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kil-art
01-26-10, 12:23 PM
Hello Marines, my name is Matt. First and foremost, thank you for your service. I, like many other civilians, wish to join your ranks. My stats are all in my signature, so I'm sure you noticed I am merely 17, not old enough to join. That aside, I wish to attend college and graduate an officer. Virginia Tech is my college of choice; I have not been officially accepted yet, but unofficially, I was told that I am an outstanding choice for the Dean's Scholarship, let alone just being accepted :p That aside, I chose not to apply to the Air Force or Navy Academy due to the rigorous lifestyle. I do want to enjoy my college years in a normal environment with some structure, but not excessive structure. I want to learn my own self control and discipline. That being said, I looked into NROTC MO programs. I was going to enter one of them, until I chose Virginia Tech as my #1 college. They are a senior Military college, with their cadets living nearly 100% like one would in the academy. Therefore, NROTC MO is out. PLC is my best option at the moment. I have not been able to find a wealth of information about it here, on the Marine website, or on Marineofficer.com.

If anyone has gone through it or knows a good deal about it, I would love some information. What are the summer courses, what are you required to do throughout the year while you are at school, what are your obligations upon graduation if you take financial aid and if you dont take financial aid, what information is needed to apply, do I need a waiver for flat feet? I guess we can start with those questions and, if they get answered, move on from there.

Thank you, Marines. :flag:

josephd
01-26-10, 02:19 PM
first and foremost my suggestion to you would be to get your first year of college under your belt with some good grades and then go talk to the OSO (officer selection office) in your area/for your college.

PLC can be done in a few different ways by going to OCS different times. Most common is going to a 6 week OCS course after your sophomore year and then another 6 week course after your junior year. Then after your senior year upon recieving your diploma you can commission and head off to TBS from there.

From my knowledge when I was getting my PLC package started a few years ago. You can take financial aid after your first OCS course and you get paid as an E-5 or a Sergeant. Keep in mind with taking this financial aid you are required to fulfill a 6 year contract after commissioning. If you dont take the aid then you have no obligation to commission after graduating OCS or college.

Again my biggest suggestion to you would be to get into college and get through your freshmen year. Contact the local OSO and talk with them to put you in the direction you want to go.

kil-art
01-26-10, 05:11 PM
I realize that I do need to get my college life situated before I begin anything with the Corps. I just wish to begin poking my nose around so I can meet the needed people and make sure I am sticking to the correct time line and don't miss any key dates because I started late. If I take the financial aid, do I get the yearly salary of an E-5, or is that just paying me for my time at OCS? Anywho, I will most likely find my local OSO and talk with them on the matter; I did not know about them, I was just going to speak to a recruiter about the matter.

Thank you for the reply, sir.

josephd
01-26-10, 11:58 PM
Stay away from an enlisted recruiters office, they don't have the resources for you as an officers candidate.

Yes if you take the financial aid you get paid as an E-5, but you are not eligible for that until after your first OCS increment/class and like I said before upon taking that financial aid you are obligated to commission and a 6 yr contract. I am not sure of the exact details because I never got that far into it.

When you get accepted to whatever college find the OSO in that area/for that school and get in touch with him right away to let him know your intentions. At that point he can keep you motivated and pointed in a good direction towards finishing school and commissioning. The few OSO's I have dealt with have all been VERY helpful and been more than happy to talk with you/potential candidates