Reserve Officer Training Corps

Air Force ROTC, 319 Memorial Hall, 575-3651/3652
Army ROTC, 207 Military Science Building, 575-4651/4252

Professor of Aerospace Studies: Lieutenant Colonel Robert J. Kraynik, U.S. Air Force, M.A. (Webster University)
Professor of Military Science: Lieutenant Colonel Michael S. Hunt, U.S. Army, M.B.A. (Embry Riddle University)

The Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) program provides physical and mental challenges that are not offered anywhere else on campus. The ROTC program prepares young men and women for careers as professional military officers. In addition to academic studies, each service requires that all students attend a weekly leadership laboratory.

The freshman and sophomore courses are electives offered to male and female students who may earn four hours of academic credit in Aerospace Studies or up to six hours in Military Science. Absolutely no military obligation is incurred by non-scholarship students as a result of their enrollment in or completion of any or all of their freshman or sophomore ROTC courses. In addition to the first two years of academic study, the University, in cooperation with the Army and Air Force, offers two years of advanced instruction in Aerospace Studies and Military Science. The advanced instruction prepares students for the responsibilities and privileges of a commissioned officer. This advanced instruction offers three hours of academic credit per semester for Air Force cadets or four hours of academic credit per semester for Army cadets. Additionally, all students enrolled in the final two years of ROTC receive a monthly tax-free allowance of $150.

ROTC cadets must attend and successfully complete field training. AFROTC cadets attend field training between their sophomore and junior years. AFROTC cadets enrolled in the full four-year program attend a four-week session; whereas, students entering the two-year program attend a six-week session. All Army ROTC cadets attend a six-week summer encampment between their MS III school year and MS IV school year, while selected Air Force ROTC cadets attend light aircraft training or various other advanced training programs. Army ROTC cadets may attend professional development training such as airborne, air assault, northern warfare, and mountain warfare. During summer field training, cadets receive approximately $100 per week and room and board.

For students having a minimum of two academic years in school remaining (undergraduate, graduate, or a combination of the two), an alternate two-year program is offered in both Army and Air Force ROTC. Students desiring to enter the Army program must attend a six-week summer encampment as a substitute for the freshman and sophomore ROTC courses. Students entering the two-year Air Force ROTC program must also attend a six-week field training orientation during the summer prior to their last two years of college. The student must successfully complete the summer camp to qualify for the advanced ROTC program. Additionally, students with high school level military schooling (ROTC, NDCC, or Military Academy) may qualify for the advanced ROTC program without completing the freshman or sophomore courses. Credit for the freshman and sophomore courses will vary and depend upon the length and content of prior military schooling. All veterans who have completed basic training and 180 days of service with any component of the U.S. Armed Forces can receive full credit for the freshman and sophomore courses and may enter ROTC at the advanced level, once junior academic standing has been achieved.

Financial assistance is also available to qualified students enrolled in ROTC courses. The Army offers two-, three-, and four-year scholarships, and freshman students who are not enrolled in Army ROTC may qualify for three-year scholarships. Air Force ROTC offers four-, three-, and two-year scholarships to qualified students. If accepted, all scholarship students receive a monthly tax-free allowance of $150, payment of all tuition expenses, textbook payment, and payment of certain other fees. Additionally, all qualified four-year scholarship winners will receive free room and board.

Army ROTC students who accept a scholarship must agree to successfully complete at least one semester of math reasoning, computer literacy, military history, written communication, and human behavior prior to commissioning. Air Force ROTC students who accept a scholarship must agree to successfully complete one semester of math reasoning prior to commissioning.

Army ROTC also offers a unique financial assistance program available to all non-scholarship Army ROTC Advanced Course students through the Simultaneous Membership Program (SMP). This program allows an Advanced Course student to be enrolled in Army ROTC while simultaneously serving with a Reserve or National Guard unit. Financial benefits of this program presently provide approximately $360 per month to SMP students.

A student who successfully completes the Advanced Course in the Army ROTC program and receives a degree may be accepted for a regular or reserve commission in one of the sixteen branches of the Army. A student who successfully completes the Advanced Course in Air Force ROTC and receives a degree will be awarded either a regular or reserve commission in the United States Air Force.

All textbooks, instructional material, and equipment required for ROTC courses are furnished at no cost to the student.