Virginia Tech graduate / Active Duty

a_tx_vol

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My son was accepted to VTech, yesterday. I assume upon the successful completion of the ROTC program and graduation you are guaranteed active duty (Army) since VT is a SMC, right?
 
As long as he gets the PMS' recommendation for active duty.
 
My son was accepted to VTech, yesterday. I assume upon the successful completion of the ROTC program and graduation you are guaranteed active duty (Army) since VT is a SMC, right?

As mentioned above, cadets at SMC's need to have the recommendation of the PMS to assess to Active Duty, if the cadet is above the Active Duty cutoff then it is pretty much automatic. If a SMC cadet is below the cutoff then that recommendation is much more important. Last year 105 cadets commissioned Active Duty from SMC's that were below the cutoff, that was a pretty high number considering there are only 6 SMC's

PMS's have been told to take a harder look at cadets at SMC's that fall below the Active Duty cutoff line in the future, some will be forced Reserves/NG.

The best thing your son can do is work hard to be above the cutoff so he does not have to worry about Active Duty.
 
Does the same apply to NROTC MO? Will my DS have any better shot at active duty at VT than another school with NROTC? He wishes to be a Marine Infantry Officer. He was accepted at VT (and Corps of Cadets), South Carolina, Miami OH, Penn State, and Rutgers, (JMU also but off the table since no NROTC) into College of Engineering and Computing for each as a Computer Science major. Still waiting on National NROTC scholarship decision. South Carolina has given him the most money ($60K), Miami is next with $36K. VT is last with $12.5 for the ELS. He does not want to go to Penn St or Rutgers (unless he gets NROTC scholarship to one of those units and cannot transfer it). VT is the most expensive option right now given the current scholarships but I'd rather he make the best choice for what he wants to do rather than make a decision on $$ alone. Any advice?
 
Does not apply for NROTC. Those on scholarship for NROTC and NROTC MO are guaranteed active duty as they complete the requirements for commissioning as outlined in their contract. If someone is in NROTC as a college programmer (non-scholarship) they must receive advance standing to continue on their Junior Year. This will guarantee them active duty, there is no reserve commissioning option for NROTC or NROTC MO.
 
gurba, recommend you find kinnem on this forum. His DS is a senior at USC and was a college programmer who received a in school scholarship. He will commission this spring in the Marine Corps. He is a great resource for questions and all things USC.
 
Yes, it's true. I'm biased! :) I do think S Carolina has a great NROTC unit. $60K is a lot of money to get from S Carolina so it sounds like he could probably attend without the scholarship, but as my son proved, it is possible to get a side-load scholarship there (although it is a national competition, so where probably has little to do with it). The Marine Officer Instructor the past 3 years has been excellent but they will be getting a new one next year.

As NavyHoops pointed out, everyone goes active duty in the Navy and Marine Corps.

Feel free to PM me if you have any questions you want to ask about S Carolina or my son's experience with NROTC MO.
 
Thanks NavyHoops! We have visited VT already but DS is doing Stay the Night program 4/13-14. Kinnem, we will be visiting USC on 4/20. Staying at the Courtyard Marriott on campus. Campus tour and CEC tour are scheduled. I've asked my son to contact MOI to try and arrange a meeting with someone. 4/21 we will be in Oxford to do the same at Miami. 4/22 will be decision day. :) We both look forward to our visit to USC. We've heard great things so far. USC is currently the least expensive option of his top 3 schools. My wife is a Hokie so she is biased also. Very stressful time but it will all be decided by 5/1 one way or another. Yes, without the NROTC scholarship he will be a college programmer at the school he chooses. Looks like for a college programmer there is still an application? Do the CP apps get rejected often?
 
Yes there is still an application for a college programmer. The normal process, as far as I can tell, is to contact the cadre at the school your DS plans to attend and let them know you are interested in being a college programmer in their unit. They'll send you the necessary paperwork, including the application and information on NROTC freshman orientation over the summer. There is also a physical required they will send the forms for. It's really no more than what one does to participate in sports in high school. I suppose technically a CP app could be rejected, but I've yet to hear of it.

In case you don't have it the NROTC contact info for S Carolina can be found here: http://www.sc.edu/nrotc/contact.html
Try the email and all phone numbers until you reach someone. The AMOI probably can't help much by phone but he can grab the MOI and give him your phone number or something. Any of the other advisers could help as well.

If for some reason you are unable to contact anyone, at least stop by the unit at 513 Pickens St and wander the halls. You'll probably bump into someone at at least get to check out part of the digs.
 
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