Is getting a scholarship possible?

I don't have the best credentials, but I would really like to be an Army officer. Would someone please look over my info and tell me what you think, give me suggestions, etc.? Thanks.

GPA: 3.2 (Yeah, I know, It's low)
SAT: 1850 (Better than GPA )
AP/Honors: 3 AP, 5 Honors *Plus I have taken 3 actually college classes at my local state university over the summer. Got an A-, a B+, and a B.
Sports: Snowboarding, Martial Arts
Leadership: I was crew head for my schools lights crew (for theater), I was camp counselor at a camp for adopted children.
Other Extracurricular: Played Cello for 8 years, Did an educational enrichment program at MIT for a weekend in the spring, and one in the fall (every year since 7th grade).



Also take note: GPA is low, but steady improvement over the years is seen. While I didn't do a ton of sports in high school I did many in middle school (Baseball 5 years, Basketball 1 year, XC 1 year, Soccer 2 years).

My ultimate goal in life is to serve my country as an army officer. Not to become rich, not to become famous. I know some people will do their required time and leave. I don't think that will be me. I want to serve as long as they let me.

Any suggestions?

nysegop said:

My ultimate goal in life is to serve my country as an army officer. Not to become rich, not to become famous. I know some people will do their required time and leave. I don't think that will be me. I want to serve as long as they let me.

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^That is definitively a winning attitude. I would say that you have a good shot at a scholarship for sure. No high school sports will hurt you though because the Army really likes atheletes. If you want to serve and with a good attitude, you can join the Army ROTC program as a non-scholarship cadet and commission as a 2nd LT like your peers on scholarship. You can also compete for in college scholarships. Good Luck!

nysegop said:

I don't have the best credentials, but I would really like to be an Army officer. Would someone please look over my info and tell me what you think, give me suggestions, etc.? Thanks.

GPA: 3.2 (Yeah, I know, It's low)
SAT: 1850 (Better than GPA )
AP/Honors: 3 AP, 5 Honors *Plus I have taken 3 actually college classes at my local state university over the summer. Got an A-, a B+, and a B.
Sports: Snowboarding, Martial Arts
Leadership: I was crew head for my schools lights crew (for theater), I was camp counselor at a camp for adopted children.
Other Extracurricular: Played Cello for 8 years, Did an educational enrichment program at MIT for a weekend in the spring, and one in the fall (every year since 7th grade).



Also take note: GPA is low, but steady improvement over the years is seen. While I didn't do a ton of sports in high school I did many in middle school (Baseball 5 years, Basketball 1 year, XC 1 year, Soccer 2 years).

My ultimate goal in life is to serve my country as an army officer. Not to become rich, not to become famous. I know some people will do their required time and leave. I don't think that will be me. I want to serve as long as they let me.

Any suggestions?

Click to expand...

First off, What grade are you in.

What was your breakdown for the SAT scores.

You said you haven't done many sports in high school, have you done any?

Your GPA is important but so is your class ranking, if you are in a very competitive school and your GPA reflects that, your class ranking will be more important.

Martial Arts is good, how long have you been doing it and are still doing it.

Try and get some more leadership positions, camp counselor again, more in the theater. See if you can expand on the leadership to off set the athletics.

I assume you are talking about applying for a scholarship, if that's the case nobody here can tell you what your chances are. A lot will depend on your school choices. Make sure you include at least one in state public university. Keep your grades trending upward for this semester. Try and see what leadership positions you can get for your senior year, maybe see about doing Cross Country and Track. You will need to put your best foot forward with the application, don't leave anything off that would show your leadership and athletic abilities. There were some who received scholarships with stats like yours and there were many with higher stats that did not. There are a lot of factors that go into being awarded a scholarship, to be honest it is still a mystery to most how they make their selections. Your stats are average but still worth the effort of submitting an application, just make sure you research a plan B and even a plan C. If you have the desire and dedication you will find a way to reach your goal, there are may paths you can take, do a lot of research, this is a good place to start.

Now, if your a senior and your just asking if you can join ROTC at college then yes, all you do is sign up for the classes when you register, there are no requirements to just join ROTC, the issue then will become how well you do in school and ROTC which will determine if you stay in the program.

There are other ways to do AROTC in school, you can do the SMP program. Just search this forum, there is a lot of information regarding the SMP program.

Set up a meeting with the ROO at a ROTC Battalion at a local college, talk to them about the program and all the options, they will give you a lot of advise and help you through the process, it's the best place to start.

Yeah, the GPA is pretty low, but if you were able to take classes at your local college I would assume that you're intelligence far exceeds your GPA. Sometimes stuff happens, that's why they look at SAT scores (though even that's not even an entirely accurate determination of someone's aptitude) and your score looks good. A couple of points below mine, but if it's your first SAT score then that is very impressive. If you are applying for next year then you should retake it as many times as possible.

