In rare cases today, a school’s room & board costs exceed the tuition, or as stated above, the student may have been awarded a tuition waiver as a merit scholarship by the school. This may make choosing the option for room & board worthwhile. However, I understand choosing room & board will make the payment taxable by the IRS. Tuition is not taxable. Some colleges award room & and board full or partial waivers to attract national ROTC scholarship awardees. Be advised, however, that some colleges that have awarded a full or partial tuition waiver as a merit scholarship before the student informs the school of the AROTC scholarship award, will reduce the tuition award. You need to talk to the school financial aid office to understand that school’s policies. The financial aid office will have experience dealing with these issues.