Army Enlisted to Officer Commissioning
Programs
The U.S. Army offers enlisted soldiers several ways to earn a commission
and join the Officer Corps. The following are descriptions of each
of the Army Enlisted to Officer Programs:
USMA Westpoint
Officer Candidate School (OCS)
Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC)
Warrant Officer
U.S.
Military Academy at Westpoint
Each year about 200 active-duty soldiers are offered admission to
the U.S. Military Academy or the Preparatory School at Fort Monmouth,
New Jersey. Although some soldiers are offered direct admission
to West Point, most attend the Prep School first. All applications
are made directly to West Point. Soldiers not directly admitted
to West Point will be automatically considered for admission to
the Prep School.
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Each year about 200 active-duty soldiers are offered admission
to the U.S. Military Academy or the Preparatory School.
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In addition to having a sincere interest in attending West Point
and becoming an Army officer, applicants must be:
U.S. citizens
unmarried with no legal obligation to support dependents
under 23 years of age prior to July 1 of the year entering USMA
under 22 prior to July 1 of the year entering the Prep School
a high school graduate or have a GED
of high moral character
Soldiers who meet the basic eligibility requirements, have achieved
competitive SAT or ACT scores, and achieved better than average
grades in their high school curriculum are especially encouraged
to apply.
Soldiers must obtain an endorsement from their company or lowest-level
unit commander. While this endorsement constitutes a nomination, soldiers are also
strongly encouraged to obtain additional nominations from their
congressional nomination sources.
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Army
Officer Candidate School
OCS is a 14- week program that consists of the Basic, Intermediate
and Senior Officer Candidate Phases. To successfully complete OCS,
you will have to:
- Pass 3 standard Army Physical Fitness Tests.
- Run over 60 miles in formation within standards.
- Foot march over 50 miles within standards.
- Complete a 3, 4, and 5 mile release run within standards.
- Complete the Combat Water Survival Test, and confidence and
conditioning obstacle courses.
- Pass a land navigation written test, and successfully complete
a day and night land navigation course finding the right number
of points.
- Receive academic instruction in 10 areas, pass 9 academic
tests and successfully complete training on 67 pre-commissioning
common core tasks (must score 70% or greater on all academic
tests).
- Serve in numerous evaluated leadership positions in both a
garrison and field environment attaining a successful rating.
- Meet the Army's standards of conduct and discipline.
All applicants must—
a. Be United States citizens.
b. Achieve a General Technical Aptitude Test (GT) score of 110 or
higher on the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB).
c. Soldiers must take and obtain a passing score on the Scholastic
AssessmentTest (SAT) or the American College Test (ACT). A passing
score on the SAT is 850 or higher; a passing score on the ACT is
19 or higher. SAT/ACT scores must be dated within six years of the
application. A soldier who wishes to retake either test will do
at his/her own expense. Retaking the ACT requires a 60–day waiting
period, while the SAT can be retaken only once during any fiscal
year.
d. Pass the Army Physical Fitness Test (APFT) and meet the height
and weight standards of AR 600–9.
e. Have a SECRET security clearance.
f. Have completed at least 90 semester hours of study from an accredited
college or university and be able to complete a bachelor degree
in 1 year or less (except for Medal of Honor or Distinguished Service
Cross recipients). (See para 3–3b.) Soldiers who do not have a bachelor
degree but have college credits from several sources must submit
copies of transcripts along with a letter from the installation
education advisor that certifies the completion of 90 or more semester
hours of college credit.
g. Achieve a score of 80 or higher on the English Comprehension
Level Test (ECLT)/American Language Course Placement Test (ALCPT)
if the applicant’s primary language is other than English.
h. Be of good moral character. It cannot be concluded that a person
is of good moral character during the pendency of a suspension of
favorable personnel action under AR 600–8–2. (See para 1–7f.)
i. Have no convictions by civil or military courts. (This does not
apply to minor traffic violations with a fine or forfeiture of $250.00
or less). An applicant must not have been judged to be a juvenile
offender. This applies even if the court sentence, or any part of
it, was suspended or withheld, or such conviction was in any way
removed from court records by satisfactory completion of a period
of probation. This also applies to adverse juvenile adjudication.
(See table 1–1 for waiver of prior convictions by civil or military
courts.) j. Have not been previously disenrolled from officer candidate
training.
k. Be at least 18 but less than 30 years of age at the time of enrollment.
l. Have completed advanced individual training (AIT) (enlisted personnel).
m. Have had a type “A” medical examination within 9 months of the
date of the application. Applicants must meet 1 AR 350–51 • 11 June
2001 procurement medical fitness standards (except height and weight)
prescribed in AR 40–501, paragraph 8–14, and possess a physical
profile serial of at least 222221. (Height and weight standards
stated in c above apply.)
n. Have accumulated no more than 10 years of active Federal service
when appointed as a commissioned officer.
Army
Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC)
The purpose of the Reserve Officer Training Corps program is to
educate and train highly qualified young men and women for careers
as commissioned officers in the United States Army.
The Army ROTC units are located at selected colleges and universities
throughout the United States. Upon graduation and successful completion
of required courses and training, a Midshipman is appointed a Second
Lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps Reserve. While attending
a university as a scholarship student, active duty Marines who are
selected as Marine Option NROTC scholarship recipients are released
to the Inactive Ready Reserve (IRR) and do not receive pay and allowances.
The Marine Corps conducts two selection boards per year. The Early
Board in November, and the National Board in February. Selected
applicants for the Marine Option NROTC Scholarship Program are awarded
scholarships through a highly competitive national selection process,
and receive full tuition, books, fees and other financial benefits
at many of the country's leading colleges and universities.
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The general eligibility requirements for the program are as follows:
- Be a U.S. Citizen
- Be 17 years of age by September 1 of the year starting college
and
less than 23 on June 30 of that year.
- Applicants must not have reached their 27th birthday by June
30 of the year in which college graduation and commissioning
are anticipated. (Applicants who have prior active duty military
service may be eligible for age adjustments for the amount of
time equal to their prior service, on a month-for-month basis,
for a maximum of 36 months, provided they do not reach their
30th birthday by June 30 of the year in which graduation and
commissioning are anticipated.)
- Be a high school graduate or possess equivalency certificates
by
- August 1 of the same year entrance into the four-year ROTC
Scholarship
- Program is anticipated.
- Be physically qualified by Army standards.
- Have no moral obligations or personal convictions that will
prevent conscientious bearing of arms and supporting and supporting
and defending the Constitution of the United States against
all enemies, foreign or domestic.
- Have no record of military or civilian offenses.
- Apply for and gain admission to ROTC colleges. (Admission
to an ROTC institution is not required during the selection
process. However, notification of admission must be received
before the scholarship can be activated.)
- Achieve qualifying scores on the Scholastic Aptitude Test
(SAT) of 1000 composite, or the American College Test (ACT)
of 45 composite.
- Both the SAT/ACT math and English scores must be from the
same test.
- Applicants cannot combine their best math score and their
best English score to achieve the qualifying score for application
Warrant
Officer
Army Warrant Officers are technical and tactical leaders who specialize,
throughout an entire career, in a specific technical area. The Army
Warrant Officer Corps comprises less than three percent of the total
Army. Although small in size, the level of responsibility is immense
and only the very best will be selected to become Warrant Officers.
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