ROTC Early Decision Questions

awindmiller14

5-Year Member
Joined
Nov 4, 2013
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Hi. I just got accepted early decision (binding) to my top school. I was wondering if I should update my ROTC applications. I know this sounds like an obvious question but for Army ROTC I know I have already been reviewed and placed on the OML list. Could cutting my list down to just one school hurt my overall chances at getting a scholarship? If I kept the list as-is would it be more likely that I could get a scholarship to any college and attempt to transfer it? This does apply to all three branches. Thanks!
 
I think you have to list 3 and at least one has to be be in-state public. Either way, MAKE YOUR ED SCHOOL YOUR NUMBER ONE CHOICE! I don't know how it couldn't be your number one if you applied early decision there. Maybe cut your list down to the minimum of three, as well. And pray!
 
I think you have to list 3 and at least one has to be be in-state public. Either way, MAKE YOUR ED SCHOOL YOUR NUMBER ONE CHOICE! I don't know how it couldn't be your number one if you applied early decision there. Maybe cut your list down to the minimum of three, as well. And pray!

Thanks! It is top on my list but I will certainly cut down to 3. And congrats on ROTC! Hear back from VMI?
 
Thanks! It is top on my list but I will certainly cut down to 3. And congrats on ROTC! Hear back from VMI?

Do Not cut your list down to only 3 schools.

This will lessen your chance of getting a scholarship, Cadet Command does not know anything about your ED. Keep all the schools on your list, it give Cadet Command more to choose from. If you receive a scholarship from a school other then the one you received your ED then you can apply for a transfer. This will at least give you a chance, if you only list 3 schools it is more likely you won't receive a scholarship.
 
Do Not cut your list down to only 3 schools.

This will lessen your chance of getting a scholarship, Cadet Command does not know anything about your ED. Keep all the schools on your list, it give Cadet Command more to choose from. If you receive a scholarship from a school other then the one you received your ED then you can apply for a transfer. This will at least give you a chance, if you only list 3 schools it is more likely you won't receive a scholarship.

Is it possible I could inform CC of my college situation?
 
Is it possible I could inform CC of my college situation?

To what purpose? Are they supposed to change their entire process for you? You've listed the school as your number 1 choice. If you receive a scholarship, and if they can do so, they'll award it there. If not, then you'll have to try to transfer it which may or may not work out. This is why I always say that when applying for a ROTC scholarship one should never apply ED. At least not if you'd rather have the scholarship than the ED school. Sometimes you get lucky and get both. Sometimes you don't.
 
Is this an instate tuition, out of state, or private college? I'm asking because that alone determines a lot of your chances. If its instate, you can get away with listing only your ED school. I only had one choice on my application and had no problem with receiving a scholarship. Granted, that choice was an instate school.
 
To what purpose? Are they supposed to change their entire process for you? You've listed the school as your number 1 choice. If you receive a scholarship, and if they can do so, they'll award it there. If not, then you'll have to try to transfer it which may or may not work out. This is why I always say that when applying for a ROTC scholarship one should never apply ED. At least not if you'd rather have the scholarship than the ED school. Sometimes you get lucky and get both. Sometimes you don't.

Congratulations on your acceptance; one less worry. kinnem makes an excellent point about unintended consequence of the early decision process. In a few months you may find that you have been awarded an ROTC scholarship to a school to which you haven't applied, having bound yourself to your #1 choice. I'm happy to say that I'm aware of one instance in which the request to transfer the scholarship to an ED school in another brigade was granted. This was nearly four years ago, however, and involved some luck (others who had been awarded scholarships to that school were admitted to service academies).

As a back-up, you may want to apply for financial aid. This would help if you can't transfer the ROTC scholarship or don't receive one.
 
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Is this an instate tuition, out of state, or private college? I'm asking because that alone determines a lot of your chances. If its instate, you can get away with listing only your ED school. I only had one choice on my application and had no problem with receiving a scholarship. Granted, that choice was an instate school.

"No problem" is a relative term in this competitive climate.
 
I could be interpreting this wrong, but when I read the fine print on my AROTC scholarship letter, it said that in order to transfer a scholarship you need to:

1) Be DENIED admission by a college you were awarded the scholarship to
2) Be accepted by the college you want to transfer it to
3) Show proof of both of these things to CC

And even then it's not a guarantee. So for example, I applied ED to Harvard. I get accepted for admission and get the scholarship there. Now I'm stuck, because I would have to show proof of being denied to try to transfer the scholarship.
 
I could be interpreting this wrong, but when I read the fine print on my AROTC scholarship letter, it said that in order to transfer a scholarship you need to:

1) Be DENIED admission by a college you were awarded the scholarship to
2) Be accepted by the college you want to transfer it to
3) Show proof of both of these things to CC

And even then it's not a guarantee. So for example, I applied ED to Harvard. I get accepted for admission and get the scholarship there. Now I'm stuck, because I would have to show proof of being denied to try to transfer the scholarship.

Thanks so much for posting this, as it is news to us! Does anybody know if this is a new policy or has it always been this way?
 
I could be interpreting this wrong, but when I read the fine print on my AROTC scholarship letter, it said that in order to transfer a scholarship you need to:

1) Be DENIED admission by a college you were awarded the scholarship to
2) Be accepted by the college you want to transfer it to
3) Show proof of both of these things to CC

And even then it's not a guarantee. So for example, I applied ED to Harvard. I get accepted for admission and get the scholarship there. Now I'm stuck, because I would have to show proof of being denied to try to transfer the scholarship.
This is what I'm largely worried about. I have no idea if I could explain to CC that even though I was never denied from my second choice school, I can't attend or accept their scholarship there. In terms of the process, even if I'm already on the OML list, it seems as if they wouldn't go through every candidate they review and say 'if we were to accept him this is where he would get scholarships'. My guess is that they would assign schools once they decide that the candidate will indeed receive a scholarship. Following that logic, wouldn't it make sense to cut your list down to three schools before the next board in order to increase the chance of scholarship to my #1? Thank you all so much for your help.
 
