NROTC scholarship VT major approved by advisor and naval ambassador, now saying it's not.Told to change major or lose scholarship.

[Milliesson]

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[USMAROTCFamily]

Is the issue that he was awarded a Tier 1 scholarship and his major is not considered Tier 1? My DD had a Tier 1 engineering scholarship and to graduate in 4 years she did typically have to take 20+ hours every single semester and she did do 1 summer session while home around her summer NROTC training. I can tell you that it was not fun, and she didn't have a lot of free time, but she got it done. We found that Navy was not as accommodating to extend scholarship to lessen the course-load, while AROTC seemed to have no problem extending engineering program scholarship awards to 5 years. She did have classmates who were awarded Tier 1 scholarships and signed up for that course-work year 1 of college, then had some success changing to Tier 2 majors after the first year and some even after 2nd year.

 

[GWU PNS (emeritus)]

There is a lot to unpack here, and whenever there is a Cadet Corps, things get confusing.

When the NROTC scholarship application went through, is it true that the major listed on the application is the same one that he currently has? Is that Tier 1 or 2 or 3?

What was the specific reason given that NROTC would not accept the current major? Is it because of a Tier shift, or because it would require an extra semester, or something else?

The NROTC scholarship covers tuition and fees, so I am not sure where the leadership scholarship is coming from. Does that pay room and board? Are there additional requirements for the leadership scholarship?

If the LT Ambassador states NROTC would cover an extra semester, I am struggling to figure out why any university would say no or state they don't do that. It's just extra money for them.

So for me this is just a confusing post that needs more background for a better answer. Best thing is to have him ask to meet with the unit XO or PNS to get a better explanation. But this just doesn't sound like it's the whole story somehow.

 

[Impulsive]

See attached screenshots

I hate to hear things like this if what you are saying is true. But I agree with @GWU PNS in that we are missing something. It is unusual for a a school to approve a schedule without one of the NROTC Advisors reviewing it, and discussing it with the Midn. It should have been caught up front, but it sounds like bad communication between the Midn and his NROTC Cadre. NROTC has pretty stringent requirements regarding scholarships, if you accept a Tier I, but then enter college in a different non-Tier I major, it is going to cause issues. Hopefully, your DS/DD can work and resolve this issue with their Cadre.

I can tell you from personal experience with our son, that 20+ credit hours per semester is not uncommon with many engineering majors, plus ROTC courses and functions. And YES, it is EXTEMELY DIFFICULT to complete, especially on time, and NROTC generally does not give extensions for 5yr courses of study if not approved in advance. VT having a "Corps" should help in that they should have tutors and extra help available that smaller units do not.

 

[MohawkArmyROTC]

I am AROTC, but I expect that NROTC is similar to AROTC in that a cadet can take an extra semester to graduate, just that in most cases they wouldn't receive an extension of benefits for the extra semester(s).

Why is the school saying he can't take any extra semester to graduate? That doesn't seem right, as most college students take more than 4yrs to graduate. Almost every year, we have at least one cadet shift their graduation/commissioning to right, because of needing an extra semester to graduate. Usually for engineers, or former engineering majors needing to accommodate a change in major.

 

[GWU PNS (emeritus)]

I sort of thought the OP would fill in a few more details by now, but perhaps they are getting clarification.