Pro's / Con's

This thread is making my head spin and I am getting dizzy.

Many of these posts are very convoluted, arrogant and judgemental.
We certainly do have a wide variety of opinions expressed by parents who have never been to, or had a child attend an SA. Parents who for some reason, have a hard time stating in public that their child failed in the quest for an appointment. The whole ROTC/SA debate reminds me of my kids' T-ball team when everyone got a trophy.

Others are arrogant and judgemental about reasons for serving in the Armed Forces and spending 4 years of their collegiate education in attendance.

Reasons - the bottom line is their are as many reasons as cadets. I love talking to cadets and asking them why they CHOSE West Point. The answers are very enlightening, honest and frank and hardly ever do they start with "I want to serve my country.
Finances - those of you who think that SA kids could get a scholarship at a civilian school that would be as good as an SA are living in a dreamworld. Not every kid has a trust fund. Financial aid leaves huges gaps in finances even after federal loans are given out.

I am not ashamed to say - my daughter is glad to be given the opportunity to get a very good education, get paid for it, have a guaranteed job when she graduates and the oppotunity to serve as an Officer in the Army.
My daughter is glad she will not be encumbered by loans, like her sisters.
She is glad to be at a school where athletics is valued and she can play.
She is glad to be given an oppotunity to better herself, to push herself to limits she otherwise would not.

Some kids read the pamphlet, take a visit and just KNOW. Sometimes when they are young and sometimes in the fall of their senior year. Some kids decide at age 8 to be an astronaut and that this is their path. Some have a parent, sibling or teacher who attended that influence them. There is no RIGHT reason.

No one knows more about admissions and who has what it takes than the admissions office - they don't always "get it right" but they do very well.

Reasons for leaving - these are as varied as the reasons for attending. These are KIDS - 17-22 when they show up. They change, their lives change. Sometimes their goals change, sometimes the stress is just too much, sometimes they lack parental support back home. I would never tell a kid who wanted to attend and had second thoughts to practice chewing their food 5-7 times to see if they are cut out for the SA lifestyle. I would encourage them to live their dreams - even if they might "fail" or be seriously tested.

Benefits - I do not think anyone has mentioned TRAINING. I just don't see how ROTC kids get the same training. Mental, physical and military. These kids learn to deal with stress, in a way that ROTC kids can't.
Military training - at least for West Point, they have many more opportunities than ROTC kids have. This is probably the main reason my daughter chose West Point over ROTC.

Bottom line - The reasons the SA's exist is because they are better than ROTC - if they weren't they would be dissolved.
They push each and every kid out of their comfort zone - academically, physically and militarily. At least I can say this about WP. If the AFA doesn't do this then it should be shut down.
 
Many of these posts are very convoluted, arrogant and judgemental.

<snip>

Others are arrogant and judgemental...

<snip>

I just don't see how ROTC kids get the same training. Mental, physical and military. These kids learn to deal with stress, in a way that ROTC kids can't.

<snip>

At least I can say this about WP. If the AFA doesn't do this then it should be shut down.

Oooooooookay..... :bleh2:
 
I just want to say a quick word about ROTC...

For those of you that don't know me, I am a freshman at Baylor University and I am also in ROTC. I applied to USAFA last year and didn't get in, but applied again and received my appointment for the class of 2013 in October.

With that said, I just want to back up ROTC folks. Yes, it is true that ROTC cadets don't have the constant stress, physical demands, etc. But, ROTC cadets still have to pass the same physical each semester that cadets at the academy have to. They also have to attend military type training on the summer. It is a lot of the same things that academy cadets do during their summers. I know one kid who actually went to the academy last year and got his jump wings. Also, during the summer before your junior year, ROTC cadets have to attend Field Training. I believe it lasts 4 weeks, I could be wrong though. Whatever the case, it is still a long time. Basically it is like basic training. They get yelled at, put under pressure, fire M16s, etc.

So......I do agree that academies might be "better". But ROTC cadets are just as deserving of commissions as academy cadets. There are tons of high ranking officers that went through ROTC.
 
Folks, I am a SA graduate. I have served alongside other SA graduates and alongside ROTC graduates. I've even served with a few Mustangs.

Trust me, diamonds AND turds come from ALL sources.

Don't get into the ROTC vs. SA argument. Different strokes for different folks. Do I believe the SA's are better? Yes, but that hardly means that the ROTC schools are bad, and once again a lot more depends on what the graduate does with his college experience and education than where he got it.

We're all on the same side, ultimately. Remember that. :thumb:
 
This thread is making my head spin and I am getting dizzy.

Many of these posts are very convoluted, arrogant and judgemental.
We certainly do have a wide variety of opinions expressed by parents who have never been to, or had a child attend an SA. Parents who for some reason, have a hard time stating in public that their child failed in the quest for an appointment. The whole ROTC/SA debate reminds me of my kids' T-ball team when everyone got a trophy.

Others are arrogant and judgemental about reasons for serving in the Armed Forces and spending 4 years of their collegiate education in attendance.

Reasons - the bottom line is their are as many reasons as cadets. I love talking to cadets and asking them why they CHOSE West Point. The answers are very enlightening, honest and frank and hardly ever do they start with "I want to serve my country.
Finances - those of you who think that SA kids could get a scholarship at a civilian school that would be as good as an SA are living in a dreamworld. Not every kid has a trust fund. Financial aid leaves huges gaps in finances even after federal loans are given out.

I am not ashamed to say - my daughter is glad to be given the opportunity to get a very good education, get paid for it, have a guaranteed job when she graduates and the oppotunity to serve as an Officer in the Army.
My daughter is glad she will not be encumbered by loans, like her sisters.
She is glad to be at a school where athletics is valued and she can play.
She is glad to be given an oppotunity to better herself, to push herself to limits she otherwise would not.

