ROTC Scholarship Podcast: A Parent’s Perspective on the ROTC Scholarship
Process
Welcome to the ROTC scholarship podcast, hosted by former army ROTC, professor of
military science, Lieutenant Colonel retired Rob Kirkland. And these episodes we explore
how to best prepare yourself to obtain one of these valuable scholarships for those applicants
who wish to attend a college or university and become officers in the military. The
application process can be complex and confusing. This podcast works to make it more
understandable. And now the ROTC scholarship podcast.
Robert Kirkland: Hi everyone, welcome to the podcast. Today I've got on here today, John
Eddlemon and John is the father of Carter Eddlemon who received an army ROTC
scholarship and a Navy ROTC Marine Corps option scholarship. And I've invited
him on today because in talking with him, I think that John has really delved into
this process to a great degree and experienced a lot of things as a parent working
through this process from start to finish. And I really wanted to kind of get his
perspective on, you know, the way the parents look at the ROTC scholarship
process and kind of the lessons that he's learned and taken away over the past a
year. So, John welcome to the ROTC scholarship podcast.
John Eddlemon: Thank you, Rob. I appreciate it.
Robert Kirkland: Yeah, that's great. Well, John, why don't you go ahead and tell us a little bit about
yourself for the audience.
John Eddlemon: Definitely. you know, as you mentioned Carter is my oldest son. We just finished
out the process we're actually still in the middle of the process right now with
him. But I have two other children and by trade I'm an engineer doing utility
management, water and wastewater type work. And I think the most important
thing is neither myself nor my wife have any military background. So this was a
baptism by fire as you would say, just learning about all the requirements and
things that you have to do to be successful in this process.
Robert Kirkland: Yeah, absolutely. I mean, your son, what got your son sort of interested in the
military? Cause I see this from a lot of people that I know, that you know, where
the parents weren't in the military but yet your son or daughter comes to you and
is interested in the military service. So, what attracted your son to the military
then what was sort of your, you and your wife's reaction when he expressed this
interest to you?
John Eddlemon: You know Rob, it's a very interesting question. It's one that we actually had to go
back and think about of when Carter first expressed interest. And I think back
early on, my father was in the hundred first airborne and he passed away when
Carter was a baby. And so he would see pictures and hear his tell stories. And so
I think that might've been his first introduction to the military. And then myself, I
attended Norwich for a year with the goal of commissioning in the Marine Corps
and actually could not pass the DODMERB physical at the end of my freshman
year. So that derailed what my goal was. But you know, we really never talked