Advice with dilemma

N

Navyman

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While this is a great dilemma to have, it is of concern to us. S has a NROTC scholarship. Recruiter convinced him to put as his #1 school one that he felt very confident that he could get into and then, if he got into a reach school, he could always switch. The #1 school has a summer program for first year engineering students that my son was interested in so he applied for summer admission (they won't let him switch to Fall to wait on other school because it is harder for admissionto get in for Fall compared to Summer). Now, we got a surprise last night and he got into a reach school with one of the best engineering programs around. We communicated with the unit rep and he said that, currently, they were pretty full but, typically in the summer, spaces come open so, while he couldn't guarantee it, it was likely he would get in. We certainly can't wait until far into the summer since the summer program at school #1 would have already started.

If S decides he would prefer to go to the reach school, should we risk it. It is also out of state and we can't afford that for long if he were unable to switch the scholarship for the first year.

Any help form those who have gone through this or anyone else?

Thanks.
 
Have you asked the unit recruiter about the success rate of NROTC college programmers (paying on their own) getting a 3 1/2 or 3 year NROTC scholarship? That might give you a better picture.

My son was in a similar situation. We decided that he would attend his reach school, with or without the scholarship. The recruiter said that they have had very good success at getting a scholarship by the end of the first year. Fortunately, by early May, slots opened up at the unit. I think my son's key was keeping in touch with the unit recruiter and letting him know how much he wanted to attend there.
 
No, I haven't asked about the success rate fo getting a 3-year scholarship. I will look into that but the school in question has a cost of attendance of about $40,000 out of state. I do alright but that's a little steep for us. I guess I could try to get some financial aid for the first year. We'll have to see. Thanks for the advice. I'd appreciate any further input
 
Actually, 3 1/2 year scholarships are possibly available if your son enters an NROTC unit as a college programmer. At least one of the mids in my son's unit just got awarded a 3 1/2 year scholarship, which picks up second semester of the freshman year.

Don't lose hope about getting a transfer. When my son was accepted to his reach school in mid March last year, he was initially told that the unit was full and transfers were not going to be made until mid-June. How discouraging that was! He kept in touch with the unit recruiter. The recruiter was waiting to see if any slots opened.

In the meanwhile, the unit recruiter where he was placed kept contacting my son as to whether he was going to attend that school. My son was honest with him and said he was asking for a transfer to his reach school or attend USNA if he was offered an appointment.

I have to tell you, this was an anxious time! He was still hoping for an appointment to USNA. At the end of March, he received a letter that he would not be receiving an appointment to USNA. That made the transfer to the reach school even more important. I decided that I wasn't going to send my son to a school he really had decided he didn't want to go to. He was going to go to his reach school, with or without the NROTC scholarship and hope to get one later on.

Then, in early May, an e-mail came asking my son if he was still interested in transferring his scholarship! Finally, my son could say with certainty where he was going to go to college.

It was a journey. But persistence paid off.

So, weigh your options and pray for the best for your son.
 
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