Chances of AROTC scholarship without activities?

aetosArmy

Member
Joined
Jan 30, 2023
Messages
120
Hey all,
Honestly, I have been worried sick/stressed after not getting the scholarship in January, and I want to know y'all's honest opinions on whether you think I have a good chance of getting either a 3-year or a 4-year, and why. I was offered an ECP after the Jan board, but that's not something I wanted to do so I turned it down. Someone on here told me that being offered an ECP meant I wouldn't get a 3-4yr in the third board, but my ROO highly disagrees.
Here are my stats:
SAT 1480
GPA 3.69
PFT(51, 58, 6:03)
And the interview went very well, my ROO was very optimistic.
My resume includes intermediate level of writing, speaking, and reading in Classical and Gulf Arabic.
The thing is, I don't have much leadership or sports experience at all (I play soccer, basketball, table tennis, ride horses, but not competitively). The reason for this is that I live in a third world country in a relatively remote area with no opportunity to compete in sports or lead in school/community since I study online. I simply have had zero chance for 99% of the activities listed on the application (not complaining at all, this is just my situation like it or not).
So my question is: (and please be honest)
Do you think the board will think I have just been lazy/inactive throughout high school since I only have like one activity mentioned, or do you think I have a decent chance?
Thank you.
Cheers
 
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There are much smarter people here than me, but I'll pass this along. Your app is compiled by points assigned to all of the things you mention above. You earn points for those activities that you mention you haven't had access to. You can find somewhere on this forum how much each part is worth toward your total score. If you can score high enough based on the things you really don't know (the interview and board score) then maybe you can get high enough on the list to get a scholarship. I think it comes down to your points total relative to all other applicants.

It sounds like even if you don't earn a national scholarship you'd be a great candidate for a campus-based scholarship because your high school activities won't matter. If you know where you want to go and have a good relationship with the ROO I'm sure that probably helps. Good luck!
 
Thanks for the input. And yeah, I have spoken with him about campus-based scholarships, sounds like they have some good stuff to offer (Wheaton C)
My main concern is that most applicants, and certainly (as far as I know) almost all applicants who get a national scholarship, have done a lot of extra-curricular activities like sports/JROTC/CAP/school leadership. I am concerned that they will see lacking activities as a red flag.
I understand the point system, I was just curious if people on here thought it was still likely based on my other numbers.
 
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Hey all,
Honestly, I have been worried sick/stressed after not getting the scholarship in January, and I want to know y'all's honest opinions on whether you think I have a good chance of getting either a 3-year or a 4-year, and why. I was offered an ECP after the Jan board, but that's not something I wanted to do so I turned it down. Someone on here told me that being offered an ECP meant I wouldn't get a 3-4yr in the third board, but my ROO highly disagrees.
Here are my stats:
SAT 1480
GPA 3.69
PFT(51, 58, 6:03)
And the interview went very well, my ROO was very optimistic.
My resume includes intermediate level of writing, speaking, and reading in Classical and Gulf Arabic.
The thing is, I don't have much leadership or sports experience at all (I play soccer, basketball, table tennis, ride horses, but not competitively). The reason for this is that I live in a third world country in a relatively remote area with no opportunity to compete in sports or lead in school/community since I study online. I simply have had zero chance for 99% of the activities listed on the application (not complaining at all, this is just my situation like it or not).
So my question is: (and please be honest)
Do you think the board will think I have just been lazy/inactive throughout high school since I only have like one activity mentioned, or do you think I have a decent chance?
Thank you.
Cheers
Brief feedback is that your explanations seem to focus on "why I couldn't" excuses to not do ___ (play sports, or lead). If you need to reapply or for the future interviews/ etc. I would focus on "how I managed to" answers despite challenges instead of "couldn't" excuses - examples - organized a soccer team, arranged matches and mentored others,, provided English language mentoring, helped build homes in the community, helped a clean water initiative, fundraised to help the local community, whatever - I think the activities you listed could have been framed as athletic and leadership activities - instead it comes across like an excuse for not participating which when looking at candidates based on prior behavior is... well, not ideal. Online schools have clubs which need leadership too. Good luck/ hope that perspective may help you.
 
Thanks for the input. And yeah, I have spoken with him about campus-based scholarships, sounds like they have some good stuff to offer (Wheaton C)
My main concern is that most applicants, and certainly (as far as I know) almost all applicants who get a national scholarship, have done a lot of extra-curricular activities like sports/JROTC/CAP/school leadership. I am concerned that they will see lacking activities as a red flag.
I understand the point system, I was just curious if people on here thought it was still likely based on my other numbers.
So I’m just a mom who is not at all versed in all the ins and outs of the “points” and everything that goes into the selection, but I will weigh in with my two cents. My DS is waiting patiently to hear from 2 SA’s and he received a 4 year AROTC scholarship after the second board. His SAT 1440/ACT 34, GPA 3.8 and can’t remember his fitness test— basically maxed out those first 2, but his mile was a little slower than you. He is involved in 2 sports and some EC’s, but no captaincies and has some honors and a couple things that check the leadership box. But I believe his biggest strength was his ROTC interview, because his military knowledge and passion for being an officer comes through. I obviously don’t know exactly how it went or how his SA interviews went but I suspect some perceived weakness in his applications were boosted by his interviews. They are looking for the human, not the stats. My DS is just a genuine likeable guy, and was well prepared to discuss his passions and goals. If you were able to use your interview time to explain your situation and why you weren’t able to compete in sports or activities but your goals and strengths were communicated, that goes a long way. And if you got good feedback from your ROO, that is also very important. Don’t give up hope yet, and good luck to you!
 
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