Question for female ROTC cadets (or former cadets)

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PRBWJB

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My dd will graduate HS in May 2022. She has a desire to go to a university out of state and we have always told her that if she goes out of state, she will have to find a way to pay for anything over and above what it will cost her to go in state. She was all-in on the ROTC option until the time to start filling out he application. Now, she's hung up on the concern that she won't be able to be able to have a "normal" college experience. She currently attends a military prep school and wears a uniform to school and cannot have crazy hair or nails. She's Uber-conservative, so she never would wear crazy hair or nails, she just wants the option (I guess).

As a female cadet, do you still feel like a normal college student? Were you stared at every time you walked across campus in uniform? Do you have non-ROTC female friends? Do you feel that the other female ROTC members are just as driven academically as you are?

My daughter is an excellent student, has a great deal of leadership and is loved by her teachers. She can't stand "bubble-headed" girls and wants to be around others with the same work-ethic and goals. I see ROTC as being a perfect fit, but she needs convincing. Any insight is appreciated.
 
My daughter just graduated from a rigorous university and AFROTC. She was actively involved in a sorority, had time for a job, and hung out with mostly non-ROTC friends. Two of those are her best friends now and they've traveled a lot during breaks. So yes, one can easily lead a normal college life. And ROTC will offer excellent leadership opportunties.
As for other female students, there are varying types of males and females at every college. Maybe she should focus on selective schools like MIT, Stanford, GA Tech, Rice, the Ivies, etc. that have low admissions rates and avoid the schools known for partying and admit most applicants. Then again, maybe a school like that would be a good avenue for her to open her social circles.
Good luck!
 
PRBWJB said:
She can't stand "bubble-headed" girls and wants to be around others with the same work-ethic and goals.
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Keep in mind as a military officer, she will be likely in charge of leading many such bubble-heads of both genders.

Having some experience living and studying with said bubble-heads can help better understand, lead and counsel them.

My DS, an Army 1LT, has in his brief military career has already found himself having to dig a few soldiers, who were lacking common sense, out of trouble.

His experience as an ROTC cadet attending a large flagship state university for four years, while serving rude people at a restaurant, and teaching snow-boarding lessons to over indulged kids no doubt came in handy in dealing with leadership challenges. :)
 
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Encourage her to keep all her options open, ROTC Scholarship too. If given school based scholarships or grants that get her to your $ threshold to attend then she could decline the ROTC scholarship. Apply to out of state schools that are known to provide significant aid based on merit if she might meet the criteria... Alabama provides significant aid based on good standardized test scores for example. Apply to out of state private schools that seek geographic diversity and good (not great) standardized test scores.

Our daughter, now on active duty, found ample time to be a college student. Her pursuit of medicine as a profession interfered more than ROTC with her time as a regular student.
 
My DD is currently out of state(DC). She has friends both in NROTC and in the general univ. She has a lot of social time. However, even when not in uniform, I dont think she believes it would be great to go to far out of standard (hair and nails). Also at least 1 month every summer will be active duty so there's that to consider regarding college life.
 
I can only speak for Army. My DD is a 2LT, she went to a private university, we always told our kids the same that we were prepared to pay for an in state public university anything above and beyond was up to them. That was not her reason for pursuing ROTC and a national scholarship, she had always wanted to serve in the Army since middle school, even though we have no military in our family. She had a normal college experience with some differences of course. They had to wear her uniform on Thursday’s which is the day they had lab. She lived on campus all four years because the school waived room and board for Army and AF scholarship recipients. Her junior and senior year she lived in an apartment on campus with 4 other ROTC female cadets ROTC student her junior year (they were all seniors) and then 3 different ROTC cadets her senior year. They are her best friends still and about half are nurses and half are line officers like herself. Her freshman and sophomore year her roommate was not in ROTC, so she saw that experienice too. She loved having a normal college experience and also being apart of ROTC. While it is different in some ways, it was similar to her two sisters being NCAA athletes, they were college students and had the built in community of their teams as athletes. Yes some of their commitments (both ROTC and athletics) might limit some things they can do as a student, however also offers so much more of what they get to experience in addition to what every one else did. My DD still volunteered, was a nanny, involved with church, travelled on vacations during breaks, just like in high school and participated in some school extra curriculars, maintained good grades, and also excelled in ROTC. So far she is loving her career, and wouldn’t change a thing!

