Did I mess up to bad??

[Jcleppe]

Beware of advice on this net from people who have not been at West Point or in the Army. You will see advice from NROTC dads, Naval Academy people etc. I have no idea why they are on the West Point part of this site. Listen to the people with real-world experience in the areas you are interested in joining.

BigNick and Mr13652,

Being one of those AROTC Parents, that served but not in the Army, that you warned the OP about, I don't think it's fair to dismiss outright some of the advice we offer.

Myself, I check out the WP thread from time to time, my older son went through this process, he declined WP for AROTC, that was his choice and he was happy with his decision. I have a nephew who is looking into WP, he's out of the country right now and I check here from time to time just to get some information for him before he gets back, I'm sure he will come here then, Just trying to find out who he should look to for advise, you are definatly one he should talk to.

I would never ever try to advise anyone of matters concerning WP, your right I do not have that experience. I don't think anyone else was trying to give advice either, the point a few made was only that there are other options available should WP not work out.

My advise to both my son’s, and you can correct me if you feel it was wrong, was that their first goal should be to become an officer in the Army, if that’s what they want. Their second goal should be how to achieve the first, be it WP, ROTC, or OCS.

If WP is the main goal of the OP then he should do everything he can to make that happen, get good information from those with the experience such as yourself.

My only point, and the point I think others have said here is that not everyone gets into WP. I can’t speak for your son but I think it’s fair to say that most WP applicants also apply for the AROTC Scholarship as a plan B. Some of these applicants do not even get their Plan B, many will go to college and complete ROTC on their own dime, their drive to become an Army officer is that high. I think these cadets should be commended for their effort.

My only advice I would give to the OP is don’t shut the door to all the options available, work as hard as you can to achieve the WP goal, take the advice of people like BigNick. Just don’t lose sight of the big picture, the opportunity to become an Army officer, if one door does not open for you there are other doors to try. If you put all your eggs in one basket you run the risk of ending up with a basket of broken eggs.

[usna1985]

The reason that non-USMA folks look at this site is that we are interested. Also, there are many similarities (and some notable differences) in the approaches the SAs take toward certain things such as admissions. Finally, the challenges of a SA are generally the same, regardless of which SA one attends.

This is an open and free forum so you get what you pay for.

Seriously, consider the source of the advice and decide how much weight you want to give to it.

[kinnem]

Originally Posted by Jcleppe

BigNick and Mr13652,

Being one of those AROTC Parents, that served but not in the Army, that you warned the OP about, I don't think it's fair to dismiss outright some of the advice we offer.

Myself, I check out the WP thread from time to time, my older son went through this process, he declined WP for AROTC, that was his choice and he was happy with his decision. I have a nephew who is looking into WP, he's out of the country right now and I check here from time to time just to get some information for him before he gets back, I'm sure he will come here then, Just trying to find out who he should look to for advise, you are definatly one he should talk to.

I would never ever try to advise anyone of matters concerning WP, your right I do not have that experience. I don't think anyone else was trying to give advice either, the point a few made was only that there are other options available should WP not work out.

My advise to both my son’s, and you can correct me if you feel it was wrong, was that their first goal should be to become an officer in the Army, if that’s what they want. Their second goal should be how to achieve the first, be it WP, ROTC, or OCS.

If WP is the main goal of the OP then he should do everything he can to make that happen, get good information from those with the experience such as yourself.

My only point, and the point I think others have said here is that not everyone gets into WP. I can’t speak for your son but I think it’s fair to say that most WP applicants also apply for the AROTC Scholarship as a plan B. Some of these applicants do not even get their Plan B, many will go to college and complete ROTC on their own dime, their drive to become an Army officer is that high. I think these cadets should be commended for their effort.

My only advice I would give to the OP is don’t shut the door to all the options available, work as hard as you can to achieve the WP goal, take the advice of people like BigNick. Just don’t lose sight of the big picture, the opportunity to become an Army officer, if one door does not open for you there are other doors to try. If you put all your eggs in one basket you run the risk of ending up with a basket of broken eggs.

+1

[Mr13652]

Originally Posted by Jcleppe

BigNick and Mr13652,

Being one of those AROTC Parents, that served but not in the Army, that you warned the OP about, I don't think it's fair to dismiss outright some of the advice we offer.

Myself, I check out the WP thread from time to time, my older son went through this process, he declined WP for AROTC, that was his choice and he was happy with his decision. I have a nephew who is looking into WP, he's out of the country right now and I check here from time to time just to get some information for him before he gets back, I'm sure he will come here then, Just trying to find out who he should look to for advise, you are definatly one he should talk to.

