Worthwhile activities for service academy and ROTC admissions

In today’s post, we reviewthe types of extracurricular activities (“ECAs”) you might want to pursue to catch the attention of service academies and ROTC selection boards. Of course, this will not be an exhaustive list as you can make almost any activity work if you play your cards right.

Let’s start out with some of the usual suspects that have a long history of credibility with SAs and ROTC.

SCOUTING

Scouting used to be called “Boy Scouts”, but is now called “Scouting” because it includes both girls and boys.  Scouting remains a great way to stand out on your application.

Why is that the case?

1. Scouts demonstrate a lot of “outdoor aptitude”. They hike, camp, orienteer, rock climb and lots of other high-adventure outdoor activities
2. Scouts have a lot of opportunities to lead others as they move up the ranks (and by now we know that SAs and ROTC love leaders)
3. Scouts have the ability to become Eagle Scouts, which is the highest rank possible in Scouting and shows that you’ve stuck with the activity for many years. 

Service academies and ROTC programs like to see participation over time (they call it “duration”) as opposed to getting in and out of activities every other month. Unfortunately, if you are not already a Scout, it’s probably too late to start.  By high school, most Scouts have already been in their troops for a few years.

However, if you are a Scout wondering whether you should stick with it or not, I highly recommend sticking with it — especially if you’ve already put in a lot of time, moved up the ranks, and have a bunch of merit badges and leadership under your belt. It would be a shame to stop now. 

I will admit that this happens a lot because freshmen in high school tend to get impatient, they start to get distracted, and they may feel like they’re outgrowing Scouts. So, they decide to quit.

Please don’t let this be you.

Finish strong and get maximum credit for this activity.

My 3 oldest sons are Eagle Scouts. As challenging as the last few years were, I know it was very useful to them and I’m encouraging my 4th son to get into Scouting as well.

It’s not only service academies and ROTC programs that appreciate Scouting and Eagle Scouts. Traditional colleges outside of the military know and love Eagle Scouts as well.

SEA CADETS

Sea Cadets is another program that is well-known and respected particularly by the Naval Academy, because it’s run by the Navy. It’s a youth leadership program that aims to build character and show its members what military life is all about.

You can begin Sea Cadets from a young age and move up the ranks by demonstrating leadership and aptitude. It will certainly demonstrate your interest in the Navy and the military in general.

Check out the Sea Cadets if you’re looking for an activity that will be recognized and appreciated by service academies and ROTC - particularly from the Navy side.

CIVIL AIR PATROL

Civil Air Patrol (CAP) is run by the US Air Force.  It also provides opportunities for students (between ages 12 - 19) to learn about the military, gain leadership experience, and to demonstrate an interest in the military, in general.

Students are encouraged to take self-study modules, qualification exams, and fitness exams as they move up the ranks. This is another great opportunity to demonstrate interest in the Air Force, flying, leadership, and the military, in general.

JROTC

JROTC is another “extracurricular option” available at many high schools. JROTC stands for “Junior” ROTC. You can think of JROTC as a precursor to the official ROTC programs that you may be interested in down the road. Each branch has its own version of JROTC (Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, and Coast Guard) and they will do a great job preparing you for the service academy and ROTC application process. 

JROTC programs offer things like:

1. Fitness challenges
2. Drill formations
3. Air rifle competitions
4. Ship handling education
5. Volunteer service
6. Nautical science

I highly recommend looking into these programs at your high school, especially if you’re interested in ROTC down the road.

All of the activities I just listed had some affiliation with the military, so it stands to reason that those would be good options to consider. However, there are plenty of activities completely unrelated to the military that will also show the service academies and ROTC boards that you have the skills that they are looking for.

MOCK TRIAL

Mock Trial is a program at many high schools that provides students with an inside, practical, and experiential feel for how the legal system works. There are witnesses & attorneys (for both the prosecution and defense) and a whole host of other “roles” to be played by students.

It provides opportunities for public speaking, for crafting and delivering convincing arguments for leadership, and for seeing how our legal system plays out.

As you can imagine, many of these skills are skills that strong military officers need to be successful. Check out Mock Trial at your school.

SPEECH & DEBATE

The Speech & Debate team organizes around a few different competitive categories (e.g. 1-on-1, 2-on-2, team-versus-team).  I won’t get into the details for each of these categories  other than to say that these are great opportunities to learn to think on your feet to make clear and convincing arguments under time pressure and to further hone your critical thinking and public speaking skills.

All of these skills translate 100% to the life of a military officer. 

These are just a few examples of some activities that will set you up for success at the service academy and/or ROTC selection boards. I know some of them well because my sons participated in many of them. They were Boy Scouts, Eagle Scouts, and very involved in Mock Trial and Speech & Debate.

Of course, there are many other activities that could work just as well, if not better. If you have ideas, or experiences, that you think would foot the bill please put them in the comments below so that we can all benefit.

Get involved early, make an impact, take leadership roles, and you’ll be glad you did.