Arriving to ROTC

But I was surprised to hear him tell me so few passed. Sad really.

It's really not that surprising to see many of the new cadets fail their first APFT. The main reason for failure is not doing the Push Ups and Sit Ups to Army regulation. Every year during the application process you see applicants list on this board that they did 65 or 70 push ups and sit ups in one minute, so they figure they'll have no problem passing the APFT, those that have been around a while on this board just smile when reading their posts. Reality hits hard when they take their first APFT and they hear the grader yelling out the count....1,2,3,3,3,3,4,4,4,4,5,5,5,5, they just repeat the number until they see one that is to regulation, it get really hard when they have to do twice the number just to get a passing grade.

This usually takes care of itself quickly for most of the cadets, but there are always some that never pass and end up losing their scholarship.

Congratulations to your son for passing the test so soon.
 
DS said the same thing. Majority of kids, including those on scholarship, failed. DS trained hard over the summer and did very well. One kid maxed out his scores for the run and the push ups but failed the sit ups. Clearly he is in good shape so I would have to assume it was form.
 
Thanks. He is standing g out in PT each morning, trying out for Army Ranger Challenge, and the "older guys" really like him for his hard work and dedication. Only one of the 4 year guys has passed the APFT. When I say stand out, I just meant he doesn't want to be the only 3 year guy with the uniform on. In some ways I see it as a great quality in him of being the same as the unit. Again, appreciate your response. Helpful.

Keep emphasizing standing out through performance and not the uniform. Trying out for Ranger Challenge is the best thing he can do. Last year DD was non-scholarship and issued Army shorts and a T-shirt for PT the first week. Like your DS she impressed the upperclassmen and cadre in PT and made the RC team. She was then issued ACUs. We did buy boots for her. She still had to wear civilian clothes for Dining In and Dining Out, but her relationships with the upperclassmen and cadre because of RC gave her more credibility than some of those on scholarship in their ASUs.
 
Thanks. He is standing g out in PT each morning, trying out for Army Ranger Challenge, and the "older guys" really like him for his hard work and dedication. Only one of the 4 year guys has passed the APFT. When I say stand out, I just meant he doesn't want to be the only 3 year guy with the uniform on. In some ways I see it as a great quality in him of being the same as the unit. Again, appreciate your response. Helpful.

Keep emphasizing standing out through performance and not the uniform. Trying out for Ranger Challenge is the best thing he can do. Last year DD was non-scholarship and issued Army shorts and a T-shirt for PT the first week. Like your DS she impressed the upperclassmen and cadre in PT and made the RC team. She was then issued ACUs. We did buy boots for her. She still had to wear civilian clothes for Dining In and Dining Out, but her relationships with the upperclassmen and cadre because of RC gave her more credibility than some of those on scholarship in their ASUs.
Great advice, thank you!
 
But I was surprised to hear him tell me so few passed. Sad really.

It's really not that surprising to see many of the new cadets fail their first APFT. The main reason for failure is not doing the Push Ups and Sit Ups to Army regulation. Every year during the application process you see applicants list on this board that they did 65 or 70 push ups and sit ups in one minute, so they figure they'll have no problem passing the APFT, those that have been around a while on this board just smile when reading their posts. Reality hits hard when they take their first APFT and they hear the grader yelling out the count....1,2,3,3,3,3,4,4,4,4,5,5,5,5, they just repeat the number until they see one that is to regulation, it get really hard when they have to do twice the number just to get a passing grade.

This usually takes care of itself quickly for most of the cadets, but there are always some that never pass and end up losing their scholarship.

Congratulations to your son for passing the test so soon.
Thank you.
 
My DS'S battalion experienced same thing in regards to APFT. Most MS1'S struggled. He is a 4 year winner who started school waiting on a DODMERB waiver request since May. He decided his only recourse was to make an APFT "statement" on Day 1. He scored a 353. Not sure how that happens on a 300 scale. That raised eyebrows with the Cadre. His 1st RC tryout they repeated the APFT. Same result. Not sure those scores made the difference but waiver was granted a few days ago. If you're really going to do ROTC the APFT should be a priority to gain credibility.
 
My battalion had six 4-year scholarships and we all passed the APFT yesterday by various degrees. We got to do 2 weeks of PT before hand which gave us time to practice the proper form. That definitely made a huge difference
 
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