West Point Military Academy

[Liz CA]

Are you a graduate or do you know someone who is?

Ds is researching all options regarding joining the military and/or a military career.

So far, he checked out the admission requirements and he is close to fulfilling them but we know, of course, that it is very competitive.

Any advice, anything we should know that may not be evident?

[AK_Mom4]

My oldest has been nominated for both USAFA and USNA - similiar to Westpoint in process. The first thing to know is that it is NOT about good grades. Yes, they want good students, but they are looking for potential leaders. Kids who are in a variety of sports and activities and who have been leaders in those areas. The military academies are very much looking for a varied resume - volunteer work, sports, community involvment, scouts, work experience - all these are big pluses when applying.

 

DS18 went to the summer program at USAFA and it was great. It really helped him decide that this was want he wanted to do. It's a week long "taste" of academy life.

[In The Great White North]

What grade is he in? (As in, how much time does he have to prepare for this?)

 

My oldest has been nominated for both USAFA and USNA - similiar to Westpoint in process. The first thing to know is that it is NOT about good grades. Yes, they want good students, but they are looking for potential leaders. Kids who are in a variety of sports and activities and who have been leaders in those areas. The military academies are very much looking for a varied resume - volunteer work, sports, community involvment, scouts, work experience - all these are big pluses when applying.

 

 

Unless he plays really, really good football or you won the Medal of Honor, they want all that and the grades.

 

http://admissions.usma.edu/moreInfo/Profile2013.pdf

 

Here's a recent class profile. You'll notice that 63% of verbal SAT scores were over 600 and 77% of Math. Most of the lower scores are from people who are a bit lopsided (ie. math 800, Verbal 550) and recruited athletes. Most of the cadets I knew had at least one or the other over 700. Retake the SAT until he gets the scores.

 

Point out the extracurricular activities to him also. I can't emphasize this enough. They won't admit a candidate who maxed the SAT unless he has the athletic and leadership components also.

 

The good news is that they are fine with home-schoolers.

[FriedClams]

I pm'd you. :)

[MBM]

I know a few people who went to USMA.

 

It would be very helpful if your son could experience the academies during one of the summer camps. Margaret in CO wrote this informative thread recently:

 

Summer Seminars at the Service Academies

 

Also, if your son has done something outstanding, that will benefit him, too.

 

Good luck!

[Kimberly in IN]

My dh is Class of 86. It appears you have received some great advice so far (of course, who would expect less from the Hive, it is such a great group, I just love the depth and width of info here but I digress ...) Anyway, he is always open to speaking (emailing, etc) to those interested in USMA. If there is something an "ol timer" could help w/ let me know.

 

Kimberly

[Liz CA]

It appears we are looking at this a little late. The ages for entry/admission are 18 -23. Ds will be 19 this April. Many kids evidently consider this path in their junior high year and the summer program is for kids this age if we are reading this correctly.

Ds will have to take a current ACT & SAT to see where his scores are. Physically, he is in shape from years of various training and he checked out the physical requirements and it did not seem impossible to him.

Someone mentioned football which he is not involved in but soccer, boxing and weight training as well as disc golf. Don't know if any of these types of sport would be a plus.

Lots to research and think about.

Thank you for all your replies, keep them coming.

[Heather in WI]

19 is not too late, so don't worry. :-)

 

There are several people here with Service Academy experience that can help you out.

 

Sebastian (a lady) graduated, I think, from USNA and is also a counselor for admissions.

 

Margaret in CO's daughter is graduating this year from USNA.

 

I forget who it is, but someone else's son from here was accepted to USAFA last year and should be finishing up his plebe year there.

 

I would do a search for "service academies" on the boards, if they don't see this thread. I remember a bunch of valuable posts for homeschoolers interested in attending.

[In The Great White North]

He is too late for the summer program but not too late to apply. There are always a few older cadets.

 

Is he in college now? People have successfully applied from college. If he's not, he should find one that is as rigorous academically as West Point, take "hard" academic courses, and apply from there. He still needs extracurricular activities and the nomination from his Congressman.

 

It is too late for this year's nominations, so he would be applying next year to attend starting in July of 2011.

 

 

Kimberly - I'm Class of '86 too. Small world. Has your dh seen the Undercover Boss about our classmate, the CEO of 7-11?

[Sebastian (a lady)]

Are you a graduate or do you know someone who is?

Ds is researching all options regarding joining the military and/or a military career.

So far, he checked out the admission requirements and he is close to fulfilling them but we know, of course, that it is very competitive.

Any advice, anything we should know that may not be evident?

 

I'm an admissions liaison for USNA. That means that I talk to students and do interviews.

 

I have a lot of candidates who make it clear in the interview that they haven't really thought about what they are interested in in the military or about what the rigors of attending an academy might involve.

 

They are looking for students who are not just meeting a minimum, but who show ability to handle hard things, perform under stress, try-fail-and try again.

 

In the interview, I'm probing for evidence of leadership experience, a student's drive to perform under adversity and stress and a general fire in the belly. It is very frustrating to be talking to a student who makes it clear that they haven't bothered to find out some of the more basic information about the academy or who haven't met the deadlines for their nominations.

 

I would also say that physical conditioning is a big deal because there is a lot of demanding physical work, especially the first year.

 

Since your son is older, is he taking college courses already? He should try to take and earn good grades in courses that are similar to what first year students take. This is especially a good thing for homeschoolers, who are often lacking some of the quantifiable student measurements (class rank, gpa and student activities). If he is in a college that has ROTC, he might consider joining the unit as a non-scholarship cadet/midshipman and/or enrolling in the military/naval science courses (these are open to all students, not just ROTC students).

 

I think that all of the services have some form of a reading list. Sometimes they are even sub divided for various ranks/positions. He might want to read some of these, not just as something to talk about in the interview, but because they provide a good framework for thought for future officers.

 

Look at ROTC scholarships, not just the academies. In fact, NROTC has a number of scholarships that are reserved for use at historically black colleges and universities (HBCU). There is not an ethnic/race requirement for the student, just that those particular scholarships have to be used at one of those colleges. I don't know if other services have similar set asides, but the Navy often has more scholarships than interested students.

Edited February 28, 2010 by Sebastian (a lady)

[LibraryLover]

The WPMA students/adults I've known have got the It Factor multiplied.

Edited September 15, 2014 by LibraryLover