In the summer of 2018, we were among 80 Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps (NROTC) midshipmen who were for the first time integrated into the U.S. Naval Academy (USNA) summer yard patrol cruises. As NROTC first classmen, we joined USNA and international midshipmen for classroom training that included navigation, shiphandling, and seamanship, followed by at-sea experience navigating up the eastern seaboard. On the 116-foot yard patrol craft (YP), after reviewing the rules of the road and paper chart navigation, we were trained in marine engineering, sea survival, and damage control.
We were amazed at the vast resources available to the USNA midshipmen—access to ship simulators, surface warfare officer (SWO) lieutenants, Navy chiefs, and, most important, regular training opportunities on the water. As future SWOs ourselves, we have come to understand that it is impossible to overemphasize the value of translating concepts studied in naval science courses into hands-on experience at sea.
After returning from the YP cruise, we realized we would have benefited from more time at the Academy, and that USNA midshipmen would benefit from a taste of life at an NROTC unit on a civilian campus. We discussed the possibility of an expanded exchange program between the Academy and the 63 NROTC units across the country. Because each commissioning path has distinct strengths and weaknesses, a semester-long program would give a small but not insignificant number of midshipmen from each school the opportunity to experience the other’s strengths.
NROTC Midshipmen: Learning at USNA
Our short summer YP training greatly improved our skills in seamanship and navigation, as well as our understanding of various at-sea evolutions, shiphandling, watchstanding, and other areas. Since returning to our unit, we have been able to pass on some of what we learned to our classmates in naval science. This suggests that extending the training opportunity to a full semester exchange would only improve the quality of learning across participating NROTC units.
Increased interaction with the officers and enlisted personnel stationed at the Academy also would benefit NROTC midshipmen. An active-duty contingent at an NROTC unit is small—at the University of Texas, ours consists of five officers, a Marine gunnery sergeant, and a detachment of sailors and Marines earning their degrees as students. Over a four-year period, a University of Texas NROTC midshipman will interact with only ten officers and two gunnery sergeants during the academic calendar (not including the short summer training).
The opportunity for us to talk with SWO lieutenants, chiefs, and the YP’s enlisted crew was an invaluable aspect of our summer cruise, especially as we were heading into our first-class year, and soon would be considering what type of ship to select upon commissioning. During the cruise, we were able to get different perspectives on life as a SWO division officer and on enlisted and officer interactions on board ship. We spoke with many other officers and enlisted personnel during our Academy stay, but that number would be much higher during a full semester exchange.
USNA Midshipmen: Broadening Horizons
In turn, USNA midshipmen have a great deal to learn from the daily life of NROTC midshipmen. For us it was a shock suddenly to live in a more structured environment with a nightly curfew; success in NROTC relies heavily on an individual’s self-discipline to manage his or her own time and affairs amid all the temptations of civilian life. NROTC involves mandatory events such as physical training in the morning and battalion staff meetings in the afternoon, but midshipmen are on their own the rest of the time, and must ensure their work gets done and they get enough sleep. NROTC midshipmen adhere to a system of personal accountability outside of a mandatory structure such as that of the Academy.
A semester at a civilian university would help USNA midshipmen better learn to manage their personal finances, in an environment where they have many more opportunities to spend money. NROTC pays for tuition and provides a bimonthly stipend; however, many midshipmen rely on other means to pay rent, buy groceries, and so forth. USNA midshipmen in such a situation would have to sign leases, cook their own meals, pay bills, and perhaps even work a part-time job off campus. Living in off-campus apartments and having to provide for themselves would help them develop financial discipline, which is a very useful background given that they will be counseling others whom they will soon lead in the fleet.
At a civilian university, USNA midshipmen could participate in a different type of rigorous academic program. For example, the University of Texas is one of the top ten schools in the nation for electrical engineering. A midshipman majoring in electrical engineering at the Naval Academy could spend a semester at the University of Texas strengthening his or her proficiency with a variety of unfamiliar instructors and professors. Beyond degree programs, other opportunities such as internships for credit could benefit and broaden a USNA midshipman’s scholastic and professional knowledge.
Finally, a semester at a civilian university would expose USNA midshipmen to a far greater range of backgrounds and viewpoints than they are accustomed to encountering at a military academy. When attending class in uniform, NROTC midshipmen are very much in the minority—in some cases a lone person in uniform in a class of more than 100 students. While we are proud to wear the uniform, we are very aware that doing so makes us a focus of opinionated discussions. Learning to deal with sometimes strident viewpoints that can be hostile to the military and to respond calmly to pointed questions can be uncomfortable and even infuriating, but it does keep us better connected to the broad and diverse currents of the society we serve.
The Art of the Possible
A semester-long exchange program would provide the Navy with a more well-rounded cadre of junior officers. NROTC midshipmen at the Academy would be given a heavy naval science curriculum, while USNA midshipmen would be required to focus on academic and extracurricular pursuits unavailable to them at Annapolis. Practical constraints would limit the program to about 30 midshipmen from each commissioning source, and they should be in their second-class (junior) year. This means most midshipmen at the Academy and across the country would not be able to benefit directly from this exchange program. Still, 60 per year is not an insignificant number to provide future officers with broadened horizons to the Navy and the nation.