Plebe Year classes

I've read on here that plebe and second year students have their schedule pretty much laid out for them, and didn't make that many decisions about their classes. I was wondering just how many decisions plebes do have to make about classes, is it like most of their classes are decided for them and they have to pick one elective? Thanks for all the help!

The number of choices a Plebe has to make regarding classes depends on the number of classes they are eligible to validate. IOW, if a Plebe comes in with zero validations (perfectly prepared, but not advanced), then the standard schedule applies.

If a Plebe validates a class, or if they want to "overload" their schedule, then they would have some choice. Most Plebes carry 16-18 hours per semester in the "standard" schedule, so it seems unlikely that a Plebe would be allowed to overload (carry more than 18 hours) until spring semester.

As 2012mom said, there is placement and validation testing during plebe summer. The results are used by academic advisors to help develp the plebe's class schedule.

Then, once you choose a major there's a whole'nother set of advising to make sure you're taking the classes that you need. Remember, there's no 5 year plan at USNA.

So yes, the schedule is pretty much provided but not totally. They do get some (limited) flexibility in selecting professors and schedule. But, no, you're not going to be able to schedule sleeping in until 1000 everyday.

There is an excellent description of plebe year courses, broken down by semester, in the USNA catalog at www.usna.edu. Click on Admissions, then USNA Catalog. Chapter IV covers Academics, with plebe courses outlined on pages 56 and 57.

None select a major until mid-semester, plebe season. So ...major (except in some language areas where plebe start might be essential) plays virtually no role until youngster year, for most Mids.

And ...generally speaking, beyond a course here and there, and some freed up spots due to validation and/or summer school, relative to most secular institutions, not a great deal of flex in the system.

In fact, each year, USNA loses a student or several because they are serious students of oceanography, architecture, etc. and want more than they can get at USNA. No matter the major, USNA is a "whitman sampler" type curriculum not much overdosing in any specific area. Arguably, a USNA ME degree is not comparable to an MIT, Cornell ME degree. Thankfully. Equally arguably, a USNA international relations major may be immeasurably superior to a Gtown certificate of the same ilk.

And understandably, as virtually no newly minted Ensigns and 2nd LTs are put into major-specific roles. USN is big in OTJT and eventual post-grad specialization education for those who choose to stick.

Agree with the above with a few exceptions. Those majoring in Chinese or Arabic make that decision/are chosen during plebe summer (combination of desire and aptitude) and it's my understanding that they take a slightly different courseload plebe year so they can start on their language right away.

For almost everyone else, you are taking the same courses first semester, but your "level" might be different. So, some will take Calc I and those who validate may take Calc II. Some take first semester English and some start with the second semester course. It's not unusual for second semester plebes to take one course in their major.

Thanks for all the information-actually I wasn't too worried about what time I got up haha. Should I be worried that I turn to this site for information before usna.edu?

What is "placement and validation testing" during summer? Is it just a wide range of exams testing abilities in various topics? also, what is the process for validating courses with AP Credits? I know a 4 or 5 typically allows you to validate a class, but do you also need to take a validation exam to supplement your score?

gzemx said:

What is "placement and validation testing" during summer? Is it just a wide range of exams testing abilities in various topics? also, what is the process for validating courses with AP Credits? I know a 4 or 5 typically allows you to validate a class, but do you also need to take a validation exam to supplement your score?

Click to expand...

Validation varies depending on the subject. Calc and Chem, for example, require you to take validation tests during plebe summer. For some courses, you may be able to validate based on AP scores. If you go to usna.edu and search under Academics, there is a chart that lists what is required to validate various courses.