On Campus

ROTC Offers Networking

By www.military.com

Welcome to the ROTC Network (Reserve Officer Training Corps), a social and professional network for ROTC commands, alumni, cadets and midshipmen. 

The network is designed to bring the entire ROTC community together under one roof, empowering an exchange of ideas, experiences, and support to make the community stronger.

It sounds like a great idea, but how do you use it?

In school?  There are some cool features just for you.  Drop into the discussion boards to trade information on professors, drills, and military balls. Pop into the member roster and reach out to some alumni to help with fundraising events, or just ask advice about a military specialty you’ve got your eye on.  Pretty soon you’ll be able to search the alumni database for mentors based on your specific questions.  Remember ROTC is available in more than 1,000 colleges and universities throughout the United States, both those that host ROTC units or detachments and those with cross-enrollment agreements with them. To learn more about requirements and scholarship possibilities, a visit to ROTC Web sites is a must. Visit www.goarmy.com/rotc; www.nrotc.navy.mil; and www.afrotc.com.

Maybe you just need something to read in the morning when you’re prying your eyelids open. Why not check out what’s going on with your ROTC program, read the latest gossip, or get some benefits info you may not have known about. 

Imagine you’ve been out of the military for 10 years and you want to catch up with buddies from your ROTC unit. Where do you start? The phone book isn’t an efficient solution. The current major social networks are great for communicating but it’s hard to find people based on their military service. With the ROTC Network you can just log in and check out the roster from your school.  From there you can dive in and see what all your friends have been doing over the years. You can even find out who’s working at that great company you’ve been thinking about applying to and contact them for the inside scoop.

If you want to be more proactive, you can start a thread on the discussion boards and get the ball rolling on that reunion you’ve been thinking about.  You can also check in with your school’s ROTC command staff and find out ways to give back to your program.  Coming soon are events and group features that will let you broadcast your event as well as create the ultimate class of ’84 group. 

The ROTC Network is currently in beta testing, so we’d like to get your feedback on what you’d like to see added to the network.  In addition to the features already mentioned, you’ll soon be able to share your ROTC photos and videos with everyone in your program.  Plus the profiles will be upgraded to include commenting, information on your friends’ activities, and a blog to write about your latest awesome vacation – complete with a slideshow (because everyone loves looking at vacation slideshows). The sky is the limit; we’d love to hear your suggestions. E-mail feedback to: rotc@military.com.