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Whether you are a 4 year scholarship winner, or a freshman that just found out that Army ROTC is a thing if you plan to enroll in Army ROTC there are a few things you will need or should be doing over the summer (especially if you plan to join the Golden Knight Battalion). In this post I’ll try to break it down for you all. I’ll tell you what will be expected from a scholarship winner, and what will be expected from a student just planning to enroll and give it a try. Keep in mind the program you plan to join may do business a little different, but the basic requirements will be the same. You will still need to eventually become medically qualified, pass you PT test, and do some paperwork.
Medical Qualification
If you are a scholarship winner you will have been directed to start your DODMERB. Remember that sooner is better. You may go to the doc and the doc may tell you that everything looks good. That doesn’t mean you are qualified. I won’t go into too much detail regarding the DODMERB process here. I’ve written about it before. Just know that you need to schedule your appointments ASAP, need to be prepared to explain any issues you think may be a concern to the Army, and be prepared to react quickly if DODMERB asks for more information or additional appointments.
If you are not coming in on scholarship we will schedule you for your DODMERB once you are enrolled and showing the potential. I usually schedule the non scholarship Cadets who attend the scholarship board each semester. My SMP Cadets can provide me with their MEPS physical which we can use to get a DODMERB qualification.
Physical Fitness
If you are a 4 year scholarship winner you will have to pass your Army Physical Fitness Test before you can be contracted and start your scholarship. Some schools will give that test to you once school starts. At Clarkson I use the summer to give you a chance to pass the test. We offer the test a number of times in various locations around New York. Pass the test and you will contract on day 1, fail the test and we will allow you to come to Potsdam to try again before school starts. You’ll also be tested in the morning on contracting day if you haven’t passed by then. Fail that one and you won’t be signing your contract on day one.
If you are non scholarship you will take the PT test at least twice a semester. If we think you deserve to contract or be offered a campus based scholarship part of that decision will be based on you consistently passing your APFT.
Once again, sooner is better. Starting yesterday to establish a fitness regime and being prepared to meet the fitness standards is essential. There is nothing more disheartening than driving a couple hours to give 3 scholarship winners their first PT test and watching all three fail miserably. I owe you all a more detailed blog post on recommendations to prepare for the test. The short answer is do pushups, situps and run just about every day to prepare.
Paperwork
If you are joining the program there are a couple forms we will require to enroll you in the program. These forms give us the necessary information to enter you into the Cadet Command Information Management Module (CCIMM) which is the system we use to manage Cadets and applicants. Along with the enrollment form we will ask you to release medical information and academic information to us in the future. There will also be a form that notifies you of your rights if you are hurt while training as a Cadet.
If you are a scholarship winner, along with the standard enrollment paperwork, we are going to ask for a lot more paperwork. We’ll need a direct deposit form to know where to send the money, and there will be forms for tax, insurance, and security clearance purposes. Scholarship winners will also fill out an enlistment form, and sign a contract.
Programs may have different procedures for filling out the forms. In our case we have a couple websites where you can access the forms. If you are just enrolling then we are going to ask you to bring the forms with you to our orientation, If you are a scholarship winner we’ll have you mail all your forms, so they can be ready to be signed on contracting day.
That’s it
Again, some programs might ask you to buy certain gear, or suggest you buy and break in boots. Some programs might give you workout plans, or have weeks long orientations. If you are going to be a member of the Golden Knight Battalion we want you to show up in reasonable physical shape with the required paperwork, ready to start down the road to becoming an Army leader. No need to go ninja or start studying Clausewitz or training for marathons.
Posted on December 29, 2017 by goldenknightbattalion
This is an update on information I wrote about here and here
At Clarkson we like to spend some time with our interviewees. We invite them to visit our lab or tour our campus while they are here
One of the 4 requirements to get your file board ready after you start your application for the 4 year Army ROTC Scholarship is to conduct an interview with a Professor of Military Science (PMS). It is usually one of the last tasks an applicant will accomplish, because it usually involves traveling to meet with a PMS or his/her representative to conduct a face to face interview. The interview is one of the most important steps in the process because not only is it worth 200 of the points in your whole person score it is also one of the most important pieces of information the board will use to score you, if it is done right.
