Questions for a current USAFA freshman?

First of all, congratulations to everyone who has gotten an appointment so far, and to those who are waiting, hang in there. Everything will work out in the end! Some advice to current HS seniors who are surely beginning to think about USAFA (you have 84 days until Basic begins):

1. Enjoy the rest of high school. As much as I love USAFA, senior year of high school is A LOT of fun.
2. Keep working out, or start if you haven't already. Running (long and short distance) and pushups are the two biggest things, without a doubt.
3. Don't do anything stupid. If you're going to be stupid, be smart and don't get caught.

If you have any specific questions about BCT or freshman year, feel free to DM me. I'd be happy to give you tips or advice or whatever you want! USAFA is an awesome opportunity, be prepared going into it so you can get the most out of it.

Last but not least, I'll see you in August

@VDI Congratulations on recognition and almost being done with freshman year!

If you wouldn’t mind I have a couple of questions I would like to ask.

1. What attracted you to USAFA and what made you commit there instead of another service academy or college?

2. What is the hardest part of your daily schedule?

3. When it comes to flying, do freshman have many opportunities to fly during “doolie” year?

Thank you again and best of luck for the end of the year.

what classes are you taking and how much free time do you generally have?

What sports did you do in high school, if any? What positions did you hold and how important would you say it was?

HB2019 said:

@VDI Congratulations on recognition and almost being done with freshman year!

If you wouldn’t mind I have a couple of questions I would like to ask.

1. What attracted you to USAFA and what made you commit there instead of another service academy or college?

2. What is the hardest part of your daily schedule?

3. When it comes to flying, do freshman have many opportunities to fly during “doolie” year?

Thank you again and best of luck for the end of the year.

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Thank you for the kind words!
1. I was accepted to both USNA and USMA as well, and had ROTC scholarships, but I choses USAFA for the following reasons. I felt that ROTC was a part-military and part-civilian option that I would have struggled to maintain a good balance. In terms of the other academies, I felt that the Air Force gave me the most options and the most control over my post-graduation career. Also, USAFA had the best options for extracurriculars and other opportunities outside of the classroom.

2. The hardest part of my daily schedule is balancing everything and making sure that I make use of all of my free time, because it is limited. There are frequent mandatory duties such as training sessions (freshman year), intramurals, and briefings that take away time that I could otherwise have spent doing homework. That being said, it teaches you good time management skills, which are applicable in all aspects of life.

3. Yes, in multiple ways.

1. Most freshman (some ICs do not) take an introductory soaring course that is 8 lessons long. You get bussed down to the airfield and get to learn about gliders for about two hours every other day. Most freshman get 2-4 flights, including and acrobatic flight (the main factor of flight time is weather).

2. The Cadet Aviation Club allows cadets to fly in simulators very frequently (almost daily if you have the time).

3. Doolies with substantial flying experience can tryout for the Cadet Flying Team, although it is very difficult to make the team.

4. In the summer after your freshman year, many rising sophomores take a summer soaring course that is very intensive and includes lots of flying experience. Some people even get to solo at the end.

5. Lastly, these examples merely represent manned aircraft opportunities. If you have any questions about Unmanned Airiel Systems (UAS), take a look online. This is becoming a very popular program at USAFA.

massachusetts23 said:

what classes are you taking and how much free time do you generally have?

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Great question! The following are the classes that most freshman usually take. It is possible to validate many of these courses, so some freshman move on to higher level classes.

Computer Science
English
Military History
Behavioral Science
Calculus 1 and 2
Foreign Language
Chemistry
Physics

In terms of free time, that is very dependent on your time management and commitment to academics and extracurriculars. In general, weekends are pretty free. Many people go skiing or do other fun activities. During the week, free time is less common, especially freshman year.

I hope this answers all of your questions. More specific information about the academic classes can be found on the USAFA website!

Giantatom said:

What sports did you do in high school, if any? What positions did you hold and how important would you say it was?

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In high school, I played basketball, volleyball, and ultimate frisbee. I was a captain of the basketball team my senior year. This is my big thing about leadership positions in high school: Yes, leadership positions look good on a college application and will increase your chances of getting into college, including USAFA. However, once you get to USAFA, nobody gives a s**t what you did in high school. What matters is what you learned and how you can apply those skills to lead as a cadet and an Air Force officer. I know cadets who act like they ran their high school, given all of the positions they held, and when they try to lead, everything turns into a dumpster fire. On the other hand, I know cadets who came from backgrounds with little opportunities for leadership positions who I would run into a dumpster fire with, if they were leading me. A huge tip for when you get to USAFA is do not rattle of your high school resume, nobody cares. Once you get to USAFA, everyone is on the exact same level. Rather, demonstrate you leadership skills through your passionate leadership. That is what people care about.

So. to finally answer your question: yes, it is possible that I would not have gotten an appointment if I wasn't a basketball captain, but now that I am here, I am able to transfer my leadership skills that I practiced on the court to continue to develop as a leader at USAFA.

Best advice DS, USAFA ‘18, was given: don’t rush in and join every club, extracurricular, etc. Get a handle on the time (and lack thereof!) to do the REQUIRED things and then see what is left over.
Doolie year imposes great demands on time management, take on new things as they present themselves along with the ability to manage the time around them. DS stuck to those that kept him on his track (pilot,enjjpt) with good class rank etc. Example of trade off: did not pursue further flying opportunities (team,demo) other than Glider IP thus he had time to be squadron commander. Also was able to pick up moot court and international humanities law trip Firstie year! All in all time management and figuring out what you need to accomplish to get to where you want to be. As has been said here many times the flexibility in scheduling and time available becomes somewhat easier as you learn the ropes and gain class privileges.

