# activating ROTC students

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/activating-rotc-students/306975>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [June 5, 2005, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/activating-rotc-students/306975 "2005-06-05T04:38:39Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\
**Post date:** [June 5, 2005, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/activating-rotc-students/306975/1 "2005-06-05T04:38:39Z")

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Reading [this](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=319765) gave me an idea. Would activating ROTC students who haven’t yet graduated a feasible solution to the military’s shortage of junior officers? Can this be done under existing legislation or would Congress need pass a new law to authorize it? Didn’t the gov’t do it during WWII?

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**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\
**Post date:** [June 5, 2005, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/activating-rotc-students/306975/2 "2005-06-05T13:10:46Z")

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Advanced (last two year) ROTC students are in the Army with a rank of ‘Cadet.’ The first two years the students have no contractual obligation to the Army.

Lots of questions. I suppose Congress could pass a law calling all ROTC students to the colors. I suppose they could also call Theatre Arts students to the colors.

Would it be a good idea? No probably not. I know of no shortage of junior officers. Further, junior officers can easily be replaced with mid-career NCOs. No problem.

During The War, ROTC continued. The Academy went to three years (IIRC) and a huge number of other Army-University partnerships created cadet corps for Aviation, for industry and so on. These were sort of precursors of the GI Bill. But in general there were lots of young men wearing uniforms at the height of The War. ROTC did not end.

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**Author:** ![Bear\_Nenno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bear_nenno/32/3358_2.png) [@Bear\_Nenno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bear_Nenno)\
**Post date:** [June 5, 2005, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/activating-rotc-students/306975/3 "2005-06-05T13:51:19Z")

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If the Army ever became that desperate for officers, they would start commissioning NCOs. Giving enlisted men “Battlefield Commissions”.