Anyone doing the ROTC Simultaneous Membership Program?

[c.reel22]

If you are can you give me any details about what it all consists of and how the monthly allowance works? Is the monthly allowance the money that covers your room and board or is it something completely seperate? Also is it true that while in the ROTC SMP you are non-deployable until you graduate and then you add on 4 years to your contract? Any information you have is greatly needed and appreciated.

[cyall]

If you are can you give me any details about what it all consists of and how the monthly allowance works? Is the monthly allowance the money that covers your room and board or is it something completely seperate? Also is it true that while in the ROTC SMP you are non-deployable until you graduate and then you add on 4 years to your contract? Any information you have is greatly needed and appreciated.

SMP simply allows a cadet to be a member of two organizations at once. In your case, ROTC and ARNG. As such, you can use the education benefits you've earned as a soldier plus what ROTC offers. You are non-deployable as a CONTRACTED cadet; you are not exempt form state call up. You will not be deployable until you finish BOLC. Your service obligation, once you commission, is eight years.

ROTC Benefits:
Stipend once contracted, paid to cadet, $300, $350, $450 or $500 dedending on year in school
Scholarship if you are awarded one, paid to school, covers full tuition
SMP Benefits:
GI Bill if you finished IET, ~$330 per month (reserve GIB) paid to soldier
Commissioning Kicker with GRFD agreement, $350 per month, paid to cadet, you can actually get this without eligibility for the GIB
Drill pay, E-5 rate, paid to cadet
Federal Tuition Asst.: $4500 per year, paid to school

There are a few ways to get into the SMP. One is to complete IET. You get the full meal deal. Otherwise; BCT only, LTC, or progression through the ROTC basic course all allow you to enter the SMP and get everything except the GIB. If you want more info ask.

[13Fox]

SMP simply allows a cadet to be a member of two organizations at once. In your case, ROTC and ARNG. As such, you can use the education benefits you've earned as a soldier plus what ROTC offers. You are non-deployable as a CONTRACTED cadet; you are not exempt form state call up. You will not be deployable until you finish BOLC. Your service obligation, once you commission, is eight years.

ROTC Benefits:
Stipend once contracted, paid to cadet, $300, $350, $450 or $500 dedending on year in school
Scholarship if you are awarded one, paid to school, covers full tuition
SMP Benefits:
GI Bill if you finished IET, ~$330 per month (reserve GIB) paid to soldier
Commissioning Kicker with GRFD agreement, $350 per month, paid to cadet, you can actually get this without eligibility for the GIB
Drill pay, E-5 rate, paid to cadet
Federal Tuition Asst.: $4500 per year, paid to school

There are a few ways to get into the SMP. One is to complete IET. You get the full meal deal. Otherwise; BCT only, LTC, or progression through the ROTC basic course all allow you to enter the SMP and get everything except the GIB. If you want more info ask.

Excellent Program I want to ask though lets say I go into college as a Junior. Is it possible to still do the SMP program and just contract as a junior without the additional 2 years

[Ababb17]

SMP simply allows a cadet to be a member of two organizations at once. In your case, ROTC and ARNG. As such, you can use the education benefits you've earned as a soldier plus what ROTC offers. You are non-deployable as a CONTRACTED cadet; you are not exempt form state call up. You will not be deployable until you finish BOLC. Your service obligation, once you commission, is eight years.

ROTC Benefits:
Stipend once contracted, paid to cadet, $300, $350, $450 or $500 dedending on year in school
Scholarship if you are awarded one, paid to school, covers full tuition
SMP Benefits:
GI Bill if you finished IET, ~$330 per month (reserve GIB) paid to soldier
Commissioning Kicker with GRFD agreement, $350 per month, paid to cadet, you can actually get this without eligibility for the GIB
Drill pay, E-5 rate, paid to cadet
Federal Tuition Asst.: $4500 per year, paid to school

There are a few ways to get into the SMP. One is to complete IET. You get the full meal deal. Otherwise; BCT only, LTC, or progression through the ROTC basic course all allow you to enter the SMP and get everything except the GIB. If you want more info ask.
Not totally correct cyall, as I have been explained several times by the mizzou Commander, as long as your enrolled in ROTC, not necessarily contracted yet, your on a non-deployable status. I have had several people confirm this for me.

