[QUESTION]ROTC with minimal sports

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armyOfTheUSA

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I (a Junior in HS) just started filling out my AROTC application (I am not set on army, but it appeals to me the most at this point) and I received an email today from one of the colleges I put down on the list. Essentially, it said that unless I max out the SAL portion of the interview, I shouldn't bother applying.

The reason I don't max it out is because, while I will be participating in club sports this fall (which earns 20 of the 40 points for the "Athletics" category), I do not compete in regional sports or have a letter on a Varsity teams.

I fare pretty well on the rest of the application: I have a 1520 SAT, a 4.0 GPA, can max (or come very close to maxing) the PFA, and earn full points on the Scholar and Leader portions (once I include clubs/teams from senior year). I am in all honors courses and I exercise daily. Doing the math, this makes up for the 20 points lost due to the lack of a Varsity letter. I do, however, plan on wrestiling (which is only a club sport).

I was wondering if anyone could give any insight into whether I have a chance at the scholarship and, if not, is there anything I can do to increase my chances of obtaining my scholarship.

I plan to do ROTC regardless of whether I earn a scholarship,

Please tell me what you think.
 
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You should definitely apply for the scholarship, you have no chance only if you don't apply.

Make sure you list any club sport that you do. There is a section for additional remarks, list any athletic activities you do such as skiing, hiking, climbing, water skiing and such to show you are active. Don't let someone discourage you, they are not the ones that will make the final decision.
 
Absolutely apply. My son won a 3 year scholarship. He did not have a "sport" but he did compete on his JROTC drill team. They practiced every day after school for a couple of hours, I believe his interviewer counted this towards a sport due to the amount if practice, that he was on a team ( it was a team competition) and that he competed throughout the state.

You can't win a scholarship that you don't apply for. Good luck.
 
Absolutely apply. Be sure to include any clubs and organizations you participated in and the position you held. It's always good to talk to the RO at the schools you are applying. Colleges offer scholarships if not awarded on the national level. Good luck!
 
OP - Participation in a varsity sport is certainly helpful and team captain of a varsity sport is even better. The reality is that most of your competition will have this on their resume, but that does not mean you don't have a chance, especially if you can demonstrate physical fitness, teamwork and leadership in other ways. With your club sports, maxing PFA and leadership experience it seems you can demonstrate these things. A few years ago my DD, with no HS varsity sports, won a 4 year NROTC scholarship, which she declined to accept her USNA appointment. So you now have several responses from people whose DD/DS earned a scholarship without varsity sports.

As others have said - go for it. Your chances are zero if you don't apply.
 
I think your stats and other qualifications can make up for no varsity sport. My DD did a varsity sport and lettered in it, but chose not to participate senior year due to conflict with other activities. She made sure to demonstrate in other ways that her fitness was maintained and also she scored very well on PFT.
 
Based on what I am seeing with this process, the SAT/ACT and GPA counts for a lot, not just in points, but in the boarding process itself. The boarding process is subjective but in the short amount of time that board members have to look at files, they hone in on those two measures. You are high in both which bodes well for you.

Robert Kirkland, LTC (Ret)
"The Insider's Guide to the Army ROTC Scholarship for High School Students and their Parents" (Amazon)
 
Absolutely apply!
I have seen kids in my daughters JROTC that were not athletes but excelled in other areas, academics, community service, played club teams and were very active in various extracurriculars that demonstrated leadership and/or fitness. These kids were awarded scholarships. Don’t let anyone discourage you before you even get started. Good luck to you next year!
 
You definitely have a shot. I just got a 3-year without any varsity letters. I skiied and did martial arts, but that's about it for athletics. Your academics and leadership are far above mine. Just be prepared to answer questions in your interview about why you consider yourelf an athlete, and don't leave anything out on the activities page. Put in every little thing you did in high school. Every check Mark gives you points.
 
Apply. Work on fitness and hit the CFA out of the park to remove any doubts. What fitness you lack, they will have 4 years to improve it, or I should say you will since one day your life may depend on it.
 
If you are applying for Army ROTC, you will have a choice between taking the APFT (2-2-2) or the PFT (1-1-1), also called the PFA*. The CFA is not required for Army ROTC (and probably works against you, unless you truly kill it).

This link from Clarkson University's Army ROTC Recruiting Operations Officer (ROO) will explain the difference:
https://goldenknightbattalion.com/2011/09/03/pft-or-prt-that-is-the-question/

and this one discusses the downside of using your CFA from your SA application.
https://goldenknightbattalion.com/2012/11/28/why-you-should-do-a-pft/

As Kinnem above says, hit it out of the park.

Start running!

*Army standards for the PFA/PFT (1-1-1)
https://m.goarmy.com/content/dam/go...dfs/hs-scholarship-physical-assessment-17.pdf
 
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Um did anyone else, but me realize that this thread was created 9 months ago in July 2018, and the OP has def. left the building.
Do I think it is good for juniors like the OP to see how others before them felt/questioned when entering the process? Absolutely.
Would I respond to a post that it is close to a yr old, and the OP never posted more than that 1 post, than NO, not in this situation
~ We don't know what results occurred. The OP is graduating hs in 2 months. Did he get an interview? Did he get an AROTC scholarship.

I am a big believer in you have 0% chance if you don't apply.

I am not trying to get hit 100 times with a wet lomein noodle, but I think this thread should go back in the done pile unless the OP or someone else with the same scenario can give guidance for the class of 2024.
 
Pima said:
Um did anyone else, but me realize that this thread was created 9 months ago in July 2018, and the OP has def. left the building.
Do I think it is good for juniors like the OP to see how others before them felt/questioned when entering the process? Absolutely.
Would I respond to a post that it is close to a yr old, and the OP never posted more than that 1 post, than NO, not in this situation
~ We don't know what results occurred. The OP is graduating hs in 2 months. Did he get an interview? Did he get an AROTC scholarship.

I am a big believer in you have 0% chance if you don't apply.

I am not trying to get hit 100 times with a wet lomein noodle, but I think this thread should go back in the done pile unless the OP or someone else with the same scenario can give guidance for the class of 2024.
Click to expand...
Uhhhh.... definitely did not notice.... Only noticed today's posts.... oops!
 
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