A little paranoid

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bigticketbill

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Dec 25, 2020
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Quick question, would West Point rescind an offer of appointment for a significant amount of absences? Even with good grades as a second-semester senior? Some senioritis has kicked in, and I have been slacking off on attending some of my classes this semester. My absences have not affected my grades at all as I am maintaining a 4.67 GPA. I am still above the lowest attendance record to graduate. My absence records throughout my first 3 years of high school are nearly spotless; however, it's just this senior year that I have been skipping classes. I looked around this forum and have found many people from past years worried about an appointment being rescinded as well. However, they were worried about their grades rather than their absences. My situation is kind of flipped. I understand as an incoming cadet, I need to be responsible for my attendance and will correct my behavior moving forward.
 
Some clarification for why I am missing some classes. My high school is online this year. Attendance does not directly affect grades at my school, and frankly, I have found that online school allows me to better learn some materials than I would through some teachers. Online school also makes it easier than ever to skip classes. I am taking 5 AP classes at the moment and my attendance for those are near perfect. It is Ceramics and Bible(Christian high school) courses that I have not been actively attending. The lesson plans and assignments for those are already posted on our school website, so I often knock those out the night before and get a few extra hours of sleep in the morning.
 
It is understandable that attending online classes is really boring, but that is not an excuse to skip a class. Skip a class at West Point and you will be separated, simple as that. You have worked too hard for an appointment, are you really willing to risk that to get some more sleep?
 
Coming from a cadet at West Point, you need to break this habit immediately. I understand a class here and there - I don't think a single cadet here didn't miss at least one high school course for some reason or another. However, consistently skipping two courses does not look well, especially if your guidance counselor decides to share that information with USMA reps. Stranger things have happened. Besides the consequences in high school, this is NOT the attitude to have as a cadet. Unless you are sick (and have gone to the doctor to get a legitimate note), you HAVE to attend classes here. It is mandatory. Not up for discussion. If you miss too many classes, you can get company, battalion, and regimental boards, generally have to walk hours, and risk separation. Break the habit now so it does not continue to be a problem in the future.
 
Don't take risks you don't know the outcomes/consequences of. As @usmacadet2024 said, it is understandable to miss a class here and there, but outright you just skipping class, because you don't feel like attending, or whatnot, is bad right now, and it will affect you awfully in the future, therefore you need to lose the habit. I don't have the best experience, considering I am a 2026 applicant, but I myself, and trying to rescind the habit of being lazy, therefore to help myself in the future!

Good luck!
 
bigticketbill said:
Quick question, would West Point rescind an offer of appointment for a significant amount of absences? Even with good grades as a second-semester senior?
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I don't think he/she's asking if about whether an appointee should skip, but rather what recent attendance might mean for WP offer of appointment status. I'm a USNA plebe mom and DS had a lot of absences senior year. He had an unusually high number of missed days and partial days both in the fall and during COVID shutdown spring. He was never asked about them by USNA. They were mostly "tactical" skips--like you describe---sleep after an all-nighter on a crucial paper or presentation, or tactical absence to buy some time to finish something to protect the GPA. We called them in to school as excused. Is there any chance you can talk with your parents and get some of the absences changed from unexcused to excused? Total Mom perspective, here...there is nobody who has the front-row seat to what it has taken you over the last 4 years to get to where you are. You deserve a little senioritis and your parents are likely to be more than willing to help ensure that absences do not raise a red flag for your final semester statistics.
 
ThereseInDenver said:
I don't think he/she's asking if about whether an appointee should skip, but rather what recent attendance might mean for WP offer of appointment status. I'm a USNA plebe mom and DS had a lot of absences senior year. He had an unusually high number of missed days and partial days both in the fall and during COVID shutdown spring. He was never asked about them by USNA. They were mostly "tactical" skips--like you describe---sleep after an all-nighter on a crucial paper or presentation, or tactical absence to buy some time to finish something to protect the GPA. We called them in to school as excused. Is there any chance you can talk with your parents and get some of the absences changed from unexcused to excused? Total Mom perspective, here...there is nobody who has the front-row seat to what it has taken you over the last 4 years to get to where you are. You deserve a little senioritis and your parents are likely to be more than willing to help ensure that absences do not raise a red flag for your final semester statistics.
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You can't be serious, right? That's the worst advice I have seen in a long time.
 
