DS had his visit Thursday and Friday. He loved it. He asked to be paired with a baseball player and was paired with a sophomore on the team. He said that the general view of the cadets was that their first year (4C) was hard - more colorful descriptions were used - but worth it. His host noted that he's already been to six countries. The impression I got from DS' descriptions was that the cadets are impressive, motivated and have high morale.
A big reason "bean sprouts" may be made to feel so welcome is that those who sit at the same table with him/her don't have to "square" meals and can talk. A welcome respite for 4Cs at the table!
He attended four classes - physics, ethics, government and naval science. He also observed the baseball team's practice (under the NCAA rules, a baseball team can have a limited number of fall practices and a couple of scrimmages). One of the pitchers told him that he had been accepted to the Naval Academy and USCGA and told DS how he arrived at this decision to attend USCGA - a decision he doesn't regret.
Having badly embarrassed myself in an interview for an internship while in college, I made sure that DS went to the Academy with a list of questions the cadet might ask him and questions for him to ask the cadet. It turns out, as noted on another thread, that the cadet interview is only about the bean sprout experience. DS managed to ask his host a number of the questions on his list in the course of their conversations. He'll save the list of questions he may be asked to prep for the interview with the admissions partner.
His host naturally had to study. DS used that time to work on his application essays. Those who visit should be prepared to fill a couple of hours while their hosts do their home work.
DS may be doing catch up all weekend, but it was definitely worth that price to make the visit.
A big reason "bean sprouts" may be made to feel so welcome is that those who sit at the same table with him/her don't have to "square" meals and can talk. A welcome respite for 4Cs at the table!
He attended four classes - physics, ethics, government and naval science. He also observed the baseball team's practice (under the NCAA rules, a baseball team can have a limited number of fall practices and a couple of scrimmages). One of the pitchers told him that he had been accepted to the Naval Academy and USCGA and told DS how he arrived at this decision to attend USCGA - a decision he doesn't regret.
Having badly embarrassed myself in an interview for an internship while in college, I made sure that DS went to the Academy with a list of questions the cadet might ask him and questions for him to ask the cadet. It turns out, as noted on another thread, that the cadet interview is only about the bean sprout experience. DS managed to ask his host a number of the questions on his list in the course of their conversations. He'll save the list of questions he may be asked to prep for the interview with the admissions partner.
His host naturally had to study. DS used that time to work on his application essays. Those who visit should be prepared to fill a couple of hours while their hosts do their home work.
DS may be doing catch up all weekend, but it was definitely worth that price to make the visit.