NROTC Placed At 2nd School

[BJD16]

Auburn is a bit more out of the way than most schools on my son's school list, but I am actually keeping Auburn on my son's list because of the Navy ROTC program, and the overall student body being more supportive of the military than on the coasts.

I live not too far from OU, and it is not as strong academically as Auburn, Iowa State, or the Big 10 schools.

 

[kinnem]

Toolman;

This is great, thank you.

Sounds like University of Oklahoma has a similar set up to OSU where the airport is 3 miles off campus and no student shuttle is provided. The public bus system has a stop at the small terminal but takes almost 40 minutes from campus. Taking into account scheduling for other classes on campus, travel to and from the airport for flight labs, makes for incredibly long days. We are on a budget and that does not include my daughter having a car on campus.

I understand Auburn has a student shuttle and is physically closer to the campus through a neighborhood. This is definitely a plus for Auburn. I think DD reservations about Auburn was that the ROTC students are such a minority and that she would not be "in her element" as much as ERAU.

We are visiting Auburn this weekend. It will be on Super Bowl Sunday so the campus will be dead, but we can get the physical feel of the university.

What about a bicycle? Three miles is a piece of cake on a bike. Probably no more that 10-15 minutes. Get a pannier for books and such. I think Arkel has a pannier that can also be used as a backpack.

 

[KansasinCA]

Auburn is a bit more out of the way than most schools on my son's school list, but I am actually keeping Auburn on my son's list because of the Navy ROTC program, and the overall student body being more supportive of the military than on the coasts.

I live not too far from OU, and it is not as strong academically as Auburn, Iowa State, or the Big 10 schools.

Update!
We visited both Auburn University and Embry-Riddle in Daytona last week.

DD has decided on Auburn University! It was one form (Placement Change Request) + one day for the Navy scholarship folks in Pensacola to move her scholarship placement from Purdue University to Auburn. Very Easy, but I suppose it gets more difficult as the programs fill in.

Auburn: We are thrilled she chose Auburn. The campus is clean, academics great, and school spirit spills over. We learned that the Navy ROTC Battalion at Auburn groups together with Tuskegee ROTC in the next town over. Awesome history there with the aviation program starting during WWII. They have brand new buildings, lots of new modern classrooms for the students, a simulator and their fleet of 32 planes looks totally cool on the flight line with "WAR EAGLE" painted on the noses. The new recreation facility looks fantastic and is nearby to the ROTC building. The 40-person student Hot Tub in the shape of a tiger paw by the Rec Center was a little over the top. DD loves the opportunities there for her to participate in the flight team, and to perform color guard at football games.

At ERAU we took the Aviation/Aeronautics tour. Fantastic facilities, and their classrooms, planes and simulators seemed numerous and top notch. Small campus, but newer dorms and a new Rec Center facility as well. NEGATIVES: Many. First the campus looks less like a campus and more like a part of EPCOT center at Disney World, or a futuristic shopping mall. It's surrounded by parking lots, which was a big "UGH" factor for my daughter. ERAU has recently built a three story parking garage on the south end of campus to alleviate the parking issue, but based on our inability to find a spot to park for over 15 minutes and students in cars actually following students leaving classrooms to get their spot, they need to build three more parking garages. I also want to say, as a parent, the average age of the students appears to be older, 21, 22 or so. I get the feeling there is a lot of ex-military students using their benefits there. The classrooms I poked my head into were overcrowded. No individual desks, just 5-6 students sitting around tables. Also, a high percentage of the students appear to be Internationals - not a big deal for attendance, but several we saw with Instructor Jackets on overheard speaking with not so great English/Heavy Accents. These are the instructors students need to learn from. Also - the student population here is way skewed towards males. I am not sure what ERAU discloses on their many mailings, but I thought the ratio was something like 9:1 male:female, which is a lot different from what you see on pictures on their website. Our tour guide was so-so on ERAU. He said he wasn't sure he would do it over again at that school, although he is on his way to OCS in June after graduation. Lastly, participation on the flight team is extremely limited and competitive. Seems like ERAU sees the flight team as an opportunity to charge the students for the privilege, as they get more flight time.

We also had a not very positive interaction with the Navy ROTC there that sealed the deal for DD to attend Auburn. DM me if anyone wants details.