AP/Honors: 3 AP, 5 Honors *Plus I have taken 3 actually college classes at my local state university over the summer. Got an A-, a B+, and a B.

From that I take it that you are in fact about to be a rising senior because those are generally the credentials of an on track junior. Unfortunately, if you are really a senior and are competing for a scholarship this year then things aren't looking too good. Most of the scholarships just went out (I am AFROTC but the competition seems to be the same) and I was one of the lucky few to get one at all. I only had 2 sports(1 varsity w/letter), 3 extracurriculars, VERY small amount of formal leadership, my PFA was about a 91 and even my 1300 SAT M+R seemed modest compared to most ppl's. BUT I had a really high GPA, was on track to earn 31 college credits by the end of this year, was in the top 2% of my class(in a low performance area, school is bad overall and apparently doesn't offer nearly as much as northern high schools), and had an awesome interview in which I explained my leadership in school, sports, and orchestra (1st chair cello, 7yrs, but I only spoke about the last 4). Short comings in certain areas can be supplemented by going above and beyond in the others. You're GPA would look better if your school was ranked nationally and you had a ton of sports and extracurriculars. The middle school stuff is great, but (at least on the AFROTC application) they only ask for high school, or else I could have mentioned that I played basketball, did gymnastics, ballet, was in Beta club, went to Orchestra camp for years, and was one of 12 people in my school to be selected to form a leadership committee.

Hopefully it's not too late for you to add to your resume and you can join everything next year. Jcleppe is right though, nobody REALLY knows. I can only offer up my limited experiences. Don't be discouraged, use it as motivation to be a little more involved in your school. I sure know that if I had known last year that some competators here have 20 ECs and 250 hrs of community service then I would have joined alot of clubs that seemed lame to pack my resume. Ah well, everything happens for a reason right? Good luck man...or...woman...just be sure to pick in state schools cause the army seems REALLY crazy about that lol.......but seriously

There are three primary Scholarship selection areas of evaluation (SAL):

- Scholar

- Athlete

- Leader

On the Scholar, you are probably at about the 20% or so of scholarship winners.

On the Athlete, you are probably in the bottom 20% of scholarship winners.

On the Leader, you are probably a little below the midpoint -- say at he 33rd %. You do have some, but are not Team Captain, Student Officer, or Editor of the yearbook or paper.

Apply and hope for the best. If you aren't awarded a scholarship, then go to the college you can afford, participate in ROTC, do well in the classroom, in ROTC Class and Lab, and on your Army Physical Fitness testings, and thenb contract as a non-scholarship cadet at the beginning of your Junior year. Before you know it you'll be commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant just like the scholarship cadets.

It really depends. Your stats aren't bad at all, but a lot depends on the PMS. My PMS is huge on athleics ( middle school in all honesty doesn't count) and leadership. From what I see in the info you provided is a deficit in both areas. That's not saying you won't get one it's just something you need to make up for in GPA or inthe the interview.

nysegop said:

My ultimate goal in life is to serve my country as an army officer. I want to serve as long as they let me.
Any suggestions?

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dunninla said:

then go to the college you can afford, participate in ROTC, do well in the classroom, in ROTC Class and Lab, and on your Army Physical Fitness testings,

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Look very carefully at The Military College of Georgia now called North Georgia College & State University.
NGCSU is a Senior Military Academy (you graduate and commission then you are guaranteed Active duty) With projected draw-down, this is real important.
It is the only all Army Senior Military College.

All cadets get instate tuition, its quite affordable LINK

They have several additional scholarships, if you can hack Chinese look into the Army ROTC Chinese Language Scholarship.

Looks like you should be admitted Link

If you can shine as a cadet there, work towards a job as a Resident Assistant, that alone can pay half your college expenses.

Thanks for the help guys, I guess I will just be going without the scholarship

nysegop said:

Thanks for the help guys, I guess I will just be going without the scholarship

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Not so fast! Apply anyway because you never know what will happen in the Selection Board. It only takes about 15 hours of your time to complete the application, get the proper forms in, and to a PFT and PMS Interview. That's a very small investment in time to see if you might get a scholarship. You can deal with the other ways to commission as an officer after you already submitted your scholarship applications as options B, C, etc. (i.e. SMC, SMP, ROTC without scholarship, OCS after graduating from college, enlisting and working your way up that way, etc.)

nysegop said:

Thanks for the help guys, I guess I will just be going without the scholarship

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You are doing yourself a disservice if you don't at least apply. The application process is not that difficult.

nysegop said:

Thanks for the help guys, I guess I will just be going without the scholarship

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I agree with the other comments, per another post you made, you are in a great position of not needing the scholarship for financial reasons. You should still apply, the fact that you want to go to your State College is a plus in your favor, Cadet command has moved towards offering more scholarships to an applicants In State School choice.

