Getting into NROTC

[Navyfan06]

Personally I dont feel that the university you go to really matters. Its just your grades, ranking ect. That being said I would start off in a school with NROTC. The reason why I said this is that I could see a unit putting up a person for a two year scholarship, who has been there for two years and made the grades at that school vice a transfer student who hasent been involved with the unit. Just my .02

 

[ea6bflyr]

Thanks to all who have posted.

I have a couple more questions:
(1) Can i go to a Junior College first, and then March in my Sophomore year apply for a two year scholarship to a University that has NROTC?
Or should i go to an average/good school(like San diego state) that has nrotc right off the bat? I have decent grades(3.66) but i would like to go to a JC first and the apply to the University of California San diego(much better than San diego state). I have found out that UCSD and San Diego state are cross-town affiliates according to this website:https://www.nrotc.navy.mil/colleges.cfm.

If you do attend JR College prior to an NROTC host University, then you'll have to apply for a 2 year scholarship or Advanced standing. If you take this route, you CANNOT do anything with the NROTC for the first two years, then apply during the last part of your Sophomore year. Some of the things to help you succeed are CALCULUS (I & II)....you will not get selected for a two year scholarship without it (It's a requirement to have CALC completed prior to the end of your Sophomore year).

You might be able to attend the NROTC Naval Science classes, but you will have to check with the NROTC to see if they'll let JR college types participate.

Call the Recruiting Officer at the NROTC and ask him/her these very questions...they WILL have some key insight into the program.

Good Luck...
ea6bflyr

 

[bunk22]

If you do attend JR College prior to an NROTC host University, then you'll have to apply for a 2 year scholarship or Advanced standing. If you take this route, you CANNOT do anything with the NROTC for the first two years, then apply during the last part of your Sophomore year. Some of the things to help you succeed are CALCULUS (I & II)....you will not get selected for a two year scholarship without it (It's a requirement to have CALC completed prior to the end of your Sophomore year).

Things must have changed since my time. I picked up a two-year scholarship without any calculus or physics prior. I was a colleg programer before that though. The year of calculus and physics put me behind two quarters, causing me to graduate a half-year late.

 

[Crowbar]

Going to a junior/community college for two years can definitely help you out financially, but if you pick up with an NROTC unit with two years to go, expect to be behind the curve. Instead of having 3 years of observed reports and evals, when your graduation time comes, there will only be a year or so of evaluated time for them to make their decisions on. No I'm not talking about going to school and being a kiss ass. I'm talking about going and working hard, learning what you need to learn those first two years, making your freshman mistakes in your freshman vice junior year, and setting a baseline for yourself to be evaluated against your peers.

 

[ea6bflyr]

If you do get the 2-Year scholarship, expect to go to Newport, RI for Naval Science Institute (NSI) for 6.5 weeks or so. This will give you the Freshman and Sophomore Naval Science so you will only have to take your Junior and Senior years of Naval Science before graduation and commissioning. You will be behind a bit but you can pick it up quickly.

ea6bflyr

Bunk: the Navy really pushes the Calc requirement....I only saw one guy get a 2 year scholarship without finishing his Calc requirement (he was taking it during the summer...so he really would finish it prior to the start of his JR year). Advanced Standing is a different program and CALC is not required...

 

[bunk22]

Bunk: the Navy really pushes the Calc requirement....I only saw one guy get a 2 year scholarship without finishing his Calc requirement (he was taking it during the summer...so he really would finish it prior to the start of his JR year). Advanced Standing is a different program and CALC is not required...

I gotcha. I was a college programer with no prior calculus and picked up a 2-year scholarship. Just means anything can happen I suppose.

 

[sh89]

Do you recommend not going to a JC and then applying for a two year scholarship?

The school that i want to go to( University of California San Diego), is part of the NROTC(said correctly?) program of 6 other schools in san Diego.

 

[bunk22]

Do you recommend not going to a JC and then applying for a two year scholarship?

The school that i want to go to( University of California San Diego), is part of the NROTC(said correctly?) program of 6 other schools in san Diego.

IMO, I would try to go the College Program route with a said school and keep applying for a scholarship. One thing that helped a sorry sap like me get a scholarship was a good recommendation from my NROTC unit. I spent two years trying to establish myself as a mid and get the backing of my unit.

 

[ea6bflyr]

If you are still in HS, then apply for the 4 year scholarship at https://www.nrotc.navy.mil. If you don't get the scholarship, you can either goto a NROTC Host university and participate in the "College Program" and apply for a 3 year scholarship after the first semester (and after the second if you don't get picked up after the first) OR you can goto JR College and apply to a 2 year scholarship. Where are you currently? Are you still in HS, or have you started JR college? It's never too late to apply for the scholarship. One of my students took a year off and then applied for the next year's scholarship and we selected.

ea6bflyr

 

[sh89]

I am currently a Junior in hs, with a gpa of 3.66 so far.

Also, would it be better to: go to a junior college, then to a good university, take all of the required classes, and then apply for OCS?

 

[Cougar_62]

Flight Training?

SO you join a NROTC unit at one of the following colleges(https://www.nrotc.navy.mil/colleges.cfm) that offers flight training,correct? Also, how well you do in college,in NROTC,and on the ASTB determines if you get a pilot slot, correct?

When should i start contacting/applying for NROTC?

Thanks

SH89, I noticed in your original post you asked about flight training at an ROTC unit. Unless you are at Embry-Riddle or one of the schools that really concentrates on flying you won't get any flight training until you get picked for flight training after college. Anybody else out there with more experience correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[ChuckMK23]

This has been an issue since before I even joined the navy in '92. Tech major or non-tech major....who has the better advantage? The gouge I had back in the day was that you had to go to the Naval Academy AND major in Aero engineering in order to get a pilot slot. ROTC just wasn't going to cut it. The reality is it simply doesn't matter. The majority of SNA/SNFO selectees I've known have not bee tech major, including myself. This of course is all unofficial. What matters is your GPA, ASTB scores, and how badly the Navy needs Pilots and/or NFO's.

Agreed - but in the end the statistics take care of themsleves. If you enter an officer ascession (spell check that pls) program as a unrestricted line officer (NROTC, USNA, etc) and are physically qualified, and generally don't appear to be incompatible with duties involving flying as far as aptitude go, you will get selected for an 1390/SNA slot upon commissioning. There are too many people who generally WANT to be Nuke, SWO, Sub, SEAL, etc that it usually just comes down to are you physically qualed?

Stay healthy, have a modicum of academic success and if your eyes are ok you will fly.

 

[USN99]

Sage wisdom

Sorry to keep harping on the tech-degree thing. They do encourage it, but FlyNova is right - don't do it just to get a pilot slot.

Do something you enjoy. Two reasons:

1 - You will work harder (and do better) with something you enjoy.

2 - The Navy won't always be there. I know plenty of people who thought they would spend a career in the Navy but wind up leaving (most of them not by choice) in as little as six months after starting active duty. They were lumped in with everyone who had just graduated college by employers and are using their degree as a civilian.

Food for thought...

Snizo is so right. Solid advice. Qualifies as retainable wisdom.