Long time stalker....
I posted this on the USAFA thread, but then saw this thread and thought you guys could offer words of wisdom!!
After deferral in January and months (and months) of waiting, our DD got an offer of PS in her portal this morning. She has a lot of mixed emotions that I would like to get some advice on dealing with as we can't be the first ones to face this challenge. I certainly do NOT want to come across as ungrateful for the opportunity. I have found a wealth of information from this forum already and thought I would get some honest advice for an honest concern.
DD had a really strong application with the exception of an ACT score that just couldn't break 25. Top 5% in her class, APs, 30 college credits, great service hours, varsity letter, stellar CFA.... so we knew the ACT might an insurmountable barrier to Appointment, but we continued to hope...
We are going to sit down tonight as a family to discuss next steps. She was accepted to her plan B school (a great institution with a great AFROTC program) so I believe the struggle is between her pride and her options. As parents we believe this is a "no brainer", and that choosing to decline this opportunity is something that she will regret later, but we also understand that she is disappointed especially with having 2 friends that were directly appointed last year and many from her Summer Seminar group already receiving Appt this year. That, coupled with so many posts that talk about it being for ‘blue chip athletes' (which she is not) that don’t meet academic requirements or that prep school's academics are a repeat of HS which is hard to swallow when she has a 99% average in AP Calc and has 30 college credits from dual enrollment classes.
Her goal since 8th grade has been to be an Officer in the Air Force and her dream was to accomplish that through the Academy. Even if she had to go through ROTC at her Plan B, her goal has been unchanged.
So I come to you in earnest, oh wise ones of the forum. I need some advice for the Pros and Cons list for the conversation tonight; as an adult it is easy to point out that pride can destroy opportunity... but when you have an amazing kid who's never let pride get in the way before it's hard not to feel guilty for pushing that point now.
Thank you in advance for any support, advice, words of wisdom....
Long time stalker....
I posted this on the USAFA thread, but then saw this thread and thought you guys could offer words of wisdom!!
After deferral in January and months (and months) of waiting, our DD got an offer of PS in her portal this morning. She has a lot of mixed emotions that I would like to get some advice on dealing with as we can't be the first ones to face this challenge. I certainly do NOT want to come across as ungrateful for the opportunity. I have found a wealth of information from this forum already and thought I would get some honest advice for an honest concern.
DD had a really strong application with the exception of an ACT score that just couldn't break 25. Top 5% in her class, APs, 30 college credits, great service hours, varsity letter, stellar CFA.... so we knew the ACT might an insurmountable barrier to Appointment, but we continued to hope...
We are going to sit down tonight as a family to discuss next steps. She was accepted to her plan B school (a great institution with a great AFROTC program) so I believe the struggle is between her pride and her options. As parents we believe this is a "no brainer", and that choosing to decline this opportunity is something that she will regret later, but we also understand that she is disappointed especially with having 2 friends that were directly appointed last year and many from her Summer Seminar group already receiving Appt this year. That, coupled with so many posts that talk about it being for ‘blue chip athletes' (which she is not) that don’t meet academic requirements or that prep school's academics are a repeat of HS which is hard to swallow when she has a 99% average in AP Calc and has 30 college credits from dual enrollment classes.
Her goal since 8th grade has been to be an Officer in the Air Force and her dream was to accomplish that through the Academy. Even if she had to go through ROTC at her Plan B, her goal has been unchanged.
So I come to you in earnest, oh wise ones of the forum. I need some advice for the Pros and Cons list for the conversation tonight; as an adult it is easy to point out that pride can destroy opportunity... but when you have an amazing kid who's never let pride get in the way before it's hard not to feel guilty for pushing that point now.
Thank you in advance for any support, advice, words of wisdom....
Dear PossiblePreppie2015,
Another prep school appointee inquired about the same topic and here is my response to the request for insight:
Hello,
I'm happy to see your message. First, please, PLEASE! PLEASE! encourage your daughter to take advantage of the Prep School offer. It will put her at an advantage compared to many direct appointees. This is not to say that a direct appointment is somehow lacking; it's an amazing accomplishment. However, Prep School has a lot to offer. Here is a list of a few things she can look forward to:
· She will be physically fit to excel on the PFT since while many appointees assume that their varsity sports are enough to prepare them, the PFT and even the fitness test for appointment, doesn’t come close to level of fitness one would need to rank competitively amongst her peers. Remember, all cadets are top athletes on multiple sports. Enter the academy, and one is amongst the “average”, then.
