My Chances At This Point

Hi I am only a sophmore but getting into WP has been my dream my entire life. I am wondering what my chances as of right now are of getting in.
So far this year(only the first semester) I have received 5 A's and 1 C. I have 2 AP classes and 2 honors and the C came from a honors math class. I am wondering how much that will hurt me. During my freshman year i messed up and in the two semesters i have received 1C and 4 Bs.
However, I also play football, and although I have not made it into varsity yet, I nearly made it this year. I was only dropped as they had too many linebackers this year and my size isnt up to speed. I have received a defensive MVP award in my freshman team last year and my JV team this year. I'm not looking for a starting position or anything like that, I just want to get in.

Where do you think I stand at this point? Thank you in advance.

krovax said:

Hi I am only a sophmore but getting into WP has been my dream my entire life. I am wondering what my chances as of right now are of getting in.
So far this year(only the first semester) I have received 5 A's and 1 C. I have 2 AP classes and 2 honors and the C came from a honors math class. I am wondering how much that will hurt me. During my freshman year i messed up and in the two semesters i have received 1C and 4 Bs.
However, I also play football, and although I have not made it into varsity yet, I nearly made it this year. I was only dropped as they had too many linebackers this year and my size isnt up to speed. I have received a defensive MVP award in my freshman team last year and my JV team this year. I'm not looking for a starting position or anything like that, I just want to get in.

Where do you think I stand at this point? Thank you in advance.

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You sound a little under par, but thats just me, and admissions and other people on the forum might think otherwise.

I bet freshman year pummeled your GPA. No worries yet though. If you keep up the good work this remaining year and the next (your very important junior year) I don't think you would look too shabby at all. I got appointed with one C, so I assume you can get in with one or two. Maybe not any more. Do your best not to get anything lower than a B from now on. I dont know what your MALO or admissions officer would say, but to me, I think you'll really have to put your nose to the grindstone for as many A's as you can to make up that crappy freshman year.

West Point looks a lot at class rank and standardized test scores too. Have you taken one yet? Start preparing early for the ACT or SAT and take a practice one or two! Keep in mind, West Point superscores your tests, so if you can afford it, take it more than once or twice. Its worth it, and my ACT superscores were really high (I took the ACT about 10 times...). If you do spectacular on one try, thats even better.

As always, look for leadership opportunities and extracurricular. Getting a spot on varsity sports is great and getting a leadership position in one is even better.

I think you'll be fine. Just do well in school and on the national tests. At this point, I think your biggest weakness is academics. As a sophomore, your strengths of sports and extracurricular/leadership positions are a bit too early to gauge, but start looking.

Good luck!

yeah i thought thats where i stood in terms of grades
i am looking to retake one of the two Cs and maybe both but i heard some schools dont count that or something

i have not taken any of the tests yet but i will soon

as for the varsity letterman im not too worried about it, im pretty sure i can make it into varsity next year

also my brother is currently in his last year in the air force academy...not sure if that helps at all but i heard it helps a little bit

thank you chockstock for your reply

Its kind of hard to tell about chances right now. You have a lot of high school left to go. Your actual letter grades won't matter as much as your class rank and your strength of schedule, just don't over extend yourself. I would say to take as many hard classes as you can while pulling As and Bs. No a couple low grades shouldn't damage anything, just don't let it become a trend. An upward grade trend is also seen as a positive thing. Work hard at academics and stay involved in extracurriculars that you are interested in. Standardized test scores are also a big factor for USMA (bigger than most schools) so take them early to see if/how you should be preparing for them! Good Luck!

krovax said:

yeah i thought thats where i stood in terms of grades
i am looking to retake one of the two Cs and maybe both but i heard some schools dont count that or something

i have not taken any of the tests yet but i will soon

as for the varsity letterman im not too worried about it, im pretty sure i can make it into varsity next year

also my brother is currently in his last year in the air force academy...not sure if that helps at all but i heard it helps a little bit

thank you chockstock for your reply

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KROVAX---hang in there, pursue your life-long dream...hope it comes true for you!!

Make sure you're keeping your physical fitness up, especially for the CFA. Find out if you have any weak spots. Usually people have trouble with one or two events. Even the varsity level athletics.

Get in touch with your guidance counselor. You could also contact your MALO early and let him know who you are. I don't know if MALOs can offer much early. I met mine and he has my contact info but not much more. Your MALO will definitely offer some good advice.

Keep your grades up. Take honors and AP if possible. Also keep your class rank up if your school has class ranks. Class rank is highly valued.

Find leadership opportunities. National Honor Society, student council. Even getting a lot of community service hours or a job counts.

Look into summer programs. West Point SLS, Boys State. Boys State looks great on a file. Look into other summer camps from other academies unless West Point/Army is your main decision.

Keep going in football. If you are active you'll make varsity for sure. Who knows? Maybe team captain!

But don't forget to have fun or relax. I'm also a sophmore and I'm looking forward to applying, but I don't want to stress myself too hard.
Just keep striving for the best. If you work hard you'll have a good chance.

I got Cs in Latin my freshman and sophomore years, and I received an appointment a few weeks ago. It won't kill ya. Just don't let it happen again.
(I got straight As my junior and senior years, though, taking all the AP classes I could)

I can't be positive as I don't have inside information but remember they look at three things when evaluating you. 60% academic (Have heard 30% is school related (GPA, Class Rank, Classes), 30% ACT/SAT), 30% leadership (Captain/President of a club, NHS), 10% CFA (maybe varisty sports factor in?). Like I said not sure if that is the correct break down but I would assume it is fairly accurate. Looking at the big picture a C isn't going to hurt you if you are well qualified in the other areas. I'd also say that they will probably look favorably on your 'forward progress' if you will. You came into HS not knowing what to expect and were a little overburdened but figured it out by Sophomore year. Once again though, no one really knows but Admissions.

ok thank you all of you for the advice and encouragement
good to know that my chances are completely ruined
ill make sure i keep up my A's from now on

Dear Krovax.

I encourage you to look at the biographies (given either in the "introductions" thread or gradually, over time, of the above posters. I think you will find that at least a couple of them are fellow hopefuls or appointees who are new at this and not privy to the admissions process, so their advice may not be as founded on experience as we'd all like.

The process I've gone through recently gives me no particular expertise except a deference to those who have it through actual service in Admissions, as MALOs, or as very serious -- none of whom have posted here. My particular experience was that a bunch of Cs and Bs was not a problem where there were balancing factors at which I am (humbly) guessing: test scores, an extremely competive school and a hard schedule within it - you said you were taking APs as a sophomore - service, leadership, fitness, and theother things adding into theWhole Canddiate Score.

But really, don't take them or me as absolute guidance. Nobody here is on the Admissions Committee. You don't know until you try. So try.