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Financial Assistance Opportunities

Boise State Army ROTC has options to help you pay for college regardless if you are a high school student, current undergrad, transfer student, graduate student, or enlisted service member.

Here’s how…

Simultaneous Member Program

The Simultaneous Member Program (SMP) means that you are concurrently enlisted in the National Guard and an ROTC cadet.  If you are not currently in the National Guard, you will have to enlist, and then invest a semester to attend Basic Combat Training and Advanced Individual Training.* You get the benefits just by enrolling in ROTC. You do not have to sign an ROTC contract until your 2nd or 3rd year in the program.

SMP Benefits

1. It is not a scholarship, so you do not have to compete. It is a program.
2. You will be eligible for $725 / month tax free from the G.I. Bill Kicker.*
3. You will receive a $420 / month ROTC stipend.
4. Once you contract into ROTC, you will be paid as an E-5 for drill and training time, regardless of rank actually held.
5. You may receive as much as $8,500 / year in tuition assistance*
a. You will be eligible for $250 / credit hour of Federal Tuition Assistance, capped at $4,500 annually
b. You can apply for up to $4,000 of State Tuition Assistance, on a first-come, first served basis.
c. See BSU’s Tuition Assistance page for further details and to apply.
6. You are non-deployable once you contract as an ROTC cadet.
7. You can still hold another job if you need / want to.
8. When you commission, you will not be required to remain in the National Guard. You can commission in the component that you compete for.
*You can enter the SMP program without attending Basic Training and Advanced Individual Training, but in that case the benefits marked with an * will not be available to you.

SMP Eligibility

Open to any student who is willing to join the National Guard, provided that they meet initial entry requirements and maintain a 2.0 GPA while in school.

Scholarships

Scholarship Eligibility

All of our scholarship options have the same minimum requirements:

  • Be a U.S. citizen
  • Be between the ages of 17 and 26
  • Have a high school (or college) GPA of at least 2.50
  • Have a high school diploma or equivalent
  • Meet the physical standards (varies by your age, gender, and height – ask us for details!)
  • Agree to accept a serve in the Army as a Commissioned Officer in one of the three components:
    • Active Duty
    • Army Reserve
    • Army National Guard

Scholarship Benefits

Army ROTC scholarships all provide the same benefits. The choice in the type of scholarship that is right for you depends on how many years you want the benefits for, and in what component (full time or part time) you wish to serve after you graduate and commission as a Second Lieutenant.

1. Full tuition and fees -or- up to $5000 per year in food and housing, which ever you choose
2. Book allowance of $1200 per year, paid $600 per semester
3. $420 per month stipend for living expenses.

National 4-Year Scholarship

Primarily targeted at high school students, the National Scholarship is open to anyone between 17 and 26 years of age. Prospective students can compete nationally for a 4-year scholarship. Those who win the National Scholarship can apply their benefits to any university they choose, so long as they have an ROTC program. That makes the potential value of the National Scholarship in excess of $200,000 or more. If you are interested, apply here.

Guaranteed Reserve Force Duty Scholarship (GRFD)

A good option for Graduate Students.

The GRFD Scholarship is only for those student who are certain that they do not want to enter Active Duty (full-time job), but wish to enter into the National Guard or the Reserves (part-time jobs). It is irreversible. The benefit of the GRFD is that it guarantees you a part-time job with a Commission in the Army, and it allows you to pursue a civilian career simultaneously. Students accepting this scholarship are obligated to an 8-year commitment to the National Guard or Reserve Forces, with a commitment to attend Drill duty one weekend a month and a 2-week training period each year.

GRFD Scholarships are offered in increments of 2, 2.5, 3, 3.5, and 4 years. The 3.5 and 4-year option (called a Minuteman Scholarship) requires a nomination from the state TAG (the National Guard Adjutant General) or the state CASA (Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army).

Campus Based Scholarship

A good option for Graduate Students.

So, you don’t think you are competitive for the National Scholarship, or you are already a College Student? There are still ways that we might be able to help. At BSU, we offer 2-year, 2.5-year, and 3-year Campus Based Scholarships, depending on how much time you need to complete your degree. Applications for the scholarship must be submitted by August 1 of each year, and you must interview with the Professor of Military Science. The number of scholarships awarded varies from year to year, based on the amount of funds allocated to BSU from the Department of Defense. To apply, contact the ROTC enrollment scholarship officer at (208) 426-4176 or armyrotc@boisestate.edu.

Additional Eligibility Considerations

  • Meet the same minimum requirements as the National Scholarship.
  • Must already be enrolled in ROTC.
  • The award of Campus Based Scholarships is at the discretion of the BSU Professor of Military Science and his board of cadre. You are competing locally and with students from our affiliated schools, Northwest Nazarene University, Brigham Young University – Idaho, and Idaho State University.

Green to Gold

There are three options for current Active Duty Soldiers to enter the Green to Gold program:

  1. 2-year Active Duty Option. Applicant competes in a centralized Army selection board to be assigned to complete their degree and earn a Commission as a 2LT, while remaining on Active Duty. Soldiers who have 4 semesters or 6 quarters remaining towards their first Bachelor’s degree or Master’s degree are eligible to compete. Soldiers can use their GI Bill, grants, or loans to pay for the tuition. The use of Tuition Assistance is not available in this program.
  2. Scholarship Option. Applicant again competes in a centralized selection board. Under this option, the Soldier is discharged from the Army, forfeits all pays and allowances, and must contract in ROTC. The scholarships are offered in 2, 3, or 4 year scholarships with either tuition or food and housing, like with other ROTC scholarships. Under this option, the Soldier can use their GI Bill, grants, and combine it with other scholarships.There is a Hip-Pocket Scholarship option where the applicant does not compete in a centralized board. Instead, a Soldier’s Commanding General can nominate from 1 to 5 Soldiers for the scholarship.
  3. 2-Year Non-Scholarship. Applicant must contract prior to leaving Active Duty. Upon ETS, the Soldier enters the SMP program. The applicant can compete for a GRFD scholarship once in the program.

Green to Gold Eligibility

  • Sign an ROTC contract before ETS from the Army
  • Scholarship recipients must be < 31 by 31 Dec of the year of commissioning (No Waivers)
  • ADO/Nonscholarship students must be < 30 years old at the projected time of commission (Waivers are authorized)
  • GT Score: 110 (No Waivers)
  • Cumulative GPA of 2.5 (Waivers are authorized)
  • Pass APFT <6 Months of Application (No Waivers)
  • Meet height/ weight standards (No Waivers)
  • Chain of Command favorable recommendations (No Waivers)
  • US Citizen (No Waivers)
  • Not a conscientious objector (No Waivers)
  • Eligible to re-enlist (No Waivers)
  • PMS Letter of Acceptance (No Waivers)
  • Favorable Clearance Investigation approved or initiated (No Waivers)
  • Cannot have been convicted of a Domestic Violence Crime (Lautenberg Amendment) (No Waivers)
  • No arrests, indictments, or convictions by a civil court for other than minor traffic violations (Waiverable)
  • Minimum of 2 years Active Duty time served (Waiverable)
  • Must meet Training Service Obligation (Waiverable)
  • Qualified/Waiver Granted DODMERB Medical Exam IAW AR 40-501