▲ Picture of officer's commission ceremony (Photo by ROTC homepage)

 

What is ROTC?

ROTC is an abbreviation of Reserve Officer's Training Corps.

Recently, SeoulTech recruited the ROTC from March to April. They held various events within the school and posted promotional posters. The main content of these activities is self-introduction, so that the ROTC can introduce itself and help student get to know what it is and what it does. The ROTC recruitment drive stokes curiosity among students about the difference between ROTC enlistment and the conscription system which most Korean males join for their mandatory military service. This system, which started in the United States as a recruitment system procedure, was introduced in Korea in 1961. In the United States, the ROTC was set up by the federal government with the goal of providing military classes within university departments. This enabled military training to become accessible to ordinary people during peacetime so that they could be commissioned as officers in wartime.

In Korea, ROTC was also introduced to select manpower to be used as officers in case of emergency. While standard soldiers have to take a leave of absence from university in order to fulfill their military duties, ROTC recruits can perform their conscription duties during their time at university, after which they are commissioned as officers. Another big difference is that women can apply to become ROTC officers, whereas the general soldier recruitment pool is only made up of men.

 

The Army, Navy, Marine, and Air Force all have ROTC, and among them, SeoulTech has recruits for the Air Force ROTC, which is implemented only in 7 universities nationwide. Those who have been accepted into the ROTC start basic training at the end of winter in their 2nd year. Those who apply for ROTC go through a much more rigorous selection process than regular soldiers.

Recruitment starts in March of each year, and applicants are asked for a self-introduction letter, high school records, and university grades. If there are no problems with the application, the first round of selection is made through six written tests, including language proficiency, data interpretation, and national history.

Applicants have to pass the evaluation, and in the case of the Air Force, the competition is fierce because only 20 SeoulTech students are selected. When enlisted in ROTC, in addition to being able to perform the duties of conscription and study, other benefits are provided compared to regular soldiers. ROTC recruits receive 761,800 won for 3rd graders and 856,000 won for 4th graders training during vacation periods. This can be a good option for students who want to continue their studies but are in a tight financial situation.

However, despite these advantages, the application rate for ROTC is declining compared to the past. With 10 universities falling short of personnel in 2018. This could be the reason why SeoulTech has been more active in promoting the ROTC.

Why do students apply for general military service in spite of advantages? First of all, the biggest reason is the long service period. The service period of the ROTC has not been reduced, while the service period for general soldiers has been reduced to 18 months. The fact that ROTC recruits have to serve for almost a year more than regular soldiers is bound to come as a considerable burden for some.

Another reason may be that being accepted into the ROTC has an impact on university life. Because ROTC members have to receive training during vacation periods, there are restrictions on taking seasonal semester classes. Even during the semester, if called for various events and education, ROTC members must attend, and if they do not perform to the required standard in fitness tests, they are required to get up early in the morning for additional physical training. ROTC recruits have the disadvantage of potentially being expelled too. If they do not receive a grade of C or higher in all courses each year, ROTC status is revoked. In such cases, they must re-enlist as a general soldier, returning all scholarships and support funds received.



 

Reporter,

Dongwoo Kim rlaehddn4012@seoultech.ac.kr

Reporter 김동우

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• e-mail : rlaehddn4012@seoultech.ac.kr