Current USAFA Prep student

Hi!
I am currently a prep school student at USAFA. If you have any questions please let me know. I will try my best to answer them.


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have a couple of questions since i just received a prep school appointment
1. will i have to take ACT/SAT again?
2. do i apply for nominations again?
3. do i have to fill out academy application again? (website)
4. what happens if i don't get a nomination as a preppie?
5. how are classes and what do you have to have for gpa at prep school to graduate and get appointment?
6. Are you having fun?

thanks

Hi! Congrats on getting into the P! Personally, I am so glad I went prep instead of direct. It prepares you so well to be successful on the hill. On to your questions...

1.) No, you will not have to retake sat/act.

2.) Yes, you will have to re-apply for a nomination. I just went through the process. I received a nomination last week. Being a preppy will help you with the process. If you don't get one you can get a nomination from the superintendent if you pass the prep school and are accepted into the Academy.

3.) No, you won't have to refill out your application. They transfer the one you had submitted this year. The prep school will send your grades and pft scores to the admissions board.

4.) see question 2

5.) The classes will start off easy. You take a study skills course, 2 math classes and an English class first quarter. After you will get placed in skills track or regular track. The skills track does not affect your appointment. It just is a slower paced class. Your to math course are Trig and Algebra and Science is chemistry. As the year goes on you have the opportunity to take calculus, physics, and english at the Academy based on how you preform at the prep school. Based on how you do in those classes you could validate them and not have to take them your freshman year. You have to have a minimum GPA of a 2.42 to graduate. Academics are hard at the prep school but they really focus on giving you a solid foundation which will be an invaluable asset up at the academy. They also have it set up where you will have plenty of opportunities to receive help.

6.) I love the P. Basic training will be crazy hard and you will get really stressed. Everyone at one point gets the feeling they want to quit. But you just have to know that it gets a million times better after basic training. I have met some of my best friends here and there are so many fun opportunities. We have phases where we get privileges back slowly and as we gain more and more freedom it just becomes more fun. Don't get me wrong it is a ton of work and you are going to need to be committed to being here. But, there is no reason you can't make it through. Put in the work and have as much fun as you can!



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I know a girl here who has a 4.0 and has a 450 on the PFT, but even she is glad she came here. The reason you are here is because there is something for you to improve on. I guess I can't blame the people who see it as a waste because it is a lot of review from high school. Even so, it is nice to have this year to really strengthen some of our foundational skills so that we can be better prepared. I also think it will take a lot of stress off a person for their freshman year because it gives you a military knowledge foundation and helps prepare for the academics.

I think that the prep schools are an important part of the academies. The academies recruit a very specific person. However, the prep schools are where they take priors, athletes, and people who have not had as much of an academic advantage. I have met people from so many walks of life here. It's like it says in mission statement "...to preform successfully and enhance diversity...". We are the ones that bring that extra diversity. So, I think that it is not a waste of money.

Now, I personally am a recruited athlete and I hear this argument all the time. I have had several people tell me that I get a lot perks being an athlete and that I got in only because I was an athlete, which makes me very angry. When we have athletic time every day I am busting my butt for 2 1/2 hours of practice. Non-recruits get to go whenever they want for however long the want and then come back and get a head start on the homework. I also am traveling a lot and missing class which puts me at a disadvantage. However, I am still required to do all the same work at the same time with the same due dates. The argument that I got in because of my sport alone is the one that really gets me. I worked my butt off in High School and without the grades and and test scores I would have even been considered. It takes a special type of person to play athletics at such a high level and with the rigors of a service academy. It's annoying that some people think it's a walk in the park for us. Plus, I committed later in the year when it was too late to get a nomination. So, without the prep school I would have been able to take advantage of this opportunity.



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My son is blue chipped by the football team to play quarterback. We expect his nomination to come through in the next week. He's got a 3.8 GPA, top 10% and 28s in math, English and science but a 23 in reading on his ACT. Captain of the FB team and 3 sport letterman... yada yada... From your experience, can you tell me do you think he'll be offered an appointment or the prep?

I would assume that he would get straight in. His ACT scores are high enough and his grades are good enough to preform successfully. Being an athlete will also help him a lot. Best of luck!


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QBsdad said:

My son is blue chipped by the football team to play quarterback. We expect his nomination to come through in the next week. He's got a 3.8 GPA, top 10% and 28s in math, English and science but a 23 in reading on his ACT. Captain of the FB team and 3 sport letterman... yada yada... From your experience, can you tell me do you think he'll be offered an appointment or the prep?

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A 23 in reading on the ACT is too low for a direct appointment. Have your son retest and improve.

I took the ACT 5 times when applying to the academy and improved every time.

He is on Saturday.

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USAFA19: You assume too much.

To our OP: have your son take and retake and retake as many times as you can afford it, and get the test prep going in your home or hire a tutor or service if you can afford one.

Keep taking it.

Don't assume auto entry because of sports, no matter how talented, yada yada...

My daughter will attend the Prep and we were curious about how they handle the interviews for the nominations. In NY, the senators and congressmen schedule interview during specific weeks and usually not at the same time. Are you allowed to go home to appear in front of the nominating committees? Do you do it by phone?

