Not to hi-jack this thread or diminish its importance to the OP..... This is the time of year that applicants/appointees and their parents join this forum. They begin their journey with research and having/wanting to know this and that, when the appointment comes they are over the moon and feel like all of the hard work in raising the kid has been realized and their life's path is set in stone to do amazing and wonderful things. Been there. You need to realize that this journey is not gumdrops, rainbows and unicorns. This is real life (OP situation as example), there are injuries, there are deaths, there are times where the kid is going to struggle like you've never imagined and questioning themselves like they have no business being there, there are academic and honor boards that occur (even if completely innocent), there are medical boards where the fragility of your kid and their future are determined and you will not be included. You can find yourself researching any number of things that would have never occurred to you. This is the "roller coaster" that has been referred to. You will experience the highest of highs and quite possibly the lowest of lows, multiple times. Your son or daughter will need emotional support and encouragement, you let them vent and then you need to be prepared to be a rational adult and hold them accountable and determine how they are going to successfully get through whatever they are facing. The OP's health status has dealt him/her a serious blow, a health factor is out of their control and is no fault of their own. How they and their support system deal with it is 100% their responsibility, to insure that an effective direction is achieved. There is a silver lining in this circumstance, they will graduate. An academy degree, minimum to zero debt, possible VA benefits to further their education because this happened or drug out into their Firstie year, had this been finalized a year or 2 ago the circumstances could be far more difficult, separation could/would occur without the "golden handshake". The most important thing to remember through a situation similar to this is being alive, not dead before a serious medical condition is identified. Very few have to experience this, but there are those very few every year. If you are just beginning this journey, you need to be prepared to weather some hard times and be a rock for your kid. If you and your kid get through this unscathed, you are very lucky.