ROTC or JMC

Momintexas

5-Year Member
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Sep 11, 2013
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My son is a senior in hs and wants a military focused college life. He wants to attend a SMS but does not have the grades to get in just yet so we're looking into JMC for a year to get his grades up then reapply to a SMS. The other option is to attend a college with a strong ROTC program but so far the programs at schools he can get into are small (15 - 20 people). We live in Texas but can also go out of state. He's not 100% sure if he wants to ultimately commission or not - he needs to experience ROTC/Core first. Right now our focus is on NMMI and UNG. Does anyone have any insight or opinions on this?
 
You might want to post this question under the Public/Private forums (right below ROTC) on the home page.

Overalll, I am just a little confused. He's not sure he wants to commission, but he wants to go to an SMC? SMC's are as close to living an SA life as one can get.

Just my 0.1974253 cents, but I would look into a college he wants to attend even if the dets are small. If he decides to not do ROTC after his freshmen yr. then he is still happy at his school. If he decides to do it, but wants an SMC experience he can transfer to an SMC the next yr. with credits going with him to keep him on track.

One thing is you did not say which branch, because my opinion about transferring probably would change if you said AFROTC
 
My son is a senior in hs and wants a military focused college life. He wants to attend a SMS but does not have the grades to get in just yet so we're looking into JMC for a year to get his grades up then reapply to a SMS. The other option is to attend a college with a strong ROTC program but so far the programs at schools he can get into are small (15 - 20 people). We live in Texas but can also go out of state. He's not 100% sure if he wants to ultimately commission or not - he needs to experience ROTC/Core first. Right now our focus is on NMMI and UNG. Does anyone have any insight or opinions on this?

I would tend to agree with PIMA on this one.

If your son attends at JMC and joins ROTC they are geared toward ECP (Early Commissioning Program) Your son would attend LTC ( A course to catch them up on the first two years of ROTC) then start ROTC as a MS3, this would mean your son would be contracted and obligated from day one.

I'm not sure if you can attend a JMC, do ROTC and not be a ECP.

Don't let the size of the battalion be an issue, there is nothing wrong with a small battalion, they can sometimes be beneficial.

Going to a traditional college will allow your sone to experience ROTC with no obligation for the first two years. Your son will get a chance to see if this is something he wants without being immersed in a 24/7 military lifestyle, a chance to get his feet wet. He will have a chance to interact with the upperclassmen in a less strict environment and get a chance to see what ROTC is like from start to finish.

65% of ROTC is within the cadets control, GPA and APFT (Physical Fitness), it doesn't matter what school or the battalion size. LDAC (The summer Assesment Course) is attended by all cadets including SMC's, this accounts for 18%. The rest involves an assesment from the battalion, sometimes a smaller battalion will give cadets more opportunities for early leadership roles and a closer relationship with the cadre. Larger battalions are fine as well, just don't be wary of smaller battalions.

It is less about a Strong ROTC program, and more about being a strong cadet in any program.
 
You might want to post this question under the Public/Private forums (right below ROTC) on the home page.

Overalll, I am just a little confused. He's not sure he wants to commission, but he wants to go to an SMC? SMC's are as close to living an SA life as one can get.

Just my 0.1974253 cents, but I would look into a college he wants to attend even if the dets are small. If he decides to not do ROTC after his freshmen yr. then he is still happy at his school. If he decides to do it, but wants an SMC experience he can transfer to an SMC the next yr. with credits going with him to keep him on track.

+1

It's about time you got a raise, Pima.
 
Maybe I just don't understand the part where he definitely wants a military college lifestyle but not necessarily a commission. That to me is like a lot of pain with no gain. I understand SMCs have a lot of students who choose not to commission but why he would cancel out the traditional college experience (and take the SMC route but not pursue a commission) kind of baffles me. To each their own I suppose.

Unless a battalion is really really bad, the individual program size will not hurt the him. In fact it might help him stand out as a leader.

I understand he wants the military lifestyle but I feel you should push him towards ROTC just so he can get the feel of the military without living it 24/7. At the end of 4 years its not the military college lifestyle that matters, it's the commission. Easing him into it might be better than scaring him off with a SMC or JMC experience. While he might say he wants the experience he truly doesn't know till hes there.
 
Agree, attend the college that best fits you.

Yes you can attend a JMC without going ECP but the scholarships opportunities for doing so are limited and mainly scholastic/athletic. They will push the ECP program as thats what they are geared towards and the money is there right now.

