National Guard Option

My daughter is on the matching band, and she checked out the national guard. It’s not on their web site, but s kid who has been in the guard a year, who then signs up for ROTC gets their tuition paid at any school they attend plus living expenses that amount to about 1k per month. Really worth looking into if you aren’t anti-military

Agreed. Officially called the Simultaneous Membership Program (SMP), a student enlists in the National Guard or Army Reserves and then pursues a degree and commission through ROTC. I found this short description on the [National Guard site](Army National Guard), but it is buried underneath Careers, so a little difficult to find. Looks like a great program for those who really want to serve.

Keep in mind enlisting in the National Guard will not prevent you from heading to Kabul.

Yep, joining the National Guard doesn’t keep you from being shipped overseas.

BTW, join the NJ National Guard and all NJ publics are tuition-free.
Join the IL National Guard and all IL publics are tuition-free after 1 year of service. No ROTC requirements, I believe, though you may have to sign a contract for a certain number of years.