Rising 2 Degree at USAFA, AMA

Driver2077

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Apr 24, 2020
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I'll try my best to offer my any advice or experience I have gathered from my 2 years at USAFA. Ask anything and I will try my best to be a good ambassador to the institution and not talk out of my realm of knowledge. Admissions questions are best kept for the ALO
 
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I'll try my best to offer my any advice or experience I have gathered from my 2 years at USAFA. Ask anything and I will try my best to be a good ambassador to the institution and not talk out of my realm of knowledge. Admissions questions are best kept for the ALO
What kind of opportunities are there with the Aeronautics/Aerospace program? Ex: internships, curriculum, working with different cool stuff?

Thanks!
 
I declared myself as an aeronautical engineering major the start of my 3deg year and that curriculum has been very challenging thus far. I have not advanced far enough into the major to be exposed to internship opportunities, but I know that if they were to be offered to an upperclassmen it would likely be between their junior and senior summers. I can also speak to the great faculty, staff, and facilities within the aero department. The teachers have an amazing breadth of knowledge and many have a great deal of experience in both the civilian and military world of aerodynamic engineering. The aero lab is an amazing tool that you become more exposed to going into junior and senior years. Overall a great and challenging path to take at the academy and I could possibly try to answer any other questions within my major.
 
I'm a rising AS200 (3* at the Academy) in Aerospace Engineering right now. One thing my school does pretty good at is making a community of AE students, and it's actually extremely helpful to be able to study with and get to know people that you'll be working with in your upperclassmen years on design projects and whatnot.
My question is, how much of a community of Aeronautical Engineers does AFA foster, outside of the whole military aspect of the academy? Or are academic groupings not necessarily as strong as the military/dorm groupings?
 
How hard is it to get a double major in aerospace engineering and computer science engineering?

Becoming a double major will depend mostly on the options that you give yourself going into school and if it is possible with scheduling. When you validate classes going into school, or give up a summer leave period to get a class ahead, you open up academic room in your schedule that makes the possibility of a double major more realistic. I knew a 20er who was a double major in Aero and Applied Math, who on in his senior year was taking close to, or at, the maximum credit hours that the school will allow in a semester. This can be extremely difficult to manage all of these classes and I can assure you that an Aero or Comp Sci major will be difficult in their own regards. That being said, I will not discourage anyone from a challenge and if you would like to make the most of your academic time at the academy it can be possible. My advice to double major, validate as much as possible before USAFA then crush every class when you get there. Good Luck!
 
I'm a rising AS200 (3* at the Academy) in Aerospace Engineering right now. One thing my school does pretty good at is making a community of AE students, and it's actually extremely helpful to be able to study with and get to know people that you'll be working with in your upperclassmen years on design projects and whatnot.
My question is, how much of a community of Aeronautical Engineers does AFA foster, outside of the whole military aspect of the academy? Or are academic groupings not necessarily as strong as the military/dorm groupings?

I really can't speak past the community of majors and faculty. A graduate who applied their major could best answer that question I believe.
 
I'll try my best to offer my any advice or experience I have gathered from my 2 years at USAFA. Ask anything and I will try my best to be a good ambassador to the institution and not talk out of my realm of knowledge. Admissions questions are best kept for the ALO
Thank you for your offer from the real world. It's very precious and valuable for new cadet.
 
What are the chances for getting a pilot slot for a non-STEM vs STEM major?

It is not entirely clear how much a STEM major will help in getting a pilot slot when at USAFA, but the Superintendent has stressed that having a technical major will help. It is definitely one consideration when choosing a major because some years have less pilots slots then others. In the class of 2019 nearly every single cadet that asked for a pilot slot got one, meaning that their choice of major was a non-factor. Yet in recent years that number has slightly dropped, leading the Supt to promote STEM majors as an advantage for attaining a pilot slot.
Yet it is also important to talk about how many factors lead into getting a pilot slot including major choice, OPA, logged pilot hours, AFOQT scores, TBAS scores, and medical clearance. So a there is a lot that goes into selection, but if you make yourself competitive while at USAFA you will have a better chance with years of low pilot slots. Good Question!
 
How many percentage of cadets can go graduate school? How can you get two titles when you are graduated from AFA, like "acquisitions/intelligence"? Double major? I know it's hard to handle your classes like you said before.
 
How many percentage of cadets can go graduate school? How can you get two titles when you are graduated from AFA, like "acquisitions/intelligence"? Double major? I know it's hard to handle your classes like you said before.

