My daughter has just signed a contract to commission. She attends Advanced Camp next summer, and intends to commission in two years.

In the mean time, when she is in a place where they ask all current members of the military to stand, would it be appropriate or inappropriate for her to do so?

She's not an attention hound, by any stretch (if anything, she is the opposite), but she does want to whatever is correct and proper.

Edited to clarify: She is asking if she is in, for example, a church service on Armed Forces Day, and they ask all current members of the military to stand and be recognized, does she stand up or remain seated.

Disclaimer - I work in recruiting, but it’s very apparent to me that cadets are not briefed on the Simultaneous Membership Program.

For the SMP, there is no reason why a contracted ROTC cadet shouldn’t pursue this program besides not wanting to sacrifice a weekend. Even for non contracted cadets, this program is an EXCELLENT opportunity for any cadet.

Benefits of the SMP:

- If you are contracted, you do not have to go to basic training.
- If you do choose to go to basic training, you can use tuition assistance to help pay for school ($4,500)
- You will be assigned to a unit and shadow an officer, gaining REAL Army experience. You might (like myself) serve as a PL before you commission.
- You will receive OML points for branching/component preferences.
- You will receive E-5 pay from drill and any orders.

If you are serious about serving in the Army as an officer, ESPECIALLY if you are a contracted cadet, I IMPLORE you to ask about the Simultaneous Membership Program. Glad to answer any questions in the comments or DMs.

I am heading to advanced camp this summer and know I will need to get AGSU's at some point in the next year. From what I've heard buying from the PX is more affordable than Marlow White, but Marlow White is better quality. What would you recommend? Is it even possible to buy AGSU's the same day as CST graduation or is the PX too crowded?

Is there a formula out there for what the National OML will be based on and what categories count for how much like GPA and program AFTs are worth? My program is small and just tells me they don’t know.

Because some of ya’ll don’t know how to read and certain individuals like to leave out information in the pursuit of recruiting, this post serves as clarification on the relationship between SMP enrollment, scholarships, and competing for active duty.

BLUF: YOU CAN ONLY DO 2 OUT OF THE FOLLOWING 3 ACTIONS AT ANY INSTANCE.

1. COMPETE FOR ACTIVE DUTY

2. ENROLL IN SMP

3. HAVE A FEDERALLY-FUNDED SCHOLARSHIP

What does this mean? It means 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.

/end rant

Hello,

As the title suggests, I am currently a first year college student (19m) who wants to become an Apache pilot. I am not sure if rotc or some other program would be best fit if my primary goal is to fly an Apache.

On a side note, I have made the decision to go to the army reserves during the summer and skip a semester of school (to do smp program w rotc) to get a taste of the enlisted side. Signed as a 25H and had a 99 Asvab 137 GT score.

I would gladly appreciate and direction for my situation.

Thank you!

I’m currently a Highschool junior and I’ve had my mind set on doing army ROTC in college for sometime. Now that I’m almost a senior, I truly need to decide if it’s the path I want to take.

I’m a 17 yr old female who’s never been that athletic but has begun working out for the past year or so. It’s been nothing serious but I plan on ramping up my work outs this summer and hopefully be in shape for AFT. I mainly want to join ROTC for the experience/discipline, camaraderie, to help pay my tuition, stay in shape, and overall feel fulfilled in life. Some of my friends/family support my decision while others think I’m crazy. I plan on majoring in criminal justice and maybe a minor in either Japanese or Spanish outside of ROTC.

Should I go for it?

This may be only a problem for the program I’m in, but there were very little slots available for basic camp this summer, due to this, I am now unable to go despite having the college credits necessary because the slots were filled. I’m being advised to take a gap year in order to remain in the program.

Should I do it? I can also do SMP which is what my original plan was, which I’m told would essentially require me to take a semester off anyways for training. Thank you ahead of time for the advice.

