I talked to both army and air force rotc professors today before scheduling classes for the coming semesters.  Unit integrity and close-knit leadership seemed a whole lot more prevalent in the Army rather than the "lead from distance" ideas that the Air Force prof described; that's what drew me into the Army.  
MS 111a and MS 112b are on the list.  

are you getting a scholarship?

Was Naval ROTC with a Marine option not offered at your school?


Scott

i got an academic scholarship but no ROTC scholarship (didn't apply).  No navy here...

Don't do it! Not Army!

The Army ROTC scholarship is pretty strong in that it pays for all your tuition, fees, books, dorm, and give you $100/mo (may be more now, this was in the dark ages).  That's a pretty good scholarship.  The obligation is a year or two more than non-scholarship, but you wind up with more that any of that anyway if you do any kind of useful job.  Hell, I had to give six back just to go to flight school.

I didn't go scholarship, as my grades sucked, and I was already enlisted and in a USAR unit, so I didn't want to change that.  Unfortunately Navy and USMC PLC aren't offered in as many places as Army/Air Force ROTC is.  More choices are always better, but Army isn't all bad[:)]

The Army gets about 75% of it's officer corps from ROTC, only about 20% from USMA, and the other 5% from OCS/direct commision.  There's been alot of changes in the Officer Personel Managment System that really did away with alot of the USMA being favored.  I was RA even though I was commisioned as a reservist to begin with, and in the end there wasn't any difference as to how anyone was treated for assignments, etc.  No longer are the USMA officers exempt from RIF.  They are all now one clump of folks.

That's not to knock USMA.  I think it's one of the finest schools, and frankly they turn out higher quality officers because they start with a better selection to begin with.  They also have great training and instruction, but in the real world, you see who is good and who isn't just like you'd hope.  I have firends that went to USMA that I could easily see as Generals, and hopefully they will be, they were that good.  I've also seen some that were clueless about the real world as well.  ROTC grads were a wider variety, more number of scumbags, and more number of great ones.  By the time the first duty station tour is up, most of the weeds have been pulled, or just left on their own.  I could never tell the difference at the Captian and above level.  In the real life Army, nobody gave a rats ass where you got your commision, only if you could do your job or not.

Get the most out of it that you can, but the best advice I can give you is to get the best possible grades you can.  That will give you the best options upon commisioning and later in life.  Like I said, my grades sucked because I was drunk through most of college, so I had to get what I wanted by excelling in other things, etc.  It worked fine form me, but it's an ass-backwards way and not a recommended route for others.  Get the best possible grades you can.  They will be your's the rest of your life.

Ross

[b]Rangers lead the way![/b]

ross-i was told that the ROTC scholarship wouldn't pay for room and board...  hmm.  i'll have to look into that.  ...however, tuition has already been picked up by the university, i guess studying a bit helped after all...!
Regardless, i was looking at the scholarship as icing on the cake; it wasn't my reason for deciding to serve, i've been given so many freedoms by this country that i feel it's my responsibility to give back.

and GOVT THUG, why not ARMY? [:D]

It used to pay for certain dorm plans.  Maybe they've gotten cheap over the decades.  Either way, you can have alot of fun and it's not a bad deal.  

Ross

The Army ROTC scholarships pay for dorms/room&board depending on the school.  IIRC, its not offerred for most schools.  Also depending on the school, and on how your scholarship is paid, you can double up on the school's and ROTC's scholarships.  The Army will pay the school directly.

I know a couple guys who have doubled up, and basically they get a $2000 refund check every term (quarter system out here, not sememster) that they don't have to pay back because its from doubled scholarships (ROTC and Academic).  They also don't have room and board expenses, because their Academic scholarship is for tuition, books, and room&board, in addition to the ROTC scholarship which covers their tuition and books.

Whether you go scholarship or not, you'll still get your Cadet Stipend Pay once you contract.  It varies based on your year.  Freshmen get the least, then Soph, Juniors, and then Seniors get the most.  Sr's get $350/mo, and I don't know what everyone else gets (I just completed my MS4 year).

(edited to add the below info)

Another option is called SMP.  This is where you drill with a National Guard or Army Reserve unit in addition to your ROTC.  Your upper division years you often get officer experience while you drill.  Many states offer tuition assistance, too, plus you could get GI Bill money.

As a Cadet, you get E-5 pay when you drill, plus your stipend.  If you're not contracted, you're a cadet because you're taking the class, but you don't hold the rank of Cadet.  This means you won't get the stipend or E-5 pay unless you're a contracted cadet.

The SMP plan basically offers additional money (along with addition work), leadership experience, and military training beyond the ROTC scholarship offerings.  I would personally recommend it.

The SMP kaydets in our unit didn't do a thing. That's a lot of money to sit around and watch things going on.
(Every once in a while they would do training, or go to meetings with the zeros, but that was it)

Well, I guess its not all units.  All I know is that the NG unit here (B 1/162 IN, OR NG) uses cadets heavily.  We've got cadets in XO positions in the 11C/M company on the coast, we've had cadet PLs at the 11B company here in town, we've got cadets serving on BN staff at HHC, too.

But we might just have a cadet-friendly state, too.  I can't speak for the rest of the Union, just Oregon

(edited to correct typo)

To the everlasting glory of the Infantry ...

Good choice

C-2-6 Out!

I prety much agree with Ross.  I found that there were some "ringknockers" that were outstanding officers and some that were some of the sorriest officers I ever met.

Many of the company grades from USMA, I served with felt they had paid their dues at school, and everyone, and everything in the Army "owed" them.  Despite having the benefit of a superior military education, this trait severely eroded any ability to lead.  

I would say of the officers I knew in the Army that I considered "Outstanding leaders", the group was slightly biased towards ROTC, probably just because there were more of them.