As I mentioned in response to your other post, there are benefits, other then the money, of being on scholarship which make it worth the effort to apply.

nysegop said:

Thanks for the help guys, I guess I will just be going without the scholarship

Click to expand...

Absolutely apply for the scholarship, your stats are not that different than my son who got one, it's just a bit of a lottery... and don't pick expensive schools, be realistic.

I second everything everyone just said. You're only guaranteed a no if you DON'T apply. You asked for your chances on an anonymous forum so no one here is going to suger code it for you. But don't take anything to mean that it isn't possible, you just have to be realistic. You have to fight for what you want, don't be afraid to try for fear of failure. It's better to go in knowing that the battle will be tough than to be decievied into thinking that you're the best thing since sliced bread (That's how we get so many cocky, yet terrible singers audition for American Idol). There is always going to be someone better than you, don't sweat it. Just do you're best. Try your hardest, be realistic, be honest, and make sure that your interview is AMAZING.

Edit: Ok Dude, what are you? I can't tell if you're graduating this year or next year because it sounds like you've given up the ghost rather quickly. If you graduate 2015 then you can still do alot. But from the looks of it, you just don't want it that bad(the scholarship I mean) so whatever. Good luck in all your endeavors

Absolutely apply. You may be borderline in some areas but they assess the whole person. People with your stats have gotten the scholarship. Comments on weaknesses here are to point out areas where you can work to improve your chances. If you don't get a scholarship you can still enroll in the program. Also, as some have pointed out there are other paths to commisioning which vary by the branch of service. ROTC is an outstanding program and is the best thing that ever happened to my son (who applied but did not get a scholarship - and went after it anyway).

The only guarantee anyone here can give you is that you have 0% chance of getting a scholarship if you DON'T apply.

Apply. I did not get a Navy scholarship, but I am glad I applied. I will never wonder what might have been, plus my brush with the Navy is already fading into history.

You really should just apply. It certainly won't hurt you, and you have decent stats. Always try to improve your application, but you are not that bad off. I know several people who had much worse stats, and they were offered a scholarship. Keep up your good attitude about your desire to serve, win at your interview, and just try to keep making yourself better. Either way you will end up improving yourself. Best of Luck, and don't quit if it is something that you truly want, just work a little harder

You really should just apply. It certainly won't hurt you, and you have decent stats. Always try to improve your application, but you are not that bad off. I know several people who had much worse stats, and they were offered a scholarship. Keep up your good attitude about your desire to serve, win at your interview, and just try to keep making yourself better. Either way you will end up improving yourself. Best of Luck, and don't quit if it is something that you truly want, just work a little harder

I love Mech's comment of "I will never wonder".

That is something every person over 22 will say to you, compliments to Mech for getting that at a young age.

Wondering "what if" is something you never want to have in your mind. I understand that you feel financially it has no impact on you, but why not spend a few hours and apply?

No offense from your 3 threads I am wondering if this is more about the "fit" of AROTC and Army than anything else.

There is nothing wrong with that, because this is the time to investigate everything. Goes back to the "what if" and regret perspective 5, 10, 15 yrs from now.

That applying for a scholarship, removes part of that "what if" equation. If you get it, you can still decline it, if you don't at least you can say you gave it a shot.

nysegop said:

I don't have the best credentials, but I would really like to be an Army officer. Would someone please look over my info and tell me what you think, give me suggestions, etc.? Thanks.

GPA: 3.2 (Yeah, I know, It's low)
SAT: 1850 (Better than GPA )
AP/Honors: 3 AP, 5 Honors *Plus I have taken 3 actually college classes at my local state university over the summer. Got an A-, a B+, and a B.
Sports: Snowboarding, Martial Arts
Leadership: I was crew head for my schools lights crew (for theater), I was camp counselor at a camp for adopted children.
Other Extracurricular: Played Cello for 8 years, Did an educational enrichment program at MIT for a weekend in the spring, and one in the fall (every year since 7th grade).



Also take note: GPA is low, but steady improvement over the years is seen. While I didn't do a ton of sports in high school I did many in middle school (Baseball 5 years, Basketball 1 year, XC 1 year, Soccer 2 years).

My ultimate goal in life is to serve my country as an army officer. Not to become rich, not to become famous. I know some people will do their required time and leave. I don't think that will be me. I want to serve as long as they let me.

Any suggestions?

Click to expand...

Based on the applicants that interviewed with me and got the scholarship or did not, I would say that you are not very competitive for the National Scholarship. If you are a junior you still have time to work on the areas that you are short in.

I believe that your best bet is to join an ROTC program and compete for on campus scholarships, or simply compete for one of the non scholarship contract slots.

In today's climate there are plenty of 3.3 GPA, Captain of their sport team, and 1850 SAT type applicants that are not getting ROTC Scholarships.