Veterans: Considering College?
Prior service has advantages with Army ROTC. Army ROTC
can help you make the most of the time you have already invested and the experience you
have already gained in the military.
What is Army ROTC?
Army ROTC is a program offered at hundreds of colleges
and universities nationwide, training college students to be officers in the active Army,
Army reserve and Army National Guard. It's a 4-year program, divided into two parts –
a Basic Course and an Advanced Course. The Basic Course is normally taken in your freshman
and sophomore years. The Advanced Course is usually taken during your final two years of
college and includes a 32 day Leader Development and Assessment Course (LDAC) that is normally attended in the summer,
between your junior and senior years. The mission of Army ROTC is to "Commission the
future officer leadership of the U.S. Army."
ROTC credit for military service
Your military experience could fulfill your credit
requirements for the ROTC Basic Course. This means that, if credit is granted and provided
you are not on an Army ROTC 3 or 4 year scholarship, you can skip the freshman and sophomore
years of ROTC and enroll directly in the Advanced Course.
Learning to be a leader
In the ROTC Advanced Course, you will learn leadership
development, organization and management, tactics, and ethics and professionalism –
qualities essential to a future Army Officer. Your instruction will go beyond the
classroom to help you gain practical management and leadership experience.
Practicing what you learn
At LDAC you'll put into practice the
principles, theories and decision-making you learned in the classroom. You'll plan and
execute tactical missions, and you'll shoulder a lot of responsibility as you serve in
leadership positions. At the end of LDAC, you'll leave with renewed pride and
increased confidence in your ability to serve as a leader in the officer corps.
Financial help during college
You may be eligible to compete for an ROTC scholarship
while you're in college. The scholarship pays for most tuition and on-campus educational
fees which are required of all students, and provides a fixed amount for books, supplies,
and equipment. It also provides an allowance of up to $1,500 for each year the scholarship
is in effect. Even if you don't win a scholarship, you will still receive the allowance
for each year of the Advanced Course, along with your uniforms and military science
textbooks and materials. In addition, all cadets are paid for attending
LDAC. If
eligible, you may also collect any VA benefits to which you would normally be entitled.
Your age at commissioning
To be awarded an ROTC scholarship, you must be under
31 years of age on December 31 of the year you expect to graduate and receive your officer's
commission.
If you do not win an ROTC scholarship,
the same age criteria applies. However, a request for a waiver of
age may be considered on an individual basis.
Join ROTC and the Guard or Reserve while you're in
college
You may be able to take advantage of a program that
allows you to participate in ROTC and enlist in the Army National Guard or Army Reserve at
the same time, provided a vacancy exists in either a Guard or Reserve unit. It's called
the Simultaneous Membership Program (SMP), and it means that while you're still in college
you can be gaining valuable experience and earning extra income. Under the SMP, you will
be paid at the rate of at least a Sergeant E-5 for your Guard or Reserve service, and
you'll receive the ROTC Advanced Course allowance as well.
You'll serve as an officer trainee in a Guard or
Reserve unit and perform duties commensurate with the grade of second lieutenant. After
you are graduated and commissioned, you may continue your military service with your unit
or apply for active duty in the U.S. Army.
Green to Gold
The
Army Green to Gold program is designed to offer Enlisted Soldiers in
the Army the opportunity to earn a commission as an Army Officer.
This program offers enlisted Soldiers two unique ways to earn a
baccalaureate degree:
Green to Gold Scholarship Option — For Soldiers who
are considering leaving active duty to attend college.
Green to Gold
Active Duty Option — For Soldiers who want to remain on active duty
and attend
college.
GREEN TO GOLD SCHOLARSHIP OPTION
Scholarships
are awarded for two, three, or four years.
Soldiers with two years of college remaining to complete their
degree are considered for two-year scholarships.
Soldiers with three years of college remaining to complete their
degree are considered for three-year scholarships.
Soldiers without college credit who require four years to complete
their degree are considered for four-year scholarships.
Division Commander's 2-, 3-, or 4-Year Hip Pocket
Scholarships
The
Army ROTC Green to Gold Division Commander's Hip Pocket Scholarship
Program provides selected Soldiers the opportunity to complete their
baccalaureate degree requirements and obtain a commission through
participation in the ROTC Scholarship program. Each year Division
Commanders can nominate deserving Soldiers for two-year Green to
Gold scholarships. Units are encouraged to nominate Soldiers under
their command who have exhibited the potential for further
outstanding service to America and our Army as commissioned
officers. The best way to ensure your deserving Soldiers have this
opportunity is to encourage them to apply now! Interested Soldiers
are encouraged to follow-up with their chain of command.
Green
to Gold Non-Scholarship Option
The Green to Gold
Two-Year Non-Scholarship Option Program is available to soldiers who
have completed two years of college, and who can complete their
college degree requirements in two years.
Green to Gold
Non-Scholarship Option members can also participate in the
Simultaneous Membership Program (SMP). As SMPs, soldiers are members
of either a drilling Reserve or Guard unit and ROTC. SMPs are
entitled to Reserve Component pay of E-5 under this program.
Also, many states
offer tuition assistance to Reserve and National Guard soldiers. 
GREEN TO GOLD ACTIVE DUTY OPTION
The Green to Gold
Active Duty Option Program is a two-year program which provides
eligible, active duty enlisted soldiers an opportunity to complete a
baccalaureate degree or graduate degree and be commissioned as an
Army officer upon receiving the appropriate degree.
Military service obligation
Following graduation, ROTC cadets are required to
serve in the Active Army, Army National Guard or the Army Reserve.
All scholarship students will be required to serve in
the military for a period of eight years. This obligation may be fulfilled by serving two
to four years on active duty, followed by four to six years' service as citizen soldiers
in the Army National Guard (ARNG), or U.S. Army Reserve (USAR), or by serving eight years
in the ARNG or USAR preceded by a period necessary to complete the active component
resident officer basic course (OBC).
Non-scholarship graduates may serve three years on
active duty and five years as citizen soldier, or they may select, or be selected, to
fulfill their total military obligation as citizen soldiers. If Reserve Forces Duty is
selected, graduates will serve a period of active duty necessary to complete the active
component resident OBC, and spend the remainder of the eight-year obligation in the ARNG
or USAR.
Find out more!
Army ROTC is a good deal for anybody. It's an even
better deal for veterans like you. Because Army ROTC helps you apply what you've already
learned to new situations as you train for a leadership role. You'll receive an officer's
commission and when you return to active duty, your previous active duty enlisted time
will count toward longevity pay and retirement.
If you are already out of the service, select a
college that offers the program and contact the Professor of Military Science for more
information.
If you would like to receive additional information on
Army ROTC opportunities for veterans, call MAJ (R) Womack,
University of Dayton, Recruiting Officer 937-229-3524 or 1-800-USA-ROTC.
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