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As student fees rise and employment rates of young adults decrease, more students are enlisting in the Reserve Officer Training Corps program at Sacramento State.

According to a recent report by the United States Department of Labor, 16- to 24-year-olds have a 46.6 percent employment rate. This is the lowest percentage of working young Americans since World War II.

Capt. Jared Buchanan, assistant professor of military science in the Army ROTC, said the ROTC offers many benefits for students wishing to complete their degree before enlisting.

“This is a great leadership program, and is a great way to have school paid for,” Buchanan said.

Since the downturn of the economy, enrollment in the Army ROTC has increased. There are 57 cadets currently enrolled.

Students in the ROTC program can receive more than $5,000 per semester for tuition payments, room and board, books and monthly allowances.

“You can’t really beat the scholarship opportunities ROTC provides,” said Dennis Whitt, senior history major and leader of the cadet program in the Army ROTC.

Whitt transferred to Sac State after attending Butte Community College. He said he could have chosen to go to Chico State because it was close, but chose Sac State specifically because of its ROTC program.

“ROTC offers great benefits and stipends, and it teaches you how to be a leader,” Whitt said.

Buchanan recommended going through an ROTC program because it provides students with a higher rank in the Army once they graduate. If one goes to a recruiter without a degree, he or she will be enlisted in the Army as a private, the lowest rank.

Once enlisted, cadets are obligated to an eight-year commitment after graduating.The full eight years can be completed in active duty or four years of active duty with additional time spent in one of the other Army programs.

Service commitments are similar in the Air Force, though they can increase depending on the position attained.

“Starting ROTC was probably the best decision I have ever made,” said Jessica Miller, junior communications major and Air Force ROTC cadet.

Miller said she joined ROTC hoping to get a scholarship to pay for college.

“I was adopted and the family that adopted me couldn’t afford to send me to college because they already had five kids of their own,” Miller said.

Miller received a scholarship after her first semester in the ROTC program that pays for her tuition and books, and provides her with a monthly allowance of $450.

Lt. Col. Roel Zamora, assistant professor of aerospace studies with the Air Force ROTC, said more students are considering the Air Force ROTC as an option to pay for school.

“I encourage students to give it a shot,” Zamora said. “Coming here doesn’t mean they’ll go straight to war. If they don’t like what they hear they can leave, but I think it’s important to be informed.”

Brittany Bottini can be reached at [email protected].