I just got my first ever D in Organic Chemistry II. I am a Pre-Vet major (so I at least get those extra 2 OML points). While I want to go to vet school I am starting to really consider shooting for active duty OCONUS branching Military Police. I am really worried I won't have a good enough GPA now to be competitive. I know I have a year remaining to bring it up and the semester I just finished is the hardest one I will ever take so I should get all As moving forward. Is there still a good chance I will get what I want or should I shift gears?

Might be a dumb question but just wondering how others packed for camp. Specifically if you were able to fit all items from the pack list into your two duffles, or if you also packed stuff in your ruck for checked baggage. Really just wondering how people split up the combo of packing your checked baggage. Also curious what people packed in their carry on besides basics. Not exactly sure what reception will look like and our program didn’t give us a lot of info on transportation details.

I am in my junior year of high school in Australia and would like to do ROTC in the states (I am an American citizen). Grades are real groovy here, and I only take 6 classes throughout all of my junior and senior year, and can drop down to 5 in my senior year. Grades also are typically worse here (50% is a pass) because the content is harder, to make up for this, when applying to universities they only look at year 12 grades and it is all adjusted based on difficulty of the course. From what I understand ROTC and colleges in general in the US don't care about the difficulty of the courses just the raw grade? Should I take easier classes and drop my worst ones so as to get a higher CGPA? I very much appreciate the help.

I'm also curious regarding when I should enroll or apply, I will graduate in October of 2027 (The school year is based off the calendar year here) so do I apply for the 2028 year?

I was curious could i try and do ROTC if i was removed from Basic Training for an existing medical condition?

If so what is the process going to look like, or am i permanently cooked?

Commissioning as an active-duty ADA officer in two weeks. Why is there a lot of doom and gloom associated with ADA?

So I’ll be going logistics thankfully but wanted to consider is it worth trying to go aviation again for captain careers course. I was recommended this multiple times but truthfully it isnt as easy as it sounds and is a massive 12 year ADSO (2 years flight school) so almost 20 years at that point after completing my first branch. How often does this occur at all, is it even worth it? I know another option is going Warrant

Well guys, I finally commissioned today and I am ready for the next chapter. Congrats to everyone who got their gold bars and are off to do amazing things. Hope to see some of you down the line. For my future LTs please keep pushing and keep the main thing the main thing. It’ll be worth it in the end. Again congrats everyone. It’s well deserved.

Does anyone know if we get payed 46 dollars a day for cst like last year. My cadre told me we are getting 5 dollars a day.

My son is attending an expensive private school. He is in ROTC (3 years JROTC in HS). He trying to get the the 2-4 years of school paid for through a ROTC scholarship (he did not receive the national but tried). I am curious if anyone on here can contribute the best path way forward. Currently I am footing the bill for school, but he will have to take loans after this year. He wants to go Active Army.

So a little back story is that I have decided to do a leave of absence for next semester due to extenuating circumstances. But I was supposed to go to basic camp this summer. While talk to a cadre I found out there wasn’t enough slots for everyone for basic camp. Which I wasn’t getting to go I honestly don’t know why but it feels upsetting that no one told me that they didn’t have enough slots for me to attend. My issue is when were they going to inform me about the issue since everyone that was going already had there dates and orders. I’m just down for not being notified even though I was asking for information about dates for when we leave. I don’t know if I’m asking for advice or ranting but I’m just hurt by the lack of communication to me.

Hey guys,

I’ll be going to camp this summer as a cadre, and I’ll be flying into Louisville International. I was wondering if anyone had any experience with a cab/uber/drive service that goes from the airport to Ft Knox? And can ENTER the base in order to drop me off at the Copple Center instead of stranding me at the gate.

I got a school slot this summer and the cadre have been little help on getting me and others prepared to go, as in there has been little to no communication of what to do or getting documents together. This has been a problem for the last few months ever since we found out our Schools. My question is when would it be the right time to contact the PMS about my concerns, and if so, how should I go about it?