I would say there's not much you can do right this moment. Just make your ED school your number one choice, and wait and see what happens with the scholarship. I'd also email the PMS at your ED school, send him your résumé, and say that you applied ED. That will impress them and may help you out with getting a scholarship there.
 
This would be fairly new

Thanks so much for posting this, as it is news to us! Does anybody know if this is a new policy or has it always been this way?

DS accepted to two schools in 2011, in state public and lower cost out of state private that were not in the same brigade. 4 year Army ROTC scholarship awarded to the in state public. DS asked for transfer and to be awarded 3 year scholarship at private school, which was approved within a week.
 
This is what I'm largely worried about. I have no idea if I could explain to CC that even though I was never denied from my second choice school, I can't attend or accept their scholarship there. In terms of the process, even if I'm already on the OML list, it seems as if they wouldn't go through every candidate they review and say 'if we were to accept him this is where he would get scholarships'. My guess is that they would assign schools once they decide that the candidate will indeed receive a scholarship. Following that logic, wouldn't it make sense to cut your list down to three schools before the next board in order to increase the chance of scholarship to my #1? Thank you all so much for your help.

Why would you say that you "can't attend" your second choice school? Do you understand that the ED agreement is entirely voluntary and that, even if you abide by it, financial reasons are the one guaranteed exception? Getting a full tuition scholarship at another school is a valid reason to choose that school rather than the ED school, provided you are actually accepted to the second choice school. The trickier issue is whether you have to rescind your applications to the other schools based on getting an ED acceptance.
 
I could be interpreting this wrong, but when I read the fine print on my AROTC scholarship letter, it said that in order to transfer a scholarship you need to:

1) Be DENIED admission by a college you were awarded the scholarship to
2) Be accepted by the college you want to transfer it to
3) Show proof of both of these things to CC

And even then it's not a guarantee. So for example, I applied ED to Harvard. I get accepted for admission and get the scholarship there. Now I'm stuck, because I would have to show proof of being denied to try to transfer the scholarship.

Unless something has really changed this year (and that's entirely possible), it's #1 OR #2. My son got his scholarship and acceptance to his first choice but he still had and ROTC battalion, at another school to which he was accepted, asking if he wanted to transfer to their school all the way to spring.
 
Why would you say that you "can't attend" your second choice school? Do you understand that the ED agreement is entirely voluntary and that, even if you abide by it, financial reasons are the one guaranteed exception? Getting a full tuition scholarship at another school is a valid reason to choose that school rather than the ED school, provided you are actually accepted to the second choice school. The trickier issue is whether you have to rescind your applications to the other schools based on getting an ED acceptance.

Understood. The way my application process went was ED to my #1 and EA to my safeties (the only other schools I was planning on applying to that had EA). I got my first EA acceptance letter back in October and they offered me a great package. I have withdrawn my application to the two EA schools that haven't gotten back to me. So, as it stands, I am admitted to my top school and one of my safeties, and I don't know how long I have before I have to rescind my application. It is worth noting that I am lucky enough to be able to pay for either college without ROTC, and that the school I got into is my absolute dream school. My plan is to do everything in my power to get a scholarship to my #1, and failing that to join as a college programmer.
 
Understood. The way my application process went was ED to my #1 and EA to my safeties (the only other schools I was planning on applying to that had EA). I got my first EA acceptance letter back in October and they offered me a great package. I have withdrawn my application to the two EA schools that haven't gotten back to me. So, as it stands, I am admitted to my top school and one of my safeties, and I don't know how long I have before I have to rescind my application. It is worth noting that I am lucky enough to be able to pay for either college without ROTC, and that the school I got into is my absolute dream school. My plan is to do everything in my power to get a scholarship to my #1, and failing that to join as a college programmer.

SOunds like the right plan at this point and was even a damn good plan prior to this point. How you feel about the school you attend has far more to do with your success than anything else. Just be sure you, Mom and Dad get the FAFSA done in January.
 
+1 armydaughter.

It is just my assumption that the transfers occur in April because of 2 reasons.
1. They have to get their numbers set to see where the openings are available.
2. Merit/FA packages tend to be offered in the early spring. I.E. FAFSA for freshmen can't be filed until Jan. 1., which is why school merit/FA come out later on for many schools.
~~~ You are fortunate that you do not need the money to attend your dream school, but there are many that do need the merit/FA to afford their dream school.

It could be that they offer only a 3 yr scholarship, and with the costs of college rising every yr by @10%, they may be able to afford the 20K this yr for tuition, but next yr. when they arrive it maybe 22K, and that tiny amount may be the make or break when it comes to matriculation. Or worse, their financial situation may change within a yr. I.E. loss of a job.

This is probably one time in your life that the govt(DoD) won't be getting into your personal decisions, especially when it comes to your wallet.:wink:

P.S. Kinnem is correct make sure they fill out the FAFSA, even if they can afford to send you, it is still best to fill it out just to see if you are eligible for any grants. We did it for our kids because it was only 15 mins out of our life. Of course it was shocking to see what our EFC was, not in a good way.
 
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Just be sure to read those 3 yellow papers that come with your scholarship letter. I'm not sure if the Army has changed it's policy, but it appears that you can only transfer the scholarship if you're denied admission to the school you accepted it to.
 
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