[cyall]

Excellent Program I want to ask though lets say I go into college as a Junior. Is it possible to still do the SMP program and just contract as a junior without the additional 2 years

Yes. LTC or BCT will fulfill the requirements for the basic course. However, you MUST have four semesters to complete ROTC. Cadet Command is not allowing acceleration in that circumstance at this time.

[cyall]

Not totally correct cyall, as I have been explained several times by the mizzou Commander, as long as your enrolled in ROTC, not necessarily contracted yet, your on a non-deployable status. I have had several people confirm this for me.

Show me the reg. I've had everybody from NG recruiters to a LTC tell me the opposite. When i was trained to be a ROTC recruiter I was taught contract=non-deployable. Plus, SMP doesn't apply until you are eligible for the advanced course. That would include contracting. Notice I said eligible, not enrolled in the advanced course.

[matthew.ritchie]

Show me the reg. I've had everybody from NG recruiters to a LTC tell me the opposite. When i was trained to be a ROTC recruiter I was taught contract=non-deployable. Plus, SMP doesn't apply until you are eligible for the advanced course. That would include contracting. Notice I said eligible, not enrolled in the advanced course.

Not a regulation, but a DA G1 policy memo from the 2004-timeframe established the non-deployability of enrolled cadets, even if they weren't contracted -- as long as they contracted at the earliest opportunity, and had been enrolled and participating fully in ROTC prior to receipt of the mobilization order.

[cyall]

Not a regulation, but a DA G1 policy memo from the 2004-timeframe established the non-deployability of enrolled cadets, even if they weren't contracted -- as long as they contracted at the earliest opportunity, and had been enrolled and participating fully in ROTC prior to receipt of the mobilization order.

Roger, sir. I was coming back to post similar info. The cadet has to be enrolled and be in a non-contractable status. That is less than 30 semester hours. Then, as it was expalined to me by our NG recruiter, the cadet is deployable the first semester and non-deployable the second semester. As soon as a cadet is eligible to contract he must to avoid being placed into a deployable status.

Regardless, SMP is not applicable until a cadet contracts.

This stuff makes me see double.

[c.reel22]

SMP simply allows a cadet to be a member of two organizations at once. In your case, ROTC and ARNG. As such, you can use the education benefits you've earned as a soldier plus what ROTC offers. You are non-deployable as a CONTRACTED cadet; you are not exempt form state call up. You will not be deployable until you finish BOLC. Your service obligation, once you commission, is eight years.

ROTC Benefits:
Stipend once contracted, paid to cadet, $300, $350, $450 or $500 dedending on year in school
Scholarship if you are awarded one, paid to school, covers full tuition
SMP Benefits:
GI Bill if you finished IET, ~$330 per month (reserve GIB) paid to soldier
Commissioning Kicker with GRFD agreement, $350 per month, paid to cadet, you can actually get this without eligibility for the GIB
Drill pay, E-5 rate, paid to cadet
Federal Tuition Asst.: $4500 per year, paid to school

There are a few ways to get into the SMP. One is to complete IET. You get the full meal deal. Otherwise; BCT only, LTC, or progression through the ROTC basic course all allow you to enter the SMP and get everything except the GIB. If you want more info ask.

What is IET? So if I complete BCT and AIT by April of 2011 and then start my freshmen year at Texas A&M in College Station with 0 semester hours can I enroll in the ROTC SMP? If not when is the earliest that I can gain my non-deployable status? I have no problem being deployed but I really want to get my degree first and hopefully get it uninterrupted. Any idea how they cover the room and housing payment? Is it the same way they do the tuition? Thank you everyone for your help!

[49thadband]

if you finish basic and AIT in April, the first thing you might want to do is find out if you have to attend AT. A long time ago, and this is one of those things that could have easily changed, if you were fresh off of AIT, you could get out of AT to go to school.

