Is there really no connection between getting admitted into a college and a ROTC scholarship?

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bringbacknelsoncruz

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Hello.

Please forgive my ignorance, please know I've researched but I still don't feel as if I have a grip on the ROTC process.

My question is - do the ROTC units and the college admissions panels really not communicate to each relative to admitting a student to the college/university?

For instance, a reach school is UNC Chapel Hill. If one were to receive a NROTC scholarship, would UNC know that? Might the NROTC unit contact admissions?

Thanks for your feedback and sharing your knowledge and experiences.
 
It depends on the school. Some work directly with admissions to grow their programs, some have no relationship with admissions at all and it has no relevance to their decision. Best to contact admissions of the school of your choice if/when you receive a scholarship and let them know the scholarship is assigned to their school. My son did this and I personally believed it helped.
 
clarksonarmy said:
Some do and some don't
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I agree with this. My DD's unit talked with admissions when she received her scholarship. We'll never know if it helped her get in, or if she would have gotten in anyways. I would imagine that that recruiting officer at unit will tell you if they do or do not.
 
It varies, but it's quite helpful at a number of schools. At my university/unit, an assigned scholarship absolutely carries weight. Be sure to inform your college admissions counselor if you secure a scholarship to the school, and ask the unit to convey that info to admissions as well.
 
As seen above, people who have a lot more knowledge about the subject matter have said that it varies. But I had my own experience. The school I am set to be attending this fall was a reach school for me. I was quite convinced I would not be accepted and I was planning on going to another school. But I informed the admissions office of my ROTC scholarship when I got it : 2 weeks later I was admitted.

Coincidence? I think not.
 
My guess is informing admissions is in your best interest as uncle Sam pays the full rack rate tuition. The school does not have to worry about negotiations or discounts. At the end of the day schools are trying to get as much revenue per student as possible. Sharing the scholarship will not hurt you.
 
NAVYHOPEFUL2019 said:
Best to contact admissions of the school of your choice if/when you receive a scholarship and let them know the scholarship is assigned to their school. My son did this and I personally believed it helped.
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+1

It was several years ago my DS took a gap year and transferred an AROTC 4 yr scholarship from GA Tech to a ginormous Big 10 out of State School while he was in Taiwan. There was a slight downtick in tuition cost for Cadet Command, but it was not a slam dunk. The whole process was remarkably simple because of the good lines of communication between admissions and the ROTC unit.

Remember the higher the tuition sticker price and the greater the likelihood of need based assistance from the university coffers, the more enticing that xROTC scholarship looks to the school. Why are State U's filled with foreign students? They all pay full freight.

The other aspect is that the holy grail of college admissions is yield. A low acceptance rate looks sexy, but the % of accepted students who actually attend is what really matters. By going to them, scholarship in hand, you would be showing a high degree likely enrollment.

Of course, all of this presupposes that your credentials suggest you would be a successful student.

Absolutely, inform the admission department. One would be stupid not to.

p.s. Sorry sheriff, you posted while I was writing.
 
Unfortunately, for my DS, he didn't hear about his Marine Option NROTC scholarship until April 1, which was after he had been rejected at his first and 2nd choice schools.
 
sheriff3 said:
My guess is informing admissions is in your best interest as uncle Sam pays the full rack rate tuition. The school does not have to worry about negotiations or discounts. At the end of the day schools are trying to get as much revenue per student as possible. Sharing the scholarship will not hurt you.
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Same situation for my daughter, except, she went from wait list to admitted in less than 24 hours, I am positive it wasn't a coincidence.
 
I would also agree with several posters that it depends on the school. I know that some of my classmates got NROTC scholarships to UMichigan and TAMU. All three were waitlisted OOS until their were notified of their respective NROTC scholarships. After that all 3 were accepted within 1 week after the fact.

to GoBigRed..is it possible to transfer your DS scholarship to another school?
 
We didn't change a chance and switched the scholarship to the #2 school. Wait listed to #1. We received notification she received the scholarship less than weeks before she her deadline to accept admissions to her #2 school. During our visits to a few NROTC universities the consensus was to be cautious if this happens.
 
My DS1 never applied to UNCCH, although he was IS and a match, this was not a REACH school for him. He just didn't want to go IS. He also never completed his NYU application because after looking into the school deeper he took it off his list. He received his AFROTC scholarship in Dec. In Feb when the admission letters started rolling into our mailbox he received the congrats admission letter from both schools. I was stunned by this knowing he did not apply to either one and decided to call the admission dept. directly. Partly because I thought somebody was scamming us and would want our SS numbers or something like that and thus, wanted to inform them that was occurring. However, when I did call they said in fact he was admitted. A little deeper digging brought me to the CoC of the AFROTC det. and they told me that they saw his stats when he received the scholarship and felt he would be a match so they put his name in from their side to the admissions dept.

Now let me say that was 7 years ago, so things may have changed at those schools, but I agree with others it depends on the school. DS had Notre Dame on his list and they did not move him off the waitlist, thus, not every college gives wait to ROTC scholarships. The college he did attend, also did not give any weight to receiving a scholarship for admissions nor merit scholarships.

I will also say that some colleges always have a ROTC CoC on their admissions board, but will rotate that CoC. I.E. this year it could be the NROTC CoC and next year it could be AROTC or AFROTC. This means if you are only applying AFROTC and this yr it is AROTC they would not know if you have a scholarship or not unless those CoCs talk to each other.

In the end this is also another reason to visit as many of the detachments as you can for the just in case aspect.
1. It will allow you them the ability to put a name with the face.
2. You can ask them directly if they sit on the admissions board, and if they do, than ask if you look like a match.
3. Call in advance and ask to see if you can meet with some current POCs, especially if they are in your major or intended career field.
~ Ask the folks not to join you. Nothing against the folks, but it becomes more of a dog and pony show if they show up with you, plus, it illustrates to them your own independence. Cadets and mids will respect your folks and will be less likely to talk to you as a peer. If the folks want to go with you to meet the CoC and see the det. that is fine, but ask them to leave after 10-15 mins. Agree to meet somewhere on campus @1 hr later. Again, this will allow you to walk around as if you are already a student on campus.

Good luck.
 
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