Some kids read the pamphlet, take a visit and just KNOW. Sometimes when they are young and sometimes in the fall of their senior year. Some kids decide at age 8 to be an astronaut and that this is their path. Some have a parent, sibling or teacher who attended that influence them. There is no RIGHT reason.

No one knows more about admissions and who has what it takes than the admissions office - they don't always "get it right" but they do very well.

Reasons for leaving - these are as varied as the reasons for attending. These are KIDS - 17-22 when they show up. They change, their lives change. Sometimes their goals change, sometimes the stress is just too much, sometimes they lack parental support back home. I would never tell a kid who wanted to attend and had second thoughts to practice chewing their food 5-7 times to see if they are cut out for the SA lifestyle. I would encourage them to live their dreams - even if they might "fail" or be seriously tested.

Benefits - I do not think anyone has mentioned TRAINING. I just don't see how ROTC kids get the same training. Mental, physical and military. These kids learn to deal with stress, in a way that ROTC kids can't.
Military training - at least for West Point, they have many more opportunities than ROTC kids have. This is probably the main reason my daughter chose West Point over ROTC.

Bottom line - The reasons the SA's exist is because they are better than ROTC - if they weren't they would be dissolved.
They push each and every kid out of their comfort zone - academically, physically and militarily. At least I can say this about WP. If the AFA doesn't do this then it should be shut down.

I'm sorry if this will make me be any more hated in this forum, but I couldn't let this post slip by. Most of the things JAM said, I thought and still think about sometimes. Some of you (and you know who you are) might say that I'm too young, I have no military training, little knowledge (regardless how well/badly you know me) and so I will make it clear that I know who I am, and what I know and don't know. I know that I know very little about what I'm getting myself into but, through these posts I learn. I don't know how ROTC and SAs came to be (I know they were created to train officers in the military, but I don't know why they didn't just create more academies if the case was the need of more service education). If someone knows this and could tell me, that'd be awesome- I'd like to know.

Obviously, to my knowledge, the academies have their own unique purpose, or otherwise they wouldn't exist, and ROTC would take their places or vice versa. There must be a reason why the AFA gives cadets the choice of writing, as part of their essay duty, about what they want to get out of the "academy experience."

No offense to those that went or are going through ROTC. I'm not belittling it's purpose. But to me, when I look at what a college offers as financial aid, you can either find ROTC or not in those lists. Meaning there are plenty of people who go through the same processes just to be able to pay for the college of their choice. Many without any intentions of ever pursuing the military after their required time.
 
I've even served with a few Mustangs.

Whats a mustang...? sorry >.<

Also one problem with ROTC, some universities are GREAT some are very involved and train very well. Others are lazy and dont do much work.

That is a problem with ROTC, as long as you go to the school with the good ROTC program I think its good, I wish all ROTC programs were great! :thumb:
 
Ok!!! Enough! :eek: I made this thread to leart about your PERSONAL opinions about the UNITED STATES AIR FORCE ACADEMY! So chill out guys!
I don't care who thinks that the SA's are better than ROTC or anything!
I just want to get a better understanding of the AFA! :unhappy: SO STOP ARGUING!!! :rant2::rant2::rant2::rant2::rant2:


Ok I'm not going to explode anymore :smile: :angel: :wiggle:
 
(I know they were created to train officers in the military, but I don't know why they didn't just create more academies if the case was the need of more service education). If someone knows this and could tell me, that'd be awesome- I'd like to know.

MONEY. Costs about $375,000 per AFA cadet to commission, SIGNIFICANTLY more than for ROTC. At only 20% of the commissioned officers coming from USAFA, that tells you that they couldn't afford to do it for everyone.
 
this discussion now has 12 pages.
just thought i'd throw that out there... hahaha :)

service academies are great. rotc is good too, depending on where you go. each has its ups and downs, pros and cons, yada yada yada. go visit rotc, come visit here, decide for yourself.
 
Only 21 more posts and this thread is on the leaderboard! :shake:
Don't let it die :stretcher: keep posting the Pros and Cons of the AFA

YAY! Just so you know This is my 50th post :groupwave:
 
FalconFan - you don't need to yell and scream.
You asked a question - a provacative one at that.
The nature of a forum is that you will get many different answers and points of view. Some answers may be grounded in reality with a dose of experience to back it up and others may be a bit off the wall and born out of rumor or heresay.
Some you may agree with because they suit your situation and others you may disagree with. so be it.
You have to decide whom to believe when fed conflicting information.

As far a benefits of attending an academy over ROTC - this means different things to different people. A benefit for one person may not be a benefit for someone else.
 
Has anyone mentioned that the best thing about attending the AFA is all the weekends off to go skiing? And three weeks for Winter Break? :biggrin:

And that cadets get to wear baseball hats (or do you call them "covers" in the AF?) during summer training?

Maybe AFA cadets even rate really nice, soft mattress pads (Like the USNA mids). It is worth checking out. These little perks may make a difference. :wink:

A visit would be well worth the effort, Falconfan14. (I am being serious now...:smile:)

Bye :wave:,

Ant
 
The longest school year in the entire country?:thumbdown:
and the wind....Auntie Em!!!!
and the lightening van...vroooom vroooom
and a Blue Bird!
and a bunny:eek:
 
MONEY. Costs about $375,000 per AFA cadet to commission, SIGNIFICANTLY more than for ROTC. At only 20% of the commissioned officers coming from USAFA, that tells you that they couldn't afford to do it for everyone.

Make one less B-2 and they could do a lot more than do it for everyone.
 
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