Ceramics and Bible, really? Online ceramics must be a joke. It may be hard to believe but ceramics was my best and most favorite subject. It was in person and I still have two cute dogs on my dresser.

And Bible, please, how can one be expected to attend Bible at a Christian school?
 
Send an email to your teachers apologizing for the absences and that you will make every effort to attend class from here on out. You will have a very rude awakening at West Point when you are taking Calculus, Chemistry, and Physics if you do not start to manage your time better.
 
If you really plan to be in the military you are in for a rude awakening. Take to heart the posts from retirees and current Cadets that can’t believe you are just skipping.
NO - your parents should not excuse you because you intentionally skipped. You have to live with the consequence. In my day we had 1 day called Senior Skip Day. Parents didn’t call in, we all just took one on the chin.
You will have a huge number of boring subjects that you really don’t want to do in the military, but like high school, they are a requirement. Get caught attempting tactical skipping at an SA or once you Commission and you will have a much better understanding of consequences (and your Mom can’t help you).
 
This thread is indicative of why you can’t help but love SAF.

Never a dull moment, advice that can be (and often is) all over the place (and varying from spot on to wrong or at least misguided), and a range of opinions on so many issues that runs the gamut from simply sublime to ridiculous.

Carry on!

🍿 🍿 🍿
 
ThereseInDenver said:
I don't think he/she's asking if about whether an appointee should skip, but rather what recent attendance might mean for WP offer of appointment status. I'm a USNA plebe mom and DS had a lot of absences senior year. He had an unusually high number of missed days and partial days both in the fall and during COVID shutdown spring. He was never asked about them by USNA. They were mostly "tactical" skips--like you describe---sleep after an all-nighter on a crucial paper or presentation, or tactical absence to buy some time to finish something to protect the GPA. We called them in to school as excused. Is there any chance you can talk with your parents and get some of the absences changed from unexcused to excused? Total Mom perspective, here...there is nobody who has the front-row seat to what it has taken you over the last 4 years to get to where you are. You deserve a little senioritis and your parents are likely to be more than willing to help ensure that absences do not raise a red flag for your final semester statistics.
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I ABSOLUTELY would not call in any of those as excused. Nor would I lie for them. Nor would I retroactively try to get them changed from unexcused to excused for them. Unless a fever, or either end, (and proved it ..) they went to school. They didn’t even ask me.

To answer the question....your final transcript will reflect your attendance. It’s between you and West Point.
 
I hate to say...I would truly enjoy if my son came to my wife and I and said "Mommy and Daddy, I know I'm accepted to West Point, with the responsibility of becoming an Officer in the United States Army, and want to be an Infantry Officer and literally make decisions that that would be life or death for my soldiers....but I'm a wittle sweepy because I stayed up studying because I didn't study ahead of time because I didn't plan ahead and now I'd like to skip classes and have you lie to the principal and school at large, and tell them it's excused. Mommy and Daddy don't worry about your integrity, as you're not going to the Academy."

Boy oh boy.....that would be a pretty fun morning. I feel like I'm missing out, at our High School in Texas, because of the heat, they report every day at 4:30am for Football for meetings, and field at 5:30.....and I'm ripping into him to be up and there 10 minutes early, because early is on time. I guess I missed the sleepy time stuff.
 
Thank you for all the responses. I recognize that this behavior will lead to a rude awakening. I will correct this and diligently attend my classes, even if I have finished that day's assignments already. I will change this behavior and my mindset so that I am ready in the coming summer and fall.
 
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