 

[KansasinCA]

Auburn is a bit more out of the way than most schools on my son's school list, but I am actually keeping Auburn on my son's list because of the Navy ROTC program, and the overall student body being more supportive of the military than on the coasts.

See my post on the Auburn program. Would recommend a visit to the campus for your son. It certainly exceeded our expectations.

 

[JohnMcLane]

My relative did AF ROTC at Auburn. Got ENJJPT. Left a normal, middle-class suburban kid. Came back wearing an oversized belt buckle, drinking Budweiser, and driving a pickup truck with a number "3" license plate.

 

[99Gold]

What about a bicycle? Three miles is a piece of cake on a bike. Probably no more that 10-15 minutes. Get a pannier for books and such. I think Arkel has a pannier that can also be used as a backpack.

My best friend's son is at OU without a car and he has had no trouble getting to either the train station or airport. He uses the electric scooters quite a bit to get around and there's always someone around with a car. A bike is a good idea too. He's not in ROTC but loves it there.

 

[Herman_Snerd]

Update!
We visited both Auburn University and Embry-Riddle in Daytona last week.

DD has decided on Auburn University! It was one form (Placement Change Request) + one day for the Navy scholarship folks in Pensacola to move her scholarship placement from Purdue University to Auburn. Very Easy, but I suppose it gets more difficult as the programs fill in.

Auburn: We are thrilled she chose Auburn. The campus is clean, academics great, and school spirit spills over. We learned that the Navy ROTC Battalion at Auburn groups together with Tuskegee ROTC in the next town over. Awesome history there with the aviation program starting during WWII. They have brand new buildings, lots of new modern classrooms for the students, a simulator and their fleet of 32 planes looks totally cool on the flight line with "WAR EAGLE" painted on the noses. The new recreation facility looks fantastic and is nearby to the ROTC building. The 40-person student Hot Tub in the shape of a tiger paw by the Rec Center was a little over the top. DD loves the opportunities there for her to participate in the flight team, and to perform color guard at football games.

At ERAU we took the Aviation/Aeronautics tour. Fantastic facilities, and their classrooms, planes and simulators seemed numerous and top notch. Small campus, but newer dorms and a new Rec Center facility as well. NEGATIVES: Many. First the campus looks less like a campus and more like a part of EPCOT center at Disney World, or a futuristic shopping mall. It's surrounded by parking lots, which was a big "UGH" factor for my daughter. ERAU has recently built a three story parking garage on the south end of campus to alleviate the parking issue, but based on our inability to find a spot to park for over 15 minutes and students in cars actually following students leaving classrooms to get their spot, they need to build three more parking garages. I also want to say, as a parent, the average age of the students appears to be older, 21, 22 or so. I get the feeling there is a lot of ex-military students using their benefits there. The classrooms I poked my head into were overcrowded. No individual desks, just 5-6 students sitting around tables. Also, a high percentage of the students appear to be Internationals - not a big deal for attendance, but several we saw with Instructor Jackets on overheard speaking with not so great English/Heavy Accents. These are the instructors students need to learn from. Also - the student population here is way skewed towards males. I am not sure what ERAU discloses on their many mailings, but I thought the ratio was something like 9:1 male:female, which is a lot different from what you see on pictures on their website. Our tour guide was so-so on ERAU. He said he wasn't sure he would do it over again at that school, although he is on his way to OCS in June after graduation. Lastly, participation on the flight team is extremely limited and competitive. Seems like ERAU sees the flight team as an opportunity to charge the students for the privilege, as they get more flight time.

We also had a not very positive interaction with the Navy ROTC there that sealed the deal for DD to attend Auburn. DM me if anyone wants details.

This is a great testimonial for perspective students to get boots on ground (in-person) at a university while it's in session, to see if it feels like home, get a feel for the student experience. Thank you for sharing your perspectives and congrats on your DD finding a home at Auburn.

