2023 Yutan graduate Zach Krajicek had a goal to have his college paid for by earning scholarships. He reached his goal in a big way when he was one out of 1,000 people who received a scholarship totaling $176,000 from the United States Army that covers all four years of college.
“I get $6,000 for room and board per semester, $420 stipend for 10 months a year and $600 a semester for books and fees. It’s all awarded in bits at a time, but it is a four-year scholarship,” Krajicek said.
In order to receive this large sum of money, Krajicek went through a very long application process. This application for a Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) required good grades, leadership skills and athleticism. Once his application was accepted by the Army, even more paperwork was assigned.
“I’m still going through the medical waiver process, so that gives you an idea of how long it takes to get everything finalized. There’s a ton of paperwork you have to fill out online, and you need access to a ton of medical records and other personal information that you have from the time you were born,” Krajicek said.
The scholarship requires Krajicek to move around throughout different college campuses and stay involved with all of his physical activities, which makes his schedule labor intensive.
“I have physical training three times a week at 6:00 a.m. and then one 50-minute class a week and one two-hour lab a week. During class and lab, we learn how to be an Army officer and the skills necessary to succeed as a team in the field,” Krajicek said.
On top of his busy ROTC schedule, Krajicek is also playing football at Concordia University, where he is enrolled in 15 credit hours this semester and is working towards a degree in history.
“I have to drive to Lincoln from Concordia’s campus in Seward and go to the Military and Naval Science building right next to Memorial Stadium on UNL’s campus,” Krajicek said.
Krajicek said that balancing his football and ROTC schedule along with his regular classes can be quite a challenge.
“At times I feel like I am running around in order to make it to all of my activities and events,” Krajicek said.
Even when his schedule gets busy and overloaded, Krajicek still enjoys learning what his future job will entail.
“I’ve always wanted to serve [in the military] in some capacity, and this was a way to do that while playing college football at the same time,” Krajicek said.
After he graduates from college, Krajicek plans to commission in the Army and join either National Guard, Reserves or Active Duty. WIth his college being paid for it is easier for Krajicek to commit.
“I feel like this scholarship has opened up a lot of opportunities that will help me in the future,” Krajicek said.
