I'm a cadet now.

[Pigspitter]

Hey, it's been a really long time since I last posted, but since then I've recently registered for the Introduction to the Army class and lab at UGA. I posted a thread a long time ago asking for advice on joining the military, and now I'm a non-scholarship cadet in Army ROTC. So, I was wondering if anyone here was or is a cadet and if anyone happened to do that at UGA. If anybody wants too, I'd really like to know what to expect as far as equipment and uniforms issued and, most of all, the amount of time we get to spend with basic weapons familiarization. Thanks for any help. And to keep this gun related, please be sure to discuss the merits of my new best friend, the M16A2.

 

[glock36]

Congradulations, I don't know what you will need for the class but I am happy for you, Good luck

 

[SquirrelNuts]

Nice work.

HOOAH!

 

[Pigspitter]

Thanks. I haven't really thought about what I might want to do in the Army, but I don't start classes until August, so I have plenty of time to think.

 

[.455_Hunter]

Congrats!

I went the ROTC route and was very happy with the outcome. The three things you need to do be high on the OML and get your top choices for branch and duty station are:

1. Have an above average (or better) GPA as compared to the other students at your school with the same major.

2. Do your best with your rated ROTC duty positions and activities (especially MS III year). This includes PT tests, uniform inspections, lab evaluations and performance at SL, PSG and PL rotations.

3. Excel at the Ft. Lewis Advanced Camp- Put all you have learned to good use and keep your motivation level-up. It's only 5 weeks, and has a huge impact on your Army career.

I did great at academics, OK with in-school ROTC performance, above average at camp, and managed to get my second choices for both branch and duty station. Needless to say, I am very happy with the results, since the OD Corps was the best place for a mechanical engineer and I met my wife in Manhattan, KS while assigned to Ft. Riley.

We did not do a lot of BRM (Basic Rifle Marksmanship) stuff when I was in ROTC- live fire once or twice a year, but with current urban warfare emphasis, I am sure the focus has changed.

Remember- depending on your branch and job assignment, your best friend may be an M9.

Good Luck!

Feel free to PM if you want...

 

[DawgsFan_07]

Good luck, from what I've seen you won't spend much time on weapons training. I went to a military college, and we had weapons there and did a fair bit of practice with them. I believe you will only handle weapons 1/semester.

In addition to what .455 Hunter said, let me add this: keep your nose clean. I saw several smart, gung-ho cadets do stupid crap in their off time that got them in trouble and out of the program.

Have you looked at the scholarship/contracting? How's your PT?

As far as the M16A2 goes, all you need to know is this. It's YOUR weapon, master it, take care of it, and use it well. When it's in your hands it's the best damn rifle that ever was. If it jams, it's because you didn't take care of it, if it misses it's because you didn't aim.

From "The Young British Soldier" by Kipling:

When 'arf of your bullets fly wide in the ditch,
Don't call your Martini a cross-eyed old bitch;
She's human as you are -- you treat her as sich,
An' she'll fight for the young British soldier.
Fight, fight, fight for the soldier . . .

 

[armoredman]

When I was in Senior ROTC at the UofA, the only M-16 we held was a rubber one in training. Left after the first year, ran outa money. It's a great fun thing to do, best of luck to you!

 

[wickedsprint]

I remember starting that journey myself. Stick with it, don't let the BS and drama get to you, cause there will be plenty of both.

 

[jobu07]

As an Officer Candidate School alum I can't tell you much about ROTC. But i'm currently an Infantry Officer serving in Iraq. I can tell you boat loads of info on branchs and what the life is like after you commission, if you so choose - shoot me a pm.

 

[gimlet1/21]

I hear they are looking for 11B's?

HOOAH!!! RANGER!!!

 

[Hawkn]

If your grades are good, you should look into the ROTC Scholarship. I received one in the dark ages of 1969. Paid for my college, lab fees, books and gave me $100/month spending money. Back then, that $100 was about 25% of my month income.

In return, I spent 4 years on active duty. Never regretted it.

As far as weapons training, the above posts are fairly accurate. We would train with the M16 about once a semester, at the range, but would usually strip and clean the weapons in the armory about once a month.

Good luch in whatever you decide.

 

[The Wiry Irishman]

When I was in Senior ROTC at the UofA, the only M-16 we held was a rubber one in training

Have had a few friends in ROTC here, all they have are some rubber M-16s, deactivated Garands for drill, and a handfull of .22 rifles and pistols for their teams.

I can only speak for the Army and Navy ROTC pistol teams here (not a rifle shooter) but they're incredibly poor shots with little or no grasp of range safety. I hope its better at your school. I know Ohio State has a well-equipped and well-trained ROTC pistol team. (They sure spanked us last year)

 

[psyopspec]

I remember starting that journey myself. Stick with it, don't let the BS and drama get to you, cause there will be plenty of both.

Yep.

I did ROTC through North Dakota State. Equipment was behind Big Army, as far as ACU's vs BDU's, Vietnam era suspender LBEs. Nothing wrong with that given the training environment though.

You'll do a lot more weapons training when you get to BOLC II. We were issued M4s with CCO, PEQ2, AN-PVS 14s, lots of fun toys to play with. There you'll do live fire, convoy live fire, night fire, and US weapons where you'll get to fire a handful of rounds through the MK19, M2, SAW, 240B, M203, AT4 (probably a 9mm trainer), and chuck a live hand grenade or two.