Here is what Cadet Command has to say about the interview, right from the additional information tab on the applications website. If you aren’t familiar with that tab, you should be:
PMS Scholarship Interviews
Administrative
The purpose of the Interview is for the Professor of Military Science (PMS) to have a face-to-face evaluation of the applicant. The interview is conducted by an active PMS who will ask you questions and will answer any questions you may have about Army ROTC and the pursuit of an Army commission.
You won’t be eligible to conduct your interview until you have provided qualifying SAT/ACT scores and a copy of your high school transcript. Once you have done that, you will receive a message through the application identifying the five closest ROTC host programs to your home address. You don’t have to use these five schools but the interview needs to be conducted face-to-face.
The interview can be telephonic as a last resort, depending on distances involved. This doesn’t mean you can do a telephonic interview if you live near Washington, D.C. but want to go to school in California. Where you want to go to school doesn’t matter to the PMS conducting the interview.
Any cost incurred for transportation, food and lodging for the interview are your responsibility.
Overseas applicants must contact a stateside Professor of Military Science to arrange a virtual meeting via Skype or other similar services to conduct the interview.
Tips
Be prepared. This doesn’t mean practicing your scripted responses to standard questions; expect a good interviewer to maneuver around those types of questions. You should still be able to speak intelligibly about standard questions such as ‘tell us about yourself.’
Review your application packet again and bring along extra copies of your resume, as well. Be sure to write down a few questions for the interviewer or panel, too. The typical interview can last anywhere from 10 to 60 minutes.
No flip-flops. While you may wear board shorts and a tank top to the beach or school, this is not the appropriate time to dress down. You need to demonstrate to the interviewer that you are a serious. No one expects you to go buy a business suit or fancy dress but you should take it serious. More appropriate attire includes items such as slacks and a buttoned-down collared shirt, or a knee-length skirt or a JROTC uniform. Hair should be neat and out of your face, and don’t forget to wear shoes that are in good condition.
Be on time. Give yourself plenty of extra time to deal with unexpected situations, such as traffic or parking issues, to ensure you do not arrive late. You should also jot down the name of your interviewer and ask for him/her by name when you arrive. Nothing screams “unprepared” like showing up for a meeting and not remembering who you are supposed to meet. If you are running behind, please call ahead and let them know you will be late. This will give the interviewer the option of pushing back your interview or rescheduling it, if necessary. It’s never good to show up late, but it’s even worse to do so without giving fair warning.
Listen, Think, Speak. It’s important to listen during your interview and not anticipate questions. Once a question has been asked, respond in a clear and concise manner. Stay on topic, don’t try to steer the question back to a practiced answer, and don’t ramble. Make eye contact and enunciate! Above all else, answer all questions honestly. Interviewers can tell when you are embellishing or making up answers to impress them.
Be yourself. If selected for the scholarship, that’s what you’ll give every day anyway. Walk into your interview with confidence, smile, and be yourself. Most interviewers will keep a stoic face. Don’t let this influence your responses or behavior during the interview. Always conduct yourself professionally and as though you are the best applicant.
Here is my advice
Where should I interview?
Conduct your interview at a school you are interested in, and preferably one that is listed on your application. If it is just not feasible to get to one of the schools on your list do it at one of the schools close to your home, but be aware that the interviewer has less invested in you if you don’t plan to attend their school, and you will probably spend some of that visit hearing about the school and program you are interviewing at. If you interview at a school that is likely to be your destination that interviewer will go the extra mile to make sure you have a successful interview. Additionally if you don’t receive a scholarship offer you will still be on that PMS’s radar, and may be considered for any campus based scholarships that become available.
What will they be looking for?
Here is the checklist that the PMS will use when she/he conducts the interview. The PMS is looking at your Scholar/Athlete/Leader attributes and is awarding points based on what you tell them. Obviously you won’t be lying to pad your points, but make sure you account for all your accomplishments, and make sure you get credit. If you are short in one of the SAL areas, make sure on the back of the form the PMS can give you extra points for something else. For example, you’ve never played team sports because you have had to have a part time job throughout high school to help the family make ends meet. You won’t get points for athlete, but on the back the PMS can annotate your circumstances and give you full points for personal qualities and potential. This is your opportunity to tell your story and make your case.