Personally I am not following a track to go to grad school but I know a lot of fellow cadets who are. This article should give a reasonable understanding of how many cadets go to graduate school directly after USAFA. The percentage I imagine is less than 10%. https://www.usafa.org/news/gradstudies. The article says that 113 cadets will followed that track from the class of 2019. Opportunities are vast and very rewarding. Of course grad school can also be accomplished later in your Air Force career and is encouraged for rank progression.

Regarding two titles after USAFA, I do not have an answer to that question.

About double majors, there are lot of ways to make that work. As I said earlier, if you give yourself the opportunities, a lot is possible. It will require a lot of communication between you and your academic advisor to make it work, but can be realistic. A lot of great minors are at USAFA as well, including a wide range of languages.
 
It is not entirely clear how much a STEM major will help in getting a pilot slot when at USAFA, but the Superintendent has stressed that having a technical major will help. It is definitely one consideration when choosing a major because some years have less pilots slots then others. In the class of 2019 nearly every single cadet that asked for a pilot slot got one, meaning that their choice of major was a non-factor. Yet in recent years that number has slightly dropped, leading the Supt to promote STEM majors as an advantage for attaining a pilot slot.
Yet it is also important to talk about how many factors lead into getting a pilot slot including major choice, OPA, logged pilot hours, AFOQT scores, TBAS scores, and medical clearance. So a there is a lot that goes into selection, but if you make yourself competitive while at USAFA you will have a better chance with years of low pilot slots. Good Question!
You said logged pilot hours are considered. Is it possible for Cadets to gain these while at USAFA (for those w/o a PPL)? Or is this based on prior experience before attending? Thank you!
 
You say having logged pilot hours are considered. Is it possible for Cadets to gain these while at USAFA? Or is this based on prior experience before attending? Thank you!

The score that will be most influential to you getting a pilot slot is know as the PCSM score and here are some articles that know more than me about it:

The second article notes that civilian rated hours will not account on a hour-by-hour basis and will instead fall into these brackets for points to be awarded. The article states that each bracket may increase a PCSM by 4 or 5 points.
0 hours
1 – 5 hours
6 – 10 hours
11 – 20 hours
21 – 40 hours
41 – 60 hours
61 – 80 hours
81 – 100 hours
101 – 200 hours
201 hours and up

You have options at USAFA to obtain these hours. USAFA has an awesome flying team that is competitive to join and will require a private pilot's license (PPL). I believe that the soaring team can also build hours if you hold the highest instructor rating within the team. A friend of mine in the class of 20 boasted the highest PCSM score, largely due to his hundreds of hours soaring. And finally the most reliable option is to pay for lessons before or after you arrive. Local airports around the country have programs to get you started.

There are some challenges flying as a cadet if you are not on the flying or soaring team. Motivation and time is one. It can be very difficult to find the time on the weekends between classes and mandatory football games to squeeze the hours in. Cost is another, as the cadet salary isn't the largest in the world and flying is an expensive hobby. Transportation just another problem, as you cannot have a car until junior year. BEFORE YOU GET DISCOURAGED!!! With enough determination and focus you can tackle these problems and get after it. Taking down challenges like these are what the academy is about!
 
The score that will be most influential to you getting a pilot slot is know as the PCSM score and here are some articles that know more than me about it:

The second article notes that civilian rated hours will not account on a hour-by-hour basis and will instead fall into these brackets for points to be awarded. The article states that each bracket may increase a PCSM by 4 or 5 points.
0 hours
1 – 5 hours
6 – 10 hours
11 – 20 hours
21 – 40 hours
41 – 60 hours
61 – 80 hours
81 – 100 hours
101 – 200 hours
201 hours and up

You have options at USAFA to obtain these hours. USAFA has an awesome flying team that is competitive to join and will require a private pilot's license (PPL). I believe that the soaring team can also build hours if you hold the highest instructor rating within the team. A friend of mine in the class of 20 boasted the highest PCSM score, largely due to his hundreds of hours soaring. And finally the most reliable option is to pay for lessons before or after you arrive. Local airports around the country have programs to get you started.

There are some challenges flying as a cadet if you are not on the flying or soaring team. Motivation and time is one. It can be very difficult to find the time on the weekends between classes and mandatory football games to squeeze the hours in. Cost is another, as the cadet salary isn't the largest in the world and flying is an expensive hobby. Transportation just another problem, as you cannot have a car until junior year. BEFORE YOU GET DISCOURAGED!!! With enough determination and focus you can tackle these problems and get after it. Taking down challenges like these are what the academy is about!
Thank you so much!
 
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