NROTC-MO vs AROTC

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nixon2021

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Today I just received a NROTC MO scholarship. I already have received a 3 year AROTC scholarship so I have some questions I need answered to help make my decision.

1. Is the Marine scholarship capped at 180k? I ask this because if it is, there is no financial benefit to me doing Marine ROTC as opposed to Army because I will be attending a private college where tuition is 60k a year.

2. I will be majoring in Biology/Biochemistry. I am aiming to get some sort of military and civilian job in medical/scientific research but am open to other scientific careers in the military. Which branch of the armed services gives me a better career path?

If I could get some answers, that would be great.
 
Congrats on both your scholarships. My DS's MO scholarship is paying more than 180k. Have you researched the different branches? From a financial standpoint the 4 year MO should be significantly better than a 3-yr AROTC.

I'm am a little biased, but the USMC uniforms are way cooler than the Army's.
 
EEBTTF said:
My DS's MO scholarship is paying more than 180k. Have you researched the different branches? From a financial standpoint the 4 year MO should be significantly better than a 3-yr AROTC.
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I was led to believe by my recruiter that the the MO scholarship covers up to 180k. Since my college is 60k per year in tuition, that would be 180k paid for 3 year scholarship. If the MO does cover more than 180k, that would be great.
 
Step back a minute. Do you want to be a Marine or an Army Officer? You are about to sign a contract for 5-10+ years. The USMC is similar, but also very different than the Army. The Army is MUCH larger than the Marines, and will offer you more MOS options. The Marines want warfighters and could care less about what you want to do with your biology degree. Do some research on this, on the surface the financial benefits should be very similar.
 
First off congratulations on your achievement. That is a very difficult scholarship to attain. In answer to your question the NROTC MO will cover the full tuition/books/fees during the 4 year undergraduate program. So in that respect financially your are in a better position than with the 3 year Advanced Designee AROTC Scholarship. Just make sure the Marine Corps is what you want and willing to commit to mentally and physically. If you are more interested in other MOS options as EEBTTF referenced than the AROTC may be the way to go. Tough to get an automatic upgrade to four years but certainly not out of the question to get your second semester of your freshman year paid for if you are top notch in grades, physical fitness, leadership, etc. Another possible option down the road after accepting the NROTC MO scholarship is requesting a transfer to Navy prior to your junior year. However that is not automatic and there are a number of hoops to jump through. My DS told me that one of the mids at his unit was recently approved for that transfer but I don't recall if it was Marine to Navy or Navy to Marine. Anyway as EEBTTF says the USMC uniforms are way cooler than Army...but I am biased also.
 
nixon2021 said:
Today I just received a NROTC MO scholarship. I already have received a 3 year AROTC scholarship so I have some questions I need answered to help make my decision.

1. Is the Marine scholarship capped at 180k? I ask this because if it is, there is no financial benefit to me doing Marine ROTC as opposed to Army because I will be attending a private college where tuition is 60k a year.

2. I will be majoring in Biology/Biochemistry. I am aiming to get some sort of military and civilian job in medical/scientific research but am open to other scientific careers in the military. Which branch of the armed services gives me a better career path?

If I could get some answers, that would be great.
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If that is your priority then go Army. They have the money and billets for medical/science/research.
 
nixon2021 said:
Today I just received a NROTC MO scholarship. I already have received a 3 year AROTC scholarship so I have some questions I need answered to help make my decision.

1. Is the Marine scholarship capped at 180k? I ask this because if it is, there is no financial benefit to me doing Marine ROTC as opposed to Army because I will be attending a private college where tuition is 60k a year.

2. I will be majoring in Biology/Biochemistry. I am aiming to get some sort of military and civilian job in medical/scientific research but am open to other scientific careers in the military. Which branch of the armed services gives me a better career path?

If I could get some answers, that would be great.
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Army may have the better path forward you than Marine Corps. Here’s a good example from my alma mater:
northcarolina.uso.org

Meet the Army Lieutenant and Wake Forest graduate, Racing to Develop a Coronavirus Vaccine

Ten months ago, Ethan Green walked across a stage at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, to accept a bachelor’s degree in biology and a commission from the U.S. Army.
northcarolina.uso.org northcarolina.uso.org
 
I do not know the details around tuition caps. I do not believe there is one for NROTC, but I am sure that can be found on the NROTC website. I would suggest to really focus on what service you want to be in. The USMC does not have billets for USMC officers in medical/scientific research. The Marine Corps objective is to produce officers who will lead Marines. Please take the time to review the Officer MOSs available. You will see they are in direct support of USMC operations and leading Marines. There are some roles later for Captains and above in Acquisition which can lead to roles more related to engineering, testing, etc, but they are not medical related. The Marine Corps has its own culture, traditions and expectations of Marine Officers. I would highly recommend you spend some time researching this and understanding it. If that does not speak to you and the Marine MOSs offered are not something you want to do, I would encourage a different service.
 
On the tuition cap - I go to a private university with similar costs and all of our Marine Options have full tuition covered. There is no cap, but the scholarship will not cover room and board.
 
One thing I know is that Army pays more stipend than the Marines. $420 v. $ 300. Depending on your school, for AROTC, they can either waiver full of half of your room and board for scholarship cadets. For example, Vanderbilt waives 50% of the room and board for contracted Cadets.
 
foxtailsean said:
One thing I know is that Army pays more stipend than the Marines. $420 v. $ 300. Depending on your school, for AROTC, they can either waiver full of half of your room and board for scholarship cadets. For example, Vanderbilt waives 50% of the room and board for contracted Cadets.
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You are correct that the NROTC stipend is less, but the amount depends on your year - $250/month your freshman year with an additional $50/month being added each academic year up to $400 your senior year. Additionally, midshipmen tend to make more during the summer as we have summer training every year.

Vanderbilt provides the $6,000/year to all ROTC, not just AROTC.
 
I am a current 4/C MIDN at Virginia Tech. I am in navy but i do know how the marine option scholarship works.

First off, congratulations on both of your scholarships. The big question is, what are you more focused on, civilian life outside the military, or life in the military.

If you are more concerned with getting a technical job in the military that will easily transfer to a civilian job, AROTC is definitely the way to go. There are SOOO many MOS's that can come from AROTC. From what I hear, you have decent control over what job you get.

The big kicker with the marine option is you will have very little say on what your job is in the marines. The summer after you junior year, you will go to OCS in Quantico, VA. After you commission, you will go to TBS (The Basic School). At TBS, you will have your MOS assigned to you based on the needs of the Marines. From what I believe you can put in your top 3 MOS's, but they do not follow them much. The whole selection process is weird. Bottom line is, you have very little control.

If budget is your main concern, go with Marine Option.
If you can afford one year without the scholarship, do AROTC, as you will have more job options available to you, both during and after you get out.

Edit: As I sent this, I saw that the army upgraded your scholarship to a 4-year, AROTC would be best suited for you.
 
Well, first my DS has a technical job in the Marines. He's both a Communications Officer and an Information officer/planner. There are plenty of technical opportunities in the Corps but not as much as Navy, or Air Force, or even perhaps Army.

The MOS assignment is very rational. Everyone is ranked on the OML. The difference is the OML gets divided into thirds. #1 in the first group gets first choice. #1 in second group is next. #1 in third group follows, then #2 in first group follows, etc. This process maintains the talent spread throughout the Corps and keeps the best talent from gravitating to the top jobs.

Of course if you already have a Marine aviation contract, you don't even go through that process. Upon graduation from TBS it's off to flight school, perhaps after some delay if there is backup in the pipeline.
 
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