Last Year's Application Rate Decreased by About Half Compared to 2016
The Ministry of National Defense has revealed that it is considering shortening the ROTC service period as the application rate for ROTC officers, which accounts for a large proportion of junior officer recruitment, has sharply declined.
On the 23rd, Defense Minister Lee Jong-seop responded to a question from Seong Il-jong of the People Power Party regarding measures to secure junior officers at the National Defense Committee of the National Assembly, stating, "We are considering shortening the ROTC service period among junior officers," and added, "One reason for the low application rate could be that the service period is longer than that of enlisted soldiers."
Last year, the ROTC application rate for the Army, Navy, and Air Force was 2.39 times (3,511 quota / 8,405 applicants), which is about half of the 3.95 times in 2016. It is also known that some universities in the metropolitan area are failing to fill their quotas. The service period for enlisted soldiers is 18 months based on the Army standard, but ROTC service periods vary by branch from 24 to 36 months.
He explained that there are many reasons for the decline in application rates besides the service period, saying, "One of the items under consideration is also the issue of paying salaries during the training period for ROTC officer candidates."
Regarding the cause of the decrease in applicants for junior officers such as ROTC, Minister Lee analyzed, "The biggest factor is the population decline, which has led to a severe shortage of available resources, and the application rate is decreasing due to various factors such as shortening the service period and working conditions."
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