Dartmouth ROTC Recruits Largest Freshman Class in Years

This article can be found in the special edition of Freshman 2024.

Since 1951, Dartmouth’s Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program has prepared students for commissioned officers in the U.S. Army upon graduation. This fall, 10 members of the Class of 2028 will join Delta Company, Capt. Joshua Kresowaty wrote in an emailed statement to The Dartmouth.

The 10 new cadets represent a notable increase over recent years. The company is expected to welcome nearly twice as many first-year students before enrollment as there are current cadets on campus. There are currently three cadets in the class of 2027, two in the class of 2026 and one in the class of 2025. Kresowaty attributed the growth to a “big push” in recruitment efforts, such as hosting events, phone calls, lectures and direct outreach to current cadets.

According to Kresowaty, the ROTC recruitment process begins when a student “expresses interest” in the program.

“Once initial contact is made, we usually sit down and talk about what ROTC is like and what a career in the military might look like,” he wrote.

Company Commander Dylan Griffith ’25 said he began hosting virtual information sessions for potential recruits his sophomore year as “part of a deliberate strategy” to attract new students.

That same year, the University of New Hampshire became the host institution for the Wildcat Battalion, which consists of the UNH program and satellite ROTC programs in New Hampshire and southern Maine. UNH pushed for the Dartmouth company to expand its membership to meet the Army’s commission requirements for ROTC programs, Griffith explained.

According to Kresowaty, Joseph Laplante, UNH’s recruitment officer, coordinates “various recruitment opportunities in the community” and raises awareness that “ROTC opportunities exist here at Dartmouth.”

Company First Sergeant Anne-Sarah Nichitiu ’26 said the ROTC application process is different for every student and every branch of the military. Prospective recruits can apply for the program during their senior year of high school, before or after they’ve been accepted into college, she explained. Others apply after they arrive on campus, Nichitiu said.

Kresowaty wrote that he interviews potential cadets in high school before referring them to apply on the Army ROTC website. Those interested in joining ROTC after enrolling in college are invited to attend program classes, leadership labs or physical training, Kresowaty wrote. Students can apply for the ROTC program up until their junior year, Griffith said.

“Once they decide they want to apply for a job, we work to get them a contract,” Kresowaty wrote.

According to Kresowaty, the ROTC program is a “great opportunity” to develop “the future leaders of the military.” He wrote that he was inspired to work with the ROTC program because he had a “fantastic experience” and “great mentorship” during his time as an ROTC cadet at Texas Christian University.

“I reflected on that experience and wanted to give back and provide that level of mentorship to aspiring Army officers,” he wrote.

He added that his goal is to ensure cadets are “well equipped” to lead soldiers once they join the military.

“Being responsible for the health, well-being and morale of the people you lead is a tall order that requires leaders to be engaged and make daily decisions that are legal, moral and ethical,” Kresowaty wrote.

Nichitiu, who applied to college through the four-year ROTC scholarship application process, said the program offered her the chance to combine “rigorous academic studies” with the “service component” of the military.

“It’s my way of saying ‘Thank you’ to the United States and … some of the soldiers and … inspiring individuals who have changed the way American society as a whole (and) globally works,” Nichitiu said. “I wanted to be a part of an organization like that and … make my own changes to make it better in the ways that I can.”

During the four-year scholarship application process, which takes place during the senior year of high school, applicants go through an interview process and rank universities where they want to accept scholarships, Nichitiu said. Interviewers also rank the applicants, who then choose a university where they want to accept a scholarship, Nichitiu added.

Nathaniel Attia ’27 applied for the ROTC scholarship after being accepted to Dartmouth. He explained that the program gave him the opportunity to get “really good training” while also “satisfying” his “academic curiosity.”

“I thought about the military academies, but ultimately I think doing something like ROTC at a school like Dartmouth really gives you the best of both worlds,” Attia said.

Attia added that ROTC allowed him to bond closely with the other two recruits in his class, as they worked and trained together.

“I consider them some of my best friends at Dartmouth because we saw each other every day and dealt with the same things,” he said.

Cadets often become a “pretty tight-knit community” because of the time they spend together “outside of a military context,” Nichitiu said. During her freshman year, she befriended older cadets because she was initially the only recruit in her year, which led her to take on roles typically filled by older cadets. For example, she served as captain of the color guard during her freshman year.

“(That) is not a role that our freshmen will be filling this year, because there are a lot of them,” Nichitiu said. “They will have their own cohort, and they will definitely have their own camaraderie.”

Griffith said cadets develop bonds because they are “forced to rely on each other” during rigorous field training exercises that last several days and involve ROTC programs from other institutions. He added that programs in the Wildcat Battalion participate in field training exercises together “at least twice a year.”

“When you see another Dartmouth ROTC person (at a field training exercise), it makes your day,” Griffith said. “That’s saying something because we all come from very different backgrounds, … upbringings, political leanings (and) socioeconomic statuses.”

ROTC training looks different for each grade level, Nichitiu said. First-year cadets typically do three hours of physical training, two hours of military lab training in the field and one hour of military science class each week throughout the academic year.

Cadets must take a combination of basic and advanced ROTC-specific military science courses, according to the ROTC at Dartmouth website. The courses are taught by the cadre — officers responsible for training a unit — and prepare cadets to eventually lead a squad or platoon. According to the Army ROTC at Cornell website, all college students are eligible to take the basic courses, which include lessons in leadership communication and time management. For advanced courses, which provide in-depth tactical preparation, students must be contracted with the ROTC.

“The lessons cover content that is useful for doing labs,” Attia said. “For example, how to read a map might be a lesson, and then the next week they go outside and … practice.”

According to Griffith, the military science classes in the first and second years provide “very foundational” instruction, covering topics such as the organization and composition of the military. In contrast, the military science classes in the third year prepare cadets for Advanced Camp at Fort Knox, Ky. — a capstone officer training program that typically takes place in the summer of the third year — which covers topics such as combat training and mission leadership, Griffith said.

As the cadets get older, their military science classes become longer and they begin to take on leadership roles within the company, Nichitiu said.

“I will be the first sergeant of our company, which means that I will fulfill half of the role of a senior: I will prepare the Tuesday labs and also be responsible for the (physical) training,” said Nichitiu.

According to Attia, Dartmouth cadets spend less time training compared to other ROTC programs.

“That’s not to say it’s worse, but we’re more efficient,” Attia said. “We cover more with less, and we get better results on average for our cadets.”

Griffith added that he is able to combine his ROTC education with various leadership positions in other student organizations.

“(ROTC) is just a part of who you are,” he said.