Need Guidance please.

Badman_Larry

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I created an account just to get help. I searched all over the internet and talked to multiple people about it and still couldn't find a sure answer.

Recently I was awarded the 3 year scholarship for ROTC. The program I am doing in college is a 5 year engineering program and I was given an option by my recruiter to enlist in the army reserves to pay for my freshman year of college because the scholarship doesn't kick in until my sophomore year. He gave me the option to do the SMP program which allows me to attend basic training and go to college in the fall. What I want to know is if it is possible to do SMP for my first year of college and use the 3 year scholarship right after. Another thing my scholarship and enrollment officer stated when I talked to him is that they will extend my three year to a four year if I continue to do well because I am in a five year program.
 
Talk to the freshman adviser at the ROTC unit where you will be going for the straight skinny. Also, if you do SMP you may be forced to go Reserves as opposed to active duty when you commission. It may vary by the state you are in. I would trst what the freshman advisor tells me far more than a recruiter. I'm not opposed to SMP, just want to be sure you understand what you're signing up for. There is no free ride.
 
Like AROTC- dad says - communicate with the Recruiting Operations Officer at your school before you commit to enlist!. Some schools don't call them that though.

If it is a documented five year degree at the school you are attending they might add a year onto your scholarship for your fifth year of school. If granted the fifth year your financial outlay would only be for the first year. Show up in shape and able to pass a PT test and you might be able to contract early. Look up 104R on this forum and compare your academic requirements in the school catalog - does it equate to 5 years?... though the ROO probably knows which engineering degrees require five years.
 
Agree with above posts, talk to the school. My DD is going to be a nurse, she visited 4 schools, 2 schools their nurses graduate in 4 years. Those two do that by accommodating summer clinical rotations for nurses the Junior to Senior summer by having them go to advanced camp after sophomore year. The other two schools extended the ROTC scholarship into the 5th year. So each school knows what the degree at their school takes and have a plan for it, you just need to ask.

EDIT: One more thing I want to add, my daughter came home last year in your shoes, telling me all the reasons why she should enlist. A NG recruiter was at her school, found out she had a 3 year AD scholarship, etc. In one meeting with him she was sure she should do it. There is nothing wrong with SMP, but there is no reason to rush it. We told her to talk to her ROO and we never heard about it again. The one thing we did tell her is that the National Guard would be there later, to just start school and she could figure it out later. She is finishing her freshman year next week, and it has not come up again.
 
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I created an account just to get help. I searched all over the internet and talked to multiple people about it and still couldn't find a sure answer.

Recently I was awarded the 3 year scholarship for ROTC. The program I am doing in college is a 5 year engineering program and I was given an option by my recruiter to enlist in the army reserves to pay for my freshman year of college because the scholarship doesn't kick in until my sophomore year. He gave me the option to do the SMP program which allows me to attend basic training and go to college in the fall. What I want to know is if it is possible to do SMP for my first year of college and use the 3 year scholarship right after. Another thing my scholarship and enrollment officer stated when I talked to him is that they will extend my three year to a four year if I continue to do well because I am in a five year program.

Yes at the two schools my daughter visited that did the fifth year for nursing they both stated that if it was a program that they extended scholarships for, as long as she was on track to finish on time and commission, they would pay for that last year.
 
I created an account just to get help. I searched all over the internet and talked to multiple people about it and still couldn't find a sure answer.

Recently I was awarded the 3 year scholarship for ROTC. The program I am doing in college is a 5 year engineering program and I was given an option by my recruiter to enlist in the army reserves to pay for my freshman year of college because the scholarship doesn't kick in until my sophomore year. He gave me the option to do the SMP program which allows me to attend basic training and go to college in the fall. What I want to know is if it is possible to do SMP for my first year of college and use the 3 year scholarship right after. Another thing my scholarship and enrollment officer stated when I talked to him is that they will extend my three year to a four year if I continue to do well because I am in a five year program.

You do not actually become an SMP cadet until you contract with ROTC. Your 3AD scholarship is a line scholarship. In order to do SMP you can either be non-scholarship or have a GRFD scholarship. A GRFD scholarship means that you can not compete for active duty. There is also no guarantee that you can convert your 3AD scholarship to a GRFD scholarship.

The Army Reserves will not flat out pay for your full Freshman year, you can get MGI Bill and Federal Tuition Assistance (FTA), however in most cases you have to go to Basic Training first. To contract with your 3AD scholarship you would have to get released from the Reserves to accept it as it is a line scholarship. The Reserve may or may not release you, plus you would have to pay back the FTA since you didn't complete the required service obligation in the reserves

If you want to go SMP, you are better off contracting with ROTC first, then converting the scholarship to GRFD so you can join the reserves. If you want to go onto active duty, then you can't keep your scholarship and be in the reserves.

It is possible to request an extension of benefits of your scholarship for an extra year. Those are handled on a case by case basis.

Another option, if you want to be a Reserve Officer is try to get a 4YR Minuteman Scholarship from the reserves. That requires you to enlist, get an endorsement from the two star commander that you are in, or a USAR Ambassador. Once you get the endorsement, it is up to the PMS to approved the 4YR MM scholarship.

The best person to speak to about your case is the ROO at your school, as recruiters are not 100% up to speed about all of the ROTC details and requirements.
 
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