ROTC Essay 3rd Board

rotc128

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Mar 6, 2019
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39
Hi,

Can anyone tell me if the Army ROTC rereads submitted essays. My son edited his essay for the 3rd Board. Was this too late?

Thanks to anyone who can answer.
 
They do not...you only get boarded once.
 
The essay isn’t worth any points...the essays are read by the PMS before the interview, and they are read by the board before the board members score, so the interview and board score are effected by the essay, but not directly scored. Water under the bridge at this point.
 
The essay isn’t worth any points...the essays are read by the PMS before the interview, and they are read by the board before the board members score, so the interview and board score are effected by the essay, but not directly scored. Water under the bridge at this point.
I have a question about the PMS. When my son went for his interview, we were early by 20 minutes and we were supposed to be interviewed by the Major at the Battalion. However, one of the military personnel we passed in the hallway did the interview. I needed to call the office a few days later because there was an issue with his SS# and the secretary thought we never showed, because the Major had been waiting for us. I had asked if we could redo the PMS because we did not see the Major and she said no, once it is done, it is done. Is this usual that something like this would happen?

Anyway, I wanted my son to see the Major. His buddy was interviewed the week before by the Major and received compliments and comments such as "I will recommend you for a 2 or 3 year scholarship, you are not competitive enough for the 4 year, but you are a great kid and I will recommend you for a 2 or 3 year." I thought this was strange because when we have met with quite a few Battalions and never were any of those type of statements made to him. I'm thinking maybe this father and son were lying to us. Do the Enrollment officer or PMS interviewers ever say what they will recommend?

Thanks for your help.
 
I’d be having a little talk with my Professor of Military Science (PMS)(the Major) if he is recommending a length of scholarship on his PMS interview. That really isn’t helpful for the board members. The PMS interview is supposed to be the “eyes on” assessment that the board uses as one of their inputs to score an applicant. That score is part of the overall score used to place the applicant on the order of merit list. Since the PMS has a narrow window of understanding of what the overall pool of applicants looks like he really has no way of knowing how competitive an applicant is against the rest of the field.

It is not uncommon for someone other than the PMS to do the interview. At some schools the ROO does all the interviews. The boards usually say they favor the interviews from the PMS (Maj/LTC/COL), but often the ROO is the subject matter expert on the process and does a better job writing up the interview and saying the right things.
I’m also going to guess that your applicant interviewed at a bigger school. I make that assumption because at a smaller school (like Clarkson) no one would have shown up for an interview and not spoken to me (the ROO) before he went in to see the PMS. No one else does interviews. At a larger school the PMS may not have the time to do all the interviews.
 
Yes. He scheduled at a bigger school however he did have an appointment with the Major who was expecting him. I should have had him interview at a school he applied. However he hadn’t visited all his schools and we went to the nearest one in our home state. The person who did the PMS had never heard of Boys State, which was upsetting to me because the program is a nationally known one and big in our home state.
Could he transfer to another college in the future into Sophomore year to another college to apply to ROTC scholarships or is it usually only available for students in that particular campus? I’ve seen some colleges offer cash bonuses to those who apply and receive the scholarship so I’m thinking a school like that may seek students from other schools.
I’m a person who had more knowledge that others about ROTC ahead of time, especially having my son do overnights and visiting last Spring to several schools. I wish I had this forum last year. My son would like to be commissioned and I’m guessing the only way is thru a scholarship.

However decided to do the Reserves would he be an officer after he graduated without a commission? Also, he would need the ASVAB for this.? Would you know if the minimum score is still 31? My son of course scored higher, but I was wondering.

Thanks for your help. Very much appreciated.
 
@rotc128

1. He can enroll in any ROTC program and pursue a commission without a scholarship. This is the path my DS took as an NROTC MO and he was awarded a scholarship in the middle of his sophomore year. Some classmates made it all the way to commissioning without a scholarship.
2. All services have some form of OCS/OTS, or whatever that service calls it, to commission folks who have already graduated from college
3. ASVAB is not required for officer commissioning programs. They will use the SAT/ACT scores. DS got a 92 on the ASVAB while in high school, but it was never taken into consideration so far as we know. I think the ASVAB might be used as a substitute for a SAT/ACT score in some cases, but not sure about that. I also would not know what the minimum score is, but I'm confident a score of 31 would not be competitive for an officer program.
4. I know folks can commission into the Army Reserves if that is what he wants. Folks commissioning into the Navy and Air Force through their ROTC programs go active duty. I do know a prior enlisted Marine who commissioned through OCS, after completing his college degree, who commissioned into the Reserves. I don't know if that was because he was prior enlisted and had already done his active duty stint, because of the way he commissioned, or because of the odd personal circumstance he found himself in at commissioning. If your son goes this route he should confirm his opportunity for the reserves with the OSO or ROO or whoever he speaks with if he is interested in that.
 
@rotc128

1. He can enroll in any ROTC program and pursue a commission without a scholarship. This is the path my DS took as an NROTC MO and he was awarded a scholarship in the middle of his sophomore year. Some classmates made it all the way to commissioning without a scholarship.
2. All services have some form of OCS/OTS, or whatever that service calls it, to commission folks who have already graduated from college
3. ASVAB is not required for officer commissioning programs. They will use the SAT/ACT scores. DS got a 92 on the ASVAB while in high school, but it was never taken into consideration so far as we know. I think the ASVAB might be used as a substitute for a SAT/ACT score in some cases, but not sure about that. I also would not know what the minimum score is, but I'm confident a score of 31 would not be competitive for an officer program.
4. I know folks can commission into the Army Reserves if that is what he wants. Folks commissioning into the Navy and Air Force through their ROTC programs go active duty. I do know a prior enlisted Marine who commissioned through OCS, after completing his college degree, who commissioned into the Reserves. I don't know if that was because he was prior enlisted and had already done his active duty stint, because of the way he commissioned, or because of the odd personal circumstance he found himself in at commissioning. If your son goes this route he should confirm his opportunity for the reserves with the OSO or ROO or whoever he speaks with if he is interested in that.
Thanks for the response. I thought you had to be on scholarship rank for a commission as an officer.
 
Additional comments to kinnem's excellent response:

2. The barrier to entry for OCS and OTS are typically much higher than ROTC. OCS/OTS is primarily a mechanism for enlisted members to commission. Competition for the civilian seats is high, and will usually require substantial coordination a year or so out from graduation in order to be successful. It would also help to have a PPL and to be a degree holder in a critical need AFSC (cyber, engineering, etc)

3. Any officer candidate should be able to score 80+ on the ASVAB. If not, I would question the odds of success taking 4 years' of fulltime student status + ROTC responsibilities. The AFOQT is much more difficult than the ASVAB.

4. AFROTC cadets can commission into the reserve component. It is not typical (unless they are ANG/USAFR cadets in "pursuing" status), and requires AF/A1P approval, but the option is there.
 
Thank you to everyone for taking the time to respond, it takes me time to write a question and I have been fortunate to receive in-depth answers.
 
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