AFROTC Scholarships

The Air Force Reserve Officer Training (AFROTC) Scholarship selection process is similar in many ways to the USAF Academy selection process. However, there are some key differences and it is important to become as familiar as possible with both processes to ensure that all regulations and guidelines are adhered to.

AFROTC offers several different programs, but the one most high school students will most likely be involved with is the Air Force ROTC High School Scholarship Program (HSSP). The objective of this program is to attract and retain high quality individuals whose leadership potential, personal and physical qualities, and academic specialties meet USAF accession objectives. Air Force ROTC scholarship offers are based on merit and not on financial need. Typically, seventy percent of the HSSP scholarships are offered in technical (engineering and scientific) majors and thirty percent in non-technical majors. To activate an Air Force ROTC scholarship, a student must be enrolled full-time in a collegiate-level Air Force ROTC program at a college or university that offers an Air Force approved degree in the specified major. To retain the scholarship, the student must meet certain academic and military retention standards.

Students not selected for the HSSP, may be able to later apply for the In College Scholarship Program (ICSP) which is also a competitive program. Refer to www.afrotc.com for more information on the many different types of ROTC scholarships that are available and the eligibility requirements for each. The information here will cover the requirements and process for the HSSP.

A. Eligibility Requirements

Applicants must meet the following requirements to compete for an AFROTC scholarship:

· Be a United States citizen or able to obtain citizenship by the last day of the first term of the freshman year for 4-year offers or the first term of the sophomore year for 3-year offers – scholarship activation cannot occur prior to obtaining citizenship

· Be a high school graduate or have an equivalent certificate

· Be 17 years old prior to scholarship activation

· Be under 31 years old as of 31 December of the year of commissioning - if the applicant has prior active-duty military service, they can write or call the High School Scholarship Section for details on extending the age limit

· Cannot be enrolled full time at a college or a university prior to the fall academic term except for joint high school/college programs

· Cannot have any dependents (children, spouse, dependent sibling, etc.) without appropriate waivers

· Take the College Entrance Examination - either ACT or SAT is acceptable

· Meet Academic Eligibility requirements

· Take the Physical Fitness Assessment (PFA): There is no minimum requirement for this assessment during the application process, but the applicant must take and pass the Physical Fitness Test (PFT) prior to scholarship activation. Both of these events consist of push-ups, crunches, and a 1.5 mile run. There is no abdominal taping, but height and weight are recorded

Typically, to be eligible for AFROTC scholarship consideration, an applicant should achieve an SAT composite of at least 1100 or ACT composite of at least 24, attain a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher, and have a class ranking in the top 40%. The majority of scholarship recipients have also completed some advanced placement and/or honors courses. If the applicant does not meet the minimum academic requirements noted above, he/she can still apply if he/she has other outstanding leadership credentials. If the applicant is low in one area (for example, ACT/SAT) but is strong in another (for example, top 10% of class) they may still be eligible

NOTE: AFROTC does not mix and match test scores. The ACT or SAT test scores must be attained in one testing session. ACT or SAT test scores must be taken no later than 31 December of the year prior to entering ROTC - tests taken past the 31 December deadline will not be considered or processed.

DEADLINE: Scholarship applications must be submitted online by midnight on 1 December of the year preceding entry.

B. Lengths and Types of Scholarships

Air Force ROTC offers 3 and 4-year scholarships via the HSSP. The application process for both of these is the same. The 4-year scholarship recipients activate their scholarships in the fall of their freshman year. The 3-year scholarships are activated in the fall of their sophomore year. All 3-year scholarship designees must complete AFROTC training during their freshman year in order to maintain eligibility.

There are three types of scholarships that can be awarded from AFROTC:

1. Type-1

A Type-1 AFROTC scholarship pays full college tuition, most fees and $900 per year for books. Approximately 5% of 4-year scholarship winners will be offered a Type-1 scholarship, and almost all of these will be for students majoring in technical or engineering fields. Below are the acceptable majors:

Technical: Engineering:

Architecture Aeronautical

Computer Science Aerospace

Mathematics Architectural

Meteorology (Atmospheric Science) Astronautical

Physics Chemical

Chemistry Civil

Operations Research Computer

Electrical

Engineering Science

Environmental

General

Industrial

Mechanical

Metallurgical

Nuclear

Systems

2. Type-2

Pays college tuition and most fees up to $15,000 per year and pays $900 per year for books. Approximately 20 percent of 4-year scholarship winners will be offered a Type-2 scholarship (mostly in technical fields, as listed above, although there are specific eligible foreign language majors (see below) and some non-technical majors). If a student attends an institution where the tuition exceeds $15,000 per year, then he/she pays the difference. All 3-year scholarships are Type 2.