Hi! Congratulations on making your decision. It will be an amazing opportunity. When it comes to nominations, just make sure you stay on top of getting those deadlines for the written portion. Some congressman and senators have deadlines way earlier in the year before your permanent party members will start pushing you to get them done. While applying a lot of the time you will be asked if you are a prep student and require a phone interview. If not, send an email to the people in charge of the process in your congressman and senators office and they will be very helpful and making accommodations. I am from Denver but still had all phone interviews because I was traveling for a sport. Some are very picky and will ask for a video tape of you answering the provided questions. If that is the case reach out to the staff and they are always very helpful in getting that done. They have experienced all types of crazy nomination requirements here and will do everything in their power to help you get them done.

USAFA'19 said:

Hi! Congratulations on making your decision. It will be an amazing opportunity. When it comes to nominations, just make sure you stay on top of getting those deadlines for the written portion. Some congressman and senators have deadlines way earlier in the year before your permanent party members will start pushing you to get them done. While applying a lot of the time you will be asked if you are a prep student and require a phone interview. If not, send an email to the people in charge of the process in your congressman and senators office and they will be very helpful and making accommodations. I am from Denver but still had all phone interviews because I was traveling for a sport. Some are very picky and will ask for a video tape of you answering the provided questions. If that is the case reach out to the staff and they are always very helpful in getting that done. They have experienced all types of crazy nomination requirements here and will do everything in their power to help you get them done.

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Thank you so much for that. I have one more question (although I'm sure I will think of plenty before July). The day you arrive, if you arrive by yourself, do they have host families like at the academy or do you need to find transportation and hotel for yourself?

I believe there is a form you can fill out to request a host family. When I had completed my portal I know there was an option for the bed and breakfast sign up and if I'm not mistaken I believe they will provide a shuttle. I'm not 100% sure. If the bed and breakfast is not available to you yet it should be closer to the inprocessing date. I would encourage your daughter to try and connect with some of her future classmates through Facebook groups. I was able to meet a lot of my classmates through that and maybe she can meet someone who she could stay with. If the groups are not yet available keep checking because they will be.

couple of more questions
1. during prep year when applying through the portal do you have to redo/resubmitt letters of recs from H.S. teachers and 3 people that know you well?
2. How about with MOC's? did you use your same letters of recs or start all over?
3. I would assume you need to update your final H.S. grades?

Thanks

They great thing about the prep school is that you do not have to reapply to USAFA. They will keep the portal and all the information in it to roll over the next year. The only thing you will need to do is receive a nomination. Your DODMERB qualification or waiver will carry over also. You are asked to go to the prep school because USAFA sees potential in you but you need to strengthen some aspect. At the end of your prep school year they will submit your grades from here as your updated grades. When you come here do your best with GPA, MPA, and PFT scores. Being a well rounded cadet candidate is important. Just doing your best and being a polite person will get you up to the hill. They are good at picking out people who don't want to be here and people who aren't giving it their all.

My daughter was there in November and spent many cold days there, which prompted practical questions that I might not have:

1. Is there a sink in the room like at USAFA? Sink and bathroom?
2. Do you guys carry the backpack on your left hand through the year like C4C do before recognition? Is she better off using a flap briefcase? Would she be allowed to use one?
3. Do you need to buy monitors and printers?
4. Can you keep electric water kettles?
5. Have you found a way not to unmake the beds like the cadets at the academy? Should we send her blankets?
6. Are you issued gloves or can she bring her own?

Lastly, if I PM her cell number, would you be willing to send her a picture of your room? When they took a tour of the prep, they weren't allowed into any of the rooms because there weren't any free rooms and they didn't want to disturb the preppies.

1.) there are no sinks in the rooms at the prep school. We have communal bathrooms with 6 showers, toilets, and sinks.

2.) we do not carry our backpacks in our left hands. We are issued solid black backpacks that we are allowed to wear.

3.) we are issued laptops. We have what are called "phases" where we are issued privileges. We are not allowed to have monitors in our rooms until phase 3 I believe but a lot of people do and they have to be a certain size. Printers you can have in your room but you have 2 per squad so you don't need one.

4.) yes you can have an election water kettle. You have to get it approved by your safety officers. Similarly I would suggest getting a heater for the winter. Just a small one. You will also need to get this approved.

5.) my roommate and I slept on the floor all through basic, and up to second quarter. You will be allowed to have your own bedding eventually when you reach that phase, which usually comes towards the end of the year. Depending on your squad you will be allowed to use personal blankets, but they must be stored during the day. I sleep on top of my sheets and have a large blanket I use as a cover. Being here you will learn tricks to make a bed really well and be able to sleep on it without messing it up. It just comes with practice.

6.) you are issued gloves. I bought my own though so, if you wanted to you could.

Here are some pictures of an unoccupied room

so when do you need to start working on MOC noms as a preppie? Also, did you get letters of rec from prep instructors or senior high school teachers?

Thanks

I would suggest looking up the deadlines for your nominating sources a few weeks after basic ends. This will give you time to settle in and get started with the first quarter. Some of them you won't have to worry about yet because the deadlines are so far off. I had several friends that were only able to apply to 2 nominating sources because they missed the deadline. Just be aware of those. I know you have to bring official transcripts when you inprocess so try and get an extra one of those so you can scan it and use it for your nomination. Also, I used one of my prep school instructors but my high school counselor. There are rules about using certain staff members here for Rec letters. But, it is possible you just have to ask. This was my first time applying to a nominating source to so I was very unprepared. Just think of the things you needed when you applied the first time and have those handy so you aren't scrambling to get them done. It takes a lot of stress of your preppie. Also, they will ask you to apply to all nominating sources -- Congressman, Senator, VP, and any other ones you are eligible for like the President. Don't stress about this process to much though just apply to all nominating sources and do your best here at the prep school.