Grades

jlwilkes101

5-Year Member
Joined
Jul 26, 2010
Messages
73
Basically, everything I've been reading online about grade trends says that its ok if you don't do as well your freshman year of highschool, but improve steadily in later years. However, what if you start off with two years of very good grades, and suddenly they're not so good anymore? It's not that I suddenly got lazy, but I basically started to take on too many leadership roles, activities, a.p. classes, etc., and my old way of studying/organizing more or less collapsed, sending me into a downward spiral of sleep loss (all-nighters/going to sleep at 3 are common) and falling grades. They're not Ds, but there's a lot fewer A's that I'm used to getting. It seems like what everyone warns about plebe year is happening to me my junior year of high school, minus the military discipline and getting yelled at, which is what I was looking forward to. So basically, if I can get everything back on track (which I'm starting to do), can I present that to admissions as evidence I can survive plebe year?
 
The best thing is to never "drop off" your grades. Try your best to stay strong academically for four years.

However, in a situation like you explain no one on this forum can answer your question for sure. Each case like you describe depends on the whole candidate file. Literally everything you submit to USMA can play a part in your file's competitiveness. USMA looks at the whole person-- academically, physically, medically. More intangibles play a part into your chances of admission like which different nominations you qualify for, are you a recruited athlete, etc.

So to answer your question, it depends. Your best bet is to call admissions and ask about your specific situation.
 
I know everyone warns about putting too much weight into one thing, but good SAT/ACT scores can help you here. If your grades aren't horrible but just not that great, good standardized test scores can help you pull some academic weight if you feel you're lacking there. That's just my take on it...

Again I agree that the "Whole Candidate" is the most important thing. Just for improving the academic look of things...
 
I have like, not to amazing grade (I have like a 3.1 GPA) but I have a lot of leadership roles and things, and I do pretty well on standardized tests, not sure how I rank because I am still a junior, but I am just focusing on improving the bad areas and hoping for the best :D
 
Do you have to be a straight A student to get into WP? I know its a silly question, but it seems that WP strives for perfection when picking their candidates. I have always been a A and B student, but I feel like its not going to be good enough :/
 
Okay I know this sounds terrible, but what are some ways you can lose your appointment? I know a DUI or failing a class will do it, but what if you have a C or two but the classes are ones you will end up taking at West Point again like calculus. Just wondering?
 
whatever you do, KEEP your grades up, you aren't there until your feet are on the ground at WP for Iday!!
 
Do you have to be a straight A student to get into WP? I know its a silly question, but it seems that WP strives for perfection when picking their candidates. I have always been a A and B student, but I feel like its not going to be good enough :/

They look at the package, not one single thing. You don't need to be perfect in a single aspect, just stand out overall.
 
Okay I know this sounds terrible, but what are some ways you can lose your appointment? I know a DUI or failing a class will do it, but what if you have a C or two but the classes are ones you will end up taking at West Point again like calculus. Just wondering?

I know of someone who had an appointment revoked because he made a D and two C's during his senior year.

Alcohol incident of any type is basis for getting an appointment revoked. Trouble with the law outside of a speeding ticket is something that I'd stay away from.

There isn't a set line of what can get your appointment revoked. The best way to avoid a situation like this is to just keep going strong until R Day.
 
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