Navy vs. Marine Option

OysterMom

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DD is completing her NROTC application and is torn up-front between the Navy and Marine options. She has heard that it is much more difficult to get a scholarship via the Marine option, but a commission in the Marines is her first choice for service.

If there is a thread already addressing this question, please point me to it?

Otherwise, can anyone shed light on the "more difficult" rumor?

Thanks!
 
DD is completing her NROTC application and is torn up-front between the Navy and Marine options. She has heard that it is much more difficult to get a scholarship via the Marine option, but a commission in the Marines is her first choice for service.

If there is a thread already addressing this question, please point me to it?

Otherwise, can anyone shed light on the "more difficult" rumor?

Thanks!

I couldn't tell you what the numbers are but there are far fewer Marine Option scholarships awarded than Navy Option. This is due to the relative sizes of the forces. There just aren't that many Marines compared to Navy personnel. To give you some idea, the Navy Scholarship Boards meet at least every month Sept - April. Marine Scholarship Boards meet twice, once in Nov and once in March (I think its March).

In other respects its easier to get a Marine scholarship. Marine's don't care what your major is. Navy is going to award 85% of its scholarships to Tier I and Tier II majors. Also, Navy requires 2 semesters each of calculus and calculus based physics while in college. Marines do not have this requirement.
Navy will have more focus on academic achievement in the selection process (not that they ignore leadership or athletics).

Marines will put more stress on physical fitness than Navy does. You don't have as far to run on a ship and you don't carry a full pack while doing it. Marines will administer a PFT that will actually be done by an AD Marine (Army let's HS gym teachers do it). Navy requires no physical fitness test. Marines will have more focus on athletics and leadership in the selection process but they far from ignore academics.

So I wouldn't necessarily say one is easier than the other, but that they are different and one has more scholarships to award because they need more officers. It's also my suspicion that far fewer apply for Marine scholarships but I have no evidence.

She should really base her decision on which branch she wants to serve in for 4 - 5 years on active duty... and not on the difficulty of getting the scholarship. If she's athletic then by all means consider Marines. If she's not too athletic she might want to lean Navy. But how she wants to live and what she wants to do while on Active Duty should be the real driver here.

Good luck to your DD. She really needs to get rolling on that application and get it in as soon as possible. Absolute deadline is Jan 31, but scholarship boards have been meeting since Sept for Navy and she has already missed the first Marine board.

Oh yeah, if she doesn't get the scholarship she should consider entering NROTC as a college programmer. College programmers are full NROTC participants (except for summer cruises) and have the same training and leadership opportunities that scholarship MIDN have. She could then apply for a side-load (in school) scholarship each semester starting spring semester of freshman year. This is the route my DS took. We're still waiting to hear on this fall's scholarship application.
 
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I couldn't tell you what the numbers are but there are far fewer Marine Option scholarships awarded than Navy Option. This is due to the relative sizes of the forces. There just aren't that many Marines compared to Navy personnel. To give you some idea, the Navy Scholarship Boards meet at least every month Sept - April. Marine Scholarship Boards meet twice, once in Nov and once in March (I think its March).

In other respects its easier to get a Marine scholarship. Marine's don't care what your major is. Navy is going to award 85% of its scholarships to Tier I and Tier II majors. Also, Navy requires 2 semesters each of calculus and calculus based physics while in college. Marines do not have this requirement.
Navy will have more focus on academic achievement in the selection process (not that they ignore leadership or athletics).

Marines will put more stress on physical fitness than Navy does. You don't have as far to run on a ship and you don't carry a full pack while doing it. Marines will administer a PFT that will actually be done by an AD Marine (Army let's HS gym teachers do it). Navy requires no physical fitness test. Marines will have more focus on athletics and leadership in the selection process but they far from ignore academics.

So I wouldn't necessarily say one is easier than the other, but that they are different and one has more scholarships to award because they need more officers. It's also my suspicion that far fewer apply for Marine scholarships but I have no evidence.

She should really base her decision on which branch she wants to serve in for 4 - 5 years on active duty... and not on the difficulty of getting the scholarship. If she's athletic then by all means consider Marines. If she's not too athletic she might want to lean Navy. But how she wants to live and what she wants to do while on Active Duty should be the real driver here.

Good luck to your DD. She really needs to get rolling on that application and get it in as soon as possible. Absolute deadline is Jan 31, but scholarship boards have been meeting since Sept for Navy and she has already missed the first Marine board.

Oh yeah, if she doesn't get the scholarship she should consider entering NROTC as a college programmer. College programmers are full NROTC participants (except for summer cruises) and have the same training and leadership opportunities that scholarship MIDN have. She could then apply for a side-load (in school) scholarship each semester starting spring semester of freshman year. This is the route my DS took. We're still waiting to hear on this fall's scholarship application.

