Falcon Scholar Class 2020 -2021

pezska said:
DD was considering RMA at first...can hardly find info on old threads about the FS program other than it's an intimate group. We are in CA and our concerns of NWP are that it doesnt offer an accredited curriculum, it is only one semester, and focus is on standardized test results. I can be wrong but just what I can gather on what is available online. GMI, MMI, NMMI offer the regimental experience we think she needs for the prep year before 4 yrs @USAFA. GMI was just added last February as a prep and thus there arent any theads at all here. Does anyone have any intel on logistics, FS class size, reviews?
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The Military Junior Colleges (MJCs) are all accredited and college credits transfer. FS will be part of the respective corps of cadets at each school and be enrolled in ROTC. They'll also get support on their reapplications both for the noms and the academy. Plus, there is regular oversight by the Falcon Foundation.

MMI and NMMI follow the service academy model: every student is a member of the Corps. GMC is more like Texas A&M--there is a corps, but most of the students are civilian students who don't live on campus. FS class sizes at the MJCs are around 5 to 10 students, with most achieving the standards and getting into the academy.
 
Physicsguru said:
The Military Junior Colleges (MJCs) are all accredited and college credits transfer. FS will be part of the respective corps of cadets at each school and be enrolled in ROTC. They'll also get support on their reapplications both for the noms and the academy. Plus, there is regular oversight by the Falcon Foundation.

MMI and NMMI follow the service academy model: every student is a member of the Corps. GMC is more like Texas A&M--there is a corps, but most of the students are civilian students who don't live on campus. FS class sizes at the MJCs are around 5 to 10 students, with most achieving the standards and getting into the academy.
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Thank you for this! The comparison and analogies of the MJCs are very helpful.
 
madison1655 said:
If I accept the falcon foundation scholarship, can I also accept to be on USNA waitlist?
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I don't think so. Once you commit to the FFS, you are committing to trying your best to go to the USAFA next year. I accepted the FFS and that was my impression. If you accept the FFS and then drop out, you still owe tuition.
 
Does anyone know if the second semester classes have to be take during the second semester? Or, can one or two be taken during the summer?
 
pezska said:
Does anyone know if the second semester classes have to be take during the second semester? Or, can one or two be taken during the summer?
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I am fairly certain they have to be taken in the second semester. Unless you go to North Western Prep (the one I'm going to) the rest of the colleges will have a set course list you need to take for the first and second semester, already planned. For NWP, your second semester is at a community college of your choice, but NWP works with you and tells you exactly what you need to take, and makes sure your college offers those courses.
Also, I can't think why you would want to take some of the classes in the summer. The main purpose of the prep schools is to prepare you (academically among others) and it's good to take on the full course load so you learn time management and know what to expect when you go to the Academy.
 
emtet said:
If you're interested in attending NWP, Falcon Scholar or not, I'd be happy to answer some questions! Just PM or reply to this message:) I attended NWP in the fall of 2018 and am part of USAFA's c/o 2023.
I have friends at the other SA's that could give insight to those as well if you're reapplying to them all :)
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Thanks for your willingness to answer some extra questions. A couple that come to mind:

- Do the courses you take at NWP (or any of the other prep schools) transfer directly to USAFA so that you do NOT have to take those courses again when you get there?

- Is there any flexibility in the courses available at these prep schools, or there is a defined set of courses that every Falcon Scholar must take? Example: if a student is already at the Calculus level, are they required to retake an Algebra clasa just because everyone takes the same thing, or variety is available?

- Do you take the CFA at the prep school or is it better to have that done in the summer before going to prep?

- I saw in one of these Falcon Scholar threads that a poster said all Falcon Scholars are enrolled in ROTC. Is that accurate for all five prep schools? If so, is there technically an ROTC Commander from whom the student can potentially seek an ROTC nomination?
 
HudK9 said:
Thanks for your willingness to answer some extra questions. A couple that come to mind:

- Do the courses you take at NWP (or any of the other prep schools) transfer directly to USAFA so that you do NOT have to take those courses again when you get there?

- Is there any flexibility in the courses available at these prep schools, or there is a defined set of courses that every Falcon Scholar must take? Example: if a student is already at the Calculus level, are they required to retake an Algebra clasa just because everyone takes the same thing, or variety is available?

- Do you take the CFA at the prep school or is it better to have that done in the summer before going to prep?