DS attends a JMC and there are plenty of non-scholarship MSI's and II's that are just taking ROTC to see if they like it.
 
If your son is interested in the SMC's but you don't think he has the grades/scores to get in, have you looked at Texas A&M? They have the Blinn Team http://blinnteam.tamu.edu/. You can be on the Blinn Team and be a part of the Corps. It is a bit of a back door into TAMU.
 
^ I don't think Texas A&M is that easy to get into... you still need at least a B+ average, don't you?

*edit* maybe not. I took a look at the student profile, and while there are a lot of straight A students (especially in Engineering), there are also a lot of B and B- students at A&M.
 
^ I don't think Texas A&M is that easy to get into... you still need at least a B+ average, don't you?
You have to get a 3.0 at Blinn. I don't know what it takes to get accepted to Blinn Team. The Corps can also council on some other ways to get in, including transferring from Galveston. If you attend one of their events they talk a bunch about the other options. May be worth a call.
 
Thanks everyone. You guys are incredibly helpful!

He got interested in ROTC by participating in a weekend at UNG for their National Leadership program when he was a jr. in high school. After that, he decided he wants to attend UNG because 1) they have both civilian and cadet students 2) a respected and strong Core of Cadets and 3) the school is academically strong and 4) you can participate in the program all 4 years and then decide to commission or get a civilian job after graduation. My understanding is that UNG offers both a traditional college life combined with the military training - so it's not so hard core 100% military 24/7 as the Citadel, VMI, etc.

If he can't get the grades to get into UNG, then NMMI is a considered route to get there. One year at NMMI to get his grades then transfer to UNG. You don't have to participate in the ECP to do ROTC at NMMI.

Do you have any opinions of other JMC?

Interesting you all say ROTC size isn't important - and that it could actually be a positive if it's smaller. I did not realize that - so thanks.

Any other thoughts or ideas?
 
Thanks everyone. You guys are incredibly helpful!

He got interested in ROTC by participating in a weekend at UNG for their National Leadership program when he was a jr. in high school. After that, he decided he wants to attend UNG because 1) they have both civilian and cadet students 2) a respected and strong Core of Cadets and 3) the school is academically strong and 4) you can participate in the program all 4 years and then decide to commission or get a civilian job after graduation. My understanding is that UNG offers both a traditional college life combined with the military training - so it's not so hard core 100% military 24/7 as the Citadel, VMI, etc.

If he can't get the grades to get into UNG, then NMMI is a considered route to get there. One year at NMMI to get his grades then transfer to UNG. You don't have to participate in the ECP to do ROTC at NMMI.

Do you have any opinions of other JMC?

Interesting you all say ROTC size isn't important - and that it could actually be a positive if it's smaller. I did not realize that - so thanks.

Any other thoughts or ideas?

I agree with others comments on ROTC. Just wanted to point out that another school to possibly keep in mind that has a program similar to UNG is VA Tech. VA Tech has a Corps of Cadets with both a civilian and a ROTC path. I think the Corps of Cadets is about 10% of the entire student body but could be incorrect on that.
 
The Citadel also isn't hard to get into. The grads on here hate me for saying so but it's true.

"Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it everywhere, diagnosing it incorrectly and applying the wrong remedies." - Sir Ernest Benn
 
As a VT Mom (not ROTC), I would not look into VT if your grades and scores are not strong.

By law VA public colleges cannot accept more than 30% from OOS. The avg SAT score for IS acceptance is @1280 if I recall correctly. In VA for the avg student VT is one that is on every ones list for their top choices. be it safety, matchor reach. Our DD will graduate this yr. Her yr group had 33,000 applicants for @4500 spots. In 5 yrs VT has taken a total of @100 students off their wait list. Several yrs it was 0.

Additionally, like any SMC you can be in the Corps and not required to be in ROTC. However, if you are in ROTC you MUST be in the Corps too. That means more mandated time away from studying.

They have their own separate dorms, and with it as freshmen they are allowed specific items. I.E. I am pretty sure, no tv or fridges are allowed. They also have no notice room inspections.

As an OOS from TX, I would think TAMU would be easier to gain admittance than VT.
 
The other option is to attend a college with a strong ROTC program but so far the programs at schools he can get into are small (15 - 20 people).

North Georgia Military College is the SMC with the lowest ACT/GPA.
It a good 4 year college, with a very large all Army ROTC program. Its also affordable for OOS. AROTC there has lots of military extra-curricular activities.
I think you need about a 21 ACT 2.0-2.5 GPA.

Just another option.
 
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