college, it's really hard to let this bird-in-the-hand go.

 

[Jcc123]

As far as I understand it, If he declines the ECP scholarship, he will still be in the running for the second and third boards. If you can afford to send him to school without a scholarship, and if he does not have a very clear preference for Reserve duty, I would decline the ECP and kick that decision down the road a bit.

 

[eljay60]

My question is whether the ECP offer will be made again, if it is declined the first time.

 

[Pima]

I am with Jcc.

I get the 100K cost, but I would also say that if he is that competitive for a scholarship, than think about the fact that many ROTC cadets are highly competitive and will get merit from their colleges.

DS was an AFROTC scholarship recipient. The amount of merit awarded by the colleges varied all over the place, from free ride (without ROTC) to paying out a couple of grand with ROTC and merit. JMPO

 

[AJC]

there is a lot of past threads on this, try search.
But I do not think the will offer ECP again after it has been declined.

 

[eljay60]

there is a lot of past threads on this, try search.
But I do not think the will offer ECP again after it has been declined.

I did the search, didn't find anything on this. From what I understand, the ECP has only been administrated like this for a year or two, so there isn't much group experience.

 

[eljay60]

I am with Jcc.

I get the 100K cost, but I would also say that if he is that competitive for a scholarship, than think about the fact that many ROTC cadets are highly competitive and will get merit from their colleges.

DS was an AFROTC scholarship recipient. The amount of merit awarded by the colleges varied all over the place, from free ride (without ROTC) to paying out a couple of grand with ROTC and merit. JMPO

I understand this, but he is male, white and middle class, and has a parent with an advanced degree. I've talked to financial aid at his first choice college - Michigan Tech - and they don't send out financial offers until March. Basically, we are trying to make an intelligent decision with multiple unknown variables.

 

[Jcc123]

Yes, you are, as are all of the 1st board winners who must make a decision prior to school acceptance notifications.

It really boils down to this - Can you afford to send him to school without a scholarship? If yes, then does he know 100% that he wants to be a reserve officer? If he can't say that, turn down the Ike and don't look back.

If you can't afford to send him to school without it, and he doesn't want to be a reserve officer, you'll need to wait through the 2nd and maybe 3rd boards to see if he gets an offer.

If he does, he's golden. If not, there are other ways to realize his goal - enlisting, SMP program, etc. Accepting the Ike closes all of the other doors, and leaves him with one option - ECP and a reserve commission. If he's happy with that outcome and can let go of the other options, then accept it. If not, don't.

Best of luck to you both in deciding. Heady stuff for a 17 yr old.

 

[QA1517]

I just want to throw one more thing into the mix. What does he want to major in? Look at the classes offered at the MJC's and see what carries over good for a degree program. It might take you more that 2 additional years of the MJC to get a very difficult/in depth degree. They are junior colleges so curriculum can be limited.

 

[AROTC Parent]

eljay60 -
Help your son with a list of questions to ask the ROO at Michigan Tech. Have your son call the ROO and ask how likely is a scholarship offer. Ask if they usually have Ike Skelton scholarships available for students that enroll in ROTC. Sell himself in the conversation too.

If your son is in the top 25% (maybe top 50%) of Michigan Tech applicants (test scores, GPA, EC's) and is majoring in STEM he has a good chance of getting a scholarship. Michigan Tech has a good ROTC reputation.

 

[eljay60]

Have your son call the ROO and ask how likely is a scholarship offer.

Look at the classes offered at the MJC's and see what carries over good for a degree program. It might take you more that 2 additional years of the MJC to get a very difficult/in depth degree.

He's been told he has a 'strong packet', both by the ROO at Tech and by the group that just interviewed him for a senatorial nomination for the SA. From what I'm seeing on these boards he has more width than depth. Honor roll and top 20%, but not valedictorian or salutatorian; National Honor Society but no AP/IP classes (they aren't available); Varsity letter for Junior and Senior year, but he only plays soccer; Eagle Scout. SAT was 1260 on the new test, 750 math and 610 english. Varsity Quiz Bowl, but not the first string; Science Olympiad for three years, has one silver medal.

He wants engineering, but hasn't decided on a specific type yet. He's already been accepted into MTU's engineering program.

At this point we are turning down the Skelton scholarship. We can 'afford' MTU - although I'm pretty much assuming for every year we pay his schooling is another year I have to put off retirement. So if he gets a scholarship I can conceivably retire in 9 years - without it, I'm guessing 13 years. Or I can let him start his young adulthood with a whopping huge debt. Oh well. 68 is the new 55, right?

Very good point about the MJC classwork as well. He's taking a psych class concurrently with the local community college, and other than getting practice at college course expectations I doubt it will do much for his degree.

 

[Dckc88]

@eljay60 sounds like your son has a good plan. The Army is giving more and more 3 year scholarships, that is what my daughter earned last year, third board, the waiting is terrible! But if he knows MTU is his number 1, and he has been accepted to engineering already (yay!!!), then even without a scholarship he can apply for a campus scholarship as well to begin soohomore year, so he still has the 4 year national, 3 year national and campus based all possible at MTU to keep your retirement on track! All the more reason to keep in strong contact with the ROO at MTU if he isn't already. Even at 17 he can start to learn sometimes it isn't what you know but who you know....

 

[eljay60]

Thanks for the words of encouragement, Dckc. He started the apps for summer sessions at the service academies back in January this year (and did go to NASS), so it feels like he's been writing essays and pointing out to people he's never met what an incredible human being he is for a very long time. He and I are both ready for the wait to be over. But...looks like it will be February at the earliest, now.

