Here is the internal memo from the USMA Director of Admissions to the Admissions Team for the Class of 2028:
5 July 2023
MEMORANDUM FOR THE DIRECTORATE OF ADMISSIONS
SUBJECT: Initial Guidance for USMA Class of 2028
1. General:
a. Team, let me start of by saying what an exceptional job by all on competing the 2027 class cycle! The cycle was especially difficult given the challenges presented by the failure of the DODMERB systems and the time it took for them to reestablish regular operations. We are well into 2028 now with the opening of the SSK on 15 May. We brought in the in another incredibly competitive and diverse admissions class with 2027 and met or exceeded our class composition goals for Asians, Leaders, Scholars, and Soldiers; while falling just a little short in Women, Athletes, African Americans, and Hispanics. We extended more Offers of Admission but saw a continued downturn in applicants who accepted offers of admission this past year and anticipate we will continue to see this play out in the next several class cycles.
b. Our final target class for 2027 was 1230 US admits and we exceeded that on RDay with 1245 first time US admits and fourteen internationals for a CBT entering size of 1259. This is a significant increase over the last class cycle. We will begin to focus on a steady state of 1220 first time US admits over the next few years but will be ready for any adjustments should the corps size dictate any increase or decrease in accessions. This class guidance is initial guidance and may shift throughout the class cycle.
c. Class of 2028 guidance: We will continue the policies we had in place for 2027, but any use of the PSAT alone to calculate WCS/CEER will require the approval of the Director of Admissions. We will still require the ACT essay. For those who only submit SAT test scores and are deemed to be an English risk, we will require a timed writing sample. I will keep all other current policies in effect - specifically in the timing of offers, the number of LOAs tendered and the medical scheduling process.
d. Medical deadlines: We will strictly adhere to a 15 April 2024 medical waiver approval deadline for the class of 2028 – with any exceptions requiring approval from the Director only. We continue to be challenged with meeting this deadline and strongly encourage all regional commanders and admissions officers to emphasize this deadline. Highly encourage our regional commanders to work closely with your candidates to schedule medicals early to help facilitate a rapid medical review process. Any LOA or LOE applicant automatically should be medically scheduled at the time of the LOA.
2. Class Size: We are targeting a class size of approximately 1220 US cadets. For planning purposes, anticipate the following vacancy distribution for USMA 2028 based on recent distributions with previous classes. Internationals cadets will add beyond the 1220 to bring the number to 1235. The breakout of anticipated nominations by class based on recent classes is included in the table.
View attachment 15760
3. Additional Appointees: Planning factors for additional appointees not to exceed (note they may fall into more than one category):
a. Athletes – 180 additional appointees (183 selected for 2027 cycle)
b. African Americans – 100 additional appointees (76 selected for 2027 cycle)
c. Women – 75 additional appointees (74 selected for 2027 cycle)
d. Hispanic Americans – 75 additional appointees (54 selected for the 2027 cycle)
4. Offers of Admission: We will begin rolling admissions with those fully qualified candidates with an LOA and a nomination who will be able to receive an offer of admission as early as September or October. The majority of the of the offers will still be tendered at the end of January through April. All candidates regardless of date tendered will have until 1 May 2023 to accept or decline their offer. USMAPS offers of Admission will be tendered together on or about the first week of May after all files have been evaluated and approved through the Admissions Committee. Civil Prep Files will be offered as they complete their files, submit first semester transcripts, and are fully qualified for admission. International and former cadet files will go through the admissions review and committee review before final adjudication at the Academic Board in the Spring of 2024. Only exceptions will be former cadets considered for readmission for the Spring Term – those files will be completed and adjudicated before December 2023.
5. Talent and Diversity: Within major talent and diversity categories we will be authorized the
following vacancies based on the 2027 goals.
