Which is better: West Point or ROTC?

In my experience it was the person, not the source of their education or commissioning. Lt D., USNA, and Lt. B., OSU, were both hard working and and very receptive to instruction from us NCOs. In my opinion the only difference was one was regular Marine, the other was reserve on extended active duty.

OCS, prior Enlisted (preferably over 4 years). This is the most cost effective path to a commission and prior service gives them a head start.

It's funny you ask that...when I was Army ROTC for 3 yrs. before going USAF OTS at Lackland, long before it got moved to Maxwell, my ROTC unit actually trained a good deal at West Point with the cadets, so I got a quite good look at day-to-day realities there, plus, my next younger brother was USMMA Kings Point, and he quite rapidly found out that school, while it had apparently a farly well-deserved description as a "party" school on multiple occasions he saw, is a REAL serious place (it was, also, little known, I'm pretty sure, the first Federal academy to admit females, which I did certainly find interesting), I also knew many SUNY Maritime grads, and very nearly applied there, I still kick myself I didn't quite often, several times a day, in fact...actually, USMMA is, apparently, the only Federal academy with actual battle penants on it's flags, none of the other Federal academies have them, due to all the midshipmen lost during WW2 in the Murmansk runs and other convoy duty...I also worked a good deal with many USAFA grads, obviously, and, the deputy airbase group commander where I was, had been Annapolis, he went USAF on graduating, the only instance I ever encountered of that...the O-9 commanding when I first got there had been a B-17 tail gunner in WW2 who'd gotten into West Point, he used to sit in the O club during the Army-Navy game with his West Point sweater on...also, a junior airman, while I was there, got into USAFA directly, without having to go to the USAFA prep school, also the only time I ever saw that, as well...I didn't overtly notice clearcut differences per se, from the academy grads, as opposed to the various ROTC grads I'd met, or any OCS/OTS or OIS grads...one USAFA grad I worked with had gone through airborne training while he'd been at USAFA, having gone through it at Ft. Benning...I did envy them their having had more time to adjust properly to learning how to function in the role...I often wish I'd been enlisted first, before having gone to USAF OTS, many of those in the program there had been prior enlisted, one guy actually had Navy sub enlisted dolphins, the prior enlisted attendees pretty much always had a far more decent idea of what was expected, whereas I was pretty much totally clueless for God only knows how long, which was also why I had to go through USAF OTS twice, having been recycled once...just some observations, for whatever they might be worth...it was a quite good question, though, certainly....

A few thoughts:
- Define "better".
- Can someone tell the difference if an officer is an ROTC or a West Point graduate? Maybe initially but probably not after a several years of commissioned service.
- ROTC and West Point both have their advantages and disadvantages from a personal perspective. Both are capable of producing both good and bad officers.
- ROTC is spread among approximately 250 different universities with varying degrees of quality in terms of ROTC among those universities. ROTC produces about 75% of the Army's officers each year. There is also a few different options as to when and how one enters ROTC (4 year scholarship, 2 year scholarship, no scholarship).
- West Point is centralized at one location which makes it easier for quality control but West Point produces only about 25% of the Army's officers each year. There are a few different options to enter (out of high school, prior enlisted) but everyone goes through the same four year experience.

How about right in the middle. VMI is like West Point, but with ROTC. We are the best of both worlds.

1SG(P) (Join to see) Yes I can tell when an officer is a West Point officer or a ROTC officer. There is a difference. As for the NCO having a better eye on things it all depends on the NCO. I have had a few NCO's that didnt know the difference from their head and a hole in the wall. I have had officers that were better then those NCO's mentioned above. You have to look at the bigger picture. I myself feel that I have a better eye on things then a 1st or 2nd LT does and even some CPT's do (on the smaller picture or mission at hand). When looking at the bigger picture I know that most of your O4's and above have a better eye on things due to time in service. They have grown out of that (I am in charge) mind set and are now looking at things as a planning tool.

I have made sure that I do everything in my power to ensure that I know the bigger picture but know for a fact that when it comes to the mission at hand I see everything from ever angle that I can. I want my troops to respect me and willing to do anything for me (including die) if the need is there.

When you have an officer right out of ROTC/West Point they are getting someone so green that thinks that they know the best and do not want to take the advice of the senior personal in their ranks.

Statistically speaking, I am sure that you would find that West Point had a bit of a leg-up historically speaking. However, I bet the statistics would also demonstrate that this trend is becoming more even between all commissioning sources.

Here is what it is really going to come down to: your performance and potential. If you are the top O-6, your commissioning source will not matter. I am a Direct Commissionee, and I feel as though I stand just as good of a chance as any other Officer at earning a star. I do not think that I will be one of those who will get a star (mostly due to MRD and age), but I feel as though I would have an equal shot at it.

There is one advantage to West Point: the experience and alumni network can provide some amazing development that extends beyond the four years spent on West Point.

I attend John Carroll University which is currently ranked #1 in the nation for ROTC and has produced one four star general. Our Professor of Military Science or Battalion Commander attended West Point and he says our cadets are as squared away as any West Pointer. I think why a majority of Generals were West Pointers because if a young person is willing to spend there college years locked away on a island of militarism doing Army stuff day in and day out that person really wants a life-time career in the Army.

Personally I think some of the benefits of ROTC is that it there is a lot more personal responsibility to say get to PT in the morning because unlike at West Point only small percentage of the student body are cadets. I also like being at a civilian college so I can expand my relationship with civilians and see what I'll be fighting for in the future. On the flip side I can definitely imagine how cool it would be to go through the same halls Pershing, Patton, Eisenhower, and MacArthur and be a member of the Long Grey Line. Hope that helps!

I would think west point would statistically get the nod just like many air force academy grad and pilots get the nod. Maybe these trends have changed since my day in uniform. Great question PFC.