SLE No Affect on Application?

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WPcchopeful

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So after browsing back a few pages and looking at last year's posts, I see that there have been a couple posts on "I didn't get accepted to SLE. Am I done?"
The answer is of course that SLE has no bearing on you application process so don't worry about it if you get rejected.

But what if you DID go to SLE?
In terms of chances for admissions, does it has absolutely no bearing?
I'm sure that it's good to mention it when applying for nominations, but does West Point not regard SLE as of any importance in the admissions?
 
I think it has a bearing if you do well. Candidate cadets attending SLE were told that 40% of them would be back next year as cadets.
 
COL McDonald said that 80% of the SLE attendees will formally complete their application and 40% will be admitted.
I'm just trying to understand if SLE is just something to tell you that you are one of the more qualified applicants (and no bear on application) or if there is some kind of point/note/etc that will somehow "increase" chances of admittance.
 
SLE has no bearing on chances of admission. There is no special note that increases your chances of admission.

If you want to improve your chances of admission, go to Boys/Girls State. It's a 1 week program that, unlike SLE, helps your chances quite a bit.

There are people that are rejected by SLE that get into USMA and people that are accepted by SLE that do not get into USMA. If you get rejected by SLE don't give up on getting into USMA and if you are accepted by SLE don't think you are a lock on getting into USMA.

-1337BeachedWhale1337
 
Your acceptance to attend WP is based on your WCS. SLE is not considered on your WCS. The programs at SLE really dosen't give a true understanding of what the daily grind is like.

What helps attending SLE, it gets you pumped and motivated to finish up your file. You get a chance to see, smell, touch and taste WP and all it offers. So when you go for your NOM and you mention you attend SLE, the board understands you did get a chance to visit and have a strong desire. Those that attend SLE are those who want to enter in the military service. After attending SLE you file opens up about two to three weeks earlier than the rest.

In many respects being selected to attend SLE is much more competitive than being select by admissions to becoming a Cadet.

If you want to increase your WCS, 60 percent is weighted on academics. Increase your academics and increase your WCS score. Increase you ACT/SAT score and more college opportunities will open up for you. Attending Boys/Girls State will fulfill the leadership potion of your WCS. As well as Girl/Boy Scouts, Varsity Team Leader and the same.


Push Hard, Press Forward
 
Either Boys State or SLE can help - depends on each individual's application. My 2019 was invited to both Boys State and SLE with conflicting dates. He spoke with his RC who told him based on his application - SLE would be his recommendation.

I am not saying Boys State won't help - it all comes down to each candidates strengths and opportunities in their application. The candidate can get the best answer from his/her RC...

BTW - My 2018 did not attend either boys state or SLE....lol...


Best of luck!
 
JWP has a great point. I do believe his Cadet already had fulfilled his leadership requirements to demonstrate leadership potential. And seek your RCs advise!


Push Hard, Press Forward
 
JWP has an excellent suggestion. It never occurred to us to ask our RC for his opinion on this.
My son also faced a date conflict with Boy's State and SLE. He chose SLE (at that time, we had no idea how highly WP valued Boy's State) since he'd wanted to attend for years. He loved every minute of his time at WP. We knew that WP would be a good fit for him when we got a text from him that said, "Today we got to do PT in the rain." Anyone who is excited to do PT at O'dark thirty in the rain belongs at WP. LOL

Anyway, my son is a current cadet at WP so he is part of the 40%.
 
My DS was rejected for SLE in the summer of 2015, but was accepted into AIM at the US Coast Guard Academy. He participated in AIM and absolutely loved it. In November of 2015 he was rejected by the Coast Guard Academy and in January 2016 was accepted into West Point. It appears to me the summer programs do not have a large impact on admittance into the academies. My son excelled at AIM and the admission officer thought he was a great candidate, but no offer. I believe all of the summer programs at the academies are great introductions to military life. My DS says his experience at AIM definitely helped him during Cadet Basic Training.
 
Push Hard, Press Forward[/QUOTE]
think Tug
tug_boat said:
Your acceptance to attend WP is based on your WCS. SLE is not considered on your WCS. The programs at SLE really dosen't give a true understanding of what the daily grind is like.

What helps attending SLE, it gets you pumped and motivated to finish up your file. You get a chance to see, smell, touch and taste WP and all it offers. So when you go for your NOM and you mention you attend SLE, the board understands you did get a chance to visit and have a strong desire. Those that attend SLE are those who want to enter in the military service. After attending SLE you file opens up about two to three weeks earlier than the rest.

In many respects being selected to attend SLE is much more competitive than being select by admissions to becoming a Cadet.

If you want to increase your WCS, 60 percent is weighted on academics. Increase your academics and increase your WCS score. Increase you ACT/SAT score and more college opportunities will open up for you. Attending Boys/Girls State will fulfill the leadership potion of your WCS. As well as Girl/Boy Scouts, Varsity Team Leader and the same.


Push Hard, Press Forward
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I think this is spot on.

