Engineering

I've heard that the academies are some of the hardest places to get an engineering degree. How hard is it compares to other universities? I want to major in Astronautical Engineering.

The academies can be one of the most difficult places to obtain any degree due to the fact that you are not concentrating just on the degree alone but doing military training, including a rigorous weekly schedule which includes daily PT very early before class starts, on top of the competitive military environment that doesn't suit everyone.

In short it's not your average university but in the end it's worth it

USAFA is sometimes the little engineering school in the Rockies. Astro and Aero Nautical Engineering are generally considered the hardest majors at the school. My DS was sure he wanted to major in Astro but once he got there and learned more about other majors he went a different direction based on what he wants to do once out of school.

USAFA has one of the best management schools in the country. There are a lot of Cadets who major in Management, but my DS laughed and said "yes it is great, but it is also considered to be the easiest major at the school."

Your first priority needs to be based on wanting to serve in the military, so you can't really compare it to other civilian universities. You shouldn't choose any Service Academy if you are considering it just because you want to attend a prestigious university, have 'free tuition' or want to add it to your resume.

All the SAs are unique in their course load, military obligations and other items. At USNA, I never carried below 18 credit hours a semester. Not sure on USAFA and USMA, but guessing they have similar rules, that you cannot have below 15 hours/semester. That did not include PE which was 1-2 hours a week and didn't count towards my credit hours. There are also athletic requirements, some play a D1 sport or club level. Others play intramurals. These can vary in how much time they take, but D1 and club are alot. This is on top of staying shape to passing PT tests required each semester. Ultimate Frisbee intramural twice a week won't keep in the level of shape required, you will need get in long runs and other items. You also have military obligations that can vary from studying on weekly knowledge to character development seminars and lectures. There are also watch requirements at each school too. I don't think the academics are that much different than a top level engineering school elsewhere, it is very aggressive 4 year schedule and all the other obligations and requirements that come along with a SA.

Any engineering curriculum at any college is going to be hard. You go to any school where the average SAT score is 1310 and any curriculum is going to be hard. Is the academic rigor at USAFA any harder than any other school with a similar student make up, probably not. It will be similar to any top notch engineering school, and in fact it may be easier at USAFA. You have much smaller class sizes and many more opportunities for extra help/support. It's not the academics that make USAFA one of the hardest places to get an engineering degree it is the combination of the academic rigor and the military commitment that you have during school. Time management becomes one of the most important skills you will need to succeed.