Martial Arts (Taekwondo)

USMA 22 grad was a black belt in TKD and coached by the 10 year olympic coach. won two state titles -- first was hard but second not so much. missed going to Nationals because -- ironically -- during SLE. I would strongly urge you to do TKD for two reasons. First, it is the discipline of seeming to do countless hours of repetitive tasks is good preparation for Drill. Second, I can 100% assure you that the Grappling and Boxing at USMA will be far easier. The footwork in TKD for boxing was extremely useful (and knowing how to get hit in the face and not freeze). The grappling is self explanatory. Best of luck.
 

AAU - Karate

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and as far as a state championship and going for the nationals——-junior or adult.

This is another option other than TKD

And even if your state does not have a championship——sign up with another state. And they have or did have competitions at all belt and age levels.
 
ixlyn said:
Does each black belt count as one separate varsity letter? I have a third-degree black belt in taekwondo, so do my first-degree and second-degree get their own varsity letters along with the third-degree or do I just combine it all?
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Good question for your RC. I haven't come across that question. Some points to consider:
  • This is for USMA only. I don't know how other SA's consider martial arts participation.
  • Directly from admissions: "A black belt in martial arts is equivalent to a varsity letter."
  • Level of achievement counts, so additional degrees could add WCS points (see below).
  • RC calculates WCS points and has some discretion - this is where additional achievements associated with an activity can come into play. RC's calculation must be verified by another RC so any discretionary points must be justified.
My opinion: Additional degree of black belt would not be considered the same as an additional varsity sport, but would add some points, just as an achievement in football or tennis might add points but not be considered another varsity letter. Another black belt in a different martial art might be considered the same as another varsity letter.
 
jl123 said:
Good question for your RC. I haven't come across that question. Some points to consider:
  • This is for USMA only. I don't know how other SA's consider martial arts participation.
  • Directly from admissions: "A black belt in martial arts is equivalent to a varsity letter."
  • Level of achievement counts, so additional degrees could add WCS points (see below).
  • RC calculates WCS points and has some discretion - this is where additional achievements associated with an activity can come into play. RC's calculation must be verified by another RC so any discretionary points must be justified.
My opinion: Additional degree of black belt would not be considered the same as an additional varsity sport, but would add some points, just as an achievement in football or tennis might add points but not be considered another varsity letter. Another black belt in a different martial art might be considered the same as another varsity letter.
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If someone is outstanding in one sport IMO that trumps (or could) participating in a number of sports.

It may not equate to more points on an application Like another varsity letter might.

but it might make a heck of an impression in a congressional interview and be real interesting to an admissions board as they are considering their final choices.
 
Small Team Bacsi said:
If someone is outstanding in one sport IMO that trumps (or could) participating in a number of sports.

It may not equate to more points on an application Like another varsity letter might.

but it might make a heck of an impression in a congressional interview and be real interesting to an admissions board as they are considering their final choices.
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Correct that it could be an important factor in gaining a nomination. Not a small consideration especially in highly competitive districts.

However, if a candidate is outstanding at a sport, but not good enough to be recruited, it would have little effect on an admissions board beyond the number of WCS points awarded. Even if recruited, it would be the coach of that sport who would determine the merits of the candidate's achievements.

For appointment to USMA it is all about WCS points. A candidate with fewer WCS points does not leapfrog a candidate with more WCS points for competitive appointments. That is not to say that significant accomplishments are overlooked. A unrecruited varsity tennis player who won a state championship will probably get more points for that activity than a varsity tennis player who simply competed. But if the two are in competition, the appointment will go to the one with more total WCS points - that is the law.

There are some exceptions:
  • A Principal nominee may be appointed with fewer WCS points than another candidate on the same slate, but that is out of the control of USMA admissions and most MOCs submit unranked slates.
  • An Additional Appointee appointment may be made out of order of merit, but the the majority of those are made to recruited athletes and diversity candidates. Again assuming the candidate is not a recruited athlete, the focus of the admissions board in making an appointment out of order of merit is more likely to be on the candidate's academics rather than the athletic ability of a candidate not skilled enough to be recruited.
Of course it never hurts to be outstanding at something and there are always anomalies.
 
I have no idea how admissions considered our DS’s participation in TKD.

In an appropriately certified DoJo it takes years to achieve black belt and above.

If I recall, when DS was testing for his first degree he had to reflect on some statistics and then write an essay. Don’t quote me, but of those who start TKD less than 5% achieve a first degree black belt. Less than one half of a percent of those go on to achieve a second. You get the picture (don’t hold me to exact %).

The point being committing to one thing and seeing it through, especially when you wait years for that next level up, speaks volumes. TKD black belts don’t happen in a football season. Heck they don’t happen in multiple sport seasons. They take commitment.

DS was able to write about and speak about the commitment it took to achieve his third degree. The competitions, the training, the teaching and lesson planning, the endless hours of training and conditioning. Travel out of state, challenges he faced after a tough loss.

You won’t ever know how a SA scores your TKD experience, but you can and should write and talk about it and how it led to your personal growth. How it has shown you that leadership is something you value and want to excel at.
 
Bill P said:
I can 100% assure you that the Grappling and Boxing at USMA will be far easier. The footwork in TKD for boxing was extremely useful (and knowing how to get hit in the face and not freeze). The grappling is self explanatory. Best of luck.
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Just curious what makes you say this? Is it something about USMA grappling? I've been around and in martial arts my entire life, from traditional stuff (kung fu and TKD) to many years of judo, MMA, and BJJ. Not throwing shade, I've just never heard anyone describe grappling as easy. It is widely considered the most grueling in my experience.
 
USNA_STEM_Prof said:
Just curious what makes you say this? Is it something about USMA grappling? I've been around and in martial arts my entire life, from traditional stuff (kung fu and TKD) to many years of judo, MMA, and BJJ. Not throwing shade, I've just never heard anyone describe grappling as easy. It is widely considered the most grueling in my experience.
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Poorly worded on my part. The meaning of the sentence in the context was that taking martial arts in high school will make grappling and boxing easier when one gets to the academy as compared to not doing martial arts. Not that grappling and boxing are easier. Apologies for the poor wording.
 
DS received his appointment running marathons and training Kali: Filipino Marital Arts. He attended a small private high school that didn't have any sports teams.
 
ixlyn said:
Does each black belt count as one separate varsity letter? I have a third-degree black belt in taekwondo, so do my first-degree and second-degree get their own varsity letters along with the third-degree or do I just combine it all?
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Did you ever get a response back to this message? I have the same question.
 
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