Thanks so much for the multi-dimensional response! I am passing it along to my DD, verbatim.
 
A couple semi-related things to add...

1. Why not AROTC? They have lots of scholarships to award. I couldn't convince my son to apply. There is something about those 'Devil Dogs' that attracted him. He wanted to be a Marine for years and nothing else would do, but its something for DD to think about. She may toss it out but it might be worth applying to as well. This is not meant to detract from what I said earlier about determining which service based on what she wants to do on AD. Just something else to think about and consider.

2. Of course since my DS is a Marine Option who doesn't call home very often, his sick and demented Dad sometimes watches Marine videos on YouTube to feel like I'm in touch. Here's a couple your DD might find interesting about NROTC Marine Option and OCS.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TC2KWFliJ7A&feature=g-crec-f
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95l_akvpsso&feature=g-crec-f

Take care. She might get all fired up and be more determined to become a "Teufelshunde". BTW, the Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps makes a couple calm and quiet cameos in the second video... nevertheless... talk about being intimidating!

3. As your DD probably already knows, in addition to the NROTC scholarship and NROTC College Program, other paths to commission as Marine Officer include Platoon Leaders Course and OCS. Just something else to keep in the back of her head if she decides she wants to be a Marine and the other paths appear closed.
 
Wanted to second Kinnem's comment: "She really needs to get rolling on that application and get it in as soon as possible. Absolute deadline is Jan 31, but scholarship boards have been meeting since Sept for Navy and she has already missed the first Marine board."

Besides the paperwork part of the application, the Marine Option applicants need to have an interview and take a PFT.

With a looming deadline and the holidays, it is important to get things going quickly.

In my son's case, a local recruiter helped review the packet and provide instructions while at the same time giving the local OSO (Officer Selection Officer) the heads up that my son's packet was forthcoming. We were not up against the same time crunch but I think that pre-notifying someone in the local recruiting office might help.

Perhaps others can weigh in on their experiences in this aspect of applying?

Best of luck to your DD.
 
Of course since my DS is a Marine Option who doesn't call home very often, his sick and demented Dad sometimes watches Marine videos on YouTube to feel like I'm in touch.
Oh, I don't know... sounds like normal parental involvement to me!:thumb: Either that or I'm sick and demented too.
 
Thanks both to kinnem and USMCGrunt for the thorough and thoughtful replies.

DD has been in active touch with her local Marine recruiter (who was the reason that she decided to apply -- he is encouraging her actively), and she is aware of the application time constraints and knows that there is only one Marine board left.

I have a a related question, with some context:

DD's first choice is USNA, and her application was completed a while ago (including all nomination source applications), she is DoDMERB qualified for USNA, passed the CFA, had her BGO interview, and has had interviews with 2 of 3 possible MOC nomination sources (the 3rd interview is this week).

The question is: Do ANY of the USNA application components get shared with NROTC ...?

I understand that there are overlapping/common elements, but does DD have to generate them all from scratch and/or the sources (like the recommendations and transcripts, etc.) or is there some sort of information sharing between USNA and NROTC?

Thanks!
 
To the best of my knowledge there is no sharing or crossover
 
To the best of my knowledge there is no sharing or crossover

Thanks. My other sources indicate that information from the NROTC application automatically goes to USNA, but I guess the information only flows one way.

Onward we go ...
 
Oh, I don't know... sounds like normal parental involvement to me!:thumb: Either that or I'm sick and demented too.

Thanks dunninla! Glad to hear it's not only me. I feel so much better that in the future I'll just refer to myself as demented! :biggrin:
 
To the best of my knowledge there is no sharing or crossover

That's my understanding as well.

OysterMom, didn't realize she had applied to USNA. NROTC is a great plan B. I'm glad to hear the recruiter is encouraging her application and helping her get a commissioning backup plan in place.
 
Thanks both to kinnem and USMCGrunt for the thorough and thoughtful replies.

DD has been in active touch with her local Marine recruiter (who was the reason that she decided to apply -- he is encouraging her actively), and she is aware of the application time constraints and knows that there is only one Marine board left.

I have a a related question, with some context:

DD's first choice is USNA, and her application was completed a while ago (including all nomination source applications), she is DoDMERB qualified for USNA, passed the CFA, had her BGO interview, and has had interviews with 2 of 3 possible MOC nomination sources (the 3rd interview is this week).

The question is: Do ANY of the USNA application components get shared with NROTC ...?

I understand that there are overlapping/common elements, but does DD have to generate them all from scratch and/or the sources (like the recommendations and transcripts, etc.) or is there some sort of information sharing between USNA and NROTC?

Thanks!

When I was applying for both two years ago, I had to supply everything to each source. I don't remember anything ever being shared. I think the most relation between the two was when I was asked if I was applying to the other option during interviews.
 
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