This is probably a really dumb question, and I hope I don't offend anyone. Do you have fun at the Academy? I've heard conflicting feedback, all military structure all the time, no fun. However, my DS loves structure and the military discipline. I just wonder if there is time to cut up once in a while during the week.

Thanks for offering to be a line of information for those of us on the outside.

Skimama. Don’t worry there is plenty of opportunity for humor, fun, hi-Jinks. You are not going to have that many smart, young people in close proximity and not have excellent fun. Of course doing something harmful, hurtful, destructive, or plain dumb is not tolerated or accepted. However, unique, clever, and creative in the good sense provide all classes with a smile (albeit briefly sometimes) but welcome nonetheless. Think morale booster instead of prank....just keep in mind the military guardrails of decorum befitting a Cadet or Officer (to be).

2018DAD said:

Skimama. Don’t worry there is plenty of opportunity for humor, fun, hi-Jinks. You are not going to have that many smart, young people in close proximity and not have excellent fun. Of course doing something harmful, hurtful, destructive, or plain dumb is not tolerated or accepted. However, unique, clever, and creative in the good sense provide all classes with a smile (albeit briefly sometimes) but welcome nonetheless. Think morale booster instead of prank....just keep in mind the military guardrails of decorum befitting a Cadet or Officer (to be).

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Thanks! That's just what I needed to hear! DS has always walked on the side of discipline - I'd like to see him have a little fun.

Skimama said:

2018DAD said:

Skimama. Don’t worry there is plenty of opportunity for humor, fun, hi-Jinks. You are not going to have that many smart, young people in close proximity and not have excellent fun. Of course doing something harmful, hurtful, destructive, or plain dumb is not tolerated or accepted. However, unique, clever, and creative in the good sense provide all classes with a smile (albeit briefly sometimes) but welcome nonetheless. Think morale booster instead of prank....just keep in mind the military guardrails of decorum befitting a Cadet or Officer (to be).

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Thanks! That's just what I needed to hear! DS has always walked on the side of discipline - I'd like to see him have a little fun.

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We've had the pleasure of hosting several small groups of USAFA cadets in our home the last couple of years. I'm always amazed how quickly the bonds of "family" are created between cadets and how much they enjoy being with each other. Laughter and good-natured bantering vastly outweighs complaints about "the suck".

FMHS-79 said:

Skimama said:

2018DAD said:

Skimama. Don’t worry there is plenty of opportunity for humor, fun, hi-Jinks. You are not going to have that many smart, young people in close proximity and not have excellent fun. Of course doing something harmful, hurtful, destructive, or plain dumb is not tolerated or accepted. However, unique, clever, and creative in the good sense provide all classes with a smile (albeit briefly sometimes) but welcome nonetheless. Think morale booster instead of prank....just keep in mind the military guardrails of decorum befitting a Cadet or Officer (to be).

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Thanks! That's just what I needed to hear! DS has always walked on the side of discipline - I'd like to see him have a little fun.

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We've had the pleasure of hosting several small groups of USAFA cadets in our home the last couple of years. I'm always amazed how quickly the bonds of "family" are created between cadets and how much they enjoy being with each other. Laughter and good-natured bantering vastly outweighs complaints about "the suck".

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Thank you - he's still in the running, but the waiting is hard. He's seen what the Plan B offers and will be fine, he's already figuring out how to keep a regimented routine, but I'm just afraid there will be too many shenanigans for his tastes. There is no place like the Academy. Wish him luck if you have the spare time.

Simple questions:

1. Would you make the same decision again (attending AFA)?

2. What things did you not consider when you made your choice to attend AFA that you did not consider?

TeddyPlus4 said:

Simple questions:

1. Would you make the same decision again (attending AFA)?

2. What things did you not consider when you made your choice to attend AFA that you did not consider?

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1. Absolutely, I would make the exact same decision.

2. I did not consider the lack of time back home that cadets have. Our winter break is not even three weeks, Thanksgiving is less than a week, and summer is three weeks (and summer break is not a guarantee). This makes things hard for maintaining relationships with friends back home. For me, I am fully able to maintain relationships with my close friends, but have moved apart from more more distant friends. It is also difficult to maintain a girlfriend/boyfriend relationship. Many people try, most (including myself) fail.

When you chose USAFA, what other options did you have and why did you decide to go to the academy? What are your career goals?

Are resources offered for cadets who are struggling academically? If you have a sponsor family, have they been a good support system for you or do you feel it does not make a difference?

dah19 said:

When you chose USAFA, what other options did you have and why did you decide to go to the academy? What are your career goals?

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See my response to HB2019 about why I chose USAFA. I still don't know exactly what I want to do in the Air Force, but I'm leaning towards OSI (special investigations) or pilot.

rudycoon said:

Are resources offered for cadets who are struggling academically? If you have a sponsor family, have they been a good support system for you or do you feel it does not make a difference?

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Yes, one of the coolest parts about USAFA is how many people care about your success. Once you get in, everyone is working to ensure that you succeed and graduate. The class sizes are small so you can get extra instruction (EI) from instructors frequently. There is a writing center and quantitative reasoning center (STEM center) open nightly. The library has great resources. Every squadron has an academic staff who can help. Every week a wing tutoring schedule is sent with tutoring opportunities from other cadets. It's awesome because people help others in subjects where they are strong and get help when they struggle in certain areas.

The sponsor program is great. It gives you the opportunity to use your sponsor family however you most need it. I know cadets who never see their sponsor family, because they don't feel they need the extra support and I know cadets how literally stay at their sponsor's house every weekend. It really depends on what each cadet needs.

Thank you for taking the time to give some answers and advice. I was wondering what cell phone carrier is the best at USAFA and is WiFi available? Just want to send DS with a phone that works!