AFROTC Colleges. Where to start?

[FutCandMom]

Looking into "Plan B" college list in case USAFA doe not pan out. Suggestions? After SA, does AF pull from a few choice AF ROTC college programs over another?

[USAF52]

I'll assume your son will apply for an AFROTC scholarship in addition to applying to the academy. A big thing to consider is what does your son want to major in? AFROTC scholarships are not given for a particular university but rather are given for the major (and most are for technical degrees). If given a scholarship, then your son can use it at any university that is approved by the AF for the designated major. If you go to the AFROTC website, click on High School Scholarships and then Schools and Majors, you'll be able to put in the anticipated major, a state, and get a list of all schools in that state approved by the AF for that degree. That may be a starting point for your son.

Concerning if the AF takes more from certain ROTC programs, there are larger detachments in certain universities (Purdue, Embry Riddle come to mind) that graduate a larger # of students. But as you are researching, look at the percentages of students that are commissioned vs. wash out/drop out, what % get the slots they wanted (pilot, nav etc.) instead of just numbers. A large detachment has more opportunities for leadership positions in ROTC (enhancing your "resume"), but the competition will be stiff. A smaller detachment many have fewer leadership opportunites but there will be fewer people competing for them also. Either path can lead to a position in the AF for your son. A lot will depend on what type of school he wants, the major, in state vs. out of state etc.

Good luck to your son!

[MAINEiac]

http://afrotc.com/college-life/college-locator/ you've probably already seen this but i just thought i would throw it out there just in case. i understand there are some advantages to the senior military colleges such as norwich and maine maritime, but am unsure of all the details and i don't want to feed you false information. it may be a good thing to look into though.

[FutCandMom]

yes, thanks. we have been on website... was just trying to narrow choices down a bit... DS has his USMA back ups.. but is at a loss as far as the AF ones. Is there such a thing as "2nd tier" like there is with regular colleges... ivy leagues vs non ivys but still up there.... like UVA, GTown? If not the USAFA (which he's hoping for), the next best thing. He'll take advice above and narrow down via career choice, but just wondered if there were some more acclaimed than others to strat him off in the search?

[Tailwind Angel]

Absolutely depends on the major you list in the drop down box on the AFROTC college locator site. Because my son changed the type of engineering he was interested in, about 10 more colleges in our state opened up, which made a huge difference.

Also, the optimum and smartest decision a candidate can make is apply for the AFROTC scholarship by December 1st of their senior year in High School. After that, any application is considered "in-college" application which might not help you freshman year. We made that mistake of missing the deadline (due to a family illness last fall) and deeply regret it. IT WAS A HUGE MISTAKE actually and I could just hit myself over the head with a frying pan.

My son is definitely applying for the "in college" scholarships, plus many other types of scholarships.

I can not stress enough (we are living proof) how important it is during the USAFA application process, to pursue Plan B as fast and furious and determined (and thorough) as you do the USAFA process. It will save you a lot of grief. We had Plan B-C-D-E-F-G and even H and I but the sheer volume of paperwork coming in was overwhelming and we put it on the back burner a tiny bit while working on other senior activities, etc.

Aghghhghghg!! I can hear Pima, Christcorp and Flieger yelling at me know. HOW MANY TIMES HAVE THEY WARNED US OF THIS? A MILLION!

[falconfamily]

Originally Posted by FutCandMom

yes, thanks. we have been on website... was just trying to narrow choices down a bit... DS has his USMA back ups.. but is at a loss as far as the AF ones. Is there such a thing as "2nd tier" like there is with regular colleges... ivy leagues vs non ivys but still up there.... like UVA, GTown? If not the USAFA (which he's hoping for), the next best thing. He'll take advice above and narrow down via career choice, but just wondered if there were some more acclaimed than others to strat him off in the search?

FutCandMom : If this is the first time you are going through the college selection process, you should try and find the right fit rather than worry about the ranking of a school. i.e. Big campus/small campus. Sports. Student/Faculty ratio. Quality of faculty associated with a particular program. Costs. Then see about the availability of ROTC.

My DS was admitted at several colleges that were ranked higher nationally than others he was considering. Yet for the major he was interested in - some of the lower ranked colleges actually had better programs in his area of study. So ranking or reputation, is not the best means to determine a fit.

In my experience, you want your DS/DD to thrive at the school they attend. It might not be a Harvard, MIT, Bates, Pomona, or Skidmore. It depends on what they are interested in studying, and the environment that best suits them. The other consideration is the Corp of Cadets, if you want a strong Corp - then a SMC (Senior Military College) like VMI, Citadel or Norwich, should be a choice.

Good Luck!

[Pima]

The mods should probably move this to the ROTC forum, since the question really pertains to ROTC and not the AFA. You will also get more traffic in responses since you will have more ROTC cadets to give you insight.

AFROTC scholarships are tied to the candidate, not to the school. Thus, you can take it anywhere they approve/accept.

You need to decide the school match for your child, and than visit the det. Sit down with them and discuss your child's goals, talk about their % rates. Ask for cadets to meet with your child. Leave the det., and say in an hour we will meet at X point. This allows your child to get a feel of the cadre.

Again, ask the mods to transfer this over to ROTC since this is a ROTC question.


Again, look in deeper. No offense to ERAU, but they state they give the most UPT slots out after the AFA. This is a fact. Sounds great, but the follow up question is statistically what does that mean regrading chances? They may give out 100 rated slots, but out of how many.

Example: VT actually has a higher % rate of getting UPT than ERAU, but ERAU has more cadets that get it. Don't wrap yourself up on how many, wrap yourself on %.

Also ask them point blank, what is the avg gpa for SFT, UPT. Tech v non-tech.

Again, this thread needs to be moved to ROTC. AFA cadets/parents have no working knowledge of AFROTC dets.

Not trying to be rude, just trying to make sure you get responses for your needs.

OBTW, our DS, AFROTC had 100% picked up for rated. When we met with the det back in 08, we asked the %, at that point it was 95%. The amount, as in numbers didn't matter, it was the %.

Xposted with Falcon.

PM the mods and ask for the thread to be moved.