My Situation- Guard SMP

Strength and Honor

Strength and Honor

5-Year Member
Joined
Jun 7, 2013
Messages
614
I met with the fine folks at a reputable Big 10 school today and I loved their program! I was visiting campus for a high school student experience day, and just happened to walk into the ROTC Armory and find some cadre!

Basically, they sold me on going Guard and doing SMP while in ROTC. I'd have to train the summer before college, but I really love the idea of it. You have to complete BTC AND AIT before you can receive the 100% paid tuition, right (Indiana)? If so, I'd be looking at starting classes Spring Semester after Infantry or Cav Scout OSUT. Any opinion on this? I'm assuming ROTC has a specific Orientation for cadets that start spring semester?

Just to clarify, I'm not deployable while on SMP? And I have the option of commissioning Active Duty like any other cadet after I'm finished? Any opinions on this path vs the "normal" scholarship route?
 
Some of your questions are answered here:
SMP another option

Regarding AD, I believe that if you have the GRFD scholarship you will not be able to commission into AD - you would have to commission into Guard/Reserve.
 
Thompson said:
Some of your questions are answered here:
SMP another option

Regarding AD, I believe that if you have the GRFD scholarship you will not be able to commission into AD - you would have to commission into Guard/Reserve.
Click to expand...

If you take the GRFD, you can say goodbye to AD. If you want to go AD, don't take money from the reserves/NG. Kids want the fast-easy money without thinking of the long term consequences.
 
Last edited:
There have been several posts within the past 6-12 months about SMP. My DS was an SMP cadet. As long as you don't accept a GFRD scholarship from the NG, you are eligible for active duty just like any other ROTC cadet provided you make the "cut" on the OML. DS was able to get the Illinois Guard grant which paid his tuition. However, it did not cover school fees which average around $1200/semester or room & board. He received E-5 pay for his NG weekend pay. Think long and hard about the commitment. During his junior school, he was VERY busy with academics, ROTC and with his weekend NG duty. The NG will also impact your summers because you will be required to drill for 2 weeks with your unit. DS was excused from his 2 week last summer because of summer school, but he had to make up the time before he graduated in December.
 
Don't think you have to go to Basic and AIT. If you are willing to forgo the GI Bill and kicker you can start school in the fall and remain academically aligned with your peers. if you let them talk you into missing a semester you will be a semester behind academically. In my opinion If I could afford it I would pass on the AIT so that I can graduate on time and become an Officer sooner. You should be eligible for TA no matter what if you are in the Guard or Reserves. Once you start receiving stipend and drill pay you will have most of your school paid for, especially if you are at a state school. And remember once you graduate and commission you will be making the kind of cash that will pay off those student loans pretty quickly.
And don't let anyone tell you that you will be a better officer if you go through what your soldiers have gone through (basic and AIT). That is not necessarily the case.
 
Thanks for posting

Thanks for posting. DS is interested in SMP. I am forwarding the info I get on this site to him while he is at summer school (arabic) at UNG.
 
Curious, does anyone know if going to AIT helps later on when doing BOLC?
 
If I could I'd be doing Infantry OSUT in Benning, but that would leave me with about 3 months break before Spring Semester begins wherever I decide to go to school. So I may stay and do Air Assault or Airborne (don't know how available slots are to NG). I've got no problem being deployed, at the school I visited the cadre said that 100 out of their 150 cadets are NG, so I doubt I'd be the only one going.

I'm more worried about graduating on time. Could I take an extra credit hour or two my first spring semester, and make up the rest of the semester I missed with summer courses?
 
Thompson said:
Curious, does anyone know if going to AIT helps later on when doing BOLC?
Click to expand...

No. I don't know why so many people on here think basic and AIT will somehow help an officer. Will OSUT for infantry help later on BOLC? Familiarity with weapon systems might help but by the time you get to BOLC it's been 4+ year since that training. We had one cadet always highlight his OSUT experiences while as a cadet, it went like, " When I was at AIT we did it like..." Don't be that guy.

If you think it's going to help you, the short answer as I said above is no.
 
Strength and Honor said:
If I could I'd be doing Infantry OSUT in Benning, but that would leave me with about 3 months break before Spring Semester begins wherever I decide to go to school. So I may stay and do Air Assault or Airborne (don't know how available slots are to NG). I've got no problem being deployed, at the school I visited the cadre said that 100 out of their 150 cadets are NG, so I doubt I'd be the only one going.

I'm more worried about graduating on time. Could I take an extra credit hour or two my first spring semester, and make up the rest of the semester I missed with summer courses?
Click to expand...

1. AAS seems to be more common for guard school slots wise

2. You probably won't deploy and as a contracted cadet you most definitely won't deploy.

3. If you go over the credit limit in ROTC (unless you are a nurse) it will be out of your own pocket. Summer is the same way.
 
What if I enlisted in the Guard and won an ROTC schoalrship as well? Can I still go to basic and also accept my scholarship?
 
Strength and Honor said:
What if I enlisted in the Guard and won an ROTC schoalrship as well? Can I still go to basic and also accept my scholarship?
Click to expand...

Why do you want to go to basic so bad? If you have an ROTC scholarship there is no point especially if it puts stress on your academic schedule.

