Selecting a major AROTC

[Cadet35]

What major is best for an army ROTC student? I know there is no “best”, but what would be most beneficial to a military career? I am not certain of what I want to select for my major in applications, so I thought I would get some positive feedback here.

 

[jimmy3]

I once heard a Special Forces Major say that if he could go back to college he would minor in English due to the amount of reports that he has to write. Don't exactly know how interesting english can get though hahahaha

 

[franknd]

I think the best answer is whatever field you will do the best in, which is probably a mixture of ability (for example, compare your SAT-M and -V scores) and interest. Good grades are more helpful to you as you go through the commissioning process than poor grades, although I "think" there is some allowance for difficulty of major.
I know the SF Major's comments were made in jest, but I actually was an English major, and I know that the ability to write clearly has been extremely important in my career, which went in a different direction after my Army time.

 

[SaltiDawg]

I once heard a Special Forces Major say that if he could go back to college he would minor in English due to the amount of reports that he has to write. Don't exactly know how interesting english can get though hahahaha

This is so true. More of time as a Junior Officer was involved in writing technical reports, personnel performance evaluations, reports of training and financial matters, than technical diagnosis or instruction.

Truth be told, many recent grads of SAs and/or ROTC were ill prepared.

 

[SaltiDawg]

....
I know the SF Major's comments were made in jest, but I actually was an English major, and I know that the ability to write clearly has been extremely important in my career, which went in a different direction after my Army time.

I don't believe for one second that the SF Major's comments were made in jest.

 

[Cadet35]

I once heard a Special Forces Major say that if he could go back to college he would minor in English due to the amount of reports that he has to write. Don't exactly know how interesting english can get though hahahaha

If I major in say engineering and the school I’m applying to with AROTC and a engineering major is very competitive with engineering, should I switch majors to increase my chance of acceptance?

 

[cb7893]

If I major in say engineering and the school I’m applying to with AROTC and a engineering major is very competitive with engineering, should I switch majors to increase my chance of acceptance?

Don't major in Engineering unless you are confident in your Math/Physics skills. Good starting measures would be your SAT/ACT Math score and your HS grades in Calculus, preferably AP Calc. Engineering is notoriously difficult. There are stories of Registrars setting up tables outside Calculus classrooms on the day of first semester final exams for students who want or need to change their majors. Even if you do well, your GPA may not reflect that fact when compared to a less demanding major, which in turn will affect your OML ranking and your chances of getting your preferred Branch.

Engineering majors often allow for few free electives, which means that you would have almost no free electives after accounting for Military Science classes. This will preclude the opportunity to get a minor or even pursue other areas of interest. My son went off to Big 10 State U with intentions of a Chem E major. He had three semesters of college calculus and two of chemistry under his belt before he even started. He loved chemistry and could do math in his sleep. It took about 15 minutes for him to realize that he hated the tedium of engineering and that he had little room in his schedule for foreign language and Computer Science classes. After Freshman year he changed his major to Chemistry and thrived.

Don't get me wrong. You wouldn't be the first AROTC cadet with an Engineering degree to commission, but you would be one of the few. Your best bet is to study what you have a passion for and leaving time for staying in great physical shape. The rest will take care of itself.

As you progress you will develop an idea of which branch appeals to you. The usefulness or relevance of your major to your eventual MOS is a whole other discussion. Generally speaking, it won't matter outside of Nursing or Army Corps of Engineers. Therefore, your best bet is to concentrate on your OML in order to get your desired branch where you will spend the following 4-5 years.

My son branched Signal Corps which has nothing to do with Chemistry other than some basic math. It's all about communications networks. He thrived in it because of the computer science and networking classes he was able to take when he dumped the Chem E major. Last spring he successfully completed Special Forces selection and is in the middle of the Q course. There again, there is only the most tangential connection to Chemistry or communications networking to his future (hopefully) role as an SF Captain.

All along the way, I don't think he ever looked more than about 6 mos. in the future. Instead he kept his focus on what was most fun and challenging at the time. The rest will take care of itself. You should do the same.

Best of Luck!

 

[SaltiDawg]

I defer to the above advice as applied to ARMY ROTC. I have no background in that area.

However as applied to NAVY ROTC I feel the above is not at all on point. Folks that serve on ships after they are Commissioned are way ahed if they have an Engineering background. Not mandatory, for sure, but extremely helpful. The Naval Academy historically was intended to produce unrestricted line officers - eligible to succeed to command at sea - it was exclusively an engineering curriculum.

 

[gill0610]

Don't major in Engineering unless you are confident in your Math/Physics skills. Good starting measures would be your SAT/ACT Math score and your HS grades in Calculus, preferably AP Calc. Engineering is notoriously difficult. There are stories of Registrars setting up tables outside Calculus classrooms on the day of first semester final exams for students who want or need to change their majors. Even if you do well, your GPA may not reflect that fact when compared to a less demanding major, which in turn will affect your OML ranking and your chances of getting your preferred Branch.

Engineering majors often allow for few free electives, which means that you would have almost no free electives after accounting for Military Science classes. This will preclude the opportunity to get a minor or even pursue other areas of interest. My son went off to Big 10 State U with intentions of a Chem E major. He had three semesters of college calculus and two of chemistry under his belt before he even started. He loved chemistry and could do math in his sleep. It took about 15 minutes for him to realize that he hated the tedium of engineering and that he had little room in his schedule for foreign language and Computer Science classes. After Freshman year he changed his major to Chemistry and thrived.

Don't get me wrong. You wouldn't be the first AROTC cadet with an Engineering degree to commission, but you would be one of the few. Your best bet is to study what you have a passion for and leaving time for staying in great physical shape. The rest will take care of itself.

As you progress you will develop an idea of which branch appeals to you. The usefulness or relevance of your major to your eventual MOS is a whole other discussion. Generally speaking, it won't matter outside of Nursing or Army Corps of Engineers. Therefore, your best bet is to concentrate on your OML in order to get your desired branch where you will spend the following 4-5 years.

My son branched Signal Corps which has nothing to do with Chemistry other than some basic math. It's all about communications networks. He thrived in it because of the computer science and networking classes he was able to take when he dumped the Chem E major. Last spring he successfully completed Special Forces selection and is in the middle of the Q course. There again, there is only the most tangential connection to Chemistry or communications networking to his future (hopefully) role as an SF Captain.

All along the way, I don't think he ever looked more than about 6 mos. in the future. Instead he kept his focus on what was most fun and challenging at the time. The rest will take care of itself. You should do the same.

Best of Luck!

DS is thriving as an MS3 majoring in engineering. Does he have a 4.0? No, of course not. But he has great grades plus gets extra OML points due to the difficulty of his degree. That said it’s certainly not for everyone and you need to be prepared to study your butt off if you want to keep your grades up.

 

[franknd]

Let me try this a different way. With respect to Army ROTC, an engineering major won't make any difference for you unless you want Corps of Engineers. And I don't think (although I'm not certain) it will even help you get a scholarship, which stands in contrast to how other services treat engineering vis a vis scholarships.
If you struggle with engineering, it will affirmatively hurt you. Now if you want to major in engineering independent of military service and have an aptitude for it, that's a different story. But that isn't clear from your posts.