One thing for your DD to remember, even with a scholarship in hand, she can participate as a freshman with no obligation to the Army until the first day of sophomore year, prior to then she can leave with no obligation.
 
She will definitely have a normal college experience along with the time she spends at Rotc. While my son didn't join a fraternity, one of his non-Rotc roommates did and my son would tag along with him to a lot of fraternity parties. Can it be tough to do both a sorority and rotc, sure especially when she is a freshman. The is more of a time obligation the first year for both sororities and ROTC. My son was Arnold Air while he did AFRotc. Its like a fraternity for the Air Force Rotc, While Arnold Air compliments Rotc, it is very time-consuming especially when you join because its basically like joining a fraternity. The other part of the equation however is how many classes she will be taking and how much free time will she have. The truth is the Rotc adds to college life, It doesn't take away from it.
 
Can I play devil's advocate for a second? What if she goes out of state and isn't convinced that ROTC is her path? Will you be able to spot her the out-of-state difference if the first year was funded with ROTC money? Will she just transfer back to something more affordable in-state or what if she really likes the out of state school but can't afford it without ROTC?

I ask because we are in a similar situation. My son's school doesn't have JROTC, so he hasn't truly gotten to experience any of the reasons why my experience in JROTC was a suggestion for my son to look into ROTC for himself. He wants to travel the world, eagerly seeks leadership development, and has a great deal of pride in wanting to serve his country. However, he is very skeptical of going to an out-of-state or private school that he cannot afford without ROTC. He is still going to apply to those, in case he has a change of heart in his continued research, but those will not be on the top of his list. His top schools will be in-state or affordable without ROTC in the picture. Just in case, as he says, "I'm not hoorah enough."
 
milmomsomeday said:
Just in case, as he says, "I'm not hoorah enough."
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If it helps, my kids are not the hoorah type and all three never experienced that at their AFROTC units. Maybe a kid or two. But they went to "regular" schools and not the corp of cadet type schools (no criticism intended). And they were/are in very successful detachments.
 
unkown1961 said:
If it helps, my kids are not the hoorah type and all three never experienced that at their AFROTC units. Maybe a kid or two. But they went to "regular" schools and not the corp of cadet type schools (no criticism intended). And they were/are in very successful detachments.
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That's EXACTLY what I hope to hear from his experience as well. He just can't see it yet. Thanks for your input. That is very reassuring.
 
milmomsomeday said:
That's EXACTLY what I hope to hear from his experience as well. He just can't see it yet. Thanks for your input. That is very reassuring.
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Yes, that isn't my son either. Never a hoorah type. He actually got in trouble for it when he played High School baseball. He was a pitcher and when he was in the dugout, he sat and watched the game. He wasn't the guy screaming and cheering his teammates on. That isn't how he acts. He ate crap from his coach for not cheering his friends on. What the coach didn't know is that when my son's fellow pitchers screwed up with some of them tearing up in the dugout, he was the guy trying to make them feel better about themselves and not worry about having a bad game.
 
My DD will be attending an out of state school on an AROTC scholarship. She will have another first year female AROTC roommate. This is not a corps of cadets school.

I also commissioned through AROTC many years ago and can attest that all of my fellow cadets had lives both in an out of AROTC. Although, for two of my summers, I spent most of my time with AROTC.

ROTC is a great college experience, and I have close AROTC friends that I have continued to keep in contact over the years, even after I left the Army. Your DD will have a great experience. I wish her the best.
 