View attachment 15761
6. Letters of Assurance. Effective 1 July 2023 we will open Letters of Assurance (LOA) consideration for candidates listed below in sub paragraph 6(a-e). They must have at least sixth semester transcript and verifiable ACT or SAT scores and have an interview in their file. Anyone wishing to pursue a LOA for a candidate with just PSAT scores must gain the approval of the Deputy Director of Admissions prior to pushing through the workflow. Interviews can be either FFORCE interviews, USMA interviews while visiting USMA, ROTC interviews, SLE interviews, or modified CHIP sheet from the head coach for a recruited athlete which addresses character. If their CEER is below 554, they must be brought to EXCOM. These guidelines may shift during the class cycle. Be prepared to execute changes rapidly should the guidelines shift due to class size changes.
a. 1-rated chipped Recruited Athletes: CEER/ACEER > 554 with no risk. For CEER/ACEER < 554 or indicated risk, must be approved by the Admissions Executive Committee (EXCOM) or the Admissions Committee as required. (less than 160 per class cycle)
b. African-American: CEER/ACEER > 554 with no risk. For CEER/ACEER < 554 or indicated risk, must be approved by the admissions Executive Committee
(EXCOM) or the Admissions Committee as required.(less than 120 per class cycle)
c. Hispanic- American: CEER/ACEER > 554 with no risk and WCS >5599. For CEER/ACEER < 554 or indicated risk, must be approved by the Admissions Executive Committee (EXCOM) or the Admissions Committee as required. (less than 75 per class cycle)
d. Scholars: CEER/ACEER > 650 with no risk and WCS >6800. (less than 75 per class cycle)
e. Women: CEER/ACEER > 554 with no risk and WCS >6499. For CEER/ACEER < 554 or indicated risk, must be approved by the Admissions Executive Committee (EXCOM) or the Admissions Committee as required. (less than 75 per class cycle)
7. USMAPS: Entering USMAPS class size is slightly larger than the 2022 cohort, however we are continuing to monitor the risk entering USMAPS. We expect 239 students to enroll into USMAPS this year, still smaller than the 246-seat capacity. We will continue to follow the restriction of less than 10% of an incoming class with a CEER below 466 but will exclude those Prepsters from CEER risk calculations, instead using PCEER for USMAPS CEER risk assessments. For the class of 2028 enrolling into USMAPS, Regional Commanders should establish a standing list of ten candidates for each region for USMAPS with at least one candidate of Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander decent (when possible). These candidates should be very strong leaders and have a single risk in the academic area. We should be able to make a USMAPS decision on this RC group by early March 2024. All candidates for consideration to go into USMAPS will be reviewed by the USMAPS member of the Admissions Committee Team. We will not use USMAPS as a medical holding facility, so all USMAPS offers will be for medically qualified applicants only, unless specifically approved by the DAD.
8. WPPSP: Plan for a West Point Preparatory Class size of forty candidates. This will allow Athletic Department to place ten recruited athletes in the program if needed. All other candidates for this program will be fully qualified with no risks and WCS > 5900. We should move aggressively with high quality regional candidates. Regional Commanders also need to establish a standing list of fifteen candidates to be considered for this program. I want to make all non- recruited athlete offers before 1 April 2024 if possible.
9. Other guidance for the year:
a. VAS / VAC and QNS Drills:
i. Regional Commanders can conduct internal VAS drills in the summer. We will conduct a VAS drill in early October for any candidate who falls below the 5000 WCS or below 400 CEER. Regional Commanders and Admissions Officers can make exceptions based on other aspects of the file, but for the standing rule of thumb we will adhere to this VAS criteria.
ii. We will conduct a VAC drill in early November for any candidate with an open file greater than 90 days and no action on the file. A second VAC drill may be conducted in February for lack of seventh semester transcripts or college transcripts. File completion deadline is 31 January 2023 – and incomplete file at that time will be closed. Exceptions will be granted only by me on a case-by-case basis.
iii. Part of the file completion will be an interview form. Ideally, we will have the interview in the file prior to tendering an offer of admission. We will use both the USMA interview form and the ROTC PMS interview form this candidate cycle. An amended chip sheet for 1 rate athletes can also be used as long as it addresses character.
10. Congratulations on a great class of 2027 as we maneuvered through the various DODMERB
challenges. All travel will still be approved by LTC Tolman or me, and nested in an integrated plan to reach as many candidates and their influencers as possible. We will continue to market aggressively in many areas to continue our efforts to inspire quality students to open and complete an application to West Point. Well done by each and every one of the DAD team. Your dedication and diligence made this past year an exceptionally smooth one. The Corps Starts Here!
LEE.RANCE.ALL EN.1037455780
Digitally signed by
LEE.RANCE.ALLEN.1037455780 Date: 2023.07.12 21:37:47 -04'00'
RANCE A. LEE
LIEUTENANT COLONEL, US ARMY Director of Admissions
