The "Go To" Podcast on the ROTC Scholarship. Quarterly as of June 2021.
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LTC Kirkland and Dr. (COL) Cajigal break down the head and neck medical standards from DoDI 6130.03 that generate the most anxiety for ROTC families. This episode covers eyes and vision, refractive error cutoffs, the spherical equivalent calculation, LASIK and PRK timing, keratoconus, color vision testing and service-by-service policies, ear tubes and hearing tests, chronic sinusitis versus…
If your family is navigating DoDMERB for an ROTC scholarship, one of the biggest mistakes you can make is working the process the wrong way. In this episode, LTC (Ret.) Rob Kirkland and COL (Ret.) Dr. Arthur Cajigal break down Mr. Larry Mullen’s well-known Applicant Reference Guide—the practical DoDMERB “do’s and don’ts” that help ROTC applicants and families work with the system instead of…
If DoDMERB says "Disqualified," it can feel like the door just slammed shut. But for many competitive ROTC scholarship applicants, that DQ is the start of the waiver review, not the end. In this episode, LTC (Ret.) Rob Kirkland and COL (Ret.) Dr. Arthur Cajigal (former DoDMERB staff and Army ROTC Cadet Command surgeon) break down the waiver process from start to finish: who actually grants…
If your student sees “Disqualified” on DoDMERB, that doesn’t automatically mean the ROTC dream is over. In this episode, Former DoDMERB Physician Dr. Arthur Cajigal breaks down what DoDMERB actually does, who makes decisions, and what happens next when a candidate is marked Qualified, Remedial, or Disqualified. What you’ll learn today: What DoDMERB is (and what it’s not) The 3 outcomes: Qualified…
Military values like honor, integrity, and courage don’t matter much when everything is calm, supervised, and low-risk. They matter when you’re tired, frustrated, authority is real, and nobody’s watching. Today LTC Kirkland breaks down why military values only hold under pressure if they’ve been trained as habits, using Aristotle’s practical ethics as the framework. Aristotle didn’t treat virtue…
The first ROTC scholarship boards (Army, Navy, Air Force) were extremely competitive this cycle, and many strong candidates did not get picked up early. In this episode, we break down what we’re seeing from board results, what profiles were most successful, and what applicants should do right now to improve their odds on upcoming boards. We cover: Why the first ROTC scholarship boards were so…
Concerned about the ROTC scholarship process with this year's government shutdown? Here’s the truth. ROTC programs are strained but operational. Cadre are backfilling furloughed civilian roles, Army slid its October board about two weeks, Navy is pushing candidates to later boards, and Air Force is largely on schedule with fewer boards. If you’re applying, you need facts, not panic. What you’ll…
"The red flag you're looking for is 'complete and on hold.' If you're not paying attention, you could be in this status for MONTHS..." The new DoDMERB medical qualification process for ROTC Scholarships has rolled out, and frankly, it's causing a lot of confusion and delays. With two separate systems, DMACS 2.0 and DODMETS, candidates are getting stuck in bottlenecks without realizing it. In this…
Are you a varsity athlete who assumes you have the "Athlete" portion of the ROTC scholarship application locked down? That assumption could cost you tens of thousands of dollars. For ROTC scholarships, being "athletic" isn't just about being on a team—it's about quantifiable leadership and proven physical readiness. In this episode of our Scholar, Athlete, Leader series, retired Army ROTC…
U.S. Army Cadet Command is implementing a strategic rebalance and optimization of the Senior ROTC program. This is a significant change for Army ROTC. The hosts looks at the impacts of these changes and what it means for cadets, parents, and the programs and universities. Press Release