Actually, I am surprised that the percentage of SLE attendees who get an appointment isn't actually a lot higher. These are pre-screened candidates, who are obviously pretty stoked about the academy, and have beaten out other SLE applicants based on grades and test scores. My conclusion is that there is absolutely no advantage in terms of getting an appointment. My son decided to apply to WP after it was too late to apply to SLE, so he never did it. His RC told him that SLE is more a recruiting tool than anything else. I wish my son had the opportunity to do SLE, because he would have enjoyed it, but I'm sure it didn't hurt that he missed it, and wouldn't have helped if he attended.
 
brovol said:
Actually, I am surprised that the percentage of SLE attendees who get an appointment isn't actually a lot higher. These are pre-screened candidates, who are obviously pretty stoked about the academy, and have beaten out other SLE applicants based on grades and test scores.
Click to expand...
The SLE application is a lot less in-depth than the actual application, and you never have to get anything confirmed. If one wanted too, one could simply say they got a 2400 on the SAT for the SLE application even if they didn't, and they would likely be accepted to SLE. There is also physical or medical test for SLE, so someone that can't do one push-up and has every injury in the book could get into SLE just as easily as someone who can do 100 push-ups and is perfectly healthy. Some people also just go to SLE so they can put it on their resume for other college applications. Combine that with the fact that some people go to SLE and figure out that West Point isn't the place for them, and you end up with 40%(or whatever number someone said) of SLE attendees receiving appointments.

-1337BeachedWhale1337
 
1337BeachedWhale1337 said:
The SLE application is a lot less in-depth than the actual application, and you never have to get anything confirmed. If one wanted too, one could simply say they got a 2400 on the SAT for the SLE application even if they didn't, and they would likely be accepted to SLE. There is also physical or medical test for SLE, so someone that can't do one push-up and has every injury in the book could get into SLE just as easily as someone who can do 100 push-ups and is perfectly healthy. Some people also just go to SLE so they can put it on their resume for other college applications. Combine that with the fact that some people go to SLE and figure out that West Point isn't the place for them, and you end up with 40%(or whatever number someone said) of SLE attendees receiving appointments.

-1337BeachedWhale1337
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Well, that's kind of my point; it won't help at all getting an appointment. But still there are a lot of very motivated kids who are also high achievers doing SLE, so a decent bunch will likely end up with appointments.
 
Many colleges offer summer programs to entice students to attend. WP is no exception, that is the purpose of SLE and visits. However, they do target segments of the population and geographic areas to expose them to the Army who would other wise never give it a second thought. Before the sequestration in the military in general had taken effect, SLS suffered. SLS as it was known in 2012 was slashed in half and was renamed to Summer Leadership Experience. Now you have even more applicants and half the seats available.

Push Hard, Press Forward
 
Our youngest is a plebe at WP and was originally waitlisted for SLE. He was called two weeks before and offered a spot. He jumped at the opportunity, rearranged all of his finals and attended. It reinforced his desire to attend. His original first choice was Coast Guard but was rejected from AIM but he received an EA appointment in early Nov.... On a side note his older brother was rejected from all summer programs but is now in his third year at USAFA.
 
However, applying to and NOT being accepted to SLE can hurt you. If you apply with a low GPA and low or average PSAT scores--the academies (USMA and USNA) will not open your candidate application portal until you show them something good--a transcript or competitive SAT scores. It happened to my youngest just this year. SHOCKED.
 
^^^ I think you are mixing cause & effect. The lack of acceptance can be for many reasons, since SLE is partly a recruiting effort and attempts to invite individuals from across the country who might otherwise not be aware of the WP program. Low GPA would be an issue regardless of whether or not you applied to SLE.
 
DrMom said:
However, applying to and NOT being accepted to SLE can hurt you. If you apply with a low GPA and low or average PSAT scores--the academies (USMA and USNA) will not open your candidate application portal until you show them something good--a transcript or competitive SAT scores. It happened to my youngest just this year. SHOCKED.
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That wouldn't be because not accepted int SLE, but rather because the applicants numbers wer too low. If too low score will keep you out of both SLE and the WP.
 
It is my understanding that by applying to SLE you are opening an application. I could be wrong. As Time2 and Tug Boat stated and I believe correctly, SLE is used as a recruitment tool, is easier and and not fully representative of WP. When my son was rejected he was heartbroken but gave him more resolve. When he attended an overnight he asked all he met, and not one had attended SLE. That actually gave him some hope as rejection to SLE or not choosing to attend. has little to do with acceptance. He attended Boys State fortunately, and that helped his application.
 
DrMom said:
However, applying to and NOT being accepted to SLE can hurt you. If you apply with a low GPA and low or average PSAT scores--the academies (USMA and USNA) will not open your candidate application portal until you show them something good--a transcript or competitive SAT scores. It happened to my youngest just this year. SHOCKED.
Click to expand...
My DS sent his average sat scores to USNA a few weeks ago. What would be the next step? An email letting him know when his portal is open? He has been prepping and will be taking the test again. Does anyone know how long it takes for your portal to open once they receive test scores?
 
In 2013 only 500 students were invited to SLE (it was during the government shutdown). Even if all 500 of those students eventually received an appointment, and accepted it and were currently cadets at WP, that's only 40% of the total class of 2018 that started on R-day. On the first day of classes this year, the number of 2018 cadets was down to 1064 (the number that affirmed). Not sure what the actual number of those that attended SLE is among current 2018 cadets, but it's likely half or less (<20%).

It's great if you are invited to SLE but it's not going to make or break your application. Academics will more likely do that. And if your gpa/ACT scores/class rank etc are average or below, you really need to ask yourself if you could handle the coursework at an Ivy-league level school on top of everything else -- sports/PT, drill/parade, sleep! and classes/homework (via the Thayer method).
 
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