The "tuition" at USMA is really only about "26,000" per year. The expense comes in the training and upkeep of the facilities. There are thousands of acres of land at West Point and bringing in troops for training is expensive.
I wouldn't say that
www.getintoacademy.com is the definitive source - though the number does sound close. You should ask your MALO or your Regional Commander.
I've found different numbers for the actual "tuition" portion in many places. One is this article below from The Military Times, quotes out of news stories here and figures I've read in the book "Absolutely American"
My best guess is about $40,000-$50,000 a year tuition, from what the Army has demanded from past contemporary Cadets. As you know, if a Cadet is kicked out after the first day of cow year commitment, they owe. Now this could be wrong, and as you'll see in the article below, it might be $114,000 a year when you consider that you're allowed to quit with no commitment after two years, like this case, the guy failed his PFT and was forced out after three full years. Again, the numbers vary and who knows how they estimate it.
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Ex-Cadet Sues West Point for Tuition
Dallas Morning News | May 15, 2007
A former West Point cadet from Dallas has sued the Defense Department in federal court to stop the government from demanding tuition after he was kicked out for not running fast enough.
Charles Chesnutt Jr., a law student at Southern Methodist University, said in the lawsuit that he enrolled at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in the fall of 1998.
After he couldn't pass the running test, he was asked to leave in spring 2001 and honorably discharged from the Army, he said.
But in 2006, Mr. Chesnutt received a letter from the Defense Department demanding that he pay about $114,000 for his three-year education. The letter said the Army had determined that Mr. Chesnutt failed the test on purpose, according to the lawsuit.
West Point cadets receive free tuition in exchange for at least five years of active-duty service and three years in the reserves.
Mr. Chesnutt said he gave the Army a medical report showing he had problems with his knees.
"He wanted to stay, and he thought he could pass the test," said Charles Chesnutt Sr., his father and attorney, who called the government's contention "patently ridiculous."
"He had just committed himself to be a career officer," he said about his son.
Defense Department spokeswoman Cynthia Smith said the military has a policy of not commenting on pending lawsuits.
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