During this extra long winter leave I have entirely too much time on my hands! Now that acceptances are starting to roll in feel free to ask me anything about plebe summer, plebe year and life at the academy during this strange time. This forum was so helpful when I was applying and waiting to attend so please ask me any and all questions you may have.
Current female plebe - AMA
- Thread starter Bythebay
- Start date
At least in my company, the plebes’ morale is pretty good. We’ve been forced to be closer than a lot of other classes since we haven’t gotten to know many people out of company as we were isolated over plebe summer with classes that are online/not very collaborative. I’d say the upperclassmen’s morale is lower since they know what they’re truly missing out on, but us plebes don’t know anything different. It could very well be different in other companies. We’ve bonded more with the upperclass and do a lot of sports/activities on the weekend.
On the other hand, there are people who really struggle. I’d encourage them to reach out to a classmate, youngster mentor, squad leader, peer advisor, any other trusted upperclassmen or MDC. There are quite a few people going through similar things and many people looking out for each other and ready to help. The support system at USNA is truly unrivaled, especially right now.
krabbypatty
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Do you know any plebes who decided to leave USNA and pursue other programs? If so, for what reasons?
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Great question.
Old Navy BGO
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LOL -- the "prestige" factor goes away the minute they slam the doors shut on I Day. It does grow back after graduation.
It's kinda like a turkish steam bath..not so hot once you are in
!
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If I believe DD, any prestige factor dissipated midway through I-Day, as she stood alone in her room, perspiring from the heat, humidity and pressure, and chafing from the stiff white works, while she folded pair after pair after pair of government-issue socks. Then again, I don’t believe she ever chose the SA route for the prestige. She’d probably agree with that now, more than two years in. She loves the experience — just not for the prestige.
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Funny....I was trying to tell one of mine about the prestige. What prestige? We were talking about the 'diploma'. He isn't convinced. AT ALL. They don't see the prestige....at all. And HATE the uniform. They like to shoot guns and stuff. And love their mates.
It's a terrible place to be, and an amazing place to be from...as the saying goes. I was trying to tell them this, they dont believe me.
True story: 1st summer training...on a ship out international somewhere. One in my son's group was adamant that the 'enlisted' were below him. Technically. Guess what? He sat at a desk alllll day long. My guy shot off huge guns with impressive ammo. The other guy was not humble, and was quite impressed with his prestige..and his uniform. Those people don't get it. Most there are humble and very unimpressed with the 'prestige'. Some of the most down to earth, humble, amazing people of my son's friend group that I have had to pleasure to meet.
Parents/family on the other hand??? VERY impressed with the prestige. And will tell you so.
It's a terrible place to be, and an amazing place to be from...as the saying goes. I was trying to tell them this, they dont believe me
.True story: 1st summer training...on a ship out international somewhere. One in my son's group was adamant that the 'enlisted' were below him. Technically. Guess what? He sat at a desk alllll day long. My guy shot off huge guns with impressive ammo. The other guy was not humble, and was quite impressed with his prestige..and his uniform. Those people don't get it. Most there are humble and very unimpressed with the 'prestige'. Some of the most down to earth, humble, amazing people of my son's friend group that I have had to pleasure to meet.
Parents/family on the other hand??? VERY impressed with the prestige. And will tell you so.
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@justdoit19 the midshipman probably does outrank enlisted on a rank chart I suppose. Two of my ships had midshipmen aboard and their true place in the org chart is quickly established. A couple years ago a midshipman showed up at my son’s door. Two days later he was assigned to a kinder, gentler company commander. Shame for him really. He would have learned a lot.
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My son was embarrassed. This Mid strutted down the aisle (is that the right word? On a boat?? Im learning...), refused to move over to allow the other guy through. DAY ONE!! It was a pi$$ing contest he should NOT have started. This was just after plebe year...wow. The funny thing, is that my son and his buddy had a fantastic time. Really got along well with his mentors. Got to do other neat things. This other Mid wrote home how awful the whole experience was....
It's all about perspective, and humility.
Funny, I would not have equated any Prestige towards I Day. Most look like deer in the headlights but I would say there is some Prestige from the Uniform and place. It comes when you have liberty and some stranger picks up the tab for four Plebes on town liberty. It comes from a group of guys belonging to the Class of xx' inviting some current Mids to attend their tailgate. It comes in the form of having your resume put at the top of the pile when seeking employment after your time is up. While none of these are Keys to the City or a parade, they do speak to the Prestige of wearing the uniform and having attended USNA. As for humility, I haven't really met any Mids that didn't exhibit a fair amount of it especially among the underclassmen. It might start to wear off for some of the 1/Cs after service selection or ship selection but I'm sure it comes right back once they hit the fleet or their first training assignment.
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Prestige? Who cares .... The design, material, and mass of this entrance says it all.
Prestige? Who cares .... The design, material, and mass of this entrance says it all.
Yes, there’s a handful of plebes who have DOR thus far in the year. I’m not sure the specifics but it could be family issues, realizing USNA isn’t for them or something else. However, it’s only been about 30/1200 so the attrition rate is quite low.
Personally, I don’t mind the uniforms that much. White works were not the look and we’re pretty humiliating but wearing the dress uniforms for the first time was pretty fun. Also, the uniforms don’t look as good on women as they do on men, so all of us girls complain about the uniforms a lot until we can tailor them haha. Wearing the uniform 24/7 gets old very quickly, especially if you’re on 24 hour blues
usmagirl118
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Regarding swimming, I am just like a heavy stone. Would that be a problem for me at USNA if appointed? What help is available for someone like me to pass the swim tests?
A1Janitor
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I asked this question at CVW of admissions because my son wasn’t a good swimmer. They told me not to worry about it.
You will take swimming classes and you will learn.
You will become a sufficient swimmer. So don’t worry about it.
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One of my roommates was nicknamed "Rock". . . guess why. He maintains that he did many of the swim tests by running on the bottom of the pool. He ended up flying and I can assure you that the swim quals for aviators are more intense than the USNA tests but he passed those as well.
If my friend Rock can do this, I'm betting that you can as well. It might take some remedial (Sub Squad) efforts but it can be done.
usmagirl118
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not a good swimmer vs dont know how to swim ( Rock). !