USNA and Marines; worth the risk?

bosoxnation33

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I want to be an officer in the Marine Corps more than anything. I know the idea of service is put higher than individual branches, but I know I'd be more than disappointed if all the Marines spots were filled and I had to be commissioned as a Navy officer. I'm considering just going NROTC to ensure I'll be a Marine, but I want to know what you all think of this. Just what exactly are the odds of me spending four years at the academy with full intention of becoming a Marine and being commissioned with the Navy?
 
Bosoxnation,
Dig around the site a little and you will learn an important lesson, don't put all of your eggs in one basket.

What happens if you don't get the NROTC Scholarship?

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Do you need a NROTC scholarship to be commissioned thru ROTC?


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Odds are pretty good, but I recall that there is a cap at around 25% of mids that can go Marine. (For some strange reason, some there actually want to be naval officers....) The Marine officers assigned for duty at USNA are hand-picked officers as they view this as a key recruiting tool to attract the best. They very much keep track of those with the interest of becoming a Marine officer.

Having said that, and others on the forum may want to respond, there are no guarantees.

NROTC (Marine Option) is a viable approach, and is probably more 'guaranteed' than USNA.

Another program, which is uniquely a Marine program, is the Platoon Leaders Class (PLC). This a way for non-ROTC college students to go through Marine OCS during the summers of their junior and senior years in college, (6 weeks for two summars, or 10 weeks for the last summer in college.) Once you complete OCS, and you graduate from college, you will be slotted for The Basic School (TBS). OCS is tough, however. When my oldest son went through it, 1/3 of his class dropped out. It isn't exactly a summer job...
 
You still have to compete for advanced standing in NROTC. OCS is an evaluation from day one.

No matter how you cut it, you will compete for your commission; it will never be guaranteed.
 
In recent years there has 270 Marine officers selected from each class. Even with budget cuts this number has stayed pretty consistent. And if I remember correctly, only forty or so mids in 2014 put Marine Corps as their first choice and didn't get it. So the chances of you getting Marine Corps out of USNA is pretty high.

Just what exactly are the odds of me spending four years at the academy with full intention of becoming a Marine and being commissioned with the Navy?

In 2013, the academic anchorman (i.e. worst grades in the class) was selected as a marine officer. I know of a guy with two honor offenses who got Marine Corps. If you want it bad enough and devote time to making it happen, then you'll probably get it. I would say your chances in NROTC are significantly lower (esp. if you're just a college programmer).
 
Do you need a NROTC scholarship to be commissioned thru ROTC?

A scholarship OR advanced standing as a college programmer. This spring there are only 30 scholarships available for college programmers and 15 advanced standing slots.
 
I want to be an officer in the Marine Corps more than anything. I know the idea of service is put higher than individual branches, but I know I'd be more than disappointed if all the Marines spots were filled and I had to be commissioned as a Navy officer. I'm considering just going NROTC to ensure I'll be a Marine, but I want to know what you all think of this. Just what exactly are the odds of me spending four years at the academy with full intention of becoming a Marine and being commissioned with the Navy?

I think it's pretty much a question of having what it takes to be a Marine officer. And that's true of either route. Even with an NROTC scholarship in hand, if you don't have what it takes to be a Marine Officer you will not commission. As a college programmer the numbers will work against you more than they would at USNA. Of course if you're an outstanding candidate through either route then the numbers probably won't matter.

Hurricane12 might be able to give you more insight on the USNA route. And keep in mind that there are no guarantees in life for anything other than death and taxes. How hard are you willing to work for what you want? That's the real question here as opposed to 'can I get a guarantee'?
 
I was told 85% of the people get their first choice


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Concur with Hurricane12... its worth the risk. If you do decently academically, have a good PFT, participate and don't suck at Leatherneck, join the Semper Fi club and show good leadership you should get USMC out of USNA without a problem. Don't be surprised if you they drop the number of USMC slots down the road for USNA. Prior to OIF/OEF they were down closer to 17/18%. You should still get a slot if you do the above things. ROTC is a good way to go too. Just because you are on scholarship doesn't guarantee a commission. You still have to pass OCS and there are people who fail or get injured there too. Each route requires hard work and dedication.
 
On a related note, are plebs able to join the Semper Fi Society and are they able to participate in the Field Training Exercises?
 
And never forget.... You dont Join The Marines, You Become One.

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