Navy ROTC Curriculum and Programs

The Navy is preparing our officer corps of the future to meet the dynamic challenges in the next generation of technology and leadership. In structuring our academic programs to meet these challenges, undergraduate academic majors for NROTC Navy option midshipmen are divided into three categories or tiers: Tier 1 - engineering programs of Navy interest, Tier 2 - other engineering, math, and science programs, Tier 3 - Foreign language and remaining academic programs. In order to keep pace in this high-tech and diverse environment, approximately 85% of Navy Option NROTC scholarships offers will be awarded to students interested in completing a Tier 1 or Tier 2 academic major.

Tier 1 Academic Majors

  • Aerospace, Aeronautical, Astronautical Engineering
  • Chemical Engineering
  • Electrical Engineering
  • Mechanical Engineering
  • Naval Architecture & Marine/Naval Engineering
  • Nuclear Engineering
  • Ocean Engineering
  • Systems Engineering

Tier 2 Academic Majors

  • Agricultural/Biological Engineering &
  • Bioengineering
  • Architectural Engineering/Architectural
  • Engineering Technologies
  • Astrophysics
  • Biochemistry, Biophysics & Molecular Biology
  • Biomathematics & Bioinformatics
  • Biomedical/Medical Engineering
  • Biotechnology
  • Cell/Cellular Biology & Anatomical Sciences
  • Ceramic Sciences & Engineering
  • Chemistry
  • Civil Engineering
  • Computer Engineering
  • Computer Programming
  • Computer Science/Info. Tech.
  • Construction Engineering
  • Electronics & Comm. Engineering
  • Engineering Mechanics
  • Engineering Physics
  • Engineering Science
  • General Engineering
  • General Science
  • Industrial Engineering
  • Manufacturing Engineering
  • Materials Engineering
  • Mathematics
  • Metallurgical Engineering
  • Microbiological Sciences and Immunology
  • Mining & Mineral Engineering
  • Nuclear & Industrial Radiologic Technology
  • Oceanography
  • Petroleum Engineering
  • Pharmacology & Toxicology
  • Physics
  • Physiology, Pathology & Related Sciences
  • Polymer/Plastics Engineering
  • Quantitative Economics
  • Statistics
  • Textile Sciences & Engineering

We realize that some of the academic majors listed above may not match word-for-word the majors offered at each of the more than 150 colleges and universities partnered with NROTC. If you have questions about how a major at a particular school fits into our NROTC academic major tier categories or our language program, please contact the NROTC unit 718-409-7241 or [email protected]. Or you may contact the NROTC scholarship office at [email protected].

Students interested in pursuing Tier 3 academic majors (all other academic majors not listed in Tier 1 or Tier 2) should examine the opportunities available in the Navy's Language Skills, Regional Expertise, and Cultural Awareness (LREC) Program. Annually, the Navy will offer this program to 20 - 30 students. Attainment of a specific level of language proficiency is not required by the NROTC LREC program.

Regions/cultural areas and languages available for study are listed below. Selected languages and regional/cultural areas must be related.

Regional/Cultural Areas

  • Africa
    • Sub-Sahara
    • North Africa
  • Central Asia
  • East Asia/China
  • Middle/Central/Latin
  • America
  • Middle East
  • South Asia
  • Southeast Asia
  • Southwest Asia
  • Russia/Eastern Europe

Foreign Languages

  • Arabic
  • Cambodian
  • Central Asian Lang.
  • Chinese
  • Dari
  • Farsi
  • French
  • Hebrew
  • Hindi
  • Indonesian
  • Japanese
  • Kurdish
  • Malay
  • Pashto
  • Persian
  • Portuguese
  • Russian
  • Serbo-Croatian
  • Somali
  • Spanish
  • Swahili
  • Tagalog
  • Thai
  • Turkish
  • Urdu
  • Vietnamese

The Navy will activate scholarships upon the satisfactory development of a degree plan with the host NROTC unit and university and upon enrollment in the assigned academic major. NROTC midshipmen may lose their scholarship if they request a change from Tier 1 or Tier 2 major to a Tier 3 major. Similarly, Tier 3 LREC majors may lose their scholarship if they depart their course of study prior to graduation.

Academic majors listed in each Tier may vary year-to-year dependent on the Navy's requirements.