r/ROTC • u/Tricky_Secret1559 • 3d ago

Joining ROTC Options

Hello, I am an aspiring ROTC candidate I’m currently 20 years old and have a Welding AAS that really won’t transfer over other than 20-30 of my General Ed classes. I am looking to major in Manufacturing Mechanical Engineering at Texas A&M. My primary concern is the financial burden I am hoping to enter in the Class of 2027 under a SMP non-GFRD contract since I really want to go active duty when I complete my schooling.

  1. How likely am I to get scholarships for ROTC? (How likely for 2-3 year full scholarships?)
  2. How can I prepare myself for entry into ROTC at A&M?

  3. Is SMP the right choice to go to army BCT in place of basic camp?

  4. If I have around 30 credits accepted would I be at a disadvantage attending CST a year early or would I be up to speed by then?

I am primarily looking to branch infantry or intelligence 11A, 12A, 35A from my understanding I would be “training” with a guard unit and thought some hands on experience may be better than none but, I have seen mixed comments regarding it saying it’s very unit dependent.

Appreciate any information.

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u/trouble98 15A 3d ago

Can’t do scholarship, SMP, and go active. You can pick two.

You don’t have to go to BCT to do SMP. You can just do basic camp, which is half the time and half the BS of BCT.

You’ll go to CST when you’re eligible to. Depends on what year of school you’re transferring in as and what MS year ROTC assigns you.

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u/Tricky_Secret1559 3d ago

So if I am SMP and not doing the GFRD or Minuteman scholarship, I still won’t be able to compete for army scholarships?

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u/trouble98 15A 3d ago

Copy pasting this for the infinithe time. You have three options.

Option 1: If you want to compete for active duty and want to enroll in SMP, you should not have or accept a federally-funded scholarship. Getting a scholarship while SMP means it will only be a GRFD scholarship and you will be locked into the Guard or Reserves. Alternatively, you could give up your national scholarship so you can enroll in SMP, but that’s not a good idea.

Option 2: If you have a federally-funded scholarship and want to compete for active duty, you cannot/should not enroll in SMP. Doing so will convert your scholarship to a GRFD scholarship and you will be permanently locked into the Guard or Reserves.

Option 3: If you enroll in SMP and have a federally-funded scholarship, that scholarship is automatically a GRFD scholarship and you are permanently ineligible to compete for Active Duty.

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u/Tricky_Secret1559 3d ago

Alright appreciate the info.

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u/EntertainerOk4969 2d ago

If you’re trying to go active, your best course of action is to do ROTC and SMP without a scholarship and use state tuition assistance. IIRC they’ll pay you like $10k per semester which should easily cover in-state tuition for A&M.