What % of those attending SLE gain an appointment?

USMA_ljm

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Does anyone know any statistics on this? How many apply? How many get an appointment? Just curious.
Thanks
 
SLE is not a requirement to win an appointment. Attending SLE is more competitive than trying to get an appointment, because of the application ratio. (many will argue over this, as an example you don't need a nomination) The SLE program has less sessions than in the past and really doesn't give you an idea of what cadet daily life. However, you do get a chance to peek inside. I would dare say 40 percent and only because most who do attend SLE want to become Army Officers.

Push Hard, Press Forward
 
USMA knows the percentage. But, frankly, it absolutely doesn’t matter to your life. How would knowing this particular percentage brighten or darken your day? You put together the best package you possibly can, submit it for admission, and see what happens. That is really all any candidate can do.
 
40% gain admission. But as stated above, it is not a requirement. Attending Boys/Girls State will hep your application more.
 
I think the only thing I would add is depending on your "resume" boys state may or may not be more of more value than SLE. If you have a strong leadership score SLE could be a great experience. Not saying Boys State does not add value - just saying it depends upon what you have in your application. The best resource you can utilize to answer that question would be your RC or FFR. One last word - after reviewing my 2019 Cadets application - his FFR advised him to take SLE over Boys State. Best of luck!
 
I was under the impression that attending Boys and Girls State will add points to the WCS, SLE will not.
 
Thanks for the replies, I'm a parent. My son went to both Boys State and SLE, he got a lot more out of SLE, just LOVED it, made really good friends and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. He just got Eagle scout too which I hear is a lot of "points" . It's just nerve wracking. His one "oops" was on the CFA at SLE he dogged on the mile run, wasn't feeling well and got a cramp in his stomach almost immediately . He's about to take it again, he's been in football training and has not had a good time to do it previously. I'm sure he'll get the mile down to high 6's or low 7's. He hasn't gotten an LOA or LOE so we have no "reassurance" that he's on track. Frankly his FFA is not particularly friendly or helpful, very abrupt, not encouraging at all.
 
I was under the impression that attending Boys and Girls State will add points to the WCS, SLE will not.
Your impression is correct. I think what JWP was referring to was the subcategory of scoring called leadership. Attending Boys State contributes to those leadership points. However if you've already got lots of leadership (which you can max out on BTW) perhaps it make more sense to attend SLE, rather than racking up unneeded leadership points. Of course I have no idea how to tell where you are at on leadership points, in which case I would opt for the more conservative route and attend Boys State. JMPO.
 
Thanks for the replies, I'm a parent. My son went to both Boys State and SLE, he got a lot more out of SLE, just LOVED it, made really good friends and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. He just got Eagle scout too which I hear is a lot of "points" . It's just nerve wracking. His one "oops" was on the CFA at SLE he dogged on the mile run, wasn't feeling well and got a cramp in his stomach almost immediately . He's about to take it again, he's been in football training and has not had a good time to do it previously. I'm sure he'll get the mile down to high 6's or low 7's. He hasn't gotten an LOA or LOE so we have no "reassurance" that he's on track. Frankly his FFA is not particularly friendly or helpful, very abrupt, not encouraging at all.

SLE is more about selling West Point to qualified candidates that are on the fense than evaluating candidates.

If the FFR is not friendly, your DS should contact the Regional Command to get a feedback. Most Regional commanders will give candidate a straight feedback.
 
SLE is partly meant as a recruiting effort to advertise WP to those who might not otherwise consider applying. Some attend and immediately realize this is NOT for them and don't continue with the application process. Therefore, you can't really compare 'chances' based on those who did/did not get accepted to SLE. Many also get turned down for SLE and then eventually get an appointment.
 
My son chose SLE over Boys State. That year, for our state, they were both during the same week and my son was adament that he was not going to miss SLE since he'd been wanting to go for years. We knew nothing about Boys State (except that WP looked favorably at it). In looking back, I can say that my son had plenty of leadership on his application so I don't think he 'needed' Boys State. He did 'need' SLE because attending was a long time goal of his. He came back from WP with a Super Hooah attitude and that never wavered. He loved everything about that week. I recognized just how happy he was there when we got a text one day that said, "Today we got to do PT in the rain." Cracked me up but then we knew, this is where he belonged. I'm so glad WP agreed. :)
 
My son chose SLE over Boys State. That year, for our state, they were both during the same week and my son was adament that he was not going to miss SLE since he'd been wanting to go for years. We knew nothing about Boys State (except that WP looked favorably at it). In looking back, I can say that my son had plenty of leadership on his application so I don't think he 'needed' Boys State. He did 'need' SLE because attending was a long time goal of his. He came back from WP with a Super Hooah attitude and that never wavered. He loved everything about that week. I recognized just how happy he was there when we got a text one day that said, "Today we got to do PT in the rain." Cracked me up but then we knew, this is where he belonged. I'm so glad WP agreed. :)
This sounds just like my son, he has wanted West Point since he started middle school. He was ecstatic when he got his SLE slot. I remember one of the first days he said he'd learned more in one day about West Point than he had in years before (we live 1/2 hour away so we've been there quite a bit). If he was gung ho before going he was twice as certain after but he did see others that figured out that it wasn't for them.
 
Our son, also had a conflict between SLE and Boys State and it turned out attending SLE was pivotal for his decision to attend WP. He was accepted to both West Point and Annapolis leadership programs and traveled back east (attending them back to back) thinking Navy and came home Army. I thought he needed the points from Boys State for his leadership score and encouraged him to drop one of the summer programs but it turned out SLE played a more important turning point in his decision making process. Our DS is a Firstie now and is 100% Army after his SLE experience. Good luck with your decision.
 
My DD was fortunate to be able to attend SLE, NASS & Girls State. Looking back, if she had to choose one over the other, it would have been SLE or NASS over Girls State. SLE/NASS helped her to decide whether she wanted to attend a Service Academy or a regular college. Also, I think the academy summer programs really catapolted her confidence levels to participate in leadership positions at Girls State - she led the Federalist Party and her roommate became the Governor with about 800 girls in attendance. They ROCKED it. ;)
 
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Our kiddo was rejected by both Navy's and Army's summer leadership programs, but he went to a Navy sports camp which confirmed his desire to serve and attend an academy. Army later convinced him that Navy was not where he belonged. Go figure.
 
As a parent, USMA_ljm, I would advise you to investigate prep schools as Plan B. If, your applicant is QNS, preparing for Plan B will set you up for success the following year and/or AROTC programs.

Push Hard, Press Forward
 
I think I've come to believe that attendance at SLE or NASS does not help in the admission process. That said, attending SLE or NASS (or both) does make you a more competitive candidate. My DS came back better informed and super motivated. He hammered his applications and his essays were stronger. The downside is that Plan B is really more like Plan Z. Plan B is re-apply next year. He's applied to a stretch, target and safe school, but his heart is just not in it. As a parent, that's a mixed blessing. Boys State was good too. It did not, however, provide much beyond the "experience" and the resume boost.
 
@frenzymondo - because of their commitment to going they work harder at the application than they might otherwise have done. Therefore they make themselves more compeititive.
 
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