Hi, I was getting ready to submit my NROTC application tonight, when I panicked and started thinking that I had misunderstood the application. For the essay section, there is an essay at the top, which is numbered "1." This question is, " Discuss your reasons for wanting to become a Naval Officer. Specifically comment on leadership positions you've held, the challenges you have faced and the lessons you have learned. (Limit 2500 characters)." There are also other questions underneath that one, that aren't numbered, but still marked as required. These have the same character limit, but they seem more like short answer questions than essay questions. For example, I have no idea how I would answer this question with an entire essay. " Have you lived in a foreign country or experienced another culture during 7th through 12 grades? If so, provide the reason for living overseas or in another culture, the location and the dates of the experience. Remarks are limited to 2500 Characters" I'm just confused, because it's the same character limit as essay 1, but the actual size of the box to respond is much tinier. Also, the character limits in the Employment section for describing work experience and the one for volunteer experience is 5000 characters, which is even longer than the essay! I'm very confused. Does anyone know how many of these sections are actually essays, or if one is an essay and the rest are just short answer with absurdly large character limits? Thanks!