Is Summer Seminar Worth It

[Alreadymade]

Hello, this month I was accepted into USAFA, USNA summer seminars and SLE. I totally didn't expect it either, I kinda went on a limb with my 3.78 GPA and no athletic or barely any leadership positions.
But anyways I accepted USAFA seminar because it's only $20. I didn't get the scholarship for USNA and the program costs $300. It may not seem like a lot to some but the program is only 4 days and I do not want to burden my mom. West Point SLE is $150 for four days as well. I'm not so sure about going into the army in general or even applying to any of the academies (mostly because of my fitness test scores-In still working on it) but I want to apply for AF and Navy ROTC. The last thing I want is to keep someone from getting a spot in the seminar.
So I was wondering if people think the $300 cost is worth it for USNA or if I just go with SLE for the same amount of days which is only $150?
Thanks in advance.

 

[VelveteenR]

The seminars are just camps and are not related to admissions, so "worth" is really something only you can decide--what are you trying to get out of them? The programs are selective primarily because there aren’t enough slots for every applicant but also because the academies use them as marketing outreach tools targeted to strong candidates who may not consider an academy or who are on the fence about them. They are also used to increase the pool of candidates for selection from under-represented groups. Because a fee is involved, attendance the camps cannot be used in the admissions rubric as the fee means these programs are not equally accessible to all applicants, and the academy admissions process is mandated to be an egalitarian one. However, as you've indicated, some scholarships are available to help defray costs for those who might not be able to attend otherwise and whose profiles are of interest to each academy. If you can go to the USAFA camp for $20, my advice is to go and enjoy the bargain, but don't bother with any of the others if the cost will be a burden.

Our son was appointed to both USMA and USNA and did not apply to any of the summer programs. During his application process, both his FFR and his BGO told him that he could apply to them if he wanted to play soldier/sailor for a week and wanted to check out the posts, but he might not get a slot as he was not the profile the camps target and since he had made it abundantly clear that service academies were his first choice for his college experience, the camps weren’t going to be particularly informative for him as none of the summer programs reflect the life of an actual cadet or midshipmen in the least (and now that he has graduated from USMA, he can confidently concur with that assessment). The benefit of the programs, though, is that applying is one way to open a candidate profile and they enable a candidate to take a CFA (optional) and talk to current officers, cadets/mids, and admissions. They can be very helpful in getting questions answered firsthand, but attendance is not part of the appointment rubric for the reasons I stated above. So, if you apply but don’t get a slot, no worries. There are no points for attendance.

Observation: I've never seen so many kids try so hard to go to camp.

 

[Lynn3194]

Hello, this month I was accepted into USAFA, USNA summer seminars and SLE. I totally didn't expect it either, I kinda went on a limb with my 3.78 GPA and no athletic or barely any leadership positions.
But anyways I accepted USAFA seminar because it's only $20. I didn't get the scholarship for USNA and the program costs $300. It may not seem like a lot to some but the program is only 4 days and I do not want to burden my mom. West Point SLE is $150 for four days as well. I'm not so sure about going into the army in general or even applying to any of the academies (mostly because of my fitness test scores-In still working on it) but I want to apply for AF and Navy ROTC. The last thing I want is to keep someone from getting a spot in the seminar.
So I was wondering if people think the $300 cost is worth it for USNA or if I just go with SLE for the same amount of days which is only $150?
Thanks in advance.

Hi, thought I'd give you a kinder, gentler "Mom" response to help give you perspective...though my 2-cents offers similar advice. First, it's commendable that you're concerned about not giving any financial burden to your Mom and being concerned about not taking a spot from someone else. Next, my son attended the summer seminar program and it wasn't "just a camp" for him and I'm sure it wasn't for many others. Like you, it helped him go from not being certain if this is something he wanted to pursue at the next level to learning a lot and deciding to apply to USNA. And I'm sure for many it helped them decide that it was not for them. So back to your question of "is it worth it", I agree that you need to do some soul searching and focus on yourself and talk to your Mom and determine if this is something you find worthy to invest in yourself. You likely who have family and friends who wouldn't mind contributing to help you cover the USNA fee, which is $200 less than normal because its virtual. Finally, don't be worried about taking a spot from someone else. This is a very important decision, that could help shape your future, it's okay to focus on you.

 

[usafcellist2026]

I definitely get where you're coming from, I accepted my USAFASS seat because it's only $20, but I still haven't heard back from SLE and USNA. I was accepted into a two week summer program at Lamont in Colorado, which is the only program in person. It's $2,000, which was quite pricey on our end. I've ultimately decided if I was accepted into SLE and/or USNASS I'm going to decline it because a. they're not my top choices SA-wise, b. not in-person, so I wouldn't get the full experience that I originally applied for, and c. I can put the money towards my music program. I've also been thinking about my parents, I don't want to have them pay for 4 different camps on top of other things. If they did count towards my overall application, then yes, I'd consider it more, but I know what my priorities are which are USAFA and Lamont. I suppose you should attend the others only if you're considering applying/attending them, since they're more of a recruiting program than a prerequisite.

 

[THParent]

You were asking for advice so here it is.
Nope. It's not worth it. You're paying for t-shirts and swag.

Go to the $20 one in Colorado Springs, if you have the means to get there.
That's a bargain and the 18,500-acre campus is beautiful.

 

[Old Navy BGO]

Do you want to go to USNA with all your heart ? If the answer is yes .. you really aren't the target audience, and its not worth it.

If you are a HS Junior and have a strong record of achievement in academics, athletics, leadership, and service , are interested in Military Service, but just not sure that you want to make that all in commitment a Service Academy that a Service Academy requires, but all means its worth spending some time and money during your Junior Summer to look into it. Of course, the virtual version is not as good as in person (and I haven't heard if USNA is discounting the fee because its virtual), but the experience and information necessary to decide to apply and attend a Service Academy is invaluable.