I say this because here is something you could look at. Enroll in summer school, take the max. # of hours. (12). You should get a copy of your ATTRS(sp?) transcript and try to get your college to grant you the hours recommended. You should get at least 4 hours of P. E. or electives for basic, and hopefully some for AIT. get at least 4 hours, now you have 16 hours, enroll and pass 15 hours in the fall, and boom, there is your 31 hours, go SMP as a sophomore in January. Also, another option, take a Decembermester course to get you over the 30 hour hump.

If you followed that plan, you would be deployable for only eight months(April through December). One other possibility would be to start school during a Maymester course, but that is probably highly not recommended for someone with no college experience, because of the intensity of the course.

Check all of this with your ROTC cadre, and one other thing, the 12 hours in the summer could easily be done at a local community college, doesn't have to be done at the big place with 200 other students in class. Just make sure the credits transfer properly.

[cyall]

What is IET? So if I complete BCT and AIT by April of 2011 and then start my freshmen year at Texas A&M in College Station with 0 semester hours can I enroll in the ROTC SMP? If not when is the earliest that I can gain my non-deployable status? I have no problem being deployed but I really want to get my degree first and hopefully get it uninterrupted. Any idea how they cover the room and housing payment? Is it the same way they do the tuition? Thank you everyone for your help!

IET is Initial Entry Training. In this case it is BCT + AIT. You will not be able to enroll into SMP until you are able to contract; that requires 30 semester hours of credit or the four year ROTC Scholarship. Probably fall of sophmore year is the earliest you will be able to enter SMP. The earliest you can become non-deployable is your second semester of freshman year. By policy, you can be granted that status then, but you must contract when you become eligible to keep it. 49thand band has some good ideas above.

Room and board is up to you unless you have some financial aid to cover it. That is one way to use your GI Bill money.

[K-TownMT]

If you are can you give me any details about what it all consists of and how the monthly allowance works? Is the monthly allowance the money that covers your room and board or is it something completely seperate? Also is it true that while in the ROTC SMP you are non-deployable until you graduate and then you add on 4 years to your contract? Any information you have is greatly needed and appreciated.
whats your MOS?

[c.reel22]

I guess I just need to call the recruiter from ATM and get all the details from him. Thank you for all of yalls help. It has given me a good idea of what to expect


whats your MOS?

35F Intelligence Analyst

[49thadband]

intelligence at A & M?? hmmm, j/k. :D

here is another suggestion. For an incredibly fantastic loan that is state-funded, meaning they do run out of money at certain times; it is called the Bontimeloan. The Texas legislature created this several years ago because too many college students were enjoying their college so much they were taking five, six, etc. years to graduate.

B- meaning 3.0 gpa or above, ontime- meaning in most circumstances graduate in 4 years = they will FORGIVE the loan.

IMO this loan is on par with the concept of new teachers working in a Title I school and getting their student loans forgiven.

btw, it sounds like you are going to be at Basic/AIT a while. save your dough, as much as you can. don't depend on loans, etc. Take charge of your career and your finances.

edit: couldn't resist, here it is pasted, attention all future Texas Guardsmen, here is some dough that could almost be free, I didn't know the forgiveness was considered taxable income, but hey nothing is perfect:

Texas B-On-Time Loan Program Fact Sheet

The purpose of the Texas B-On-Time Loan program is to provide eligible Texas students no-interest loans to attend colleges and universities in Texas. If the student meets specified goals, the entire loan amount can be forgiven upon graduation. Your institution's financial aid office will determine if you are eligible. If this loan is offered to you, the financial aid office will instruct you to complete an application and promissory note online.
ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS
-- Applicants must:

Have completed a FAFSA and be eligible to receive federal financial aid
Be enrolled full time in an undergraduate degree or certificate program at an eligible institution and
Be a Texas resident or be entitled to pay resident tuition rates as a dependent child of a member of the U.S. armed forces
and
Have graduated in the 2002-2003 academic year or later from a high school operated by the U.S. Department of Defense or under the recommended high school program from a public or accredited private high school in Texas
or
Have earned an associate’s degree from an eligible institution no earlier than May 1, 2005

[49thadband]

