I would also add, you need to walk before you can run.
Some things to look deeper at before you make your decision.
1. Does the SMC lifestyle appeal to you?
~ If in ROTC you must be in the Corps. You will live in the Corps dorms all 4 yrs. You will not be like the typical freshmen that gets to bring a mini-fridge on move in day. You will not be like a ROTC cadet at a non-SMC college where they don't do room inspections. They will do room inspections. They will have quiet hrs. You will be in both the Corps and ROTC.
~~ Ask yourself do you want to walk the pavement for 4 yrs at an SMC as a cadet student, or do you want to be a student that is a ROTC cadet. Two different things.
2. Are you going to go through the engineer route at VT?
~ If the answer is YES, than beware. VT engineering Profs on the 1st day are known to say look left, look right. Only 1 of you will graduate from this program. It is well known that because sooo many drop out of the program the registrar sets up desks outside of the engineering building during finals week. My DD graduated not only undergrad, but as a fellow for grad school from VT (not ROTC or engineering), she told us these stories.
~~ This is important because your gpa will be a factor for the 1st step in AFROTC. If it is too low than your chances of getting an SFT slot as a sophomore will be greatly reduced. No SFT = No POC. No POC rank = No Commissioning.
3. SFT selection is a must as stated above.
~ What is the selection rate for SFT at the other school compared to VT?
~ What is the avg gpa for those selected compared to VT?
4. UPT selection for ROTC cadets also have a unique aspect. PPL plays a big factor.
~ If you have even some hrs in an airplane, and your gpa is good, than chances increase.
~~ Ask the other school the stats for those cadets that were selected and compare them to VT. How many of their cadets with no flight time got picked up?
There is a marketing edge in the college world. For example, always promotes the fact that they offer the most pilot slots after USAFA. That is true. However, when you dive into the numbers their percentage rate is not as high as VT.
Finally, I have to add negatives. Don't go this route with the thought of becoming a pilot. Enter this world with the thought of being an AF officer flying a desk. Here's why:
Never has there been a UPT winging with a 100% rate. Typically, the rate is maybe 69%.
~ DS's class started with 28 in the T-6 phase. At tracking night they had 21. Tracking = 25% go T-38 and 75% go T-1. After tracking night they went back up to 28, wash backs (usually medical issues). Commissioning 6 months later they were back at 21 for winging. Yet, those that washed-out still owed ADAF time and went onto flying a desk.
You were not even born in 2001. My husband was serving ADAF at that time (F-15E WSO). 6 months prior to 9/11 USAF were losing pilots at a high clip like now.
~ 9/11 occurred and airlines started furloughing. Furloughed and furloughed. Did not start re-hire again at the new pace for over a decade.
~ 2008 economy crashed. Parents found their homes valued less, and could not find the $$$$ to pay for college. ROTC scholarships became very enticing.
~2020 Co-Vid 19 ...Sound familiar? Look at the amount of unemployment claims. Who knows when the stay at home order will end and parents will go back to work. What we all know is that any parent furloughed still has to pay their mtg, car payments and put food on the table. It will take many months to recoup that money.
~~ Meanwhile they have a rising senior in HS and ROTC scholarships look enticing. 4 and out the door for non-rated, hence competition for SFT will be higher. You will be competing for SFT with them too.
~~ Airlines not hiring now since they too are getting a bail out like after 9/11 means they need less pilots. If you are class of 2024, that means you will be impacted too. If the airlines stop hiring for the next 12-18 months, that means ADAF pilots are staying, and the need for replacement will be lower.
I have said this over and over again. When the economy tanks, the military retention rate increases. It than trickles down to SA/ROTC and OCS/OTS. It is an ebb and flow. The question is how big of this virus will have from an economy aspect.
~ Longer it lasts the bigger the impact on the military, including ROTC.
~~ The military budget will have to shrink too. In 2008 USAFA accepted 1650+ with the expectation of 1300 class. By law SAs can only have 4400, but they were higher and received waivers. In 2009 they accepted 1350 for a class size of 1100 or so. 95% of SA candidates apply for ROTC scholarships. ROTC scholarship budget did not increase. What do you think happened with those 300? They took the ROTC scholarship. Thus, ROTC had a much higher amount of cadets in the program. SFT than went from a 90% selection rate to 55% because the pool was bigger, yet the amount they could send and promote remained the same. At the exact same time, the economy still in the tank, they cut the DoD budget. RIFs occurred.
Sorry for the novella, but I feel it is really important for the class of 2024 and 2025 understand how this virus is going to impact the world even down to ROTC.