You won't get any respect for going to basic/AIT and I wouldnt consider it prior service at all.
 
SMP

Don't you have to have a certain number of college credits before you can enroll in SMP, essentially be an academic sophomore, or am I thinking of a different program?
 
QA1517 said:
Don't you have to have a certain number of college credits before you can enroll in SMP, essentially be an academic sophomore, or am I thinking of a different program?
Click to expand...

I thought it was sophomore/MSII status.
 
if you receive a 4 year scholarship offer there is no way you can remain in the Guard. You can not be contracted until sophomore year, and you can not SMP if you aren't contracted. If you get a 3 year offer you can have that converted to a GRFD scholarship, at which time you are agreeing that active duty is not an option.

As far as catching up on that lost semester. Do you really want to do that? The most important part of your ranking is going to be your GPA. That ranking will determine whether you get the branch you want, and if you get an active duty slot (if you want one). If you really think BT is that important, and you are good with being in the Guard when you graduate, then all you need is a 2.0 and a diploma to make all your dreams come true. If, on the other hand you want to go active duty and serve in the infantry then your priority should be on getting good grades and participating fully in your ROTC program.
 
S&H,

Trust what Clarkson is saying. If you're concerned about graduating on time and can afford to skip the GI Bill Kicker don't be pressured into missing school to start BCT. DS was able to get extension and didn't attend BCT until summer AFTER freshman year, however, still received NG tuition assistance since he was sworn in prior to the cut off for applying for it(in Ohio that year it was July 1). Going to BCT was no great acheivement - his words, not mine. He did what was required to fulfill the contract since he wanted freshman year benefits.

Also, as you will find after searching this forum for SMP threads - I remind every hopeful to make sure you are getting accurate for your state and school information. What happens in Ohio isn't what happens in Indiana - Reserves is different, but watch out for last minute changes in NG. Ohio changed a year or so ago to if you take Ohio TA(not a GRFD, but tuition assistance) you give up the option of AD unless you repay the money. DS made it by one year and can still pursue AD w/o repayment, but keep current on the information since states can and do change things!

Good luck
 
Strength and Honor said:
Could I take an extra credit hour or two my first spring semester, and make up the rest of the semester I missed with summer courses?
Click to expand...
I wouldn't put all your course work in a summer. I know this is probably hard to grasp, but you need to realize that summer session is practically 4 months of instruction crammed into one. Imagine, trying to learn 4 months worth of Calc into 1 month. Can you handle that? At least at my school, there is a 12 credit cap for summer sessions. I'm only taking 2 three credit courses now, english and public speaking, and both literally consumes all of time time during the day. Now, lets look at your case, you want to take a full load condensed into a summer session. I'm not saying it can't be done - but can you? Especially if you're taking the more technical courses: chem, bio, calc, physics etc.

I'm not saying you shouldn't/can't; rather I want you to be aware of what you will be going into. Especially since, in ROTC, academics is extremely important (40% of your OML), and thus getting your preferred branch means good grades!
 
Thompson said:
I wouldn't put all your course work in a summer. I know this is probably hard to grasp, but you need to realize that summer session is practically 4 months of instruction crammed into one. Imagine, trying to learn 4 months worth of Calc into 1 month. Can you handle that? At least at my school, there is a 12 credit cap for summer sessions. I'm only taking 2 three credit courses now, english and public speaking, and both literally consumes all of time time during the day. Now, lets look at your case, you want to take a full load condensed into a summer session. I'm not saying it can't be done - but can you? Especially if you're taking the more technical courses: chem, bio, calc, physics etc.

I'm not saying you shouldn't/can't; rather I want you to be aware of what you will be going into. Especially since, in ROTC, academics is extremely important (40% of your OML), and thus getting your preferred branch means good grades!
Click to expand...

It's possible. I took Physics 151 and 152 over the course of 2 months during the summer for 8 semester credits (2 additional credits for labs) and while it consumed 9-10 hours a day it is doable. Physics is also one of the more strenuous and time intensive classes with mandatory labs as well so I think a softer class choice wouldnt be too much of a problem.

As you noted it can be done but it depends on dedication level and how much you care about your summer.
 
Sorry to bump.

Do most Army ROTC units have a Freshman Orientation for the spring semester as well as the fall?
 
Strength and Honor said:
Sorry to bump.

Do most Army ROTC units have a Freshman Orientation for the spring semester as well as the fall?
Click to expand...

No, you would most likely just start ROTC that is in full swing and then have to catch up. You will be behind the rest of the MS1's. The Cadre may give you an overview but I would doubt it very much that their would be any formal orientation since the vast majority of cadets would have gone through orientation in the Fall and been with the program for one full semester.

One other thing to remember, you will need to have 8 semesters, if your unable to catch up through summer school or extra credits then you would commission in December.

Another thing, you would have to check with the Guard to see if you would get Tuition assistance for summer classes.

The biggest thing is to check and see if the tuition assistance for the NG in the State you join requires that you remain in the NG, taking AD off the table. Re-read Ohioparent's post about how Ohio changed the rules regarding tuition assistance, something to be very careful about.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top