A female pilot can write their own ticket at-present (at the moment and projected for years ahead, all pilots are in very high demand too, but who knows where that pendulum will swing in 2038 or so *if your DD serves as an aviator in the navy after graduation, flight school, and 8 years of service min. Your DD should be in a position to secure scholarships for flight fees if she chooses Professional Flight as her major. Flight fees are not covered by ROTC scholarships. I would also talk with the cadre/ unit at the War Eagle Battalion about how supportive they are of NROTC students pursuing a professional flight degree and ask to speak with a student on this path - flight and ROTC require extensive blocks of time and her flight blocks may overlap with unit events/ training (auburn football game, PT, drill, community, training, etc.). This board often correctly advises that a change in unit leadership can mean a change in this type of support, but I would ask anyway as some schools flat out told us those who have tried have not succeeded in doing both at that school, and that they in NROTC expect to always be the priority, while other/ most units introduced us to people successfully on this path now and offered flexibility.

Lastly, if she opts for professional flight, that is a Tier 2 major, so if she wants to be a Naval Aviator in the Navy, she should focus on excelling in academics (GPA), and earning strong evals in her unit, on the ASTB-E, etc. as she may be competing against Tier 1 (like mechanical engineering et al.) majors which have to some value (closely guarded secret) an advantage in service selection. It seems peculiar that a proven commercial pilot with 300-800 flight hours would be at a disadvantage to being selected to be a Navy pilot, but it's not a Tier 1 major so plan accordingly. I also recommend paying for a Class 1 flight physical completed by a physician and team who does these all day long for the military so you know up-front if there are any conditions that would preclude her from serving as a pilot for the airlines or military - better to know now vs after spending so many years training.

 

[Toolman002]

Update!
We visited both Auburn University and Embry-Riddle in Daytona last week.

DD has decided on Auburn University! It was one form (Placement Change Request) + one day for the Navy scholarship folks in Pensacola to move her scholarship placement from Purdue University to Auburn. Very Easy, but I suppose it gets more difficult as the programs fill in.

Auburn: We are thrilled she chose Auburn. The campus is clean, academics great, and school spirit spills over. We learned that the Navy ROTC Battalion at Auburn groups together with Tuskegee ROTC in the next town over. Awesome history there with the aviation program starting during WWII. They have brand new buildings, lots of new modern classrooms for the students, a simulator and their fleet of 32 planes looks totally cool on the flight line with "WAR EAGLE" painted on the noses. The new recreation facility looks fantastic and is nearby to the ROTC building. The 40-person student Hot Tub in the shape of a tiger paw by the Rec Center was a little over the top. DD loves the opportunities there for her to participate in the flight team, and to perform color guard at football games.

At ERAU we took the Aviation/Aeronautics tour. Fantastic facilities, and their classrooms, planes and simulators seemed numerous and top notch. Small campus, but newer dorms and a new Rec Center facility as well. NEGATIVES: Many. First the campus looks less like a campus and more like a part of EPCOT center at Disney World, or a futuristic shopping mall. It's surrounded by parking lots, which was a big "UGH" factor for my daughter. ERAU has recently built a three story parking garage on the south end of campus to alleviate the parking issue, but based on our inability to find a spot to park for over 15 minutes and students in cars actually following students leaving classrooms to get their spot, they need to build three more parking garages. I also want to say, as a parent, the average age of the students appears to be older, 21, 22 or so. I get the feeling there is a lot of ex-military students using their benefits there. The classrooms I poked my head into were overcrowded. No individual desks, just 5-6 students sitting around tables. Also, a high percentage of the students appear to be Internationals - not a big deal for attendance, but several we saw with Instructor Jackets on overheard speaking with not so great English/Heavy Accents. These are the instructors students need to learn from. Also - the student population here is way skewed towards males. I am not sure what ERAU discloses on their many mailings, but I thought the ratio was something like 9:1 male:female, which is a lot different from what you see on pictures on their website. Our tour guide was so-so on ERAU. He said he wasn't sure he would do it over again at that school, although he is on his way to OCS in June after graduation. Lastly, participation on the flight team is extremely limited and competitive. Seems like ERAU sees the flight team as an opportunity to charge the students for the privilege, as they get more flight time.

We also had a not very positive interaction with the Navy ROTC there that sealed the deal for DD to attend Auburn. DM me if anyone wants details.

Welcome to the cadre of future Auburn NROTC parents! It's interesting that our ERAU experience was similar to yours (even though we did engineering instead of aviation).