NPP vs. College Programmer

N

NROTC_27

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Feb 27, 2023
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Hi all -

We are now 2 days from needing to make a decision. I am reaching out today to get some feedback on my son’s current NROTC options because he is having a tough time deciding what to do . . .

His 2 options are:
1. Rutgers as college programmer for year 1 and then will apply for 3-year NROTC

2. Illinois Institute of Technology NPP for year 1 and then 4-year scholarship so 5 years to commission

One of the biggest unknowns/challenges to this decision is that we are from NJ and do not know enough about IIT, the area where the school is located and whether most students are local/commuters or out of state?

Rutgers is a higher ranked engineering program but assuming he commissions, is there a difference to the Navy between an engineering degree from Rutgers vs. IIT?

Thank you for any feedback/insights.
 
I sent you a pm. But for others' awareness, the IIT NPP program is very good and they have extended their application deadlines in case there are potentially interested folks who fell behind on other college applications.
 
NROTC_27 said:
Hi all -

We are now 2 days from needing to make a decision. I am reaching out today to get some feedback on my son’s current NROTC options because he is having a tough time deciding what to do . . .

His 2 options are:
1. Rutgers as college programmer for year 1 and then will apply for 3-year NROTC

2. Illinois Institute of Technology NPP for year 1 and then 4-year scholarship so 5 years to commission

One of the biggest unknowns/challenges to this decision is that we are from NJ and do not know enough about IIT, the area where the school is located and whether most students are local/commuters or out of state?

Rutgers is a higher ranked engineering program but assuming he commissions, is there a difference to the Navy between an engineering degree from Rutgers vs. IIT?

Thank you for any feedback/insights.
Click to expand...
An important decision for sure. I don't know about either school, but here are my thoughts for your DS' consideration. The IIT route is a sure path to a scholarship, so long as he successfully completes the prep year, which is also paid for by the school. There is no guarantee of a 3 year Sideload, although it sounds like he is an engineering major, so that should help, as long as he performs well during his 4/c year. The selection boards did not feel he was a strong enough candidate to be offered a four year scholarship, but obviously liked what they saw in his potential and offered him the NPP program. From what I have read, the NPP program is generally offered to applicants they feel need a little work being ready for the academic rigors of college. Considering this, is your DS honestly academically ready to succeed right now at Rutgers? Would he benefit from another year of prepping for college academics? What is the best course to set himself up for success? These are questions only you and he can answer.

As for your last question, no the Navy does not care where the degree is from. He will have the same opportunities as anyone else, no matter where his degree is from. On the job performance will be what matters. Post Navy, where your degree is from may have some weight though.
 
Another thing to consider is how long it will take your son to graduate at Rutgers, so check with the detachment about their 4 year graduation rate (specifically that of engineering majors if possible). Many (most?) of the engineering students at younger DS' SMC took an extra semester or two to complete their degrees, as did a good number of the students at older DS' ROTC detachment. The fully funded NPP route may be a better option if there's a real chance he'll take that long at Rutgers anyway.
 
NROTC_27 said:
Hi all -

We are now 2 days from needing to make a decision. I am reaching out today to get some feedback on my son’s current NROTC options because he is having a tough time deciding what to do . . .

His 2 options are:
1. Rutgers as college programmer for year 1 and then will apply for 3-year NROTC

2. Illinois Institute of Technology NPP for year 1 and then 4-year scholarship so 5 years to commission

One of the biggest unknowns/challenges to this decision is that we are from NJ and do not know enough about IIT, the area where the school is located and whether most students are local/commuters or out of state?

Rutgers is a higher ranked engineering program but assuming he commissions, is there a difference to the Navy between an engineering degree from Rutgers vs. IIT?

Thank you for any feedback/insights.
Click to expand...
Im in the exact same boat; however, replace Rutgers with FSU. I just finished the application that IIT provides in the email from LT. Mitch Evans; however, I don't know how they expect SAT scores, transcripts, and recommendations to all be sent in time. Seems like we could have had some more heads up :(


Additionally, the application that they provide does not allow for you to cite your High School Informations, so there is no way for them to retrieve any information, such as my transcripts. Ayy.
 
Our son did the NPP at IIT this year. Last year he had two days to get his application completed, but was easily able to complete it on his own. In addition to NROTC which is the primary factor as he wants to make the Navy his career, he continues to play his sport with the school and likes the proximity to downtown for his gym and BJJ training which has helped to quickly make a broad friend network. We are in CA ourselves and had no experience with the school previously, but did some basic research and found it to be a solid STEM school for his ME major (product of two engineers, so that‘s important to us). He’s had a great experience there. All-in-all, I would recommend it as a good way to get into a scholarship on your way to a commission.
 
tlol said:
Im in the exact same boat; however, replace Rutgers with FSU. I just finished the application that IIT provides in the email from LT. Mitch Evans; however, I don't know how they expect SAT scores, transcripts, and recommendations to all be sent in time. Seems like we could have had some more heads up :(


Additionally, the application that they provide does not allow for you to cite your High School Informations, so there is no way for them to retrieve any information, such as my transcripts. Ayy.
Click to expand...
If you already had an NROTC application in the system, you can let IIT know that. There is a way for them to pull down all the information you submitted as part of the NROTC process and ise that for the NPP application.
 
I am attending IIT this fall with the prep scholarship but clearly there seems to be some misunderstanding either on my end or someone else's. I was under the impression that it was still a 4 year program just with the first year paid for by IIIT NROTC and the last 3 by the Navy. Is this true or is it 5 years? My confusion is because won't most students complete their major and be ready to graduate in 4 years so what would the additional year at the end be for?

Could someone who knows shine some light on this?

Edit: The website describes the scholarship as "up to" 5 years so are you still able to commission in 4 if you complete your academics and NROTC requirements?
 
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It's probably best to speak with IIT. Some students accelerate their degree plans but the program allows up to 5.
 
Thank you all for your insight and comments. After speaking with multiple people and weighing the pros/cons, my son committed to IIT on Friday! Paid deposit and working on submitting all paperwork for NPP. He is finally excited about the next chapter!
 
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