Courtesy Photo | 150129-N-ZZ999-002 COLUMBUS, Ohio (Jan. 29, 2015) Midshipman 4th Class Adam Agosta,...... read more read more
COLUMBUS, Ohio (January 16, 2015) – Midshipman 4th Class Adam Agosta from Circleville, Ohio, received an Immediate Scholarship Reservation (ISR) for the Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps (NROTC) on Jan. 9, 2014.
Adam Agosta graduated Logan Elm High School in 2013 and started in the NROTC program at The Ohio State University (OSU) in the fall semester of 2014.
According to Adam Agosta's father Michael Agosta, their family has a long history of military service and he believes that the NROTC Scholarship is an excellent way for his son to help with his college expenses while serving his country.
Michael Agosta said, “I would like to see my son develop his leadership skills, get a good education, and enjoy what the world has to offer. I believe the NROTC program offers these opportunities and more.”
Adam Agosta stated that he prepared for the scholarship by working hard in every aspect of high school from classes to athletics, consistently striving to improve himself daily.
Adam Agosta said, “I was ecstatic to find out that I was selected for the NROTC Scholarship, as it served as one of the few indicators that my hard work in high school had paid off.”
Adam Agosta stated that he chose the Navy over the other branches of service because the opportunities for technical advancement, leadership and travel that cannot be matched by any other organization, military or civilian.
Adam Agosta said, “The program is different from what I expected. The standards for success are much higher than in high school. Here, academics are still a priority; however, respect, punctuality,fitness, leadership, and personal presentation are all gauged in order to compare your performance to that of other midshipmen. Additionally, the demands of the program are much higher than I expected, but these demands help to improve time management skills and self-discipline.”
According to OSU Assistant Professor of Naval Science Lt. Nathan Ahrens the Navy would miss out on some of the best students if they limited themselves to only the U. S. Naval Academy and Officer Candidate School (OCS). NROTC allows those that wish to serve and go to the college of their choice the option to do so without attending the Academy or OCS.
Ahrens said, “It’s an amazing experience. I am so privileged to get to be a part of the development and mentorship of future Naval Officers. I am literally surrounded by the best and brightest midshipman. The most rewarding experience is seeing day to day how motivated and committed to the program these students are.”
According to the NROTC College Scholarship Program governing instruction COMNAVCRUITCOMINST 1533.4D, the NROTC ISR Program is designed to allow Navy Recruiting Districts (NRD) to aggressively compete in the fields that the Navy needs and where the Navy would risk losing outstanding candidates to other scholarship programs.
NRD Ohio Commanding Officer Cmdr. Eric Shafer said, “Besides meeting the required academic minimums which are very high, I look for a well-rounded individual who has demonstrated leadership ability and can articulate ones ideas well in a face-to-face interview. Participation in sports, school council, music groups, community service, or Boy/Girl Scouts are some examples of extracurricular activities that I check for on the application. I ask myself for every candidate I interview, “Would I want this person as a Naval Officer in my Wardroom?”
According to Shafer in the normal NROTC program students go through a lengthy and competitive process with about 4000 other applicants. The ISR Program allows the applicant to circumvent that process and the Navy only hands out approximately 150 ISRs per year nationwide making them highly competitive as well.
Shafer said, “Awarding an immediate ROTC scholarship to a deserving person is one of the most rewarding things I’ve experienced in my time as the Commanding Officer. You can imagine the joy in the faces of the applicant and their parents when they hear this positive news.”
Shafer stated that ISRs are a great opportunity to motivate students to work harder knowing that a full ride scholarship is within their grasp.
According to NRD Ohio NROTC Program Coordinator, Machinist's Mate 1st Class Harold Osmun the deadline for applications is January 31 each year, with selections being made in late April or early May. Last year NRD Ohio had 400 applicants, 220 that completed the whole process, and of those only 57 were selected for the NROTC Program. The NROTC Scholarship Program is one of the few ways to get a degree prior to military service.
Osmun said, “It is important to submit your application early (August at the latest) to give yourself the best possible shot at selection. Also keep in mind that the NROTC coordinators are very busy with processing each year. Typically from November until season close gets extremely busy. This being said, getting your application in earlier will ensure faster processing.”
Osmun stated that the primary reason that applicants get turned down is low ACT/SAT scores. Many applicants also only take the tests once, but the NROTC Scholarship Program uses superscoring which takes the best scores in each section from all tests over a the past two years.
Osmun said, “The general population has a misconception about the Navy as not being big on education. This couldn’t be further from the truth. The Navy actively pushes all members to pursue higher education. The Navy ROTC Scholarship is a way to receive a free degree and secure a guaranteed job after the fact.”
According to Osmun the applicants get selected based on the “whole person” concept looking at athletic and academic ability, as well as leadership potential. While many things can lead to leadership experience some big contributors are Boy/Eagle Scouts, Sea Cadets, JROTC, Civil Air Patrol, National Honor Society and being an Athletic Team Captain.
| Date Taken: | 01.16.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 03.11.2015 14:13 |
| Story ID: | 156666 |
| Location: | COLUMBUS, OHIO, US |
| Hometown: | CIRCLEVILLE, OHIO, US |
| Web Views: | 266 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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