Tier 3 Majors in the Navy or the Marine Corps?

[Shaddy]

I'm aware of the Navy's policy towards majors when considering NROTC applicants, but i'm wondering how realistic it would be to receive a scholarship while intending on a tier 3 major (political science/international relations). Is it totally unrealistic? Does it depend on what schools you intend on applying to? How much of a factor are your grades (as in will having exceptional grades make you more likely to receive a scholarship with a tier 3 major, or will exceptional grades still not help)?

My goal is to commission into the Navy, but I've started to consider the Marine option more as there is no preference towards engineering majors. I know that I should stick to joining the Navy if thats what i've always wanted, but should I select the Marine Corps, I would not be selecting it halfheartedly and solely based on it's policy towards majors. My primary goal would be to get SNFO or SNA so I'd have that option in either service, but i'm much less focused on service selection than I am on simply commissioning.

So my main questions are: Should I even attempt to receive the Navy scholarship on a tier 3 major, or is that totally unrealistic, and in that case should I just go for the Marine option instead. I dont think I can, but is there any way to apply for both?

Thanks very much!

 

[HMM265GS]

I'm currently in my second year, so I don't have insight into big Navy/Marine Corps, but I can speak to my unit. We don't have any Tier III Mids at my school, but I am at a tech school, so I'm not sure if that is a factor of the school or the Navy not allowing them to enter. We do have some college programmers that keep getting passed over for getting a side-load scholarship that are Tier II's, so take it with a grain of salt.

As for the Navy/Marine Corps issue, as many people know, the Commandant has called for a draw down and it appears to be hitting those applying for NROTC Scholarships pretty badly. I am a Navy option with intent of switching, but they are starting to reject virtually everyone that is applying for an option change. They are starting to encourage me to abandon hope of switching (at least in NROTC). Applying for option changes vice a four year Marine scholarship are different, but I would imagine there is some proportionality between the two. I've heard from a couple friends at TBS that pilot slots are not as available as they were before, but that doesn't include air contracts and I can't speak to the availability of air contracts. Of the Marine options at my school, only a few are not Tier III's.

Sorry that this doesn't thoroughly answer your question, but I am just a midshipman. If anyone else's information contradicts mine, they are most likely correct, especially if it is any of the numerous Officers here that all know more than me.

 

[Shaddy]

So right now my most desirable option for me would be to get into the academy and not have to worry about tier business at all, and I'm going to pursue that, but obviously I cant assume that I'm going to get in to the academy and I have to assume that it's going to be NROTC for me otherwise. I would much rather go navy, but if I were to go Marine option I would want to go into TBS with an intel billet (I'm not even confident that there would still be NFOs in the corps by the time I'd be in TBS). So Right now my options are to either get into the academy, apply for Navy option and hope that my credentials are good enough to make the board want a tier 3 for some reason, or just apply for the Marine option where I feel like I would have a little more security.

The issue is that its very hard to judge whether or not my creds are remotely good enough to receive a Navy scholarship, so this makes deciding between the Navy option and the Marine option very difficult. I would prefer to go Navy. I'm not even sure what benefit the Navy gets out of having an 85% minimum on technical majors, because I'm sure one could find some very promising students in nuke school who were english majors.


Anyways, thanks for you response and good luck with your transfer!

 

[A7Dave]

Shaddy, are you a senior or junior? And I'm assuming you're in high school? Next, where do you live? Have you considered the Coast Guard Academy? A bit small pool to compete against.

 

[Shaddy]

A7Dave, I'm a high school junior living in New York State. I've given the Coast Guard as a whole a lot of thought, and I've decided that the Navy or Marine Corps are really the services I could rather serve in (preferably Navy). If I joined the Coast Guard it would primarily be to fly but I would much rather be a naval officer doing something else should aviation not work out for me, than an aviator in any other service.

 

[HMM265GS]

For NROTC, you can be a college programmer, which is a good fail safe for you. Since you are saying you'd prefer Navy, that would be the way to go if the Academy doesn't work out. Just because they don't use tiers, doesn't make it any easier. If you applied for a Marine scholarship and didn't make it, you'd be in the same boat as me. Whether it be a transfer or getting a scholarship from being a college programmer, it's a side load scholarship either way, which is the one that is being restricted right now. Not to discourage you from doing that, but since you showed preference to Navy, it might not be worth it to put yourself through that much trouble.

But, keep in mind that it's your decision and don't let random guys on the internet tell you what to do. Make sure you want to be doing what you're doing in the end.

 

[Shaddy]

I'm not sure how much insight you could provide into this, but is it still likely for Tier 3 college programmers to be picked up for a scholarship after their freshman year if they demonstrate the right grades and leadership capabilities? or does most of the priority still go to tier 1 majors?
I completely understand what you're saying about my preference, and I think it's sound advice. Right now I just want to understand the likelihood of receiving any kind of scholarship or advanced standing with my major, and if it looks too bleak then I am probably going to apply for the Marine option. While I do have a preference for the Navy, I also prefer the Navy and the Marine Corps over the other three services so I wouldn't see it as a sacrifice at all. I'm still going full force with the academy application, and should that not work out, and the chances of picking up a 3 year Navy scholarship exist, then entering as a college program mid seems like it would be a great option.

 

[A7Dave]

Shaddy,

I wasn't a Coastie, but I have several friends who were and are fellow pilots at the company we work for. While I wouldn't trade my Naval career for anything, getting through the front door is the biggest step. Might be worth putting in an application in case the other two fall through.

I had no knowledge of the USCG when I was applying for the academies and ROTC, back in the late 70s. I have utmost admiration for the job the Coasties do, both as aviators and ship drivers. As a junior officer for the USCG, you will get incredible responsibility and leadership opportunities rarely equaled in the Navy. Also remember, Coasties get their wings with the Navy - Wings of Gold. As a Coastie ship driver JO, you could be in charge of boarding parties in the Persian Gulf (if they're still doing that) or off the Gulf Coast - the real deal with guns and real bullets....or with the Navy, you could be one of hundreds of Surface Warfare officers on an aircraft carrier, hoping to see the light of day.

Just one more opportunity to consider. My buddy's son did this summer orientation at the CG academy and had a blast:

http://www.cga.edu/aim/

Best of luck.

Dave

 

[Shaddy]

Dave,

I had no clue that the CGA had a summer program like the academy or West Point do, and I'll definitely be applying for a spot there in the next couple of weeks (it works out because New London's not far from me at all), so that was great info.

It's no surprise that you had no clue about the USCG when you were applying, and I still don't think enough of the people my age looking to get into the service do (though the weather channel shows aren't hurting at all!). I think you're absolutely spot on with everything you said, especially the idea of having better leadership opportunities due to the smaller service aspect (I think that's really what i'm going to be measuring my job satisfaction with). The problem is that I have this unwavering preference to join the Navy. It might be pretty irrational given the leadership opportunities and the more accommodating lifestyle in the Coast Guard, but right feel like the Navy is really the place for me. That might change tomorrow, but I always seem to come back to the Navy.

However, with your one post, you've made me really reconsider my position on joining the USCG and give it much more of a chance than I previously have. So thanks a lot for that!

Marshad

 

[A7Dave]

Excellent. Just throwing ideas out. Navy is #1, but the Coasties have some serious balls flying out in bad weather to rescue people. Like you said, the Wx Channel has really opened eyes to some of what they do.