Rising Junior in HS thinking about applying; I have a couple questions.

N

Nimue

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  1. At this time does the USAFA allow transgender students, provided they meet the physical requirements of their sex?
  2. How is the USAFA's physics and electrical engineering programs? I am planning on taking up multiple majors if possible. Do graduates of either of these programs often get into good graduate programs? I aim to get a PhD in physics sometime in my future.
  3. How important are sports? I was part of the Cross Country team at a JV level for two years, and am entering my schools robotics team, which has a varsity level. I also take part in a variety of clubs and (non-athletic) extracurriculars.
 
Also, does the USAFA accept most AP courses? I have AP US History and Seminar under my belt now, next year I will be completing Calc BC, Research, Computer Science A, and Physics (Electrical and Mechanical).
 
Don’t forget about the ‘serving your country part’. First and foremost, a SA is building future officers.

Lots of discussion about sports. You can use the search function and read for days.

Lots or people intend to pursue multiple degrees. Yes it is doable, but *usually* will require giving up summer leave time for summer classes (if available, they aren’t a guarantee). Stack on all the required ‘stuff’ a SA student does, and time becomes a big issue.

Classes don’t transfer in. There are placement requirements. Check out the SA website for guidelines.
 
For your first question, below I’ve linked a thread about it. You may also want to email Mr. Mullen from DoDMERB. His contact info is readily available in most of the threads in the DoDMERB forum.

For your third question, sports are very important. Two years of JV cross country is not going to cut it. Robotics is not considered a sport.

POTUS Transgender Executive Order Noon 25 Jan 2021

The White House has not released it yet, though POTUS has signed it. So I don't have the details yet. I would "suspect" that it will at least roll back to the Sec Def Ash carter policy, but I won't know, until I see the exact details. :wiggle:
www.serviceacademyforums.com

Stealth_81
 
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2. Physics program is good enough - you aren't going to get the depth you would at a civilian university as easily due to the significant outside demands on your time, but a physics degree from USAFA will prepare you well. I did a physics/math double major and now have my PhD in physics (the AF sent me to school for 4 years to get it) and teach graduate level physics. If you plan it well you can certainly get an awesome education, including doing research as an undergrad. One of the students I am now advising is continuing his undergrad research as a graduate student now. That said, "good" graduate program depends on what you want. Because it is the AF/SF, the focus is on AF/SF applications, which limits a lot of the scope of research to the more applied realms. That doesn't mean we don't do theoretical work, it just usually has a clear (even if distant) application. I could write many pages on this topic, so feel free to message me if you have specific questions.
 
Stealth_81 said:
For your first question, below I’ve linked a thread about it. You may also want to email Mr. Mullen from DoDMERB. His contact info is readily available in most of the threads in the DoDMERB forum.

For your third question, sports are very important. Two years of JV cross country is not going to cut it. Robotics is not considered a sport.

POTUS Transgender Executive Order Noon 25 Jan 2021

The White House has not released it yet, though POTUS has signed it. So I don't have the details yet. I would "suspect" that it will at least roll back to the Sec Def Ash carter policy, but I won't know, until I see the exact details. :wiggle:
www.serviceacademyforums.com

Stealth_81
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I had a feeling about the sports. I just don't know how to get more sports on my record, the robotics team only gets a varsity letter because we practice for up to 6 hours a day on weekends and our season lasts the entire school year. There's probably some way I could get an extra sport in, maybe rowing or something. Thanks for the reply!
 
Why not concentrate on getting a varsity sports letter in something you are already doing like cross country?

Its not like they are recruiting you for a sport, so being outstanding is not the issue, but a varsity letter is very very common among successful applicants.
 
Nimue said:
I had a feeling about the sports. I just don't know how to get more sports on my record, the robotics team only gets a varsity letter because we practice for up to 6 hours a day on weekends and our season lasts the entire school year. There's probably some way I could get an extra sport in, maybe rowing or something. Thanks for the reply!
Click to expand...

As STB said above, why not try for a varsity letter in cross country? Maybe try track and field. The skill set for track is similar to CC and improving in both will give you another chance for varsity. Make the time for the things you need to do, not just for the requirements but it’s good practice for USAFA. You will always be overloaded there and time management will be a critical skill.

Stealth_81
 
My daughter was a physics major (Astro focus). I know some don't believe the program is as good as elsewhere, but I beg to differ. You get out of it what you put into it (like any program).

She and her team were published in a Physics periodical. She worked with the telescope at USAFA for research and she traveled to Chile to do research on the USAFA telescope located there - also gave a presentation to a team of physicists. She interned at Johns Hopkins over the summer. Presented in Washington and NASA, etc., etc.

The opportunities are amazing.
 
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