- I saw in one of these Falcon Scholar threads that a poster said all Falcon Scholars are enrolled in ROTC. Is that accurate for all five prep schools? If so, is there technically an ROTC Commander from whom the student can potentially seek an ROTC nomination?
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Let me know if you get any answers. These would help answer some of my questions too. Thanks!
 
My DD was a falcon scholar last year, 2019-20 and after looking at all the options, she chose NWP. We are from Florida so it was the furthest from us, but offered the best program for her. All the students that attend NWP take the same courses while there. It is an extremely rigorous course load. It is only one semester, so when she came home she enrolled in the local state college for the spring semester. They are required to take 15 credit hours the second semester. She is taking chemistry, chem lab, physics, physics lab, college algebra, and a mandatory college success course. NWP advised them that USAFA wants to see a very strong algebra/ trig grade this semester. The majority of kids at NWP and USAFA have taken very high level math classes and a majority will not test out of calc even though they’ve taken it in high school. We viewed her having to take algebra this semester as an easier class that will refresh her since she hasn’t taken algebra since 7th grade. As far as classes transferring to USAFA, unless you receive a 4 or 5 on the AP exam (some classes need a 5) they will not transfer. You can test out of some classes but those tests will be done during the summer of BCT. The CFA that was taken up to this point was used for this application. Once at the prep school a new application with new CFA scores and nominations will be completed. It’s a shortened version- no essays required. At NWP they worked out each day and took the CFA 3-4 more times while there. They are not ROTC so there is no need for a ROTC nomination. My daughter made great friends while there and it was a great opportunity for her. She is was accepted to the USAFA class of 2024 and will start in June. She declined a Tier 2 ROTC scholarship and 2 full rides to top universities for the Falcon Scholarship and she doesn’t hesitate to say it was the best decision she made.
 
dnwelly said:
My DD was a falcon scholar last year, 2019-20 and after looking at all the options, she chose NWP. We are from Florida so it was the furthest from us, but offered the best program for her. All the students that attend NWP take the same courses while there. It is an extremely rigorous course load. It is only one semester, so when she came home she enrolled in the local state college for the spring semester. They are required to take 15 credit hours the second semester. She is taking chemistry, chem lab, physics, physics lab, college algebra, and a mandatory college success course. NWP advised them that USAFA wants to see a very strong algebra/ trig grade this semester. The majority of kids at NWP and USAFA have taken very high level math classes and a majority will not test out of calc even though they’ve taken it in high school. We viewed her having to take algebra this semester as an easier class that will refresh her since she hasn’t taken algebra since 7th grade. As far as classes transferring to USAFA, unless you receive a 4 or 5 on the AP exam (some classes need a 5) they will not transfer. You can test out of some classes but those tests will be done during the summer of BCT. The CFA that was taken up to this point was used for this application. Once at the prep school a new application with new CFA scores and nominations will be completed. It’s a shortened version- no essays required. At NWP they worked out each day and took the CFA 3-4 more times while there. They are not ROTC so there is no need for a ROTC nomination. My daughter made great friends while there and it was a great opportunity for her. She is was accepted to the USAFA class of 2024 and will start in June. She declined a Tier 2 ROTC scholarship and 2 full rides to top universities for the Falcon Scholarship and she doesn’t hesitate to say it was the best decision she made.
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Thank you dnwelly! Wonderful information! Very helpful.
 
dnwelly said:
My DD was a falcon scholar last year, 2019-20 and after looking at all the options, she chose NWP. We are from Florida so it was the furthest from us, but offered the best program for her. All the students that attend NWP take the same courses while there. It is an extremely rigorous course load. It is only one semester, so when she came home she enrolled in the local state college for the spring semester. They are required to take 15 credit hours the second semester. She is taking chemistry, chem lab, physics, physics lab, college algebra, and a mandatory college success course. NWP advised them that USAFA wants to see a very strong algebra/ trig grade this semester. The majority of kids at NWP and USAFA have taken very high level math classes and a majority will not test out of calc even though they’ve taken it in high school. We viewed her having to take algebra this semester as an easier class that will refresh her since she hasn’t taken algebra since 7th grade. As far as classes transferring to USAFA, unless you receive a 4 or 5 on the AP exam (some classes need a 5) they will not transfer. You can test out of some classes but those tests will be done during the summer of BCT. The CFA that was taken up to this point was used for this application. Once at the prep school a new application with new CFA scores and nominations will be completed. It’s a shortened version- no essays required. At NWP they worked out each day and took the CFA 3-4 more times while there. They are not ROTC so there is no need for a ROTC nomination. My daughter made great friends while there and it was a great opportunity for her. She is was accepted to the USAFA class of 2024 and will start in June. She declined a Tier 2 ROTC scholarship and 2 full rides to top universities for the Falcon Scholarship and she doesn’t hesitate to say it was the best decision she made.
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Excellent info. Thank you. At what point did she receive her appointment after finishing that first semester at NWP?
 