"ROTC Benefits:
Stipend once contracted, paid to cadet, $300, $350, $450 or $500 dedending on year in school
Scholarship if you are awarded one, paid to school, covers full tuition
SMP Benefits:
GI Bill if you finished IET, ~$330 per month (reserve GIB) paid to soldier
Commissioning Kicker with GRFD agreement, $350 per month, paid to cadet, you can actually get this without eligibility for the GIB
Drill pay, E-5 rate, paid to cadet
Federal Tuition Asst.: $4500 per year, paid to school

There are a few ways to get into the SMP. One is to complete IET. You get the full meal deal. Otherwise; BCT only, LTC, or progression through the ROTC basic course all allow you to enter the SMP and get everything except the GIB. If you want more info ask."

A few points.

1. I really like the way you laid all of this out.
2. IMO, this screams for the person with brains to look at this and realize in about 10 minutes that the preferred option is to go BCT immediately followed by AIT; then enroll in college
3. If a person was a senior in college, and planning to go to grad school, I'm thinking the future soldier could expect to go to Basic and AIT as an E-4. This is important because the soldier could save enough dough in BCT/AIT to pay for room and board in combination with other $$ for the next two years of grad school.

HOLY COW! The person who does this has got himself a job, because after the saved money runs out, it's time to go to OBC, that's 6 more months of full-time money that doesn't have to be spent.

okay, so the key is to pick an MOS with a nice long AIT, so you can get paid well. Go to basic the day after college graduation, say May 20th, finish basic about August 1-7 or so, immediately go to AIT, hope AIT lasts until December 20th or so, this is possible.

pay, $1889 a month, take home 80% - $1511, save 70% of this, you don't need to spend any except for essential stuff (razors, haircuts, toothbrush laundry, shoes, envelopes, etc, you don't even have to buy polish anymore, for boots that is)

save 1057 a month! good grief, X 7 months, + at the end of AIT, get paid for accumulated leave that would be 17.5 days = $1101.

So save 7k in basic and AIT and accum. leave is 1100, that's $8100. nice cushion to work with.

monthly income in ROTC(I will assume you get paid as a Junior in regards to stipend) --- 450, 330, 350, 200(net drill pay as an E-5). All other amounts are net and not taxable!!! total per full month of $1330.

depending upon which state you are in you might get a break on tuition. My state, TX, has first 12 hours paid for, I will assume that tuition and fees are covered, not completely sure if grad. degree is covered. If grad school is not covered, use the FTA and probably have to get a small loan to pay the remainder or take a Guard Scholarship to pay the remaining tuition and fees.

Since tuition and fees are completely covered, you have to pay for books, and room and board, etc. four months paid for each semester= $5300 per semester. Plenty for room and board, might have to dip into savings for that car payment, insurance, books, gas and extras, even if you dip into that savings $300 a month, you would be okay for approximately 27 of these months. I think you can only draw these benefits during the regular school year, so count it off at 8 months per year, X 2 years = 16 months. Assuming you can choose a grad. degree that you can complete in two school years you have enough money leftover to go buy a really nice interview suit.
:)

All of this is to say you can do it without getting the Guard scholarship, being flexible helps a bunch in case the job market is tight when you graduate, you could choose Active Duty.

think Active Army would mind a 24-25 year old graduate degree holder as a 2LT? I bet they would love it, this student has proven way beyond a shadow of a doubt he/she can manage their life and get a difficult job done.

[49thadband]

and how about one more. A SLRP option. college senior in a tight market, limited job prospects has student loans, let's say 40k. Enlist in guard, go to basic followed by AIT, gets the SLRP, so he/she knows approx. 36k will be paid by Uncle Sam over a period of six years.(15% X 6 years = 90%) Senior is 21-22 when joining.

Six years later last student loan payment is made by Uncle Sam, soldier is 27-28 years old, decides to go to grad school, because he/she wants a better job, loans are now paid off, assuming soldier paid the remaining 10%,

Go ROTC/SMP in grad school, gets paid E-5 over 6 for drills, that 1330 is more like 1400-1500.

receives commission and Master's at age 29-30, and a nice upgrade in full-time job, in best shape of his/her life.

edit, somebody proof this SLRP to make sure I'm correct about 15% paid each year. thanks