ltdan,
No worries! That's what these forums are here for. Do not worry that you do not know much about sailing. There's a lot of kids that come in with little to no boating experience. Others have a lot. Just apply yourself in classes and during Indoc and you will do just fine. It might be difficult to pick some concepts up at first, but you will not be alone and keep in mind, the school's mission is to train and graduate competent maritime officers. They will make sure you have all the knowledge you need. It isn't too difficult to get an MBA or a management position. I will be honest with you that if you declare an Engine major, then you will not have too many business courses. Business courses are more on the deck side of the house. Keep that in mind, but you don't have to declare a major until the middle of Plebe Year. You will have to take a class called KP 100 which shows you the ins and outs of deck and engine majors so you can make an informed decision. A lot of kids come in thinking they want a specific major, and change it because of that class, which is perfectly fine. Some of the shore side positions KP grads get start in middle management. Again, most of those graduates are deck majors. Many KP grads have said that the workload KP puts on you makes Grad School a piece of cake. Some also sail for a little bit (or a while) and then make the jump over to management (mostly with shipping companies). Hope some of this helps. I hope to see you at Indoc. I'm on Hold right now.
I'll agree with the broad strokes of this post, but there are a lot of nuances that people won't understand unless they spend some time as on the other side of vickery gate. So I'll comment on the following based on my limited exposure to the KP network.
Just apply yourself in classes and during Indoc and you will do just fine.
By virtue of being accepted you've demonstrated that you have the raw talent to make it four years at KP. But this whole thing of "just try your best" is kind of BS. You've got to preform. KP is very much a make the grade or get out world, it isn't about trying, it's about doing, and meeting the standards set for you. I applaud people for trying to support one another, but nice words and encouragement won't help you when Captain Hard hands you a piece of chalk and sends you to the board to sketch a bearing problem.
I will be honest with you that if you declare an Engine major, then you will not have too many business courses.
I'd say the shipyard majors are an exception to this rule, they seem to spend more time in Bowditch than others.
@KPEngineer would be the guy to chime in on this.
but you don't have to declare a major until the middle of Plebe Year. You will have to take a class called KP 100 which shows you the ins and outs of deck and engine majors so you can make an informed decision.
Major and Split selection comes before the end of first tri. It isn't called KP 100 in the new curriculum, and personal opinion here it isn't a totally unbiased tool to making an informed decision about which major is for you. The engineering side of the house realizes that the freshman survey course is a great recruiting opportunity, the engineering course is fun, interesting, and doesn't get deep enough into things to get too boring. The deck side on the other hand use this class as an education opportunity, topics like block and tackle and nylon vs. manilla line, it wasn't nearly as fun or representative of what deckies do as the engine side I didn't think. I went deck irrespective of my KP100 experience and couldn't be happier.
Some of the shore side positions KP grads get start in middle management. Again, most of those graduates are deck majors.......Some also sail for a little bit (or a while) and then make the jump over to management (mostly with shipping companies).
This is a great chance to remind everyone of the legal commitment upon graduation. 5 years sailing 150 days a year. Hold a license for 6 years. 8 years to the naval reserve. The outside perception that everyone winds up staying connected to the marine industry couldn't be farther from the truth.
@kp2001 posted today about a KP grad featured on food network, I know of a 2012 grad in the process of starting a self storage company, doctors (...like
@kp2001), lawyers, Kings Pointers are everywhere and the spread is greater than most realize. There certainly is a KP network in the maritime industry, but the reach elsewhere is greater than most people acknowledge. Below are three screen shots from linkedin of people who are KP graduates, sorted by city, San Diego, Washington DC, and Charlotte NC as some examples of graduate employment after the sailing commitment is finished. A tiny fraction are shipping companies, while a few more have a maritime flavor like Caterpillar, but the point is the spread of graduates 5-10 years removed from KP is huge (...or as a long islander would say Uuuuge). It doesn't really matter what your major is either, deck or engine, you can write your own ticket in whatever sector you like.