My daughter also was a Falcon Scholar this past year at NWP and received her appointment February 15 which was when most of the Falcon Scholar were notified this year. My daughter had a very similar story to what "dnwelly" discussed above for her daughter.
 
My daughter received her appointment February 15 along with most of the other NWP Falcons. I know we had lots of questions about the Falcon Scholarship and NWP so feel free to ask away 🙂 One thing I would highly recommend is that if you go to NWP, get as much of your nomination paperwork completed before you go. Our congressional nomination deadlines were the end of august so she had to complete them before she even got to NWP. This actually ended up being a really good thing, because as other students were trying to find time to fit their nomination paperwork in during the day at NWP, it was one thing she didn’t have to worry about. They have very little free time and their day is highly regimented and structured.
 
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Do you have a guess as to how many students attend NWP who are not Falcon Scholarship recipients? I think they are called 'free agents'? Are such students competitive if they reapply to USAFA? Our son received his non-appointment letter April 21 but had pretty decent credentials all the way around - I'm told we live in a very competitive district. Do you think it's worth going to a prep school or is it better to go to regular university and get involved with ROTC? He seems determined to reapply.
 
smc1986 said:
Do you have a guess as to how many students attend NWP who are not Falcon Scholarship recipients? I think they are called 'free agents'?
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This past year at NWP, there were 78 students total, about 40 Falcons, a dozen Navy or Army sponsored students, and 26 free agents.
 
HudK9 said:
Thanks for your willingness to answer some extra questions. A couple that come to mind:

- Do the courses you take at NWP (or any of the other prep schools) transfer directly to USAFA so that you do NOT have to take those courses again when you get there?

- Is there any flexibility in the courses available at these prep schools, or there is a defined set of courses that every Falcon Scholar must take? Example: if a student is already at the Calculus level, are they required to retake an Algebra clasa just because everyone takes the same thing, or variety is available?

- Do you take the CFA at the prep school or is it better to have that done in the summer before going to prep?

- I saw in one of these Falcon Scholar threads that a poster said all Falcon Scholars are enrolled in ROTC. Is that accurate for all five prep schools? If so, is there technically an ROTC Commander from whom the student can potentially seek an ROTC nomination?
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Prep at NWP is only one semester long, the second is spent at another university or community college of your choice as long as they offer the classes specified by the Durbecks (usually a calculus class, physics class, chem, english, and maybe foreign language or history).
The courses at NWP do not transfer over; however, the second semester courses taken at "normal" universities may transfer over (make sure to get it all squared away with USAFA). I cannot speak for the other prep schools as they are two semesters long.

At NWP there is no flexibility in the courses taken until the second semester. All courses at NWP are the same for each student. The "math" class at NWP is a combination of trig, algebra, and calculus to create well rounded students. Once you register for second semester classes, there is variety as the Durbecks want you enrolled in the class more fitting to your skill level (most students do calc 1 after USAFA but it is possible to do calc 2...the same applies with the physics and chemistry courses).

You take the CFA at the prep school and I HIGHLY recommend it as it is taken at least 6 times throughout the semester.

At NWP, you are NOT ROTC.

I can only speak for NWP but I hope this helped.
 
smc1986 said:
Do you have a guess as to how many students attend NWP who are not Falcon Scholarship recipients? I think they are called 'free agents'? Are such students competitive if they reapply to USAFA? Our son received his non-appointment letter April 21 but had pretty decent credentials all the way around - I'm told we live in a very competitive district. Do you think it's worth going to a prep school or is it better to go to regular university and get involved with ROTC? He seems determined to reapply.
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It really is up to him there is no "better" option. He can always do ROTC his freshman year of college and either reapply or use that time to decide whether he likes the ROTC route. I had a friend who planned to do ROTC for a year while he reapplied, but he loved his program and decided to stay. On the other hand, I know of some students who paid their way through prep school and were accepted to USAFA c/o 2024. And then there are those who enjoyed their newfound liberty at a normal university that they decided not to reapply or do ROTC.
It really is up to your son, I would make sure that he understands the pros/cons of his options then just leave it to him to decide.
 
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