What should I wear to the interview?
Use your common sense. Suit and tie is not normally required. Collared shirt, Khakis, and nice shoes will work. It might be good to ask the person that arranges the interview what to wear. We have conducted interviews in the field before, so a suit and tie would have been inappropriate. We have also had JROTC cadets wear their uniform to the interview (nice touch, but not necessary). Just don’t show up in ripped jeans and a grubby tshirt, and you’ll be fine.
Should you bring a resume?
Again, a nice touch but not necessary. You should have submitted all the information that we need prior to the interview. I have had applicants bring resumes, transcripts, letters of recommendation, and scrap books complete with gym club card and handgun licence. Don’t need all that stuff. Again, ask because some schools might want to see a resume.
What type of questions will be asked?
Depends on the PMS. Some PMS’s may be more formal than others. Some may want to have a discussion and answer your questions. Some may want to hear what is motivating you. Some may get off on a tangent and talk about something you both have in common. You should have a short concise answer prepared to the question “tell me a bit about yourself” and you should be able to explain why you want to be an Army Officer. Take a look at this post for some ideas regarding themes you can talk about such as Army Values or Soldiers Creed. Remember that no matter how informal the conversation appears to be, you are still being watched and evaluated. If you call him dude, and spent 20 minutes discussing the best band at this year’s Warped Tour you may think you hit it out of the park, and the PMS may be checking the “no scholarship for this guy” block.
Who and where
There is some debate among my peers whether the PMS or ROO (or someone else) should conduct the interview. My belief is that it’s called a PMS interview for a reason, and every after action review of a scholarship board I have ever seen said that the board favors a PMS interview over interviews done by surrogates like ROOs or Executive Officers. My advice is to be wary if you are told you will be interviewed by someone other than the PMS. Also be aware that if you are interviewing at a popular school in a densely populated area you will probably get a little different result and attitude from your interviewer than if you travel to a small, remote school (like Clarkson University) and interview with a PMS who only does a handful of interviews each year. I would also caution about doing an interview at an Senior Military College. Even if you think you want to attend an SMC, interviewing at an SMC is going to put you into a different pool of applicants, and your interviewer may have a different perception of what is the best candidate for a scholarship. I’m not saying don’t interview at a popular school or an SMC. Just be aware that the results of your interview may be effected by those environments.
Remember your manners
Yes sir, No sir or Yes Ma’am, No Ma’am will definitely score some points. Yeah, bro, and dude will loose you some points. It is also a good idea to drop the PMS a note or email after the interview thanking them for their time.
That’s my updated take on the interview. Hope it helps. Make sure you drop us a comment and let us know how it goes.
Did it in fact change, or am I missing it on the application. I’m only seeing a personal statement. Is there any place to explain achievements like on the college common app?
In fact the application does change from year to year and unfortunately I don’t always go back and update my old blog posts. If you are reading some of my posts pay attention to when they were written. That being said, things don’t change that much, and most of the old advice is still valid.
So, here is what I wrote back.
Questions like these are why I apply for the scholarship every year….If you click on the Selection Status tab in the online application website and scroll all the way down you will see the “white space”. It’s now called “Additional Remarks”, but it’s essentially the old “Additional SAL Achievements” field.
In the system we use to see an application (CCIMM) that “Additional Remarks” field is displayed as “Additional SAL Achievements”. I’m seeing plenty of applicants who have found this box and have followed my advice.
I certainly appreciate the question and it gave me a reason to go back into the application and poke around a little bit. I knew the “white space” was in there, just had to figure out where. What I have found is that a lot of applicants don’t go all the way through the application and click on all the tabs and links. There is a ton of information on the application website. Based on many of the questions I see out there some folks aren’t looking at all of it, and it is not always easy to find. A perfect example is the “Additional Remarks” hidden all the way at the bottom of the last tab.