I was in AROTC in college on scholarship and had a lot of time to do all the normal things - joined a sorority, had an on-campus job, gave tours of the college to prospective students. I had an easy major so that gave me extra time to do everything I wanted to do. I wore my uniform once a week, had PT at 6:00 a.m. 3 time a week. I excelled academically, had a great social life and was at the top of my ROTC class. My DD had an NROTC scholarship to a great private school and was a Mechanical Engineering major. She had friends both in NROTC and out of it. She lived on campus all 4 years and was an RA her senior year. She went to the football games and participated in some extra-curriculars. She wasn't into the party scene like I was in college, but more than anything, being an engineer major taking 20+ credit hours per semester, she seemed to have a lot less free time to do more social things. I loved my college experience, as did my DD.
 
I think my DD could be the poster child for the do just about everything to have a great college experience while in ROTC. She considered the USMC but opted not to move forward with that alternative as she was worried that she would not get the full college experience that she was after.

I do think that it helped a lot that she goes to a Div III school. She wanted to participate in varsity athletics (distance running) so she had to get her ROTC scholarship transferred after finding out that ROTC and Div I athletics don't mix well (all the colleges on her ROTC app were Div I). Along with ROTC, she is a 3-sport varsity athlete (XC, indoor and outdoor track) so she trains year round. ROTC has been great in accommodating her athletic schedule and they are fine with it taking priority. In addition, she belongs to a sorority, participated in student government (class rep one year and class president another year), double majors in pre-law and economics, TA for multiple classes, and does waitressing part time. This past year, she became an All-American and Academic All-American athlete. One might think that with all those other activities, her performance in ROTC would suffer but somehow she manages to balance it all and was selected as Battalion Commander and has big plans for that role in her upcoming senior year.

Best of luck to your daughter in whatever she chooses.
 
PRBWJB said:
My dd will graduate HS in May 2022. She has a desire to go to a university out of state and we have always told her that if she goes out of state, she will have to find a way to pay for anything over and above what it will cost her to go in state. She was all-in on the ROTC option until the time to start filling out he application. Now, she's hung up on the concern that she won't be able to be able to have a "normal" college experience. She currently attends a military prep school and wears a uniform to school and cannot have crazy hair or nails. She's Uber-conservative, so she never would wear crazy hair or nails, she just wants the option (I guess).

As a female cadet, do you still feel like a normal college student? Were you stared at every time you walked across campus in uniform? Do you have non-ROTC female friends? Do you feel that the other female ROTC members are just as driven academically as you are?

My daughter is an excellent student, has a great deal of leadership and is loved by her teachers. She can't stand "bubble-headed" girls and wants to be around others with the same work-ethic and goals. I see ROTC as being a perfect fit, but she needs convincing. Any insight is appreciated.
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My DD is an AROTC cadet. She is experiencing a normal college experience as an ROTC cadet. Uniforms are not required everyday. For her, she has to wear her uniform to her ROTC classes and her leadership lab. Plus, she is required to wear the Army PT uniform to morning PT, which is 3 days a week. It's not that different than what she experienced in high school. She participated in JROTC in high school, as well as the Sea Cadets. Thus, there were days she had to wear a uniform to school.

My DD reports that everyone is nice, and she doesn't experience students making fun of her or her fellow cadets that wear uniforms on campus, and she attends a private Catholic university in the Midwest.

My DD is on a scholarship, and she, as well as every other cadet in her batallion, is driven to succeed in both academics and leadership.

I recommend that your DD visit a campus on a day in which they have leadership lab.
 
PRBWJB said:
My dd will graduate HS in May 2022. She has a desire to go to a university out of state and we have always told her that if she goes out of state, she will have to find a way to pay for anything over and above what it will cost her to go in state. She was all-in on the ROTC option until the time to start filling out he application. Now, she's hung up on the concern that she won't be able to be able to have a "normal" college experience. She currently attends a military prep school and wears a uniform to school and cannot have crazy hair or nails. She's Uber-conservative, so she never would wear crazy hair or nails, she just wants the option (I guess).

