If you have already applied to Auburn, the Admissions Department is reasonably quick about approving/denying new student applications once they receive all of the required paperwork (HS transcripts, previous college transcripts (as applicable), SAT/ACT scores, etc.); responses are generally given approximately two weeks after submission of your application. If you haven't received an acceptance letter and feel as though you should, you can check the status of your application by visiting the Auburn Admissions website to ensure they have everything they need.
Degree Completion Plan Procedures
Once your application is complete, the next thing you will need to send to NSTC is an approved Degree Completion Plan (DCP). Your DCP must be approved by the University Advisor for your major and the STA-21 Advisor at Auburn NROTC.
To build your DCP, you will need the examples below to begin.
Next, you will need to fill in your DCP with the courses required for your chosen major. Those courses can be found in the AU Bulletin.
Regardless of major, your DCP must include the following courses to meet STA-21 requirements:
MATH 1610 (Calculus I)
MATH 1620 (Calculus II)
PHYS 1600 (Engineering Physics I)
PHYS 1610 (Engineering Physics II)
ENGL 1100 (English Composition I)
ENGL 1120 (English Composition II)
NAVS 2010 (Leadership and Management)
NAVS 4020 (Leadership and Ethics)
Many of these courses will be covered by most majors and/or Auburn University academic requirements. However, other majors will have to add these courses either in the place of other required courses or electives as applicable to your major.
If you are (or think you are) a member of the Honors College, some honors courses may be substituted for these courses (example, MATH 1617 can be taken in place of MATH 1610, etc); however, this is not common and will be handled on a case-by-case basis.
Next, you will need to contact an academic advisor for your respective college to have your DCP approved by the university. You can find your academic advisor by visiting the Academic Programs website and finding your specific college as it pertains to your major.
When you find out who your university advisor is (this may take some phone calls to the appropriate college for your major), you will need to contact that individual and explain what you are requesting them to assist you with. In short, you are a future Auburn student who is transferring from military service with the U.S. Navy under the STA-21 program and need their approval of your proposed Degree Completion Plan. Most of the academic colleges on campus are familiar with approving STA-21 degree plans; however, if they are not familiar with what you are asking, provide them with the STA-21 Advisor's contact information (below) for clarification.
Once your University academic advisor approves and returns your DCP, the STA-21 Advisor will also need to approve it. Some of the advisors know this and will forward it directly to the STA-21 Advisor. Others are not aware of additional requirements for the STA-21 program and will not; at which point, you will need to forward your DCP to the STA-21 Advisor who will ensure it is a reasonable plan and that all of the STA-21 requirements have been met.
Lastly, after you have a DCP approved by both the University and the STA-21 Advisor, it is ready for you to send it, along with your Auburn University acceptance letter, to OD2 at NSTC in Pensacola, FL.
*NOTE: All of the fields in the examples below will need to be edited by you for your specific situation. Make sure this is done prior to forwarding the DCP to your University academic advisor, as it is not their job to make the DCP for you. Your university advisor is merely ensuring you should meet all of your major and Auburn University requirements to graduate within the allotted time. For an example of what a completed DCP looks like, please see the examples below.
Commanding Officer
ATTN: STA-21 Advisor
Naval ROTC Unit
W. F. Nichols Center
Auburn University
Auburn, AL 36849-5512
Degree Completion Plans Example
*NOTE: Example DCP templates are included below. This document should be updated in accordance with your desired major per the AU Bulletin and also integrate our program requirements for Naval Science per our Academic Standards Instruction. STA-21 Nuclear Options may select from the following majors: Aerospace Engineering**, Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Industrial and Systems Engineering, Materials Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Software Engineering, Mathematics, Chemistry, and Physics. All other STA-21 students may choose from any major offered by Auburn University with STA-21 advisor approval.
** Currently, STA-21 students may not register for an Aerospace Engineering degree without special permission from the College of Engineering (COE). Summer classes are not offered for this degree, and it is therefore impossible to complete the degree in the time limit given to STA-21 students. If you have already completed a large enough portion of this curriculum and can prove that you are capable of graduating on time, special permission my be obtained by a request submitted on your behalf by a COE advisor.