 

[sheriff3]

Keep in mind a large % of scholarships are awarded at the unit level as well. If signs up for ROTC and shows up in regs, in excellent shape and is motivated he has an excellent shot at a 3 yr and if he impresses cadre maybe a 3.5 yr scholarship.

 

[Dckc88]

Thanks for the words of encouragement, Dckc. He started the apps for summer sessions at the service academies back in January this year (and did go to NASS), so it feels like he's been writing essays and pointing out to people he's never met what an incredible human being he is for a very long time. He and I are both ready for the wait to be over. But...looks like it will be February at the earliest, now.

I am curious, is the Army Nurse Corp logo for you or is he hoping to become a nurse? My daughter is a nursing student and her ROTC scholarship is for nursing. If it is for your son may I ask which schools he is looking at? My daughter ended up going the direct entry nursing route and is very glad she did, having a blast at school and in ROTC!

 

[eljay60]

I am curious, is the Army Nurse Corp logo for you or is he hoping to become a nurse? My daughter is a nursing student and her ROTC scholarship is for nursing. If it is for your son may I ask which schools he is looking at? My daughter ended up going the direct entry nursing route and is very glad she did, having a blast at school and in ROTC!

No, that's me. I was in the Reserves from 1996 to 2004, and regret that I ever left. Good luck to your daughter!

 

[SandmanSurfer]

So, DS got offered this. I've looked over some of the other threads and can't find the answer to a question.

I understand if he accepts it, he is no longer in the running at future boards for the conventional 4 year scholarship - this takes the place of that. My question is, if he refuses the Ike Skelton scholarship now, will the offer be likely to be extended again after the second or third boards?

At this point, this is option J, K or L for us, but at 17, DS is a bit young to predict if he would rather be AD or reserves when he's 25. Dad was enlisted AD, and I was a reservist, but that was before he was on the scene so he really has no direct experience with either.

However, as a parent looking down the barrel of a $100k bill for college, it's really hard to let this bird-in-the-hand go.

I'm looking up postings on the ECP. My daughter was awarded one and we too are considering whether to accept or decline. What happened in son's situation and any advice?

 

[EJF]

I'm looking up postings on the ECP. My daughter was awarded one and we too are considering whether to accept or decline. What happened in son's situation and any advice?

I'll tell you what my son decided and why he went that direction. He applied on the second board as a Class of 22 member. He was offered the ECP. He was encouraged by that, and considered it, but in the end after looking at the program decided it wasn't the direction he wanted to go, so he declined and waited for the 3rd board where he was awarded the 3yr AD scholarship to all three of his college choices. Reasons he decided to wait: You are not guaranteed your choice of which program you attend. There were definitely some that looked more desirable to him. His academic stats were higher than the average stats for students that are part of this program. This is not meant to sound arrogant, it's just what it was. He wasn't sure he wanted the commitment of a "full time Military institution" for college, he was leaning more toward the balance of college and ROTC. He works very hard in his ROTC program now and is very involved, but it's not the same 24/7 level that these Military Prep schools involve. You still have to transfer somewhere and continue on with college at another institution to get your 4 year degree. Finally if she declines she'll still been in the running for a scholarship for the next 2 boards. National Guard in her state of choice could be another option if she gets all the way through the boards and still has not been offered a scholarship. There are some students that this is an excellent option for though, and for someone that wants to commission early and get going it's a great choice. Others I'm sure can weigh in on that. It just wasn't the best fit for my son, and he was pleased he decided to wait and see what happened on the other boards.

 

[Momtomany]

I'll tell you what my son decided and why he went that direction. He applied on the second board as a Class of 22 member. He was offered the ECP. He was encouraged by that, and considered it, but in the end after looking at the program decided it wasn't the direction he wanted to go, so he declined and waited for the 3rd board where he was awarded the 3yr AD scholarship to all three of his college choices. Reasons he decided to wait: You are not guaranteed your choice of which program you attend. There were definitely some that looked more desirable to him. His academic stats were higher than the average stats for students that are part of this program. This is not meant to sound arrogant, it's just what it was. He wasn't sure he wanted the commitment of a "full time Military institution" for college, he was leaning more toward the balance of college and ROTC. He works very hard in his ROTC program now and is very involved, but it's not the same 24/7 level that these Military Prep schools involve. You still have to transfer somewhere and continue on with college at another institution to get your 4 year degree. Finally if she declines she'll still been in the running for a scholarship for the next 2 boards. National Guard in her state of choice could be another option if she gets all the way through the boards and still has not been offered a scholarship. There are some students that this is an excellent option for though, and for someone that wants to commission early and get going it's a great choice. Others I'm sure can weigh in on that. It just wasn't the best fit for my son, and he was pleased he decided to wait and see what happened on the other boards

My son did the same as yours. He went through all of this last year (class of 2023). Submitted app for first board and was offered the ECP / Ike Skelton after first board. Really wanted to make an informed decision, and even went to visit one of the schools local to us. In the end, decided to decline. He was eventually awarded a 3yr AD scholarship at his top choice school on the 3rd board. Whew! Long wait, but well worth it in the end. He is VERY happy with his choice and where is he this year. I did think it was interesting, after he declined the ECP, he wrote a thank you email to the junior JMC he visited. They told him to let them know if he changed his mind. This made us think that if you decline and don’t end up with a national scholarship, that there may be a way to get the offer back. Just throwing it out there. Good luck!!

 

[MohawkArmyROTC]

Those offered the 2YR JMC ROTC scholarships are not projected to be in the top 2000 that are offered 3 and 4yr scholarships. It is possible that he is on the cusp for a 3 YR, and if so, he could be offered a 3YR after the 3rd board.