· The classes are rigorous. The blending of Academy culture and military leadership are embedded in the coursework. This means that the level of quality in terms of academic expectations goes beyond content knowledge. Again, most of the preppies are AP scholars who were at the top of their class in high school. Imagine the competition when you are one of many “excellent” students in the class…
· Attention to detail and time management is especially important at the prep school. I can say that my daughter was the president of academic clubs, team captain for her varsity soccer team, and the founder of her own nonprofit organization. She thought she was stellar at time management and attention to detail, but the prep school’s expectations a much higher because the permanent staff recognize that the cadets need to “up” their skills and so there is a learning curve.
· The prep school allows for preppies to take math and English classes on the “Hill” during the second semester if they excel in those subjects at the prep school during first semester. My daughter was not selected for classes on the Hill, but the fact that she could compete for the opportunity gave her something to work towards. In the end, she earned excellent grades in her courses and so she felt proud of her academic standing. Also, some of the preppies who take courses on the Hill report that prep school courses are slightly more demanding and so those cadets are not struggling and will receive credit for their math and English courses which will put them a few courses ahead.
· The camaraderie makes a difference. My daughter is an only child. She had to adjust to thinking about others. She has matured immensely and she is able to get along and solve conflict effectively.
· One of the things preppies enjoy is interacting with cadets from the Hill. Because of football games and other activities, they get the opportunity to talk to cadets who’ve survived BCT and beyond. The cadets on the Hill are an amazing resource. They provide information on things to prepare for and also they share how they survived basic and fourth-class year. They talk about what it’s like to be a cadet in terms of the challenges. They also share some of the highlights that come with making it through the first year such as Recognition Day and such. The cadets do not tell horror stories nor do they try and dissuade future cadets. More so, they encourage preppies to take advantage of every opportunity given to them at the prep school because the academy is extremely rigorous.
Those are a few things that my daughter cannot say enough about. When she was home for spring break, she talked about how she could not believe how she could’ve been so disappointed about getting a prep school offer, but now she is grateful for the chance to prepare for the Hill.
I should mention that you’ve probably read or heard numerous opinions about prep school and how some cadets see it as somehow a failure to earn a prep appointment. There are other conversations about Affirmative Action and athletes. I would encourage you and your daughter to not buy into to those opinions. The prep school is earned. The preppies were high performers at their high schools. The thing is all hopeful cadets are amazingly talented and so the cadets who get a direct appointment scored higher on the “whole student” formula. This means the direct appointees somehow had an edge that made the academy believe that they could handle a direct appointment.
At the same time, the academy saw potential in the preppies they selected. Maybe the preppies had perfect SAT scores and were first in their class, but did not attend a highly competitive high school compared to direct appointees. Perhaps a prep appointee had amazing leadership experience and top grades, but was lacking in fitness. Who knows? All I am saying is that earning a prep school appointment is an honor and nothing less.
When my daughter was deciding between her ROTC scholarship for Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets, and University of Maryland with a STEM Fellowship, she surmised that she had the grades to be admitted into those schools and so if things didn’t turn out, she had options. However, she recognized that a post-secondary year, fully funded, and rigorous, would make for a top freshman in any university class. By that, I mean that at the prep school she would have taken two science courses and two math courses each quarter—along with an English course and so she’d strengthen her academic skills along the way. Imagine entering a civilian university having been challenged to such an extent. Imagine the benefits that come with learning how to manage time and present oneself as a professional. She concluded that prep school was a win-win.
At the same time, remind your daughter that earning a direct appointment is extremely competitive, since there are around 10,000 completed applications for 1,200 or so slots to compete for. Earning a prep school appointment means winning one of 240 slots out of the remaining 8,000 or so applicants who did not win a direct appointment. The odds are far slimmer to win a prep appointment and so your daughter is a top student of whom the academy sees great potential.
Finally, I might sound like a cheerleader for the prep school, but I do not think prep school is perfect. However, I am a university professor and having been in higher education for over 20 years, I know the power of a good academic program. To that end, when my daughter and I were searching for colleges, I was explicit about having her think about college differently. Where we usually think of college as this place where we hand over our money and we have faith that our children get a solid education, we forget that college means more than that. As a faculty member in higher education, I believe that students and parents should ask themselves, "What can this school do for ME?" By that I mean, what academic and professional opportunities do colleges offer? Will my child get to engage in research, internships, challenging courses? Will my daughter learn solid "soft" skills in order to demonstrate a stellar professional disposition? I reminded her that at the end of the day, one can be the smartest, fastest, whatever, but if people sense that they cannot work with you, they do not hire you. In looking at it from that perspective, a college education is more than a degree quest. The perceived status of a direct appointment seems important at first, but if the ultimate goal is to become an officer, stay the course and make it happen by accepting opportunities that lead to the ultimate goal.
I hope this helps.
wannafly18,
Yesterday at 6:50 PM Report
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