As a female cadet, do you still feel like a normal college student? Were you stared at every time you walked across campus in uniform? Do you have non-ROTC female friends? Do you feel that the other female ROTC members are just as driven academically as you are?

My daughter is an excellent student, has a great deal of leadership and is loved by her teachers. She can't stand "bubble-headed" girls and wants to be around others with the same work-ethic and goals. I see ROTC as being a perfect fit, but she needs convincing. Any insight is appreciated.
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ROTC has been one of the best ways I’ve met students on campus and they are also some of the people I know I can trust. Some of my best friends at my school are ROTC cadets , some of them are guys and it just makes me more comfortable around other guys on campus as well. So ROTC definitely makes it easier to meet people.

If your daughter wants complete freedom, Rotc may not be the right thing for her.

It does add on extra things to her schedule and if she’s competing for a scholarship/ is very focused on her future as an officer, she will be busy. That takes away time to be involved with other things but doesn’t mean it’s not achievable. It’s easy to have non ROTC friends and be involved in other extracurriculars, events, whatever your daughter wants.

She can wear fake nails on break. For certain times are the day she will have to have her hair in military regs but that doesn’t mean she can’t do whatever she wants with her hair at other time. Plus she can wear whatever she wants when she isn’t in uniform. But keep in mind that she’s representing her Battalion and should act accordingly: not overstep boundaries and cross lines.

Like another person in this thread said, ROTC adds to life. it seems like your daughter will have a bright future. She will get the chance to be a normal college student if she does choose to do ROTC.
 
emmarose said:
ROTC has been one of the best ways I’ve met students on campus and they are also some of the people I know I can trust. Some of my best friends at my school are ROTC cadets , some of them are guys and it just makes me more comfortable around other guys on campus as well. So ROTC definitely makes it easier to meet people.

If your daughter wants complete freedom, Rotc may not be the right thing for her.

It does add on extra things to her schedule and if she’s competing for a scholarship/ is very focused on her future as an officer, she will be busy. That takes away time to be involved with other things but doesn’t mean it’s not achievable. It’s easy to have non ROTC friends and be involved in other extracurriculars, events, whatever your daughter wants.

She can wear fake nails on break. For certain times are the day she will have to have her hair in military regs but that doesn’t mean she can’t do whatever she wants with her hair at other time. Plus she can wear whatever she wants when she isn’t in uniform. But keep in mind that she’s representing her Battalion and should act accordingly: not overstep boundaries and cross lines.

Like another person in this thread said, ROTC adds to life. it seems like your daughter will have a bright future. She will get the chance to be a normal college student if she does choose to do ROTC.
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exactly, my son's friends from college were all in AFRtoc and as he was part of Arnold Air. Once he left the dorms he went to live in them in houses that were only rented by members of Arnold Air members. It was basically a fraternity house. Ironically enough, one of his roommates had left AFROTC but since had been accepted to Arnold Air while in Rotc, and as such, he was still considered a member and allowed to live there. It was an interesting path. He was a Professional Fligh major (pilot) and he became friends with the guys in that major. He followed them to AFrotc when they joined although that had always been his intention all along. Some guys quit Rotc and some stayed on. They were always a tight group of friends.
 
My DD is having a normal experience. She doesn't even mind the 5:30 PT...she just crawls back into bed when she's done. The one thing she did point out. Some non-contract freshman thought ROTC would be the easy A. It is far from that and she was surprised how many of them dropped early on. However, that being said, she earned a top 10% ribbon for the semester, which surprised her to no end.
 
Keep in mind convincing someone to apply is one thing.
Getting someone to apply well enough to compete vs. equally qualified candidates- who dream of this opportunity is another.
If your convincing now... will you be there for that 12 mile timed road march?
 
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