Answers
Sorry guys, I was on emergency leave for grandma's funeral and just got back yesterday. Anyways, I do have answers for you now!
Alice19:
1. In high school I wish that I continued playing 3 sports instead of sticking to just one. I'd been a 3-sport athlete for my whole life and for some reason I chose to give up 2 of 3 after freshman year. It'd have been easier to stay active year round, plus helped me to be more well-rounded. Idk if it affected admissions (I still got an LOA playing only one) but I truly wish I'd kept all three.
2. This past summer (before Beast of course) I wish I spent more time with my closest friends and family rather than surrounded by lots of "acquaintainces". I went to lots of grad parties, etc., which resulted in being in huge groups of people all the time. I regret this because even though I really liked a lot of them, they had no idea what I was about to do in a couple weeks and the simple fact that I wouldn't stay in touch with most of them. It sounds harsh, but that's pretty much how it works for everyone. You keep close with your best friends, and of course family- so I wish I'd spent my last free month more with them. You WILL miss them when you're gone.
3. Life's pretty good
. I enjoy it. Yes, the "daily grind" of the academic year gets to everyone sometimes, but it's in no way unbearable. If you've explored this forum, you'll have a decent idea of the strictness, discipline, etc. to expect. I've made a good amount of friends, and I really like my company. You'll make your own fun. Compared to beast, us plebes have so much freedom now. I was never wild and crazy and partying in high school, so I don't really feel like I'm missing out on anything now.
4. Being a girl is pretty close to being a guy here. People have the same expectations of you, and you have the same classes, duties to do, etc. I've never been treated differently- the guys are all really great for the most part. However, if you're overly flirty by nature or just plain annoying and high-maintainance, learn to control it. If you don't, don't expect to have many guy friends. They're all pretty nice, but if they don't respect you, they'll let you know, and that's not a good feeling.
5. I'd recommend taking at least AP US History, AP Chem, AP Calc, and AP English Lit. I did, and validated all of them here as a result. To validate:
Chem- 4/5 on AP test, really good performance on placement test during beast
Calc- same as chem
English- 4/5 on AP test, write a good essay during beast for the test (roughly top 90 out of 500)
US History- 5 on AP test
Bottom line- validate as much as you can. I now have the opportunity to double major much easier than most of my classmates do, which is a really great option to have.
Okay.. CCUSMA17:
1. Biggest shock? Honestly, I thought that everyone here was going to be ridiculously smart academically. It's simply just not how it is. The plebe core classes are all classes I took in high school....
2. I suggest validating everything you can! I validated 5 classes, and it's just so much better this year for me. I have mainly yuk-level classes, so I'm done with core curriculum nearly a semester faster than my classmates. If you've gotten into USMA, you've most likely taken the majority of plebe classes in high school in some capacity. If you don't validate, you'll be taking them all again!
It will annoy you that you have to relearn everything, and it'll be easier to blow things off. Just validate. If you have the opportunity to, do it.
3. Running during Beast. I don't enjoy running, and wasn't as prepared as I should've been for the running. That being said, it wasn't that bad. The runs were all pretty short, and though the pace is quick (the tall guys in front of formation basically set it), it's not too terrible. You'll improve a lot.. my APFT time dropped 3 minutes during Beast. We hardly ran more than a mile at a time.
4. Female specific advice: google "Minority Report: A Girl's Guide to West Point" and find this girl's post... there's like 9 pages of gold here. It helped me out a lot. I believe the post is on college confidential or something. The author graduated in 2007(i think) but most of the post is still very relevant. Everything about being a girl is there. And just from my experience, maintain femininity! There's a line between being able to be "one of the guys" at times (good) and acting like a total dude- chewing tobacco, etc. (bad).
5. I wish I knew that I'd have to carry around a rifle for ALL of beast. It wasn't a big deal and wasn't super heavy or anything, but for me it was a constant annoyance. We weren't even allowed to go to the bathroom without it. I came close to throwing at a wall multiple times. Just know that you will be lugging an M-16 everywhere you go, and sometimes it will hit you in the face when you're sprinting up and down mountains, etc. Shooting it, etc., was great! I just got frustrated with always having it on me.
6. Free time... compared to Beast, I now feel like the free-est person on the freaking planet. Weekends are nearly completely free unless there's a home football game/parade or SAMI. Use weekends to catch up on homework, sleep, and FUN.
7.) How stressful is schoolwork? It's not too bad. I juggled a pretty ridiculous courseload throughout high school, and this isn't really any harder. The schoolwork itself is actually pretty straightforward and simple- it's the combination of everything we're required to do here (academics, physical stuff, military tasks) that makes it stressful at times. Just be proactive in completing work, asking for help, etc., and you'll be fine.
8.) Personality to get along with other females: I've gotten lucky during Beast and this semester and have great roommates, so I'll give you some things about them that help us get along. First, they are flexible, and expect me to do the same. If I'm still awake doing hw and they're ready for bed or vice versa, they dont mind me keeping the light on until I'm done, and expect that I'd give them the same courtesy. Second, they want to be good cadets, which makes me try harder as well. Third, they are genuine, honest, and unpretentious. Just be yourself and don't try to fake anything... this place exposes everyone's best and worst sides, and you want someone to pick you up when you're down as well as you wanting to be able to help your friends when they're not having the best time. I'm a very independent person, don't mind being alone, etc., but I honestly don't think I'd be as happy here without my roommate. You can't be successful here on your own- everyone always says "cooperate and graduate", and it couldn't be more true.
Being a girl, getting along with the guys: Don't be a flirt, be accepting, don't talk about periods, etc. in front of them (there's just no reason for it), help them out when they need it. Work hard and be friendly, and they'll respect you. Don't be the girl that goes on pass with a bunch of guys and does... you know what I mean. People gossip here, just like high school, and you will get a reputation.
9. For fun? Just hanging out in rooms can be fun. Get 3 or 4 friends to come in your room and talk while doing hw on a saturday afternoon. Highland falls something nice if you want to go out to eat. My company has "plebe movie night" every Fri and Sat night, which is always a good time. Some of the guys in my company go hiking, etc., on weekends which I've heard is cool if that's your thing. Go to meals in the mess hall with big groups (for optional dinners and weekend meals).. it's a great way to get to know your company-mates.
10. Am I happy? YES. I'm totally sure I made the right choice in picking WP, and this is the worst it's ever going to be. It's tough at times, no doubt, and I've had a couple bad days, but I'm thrilled that I'm here instead of civilian college. The institutional pride here is really great, and the comraderie with classmates is something you won't find any place else.
Hope that helps, guys. Also, go to SLS if it's not too late! It's a great experience that will help you with your admissions decision.
