Zach Rouseau sets five alarms to make sure he wakes up for his morning physical training workout. The first rings 10 minutes before he needs to get out of bed, the last goes off when he needs to leave his apartment and the three in between are spaced apart two to five minutes. 

Rouseau takes a quick shower, eats a carbohydrate-rich breakfast bar, drinks a protein shake—all while “turning up” to some of his favorite music—and heads to the recreation fields or the track, depending on the workout. 

It doesn’t matter how much he slept the night before, or how many exams he has that day. He’s expected to be on time and ready to participate in physical training (PT), held Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday mornings at 5:50.  

For Rouseau, a sophomore biochemistry major, PT is one requirement of being in TCU’s Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) program.

After PT, Rouseau studies or sometimes takes a quick nap before heading to class for the day. In addition to his heavy course load—he’s taking introductory and intermediate-level science classes—Rouseau has to take 27 credit hours of ROTC military science courses, attend a lab every Thursday at a nearby military base and maintain a 2.0 GPA.

“It [ROTC] definitely will build character. It’ll build your discipline,” Rouseau said. “It’ll help you be grateful for sleep, very much so.” 

Rouseau’s experiences are similar to those of the nearly 200 other students in the Army and Air Force ROTC programs at TCU. In addition to the challenges that come with being a college student, cadets have to deal with other obligations. 

TCU is one of about 1,100 colleges and universities across the country that offer Army and Air Force ROTC programs. Students who enroll are eligible to receive merit scholarships and a $420 monthly stipend that can cover tuition and living expenses.

Scholarship recipients serve in the military for eight years after graduating, and they begin their service as officers, specifically second lieutenants. 

TCU first offered the Army ROTC program in 1951, and the Air Force ROTC formed its own program in 1957, after being combined with the Army ROTC. TCU is a host university, and its ROTC programs are available to students at crosstown schools, such as the University of Texas at Arlington and Tarrant County College.

Cadets join for different reasons, but many begin the program as first-year students.

Hardy Stone, a junior mechanical engineering major, joined Army ROTC when he enrolled at TCU. Stone said he would not have been able to attend college without the four-year scholarship he received. He also was given money to cover his room and board because he earned a high score on a standardized test he took in high school.

Another reason why he opted to participate in ROTC was because he wanted to serve in the military. 

Stone is a cadet squad leader, but like the rest of the first-year and sophomore cadets, he started out as a “Joe.” As a squad leader, Stone leads nine other students and the morning PT. Because he runs those exercises, he has to wake up around 4:50 a.m. so he can arrive at the workouts early. 

Rouseau, a transfer student new to the ROTC program, doesn’t have as many responsibilities as Stone, but he helps lead a team, a smaller unit within the squad. 

Rouseau played basketball at one of his previous schools, but after an injury ended his time on the team, he started looking for another way to get involved.

“I realized that ROTC would’ve been a really good community to join,” Rouseau said. “They would also help me propel my career forward, and it kinda set myself up for the future.”

As a team leader, Rouseau said he tries to improve PT by offering ideas—many of them based on his experience as an athlete—and by motivating other members of his team.  

Emily Boring, a junior nursing major, never considered joining the Army before applying for ROTC. She had never even been camping. 

After researching the program and the four-year scholarship, she decided to join. While Boring, a squad leader, is one of four junior females in TCU’s Army ROTC, she doesn’t notice the gender disparity.

“They don't really treat me differently than they would treat anyone else,” Boring said. “It's just like hanging out with a bunch of brothers all the time.”

Since Boring joined ROTC, she said her knowledge and respect of the military has grown.

"Gaining knowledge of our military and understanding other countries' militaries has really made me appreciate where we live and the field that I'm going into,” Boring said. “It’s really made me realize how much work goes into our military.”

Hanna Mankus, a junior engineering major, has lived with Boring for the past two years. Her first year, she lived in a hall with eight cadets. 

Mankus is not a cadet, but she has learned about ROTC by living with and around cadets.

“I have a lot of respect for them. They have to do a lot more than I thought they did,” Mankus said. “This program produces some really good people.”

Another responsibility of the battalion is assisting with home football games. 

Austin Gordon, a senior business entrepreneurship major in Army ROTC, is the assistant to the S3 position, which coordinates ROTC’s work on game days.

With regulations imposed by COVID-19, ROTC students have different responsibilities than in past years, now performing temperature checks for everyone entering the stadium.

“It’s definitely been a change but it has gone well, making sure everyone is healthy going into the game and everyone is safe,” Gordon said.

“Saturday nights are not filled with parties. They are definitely filled with the library,” Rouseau said.  

Like Rouseau, Stone said he spends most of his time outside of ROTC events attending classes or completing homework.  

Carson Zimmermann, a junior finance major and one of Stone’s roommates, does not participate in ROTC. But after living with Stone since their first year at TCU, Zimmermann has become accustomed to Stone’s busy schedule. 

Zimmermann said one of the adjustments to Stone’s schedule was being quiet in the evenings, as Stone went to bed earlier since he had PT in the morning. 

“I’m not really a go-to-bed-early kind of person, so I would have to be super-duper quiet to not wake him up,” Zimmermann said. 

But he said the changes he had to make, such as turning down the TV volume, were not difficult or “a big deal,” especially since Zimmermann and Stone have become close friends. 

Zimmermann said Stone has given him a glimpse into some of the more subtle challenges that come with being a cadet. 

For example, Zimmermann said Stone wasn’t able to eat fast food with them, since he had to stay in shape for an upcoming PT test. 

“And that’s something that a regular roommate doesn’t have to do,” Zimmermann said.

Vega-Siurano also commented on the demands of being a cadet. 

“It does limit your social life, but we aren’t robots,” Vega-Siurano said. “We still put in the time and figure out how to cope with that.”

Four years of work culminates in a final advance camp where senior cadets must pass tests in range shooting, land navigation and tactical lanes to be commissioned into the Army. 

Unlike Gordon, Rouseau isn’t ready yet to be assessed and commissioned. He still has a few more years of waking up early for PT, studying hard, and sacrificing some sleep and social events to prepare for his future.

Until it is time for Rouseau and the rest of the cadets to receive their assignments, they will continue to “lead the way.”