I would never ever try to advise anyone of matters concerning WP, your right I do not have that experience. I don't think anyone else was trying to give advice either, the point a few made was only that there are other options available should WP not work out.

My advise to both my son’s, and you can correct me if you feel it was wrong, was that their first goal should be to become an officer in the Army, if that’s what they want. Their second goal should be how to achieve the first, be it WP, ROTC, or OCS.

If WP is the main goal of the OP then he should do everything he can to make that happen, get good information from those with the experience such as yourself.

My only point, and the point I think others have said here is that not everyone gets into WP. I can’t speak for your son but I think it’s fair to say that most WP applicants also apply for the AROTC Scholarship as a plan B. Some of these applicants do not even get their Plan B, many will go to college and complete ROTC on their own dime, their drive to become an Army officer is that high. I think these cadets should be commended for their effort.

My only advice I would give to the OP is don’t shut the door to all the options available, work as hard as you can to achieve the WP goal, take the advice of people like BigNick. Just don’t lose sight of the big picture, the opportunity to become an Army officer, if one door does not open for you there are other doors to try. If you put all your eggs in one basket you run the risk of ending up with a basket of broken eggs.

I was raised to believe that you should not obtain information from one source but to verify it with as many other sources as possible. Many of the answers that you guys have supplied me with I have already read about. As far as what I need to do in school. Like, advanced classes, sports, clubs. But I am very young and I dont understand everything. So I like to learn as much about it as I can. And I'm sure that the replies I have gotten here so far are legit. And I am very thankful that I have this resource at my disposal. And the fact that many of you guys would take some time to reply to my post is very heart warming. Thank you guys for all of the replies, like I said I appreciate all of it.

[Classof83]

I've known and heard of many successful SA cadets and grads who didn't really start to get it together until 10th grade or later. My cadet really found the importance of school in 10th grade. Especially for many prior service applicants, the Prep school is the way in which they make up for a less than stellar secondary school academic career.

While not a SA grad, George Marshall was a VMI (Virginia Military Institute) graduate. Not a bad way to start a military career either.

[crypto186]

You have time to change.

My freshman year was spent in Mexico, where I lived for 14years of my life, and my grades were not perfect: 92 avergae. Although I was football captain that year.

I moved to central PA for my sophomore year, this year was rough, It is hard to move into a different culture and make new relationships. Many people that are admitted have known their teachers for years, and when it comes to writing LORs it helps to have a good relationship with them. I finished my sophomore year with a average of 97. I lacked leadership positions this year, I ran for class office, but my peers didn't vote for me. I was a new kid, they would say: "how do you expect to just move here and have people vote for you; nobody knows you" That year I was involved in only varsity track.

I had 1 college course class sophomore year: accounting, and the rest were regular classes. For my Junior Year I went to many honors, AP, and college classes. I ended with an average of 105. I was in soccer and Varsity track that year. I gained a leadership position with a school club, gained a place with class office and was involved with NHS, NHS for sciences, NHS for social studies, FBLA, I got involved with key club, red cross, cancer society. It was packed and rigorous. The thing with leadership positions is being a like-able person. It took me a year to meet my entire class (140+) and to show them passion, dedication, and good qualities. People would say: "I voted for you because you did... one day and you really took one for the team" and so on.
You have a good chance to gain leadership positions. Your class is small. You really have to show them that you are a leader, then you will get the position.

Now for my senior year. I have 6 AP courses: calc, physics, chem, english, econ, gov and spanish 4. gonna be rough, but I sure am trying my hardest, and the sooner you start the better.

I have not been admitted to any of the academies, and do not know if I will ever be. But I know that all the work I put in will be useful in the future.

Use whatever advantages you have to full potential. Try your best in sports, become a captain, get varsity letters, get leadership positions, get involved with your community, build relationship with your teachers and counselors, this should be easier for you because it seems you live in a small town with a small school. My advantages are being fluent in 2 languages and my cultural background. Put passion in it, you will achieve it.

[BigBear]

Focus on the 25 meter targets first.

Your freshmen year of high school will not determine whether you become a general or an admiral. As countless others have said, use the rest of your high school year to grow. Growth will be reflected in your grades, athletics, and leadership roles, but these things do not magically appear overnight just because you want them to. Put the work in, make it happen, and you will be successful.

And finally, before you worry about becoming a general, focus on becoming the best 2LT you can.