 

[Kevin5098]

Congratulations! I was ROTC class of '75 at Syracuse University. Our on campus arms room had about 40 M14s, 2 M79s, and 2 M60s. We didn't see M16s until summer camp. It was a different world back then. Afterwards I did about 10 yrs active and 10 yrs Reserve and NG. No regrets. I wouldn't trade my military experience for anything. Good luck!

 

[Shadow 7D]

As a former army sergeant, please remember that you have no rank and can't even boss a private arround without someones ok, I saw too many Kadidiots, and this includes ring blingers. Listen to regular army soldiers you train with, theory is great, but if your troops think you stupid or hate you, it only makes your life hard, be quiet, ask questions, and lead by example.

As a cadet you can hang out with the NCO's, with the privates and with the officers, use this to learn about the army.

 

[psyopspec]

As a cadet you can hang out with the NCO's, with the privates and with the officers, use this to learn about the army.

Top-notch advice. Particularly if you aren't coming from a prior-service background, the time you spend as a cadet and a new officer is best spent with mouth shut, eyes open until you understand fully the operational environment you're in.

 

[rogertc1]

I got my Commission through ROTC. WMA 1972. Advance ROTC at Ft. Riley KS.
When you get the chance buy USAA insurance. The least expensive and best life, auto and home insurance. This is not an ad.
It is an exclusive insurance only for Officers that can be passed down to your siblings when you get to that point in your life.

 

[PershingRiflesC-7]

rogertc1 --

USAA is now open to enlisted ranks and has been since the 1990s because of the reduction in the force structure (i.e. less officers). USAA was a good deal on car insurance until I got a couple of teenage drivers......went to Liberty Mutual and saved a ton. Teenagers grown and gone now, I ought to get another quote.

Pigspitter --

You have gotten some good advice on how to learn the most from your ROTC cadet experience. It is a totally different experience today than it was in my day in the 1970s as we had M-14s in the arms room, fired blanks thru them for field exercises at least twice a year, and had the great fun of cleaning them three times after each exercise. Good PT, good grades, and good leadership scores are the key to your future military life, if you desire it. In the current military engagement scenarios, I would recommend you choose a combat arms branch because it is what you will end up doing anyway, no matter your branch so you might as well get the best preparation for it.

 

[Pigspitter]

Thanks for all the advice. My grades have always been above average and I've kept a 4.0 throughout high-school, so that shouldn't be an issue. I'm also in fairly good shape, but it shouldn't take me long to get back in the swing of things. As for possible branches, I don't think I'd feel right putting my mother through the stress of me being an infantry officer, so I'm leaning towards artillery or armored. Any more advice will be just peachy. Thanks again.

 

[7.5-Swiss]

I went through 2 years of Army ROTC in 2006 and 2007, I decided not to contract and stopped at the MS II level.

We spent most of our time with rubber duckies (full size hard rubber mock up of an m16) but about 2x a year while on FTX's we were able to do some actual live-fire. If you are unsure if you want to contract, and can afford college without an immediate scholarship - I would advise you to put off signing a contract until you're certain that it is what you want to do. I did, and ended up not contracting - and am very happy with the decision and my current career.

However, there are tons of great opportunities in the Army today for officers.

Doing well on the APFT and attending the optional remedial PT sessions (regardless of how well you did on the APFT) is a good idea if you aren't scoring well into the clear, this can be difficult for the optional ones but doing so consistently will pay off. The classroom component of ROTC is pretty basic, but you should learn a lot of what you need to know as an officer between your junior and senior years of college at LDAC.

 

[Tim the student]

I don't think I'd feel right putting my mother through the stress of me being an infantry officer, so I'm leaning towards artillery or armored.

Not to burst your bubble or anything, but the first time i deployed, I had an armor PL, and he did the same things we (infantry) did.

And the second time I deployed, our FSO actually did double duty as a PL (one PL got hurt, and the FSO was RSLC qualified, same as our PL's).

Unless things change, everyone is in the fight now. Women, cooks, PAC guys, everybody. When we had a big mission, pretty much everyone was involved in something outside the wire.

I think there has been some great advice so far, and my two cents is to maybe first just get the hang of it and do the best you can do before you start worrying about branches. Maybe you will decide being a Chemo or something that is not normally hard to get is what you really want.

If it makes you feel better, normally the best officers I ever encountered were not Pointers, but OCS'ers and ROTC guys. Pointers usually didn't have enough life experience to really be good leaders.

One more thing - listen to your NCO's. They have spent years doing for real what you will have only learned in theory. If they say to do something in a way that is not in a TM or FM, it's probably for a reason.

And last but not least, don't ever get in a fight with a Sergeant Major. As a new LT, you will ALWAYS lose, even if you are right. And definitely don't try to pull rank on one. You will likely get beat up, and lose the argument anyways.

 

[Shadow 7D]

saw that once, the Company Commander guided the new LT, a ring blinger btw (West Point) in remedial PT at 0600 and 1630 in front of the company, which was visible from battalion. The LT dropped the CSM when the CSM was trying to correct something, grapevine was his uniform. Needless to say he was smoked by every officer that outranked him for months. The times for PT is when the troops are gathering for formations.