<p>can someone with corps experience tell me how it conflicts with college life, like how much free time do you get, do u get to party/hang out with friends etc? and any other comments are welcome, thx</p>
<p>You get more freedom as you progress through your undergraduate degree (e.g. freshman don’t get much free time). If you are not interested in military service, I don’t advise attempting to join the Corps.</p>
<p>Try searching through this forum, there has been several threads already made on this topic that will contain much more details.</p>
<p>I don’t believe freshman corps members have much free time at all.</p>
<p>I’m looking for a few tips on surviving FOW.</p>
<p>Also, will participation in the Corps satisfy the KINE 198 Health and Fitness Activity requirement (seems obvious) and are any of the ROTC courses likely to satisfy any of the University Core Curriculum electives? Many thanks in advance!</p>
<p>The main thing to survive FOW is to tell yourself, no matter what, you’re not going to quit. You’ll be tired, scared and on edge. That is by design. It’s the old “break you down to build you up” approach. Take it seriously enough to succeed, but not so seriously that you think you’re in harms way. Do plenty of conditioning over the summer (running, sit-ups, push-ups). It will make the week much harder if you are out of shape when you show up.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, despite all the PT you do in the Corps, you still have the requirement for KINE 198 & 199. You can count 11 hours of ROTC courses toward your electives. The rest are just extra hours on top of what you still must take.</p>
<p>Thanks for the information, gxgal7. Does anyone else have any recommendations? My son will be joining the Corps this fall.</p>
<p>I was in the Corps all those years ago, and my Godson just graduated from A&M. He has an Air Force pilot’s slot, so now is in flight training.</p>
<p>The first year was one of the hardest things I ever did, but they give you discipline and support for academics. Your son will be in the center of campus life-in a good way (although some kids criticize cadets). Your time is tightly scheduled, evenings are spent with mandatory study, and the social network is exceptional. My old outfit still gets togethor once a year, and at every game I run into buddies. Short answer, just like anything else, you get out what you put into it, but I’d recommend it most strongly.</p>
<p>Thanks a1pilot, TxAggie86 and gxgal7. Sorry to hear KINE 198 & 199 are mandatory, but I guess there are worse things in life than extra PT.</p>
<p>Can anyone tell me which place is better to rent a post box for someone in the Corps of Cadets? The New Student Conference brochure says boxes are available at the Commons or Northgate Post Office. Many thanks!!!</p>
<p>I was not in the Corps myself, but roomed with a CT one summer and got to know him and his friends; was on a College Bowl team with a member of the Aggie Band; and taught a number of CTs as a TA in mechanical engineering. With that in mind …</p>
<p>Last I heard, only about 1/3 of the cadets have military committments. The rest are in “drill and ceremonies” status, so I don’t think an interest in military service is necessarily a must for Corps membership.</p>
<p>Back in the day, academic support varied by service branch. The Navy and Air Force were very serious about academics; the Army varied by outfit; and the Marines … well, they used the expression, “D for diploma” a lot. 
Hope that’s not still the case. I can say that some of my best students were CTs and some of my worst students were CTs.</p>
<p>The Commons is adjacent to the Corps dorms. Northgate is a hike.</p>
<p>My overall impression is that the Corps is a great experience for the right person.</p>