Foreign Languages:

Arabic Bengali Indonesian Serbo-Croatian

Chinese Cambodian Japanese Swahili

Persian-Iranian Hausa Pashtu Thai

Persian-Afghan Kurdish Russian Uighur

Hindi Malay Turkish Uzbek

Urdu/Punjabi Vietnamese Azerbaijani

There are many colleges and universities that will offer subsidies to AFROTC scholarships. Some will cover the remaining tuition costs, room and board, and/or stipends. A listing of schools that offer these subsidies can be found at www.afrotc.com under High School Scholarships, then Subsidy List.

3. Type-7

An AFROTC Type-7 Scholarship pays full college tuition, fees and $900 per year for books, but the student must attend a college/university where the tuition is less than $9,000 per year, or a public college/university in which the student qualifies for the in-state tuition rate - a student may not activate a Type-7 scholarship at a non-qualifying school and pay the difference.)

If a student receives a Type-7 offer but wishes to attend a college/university where he/she does not qualify under the guidelines above, the student can convert the 4-Year Type-7 scholarship to a 3-Year Type-2 scholarship.

4. Additional Benefits

All scholarship cadets (upon activation) receive a nontaxable monthly allowance during the academic year. Currently, the monthly stipend is $300 for freshmen, $350 for sophomores, $450 for juniors and $500 for seniors]

All scholarship winners are authorized travel pay from their home to the AFROTC detachment at the university they will be attending. This money is paid when the scholarship is activated. The student must be enrolled at the college for 45 days before stipends and/or travel pay can be disbursed.

5. Pre-Med, Nursing and Other Medical-Related Majors

If a student is applying for one of these majors, he or she will compete for a nontechnical scholarship. If a student receives and activates a scholarship in one of these majors, be advised that he or she is not guaranteed that specialty upon commissioning. After completing freshman, sophomore or junior year, the AFROTC cadet must compete on the prehealth, nursing or biomedical science corps designation boards to receive the Air Force designator for that specialty. The designator guarantees that a cadet will enter that specialty upon commissioning. If a cadet is not selected on one of these boards, he or she will retain the scholarship, but will enter the Air Force as a line officer upon being commissioned and be accessed into a specialty based on the needs of the Air Force.

C. The Application Phase

Applicants must apply online at www.afrotc.com. The deadline for applications is 1 December. In addition to completing the application online, the interested student must submit the following no later than 12 January:

· SAT/ACT scores - Applicant may mark the test registration form by using AFROTC Code 0548 to send results directly to Air Force ROTC.

· Official high school transcripts

· Physical Fitness Assessment (PFA) Letter of Certification

· Counselor Certification

· Personal statement

· One-page resumé (have the applicant bring a copy to the interview AND send one in to High School Scholarship Program Section/RRUC - the address for RRUC is listed at the end of the chapter.

NOTE: It is highly recommended that all mail sent to the High School Scholarship Section be sent via return receipt mail. The address can be found at the end of this Chapter.

The Physical Fitness Assessment (PFA)

AFROTC uses the PFA as an indicator of the applicant's physical fitness. The applicant must complete the PFA before he/she can be eligible for the AFROTC scholarship interview. The PFA is not the same as the Candidate Fitness Assessment (CFA) required for application to the service academies. It consists of push-ups, crunches, and a 1.5 mile run.

Scheduling - Applicant coordinates the PFA with AFROTC Detachment personnel, his/her ALO, or a high school official who will administer the exam and certify results. The official can be any faculty or administrative official in the applicant's high school (teacher, counselor, athletic coach, principal, etc.). The applicant should discuss the PFA with the administrator so that he or she understands the requirements of the PFA, how it is conducted, and how to complete the paperwork.

Exemptions - AFROTC will accept two types of exemptions for the PFA: the applicant has already completed a PFA for another commissioning source; or the applicant has a documented physical injury (e.g., a broken arm, leg, etc.), that would preclude him/her from completing the PFA.

Qualifying Scores - There are no minimum requirements for the PFA--that is, the applicant cannot "fail" the PFA. The only requirement is that the applicant attempts each event and has the ALO or high school official certify the results. The PFA will provide a good indication of how much work the applicant needs to do before enrolling in AFROTC as a college freshman.

Results - After completing the PFA, the applicant's administering official must date and sign the results. The applicant must then send a copy in with the application.

It may take as few as 1-7 days to process an application or as long as 6-8 weeks depending on the application volume. Upon receipt of the application by the High School Scholarship Program Section, the applicant is assigned a technician based on his or her last name. Once the application is processed, a letter is generated notifying the applicant of his or her eligibility status. Ineligible applicants receive a letter listing the reason(s) for ineligibility. Ineligible applicants are instructed to check their eligibility status via the on-line tracker. Eligible applicants receive a letter advising them of their status and informing them that detachment personnel will contact them within 30 days to schedule a personal interview (the 4060 Interview). The applicant’s administrative detachment is notified to schedule the personal interview.