USMAPS or ROTC scholarship info/advice

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2022USMAHopefuldad

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Looking for some insight and possibly some things that we may have overlooked in regards to a decision our DD has to make. She had been waiting on some type of communication from USMA in regards to her appointment status. She was in contact via email with her FFR and RC and was informed yesterday that she was offered a spot at the USMAPS. She has also accepted an AROTC 4 year scholarship along with a presidential academic scholarship to school with a top notch Nursing program about 2 hours from home. Her education would be fully funded. She is ranked 5th in her high school class and has 4.0/5.0 GPA and is a very strong athlete. She was informed all along that her SAT/ACT scores were just average and that may be the only thing holding up a 2022 appointment. She is quite confident she will do well at the prep school and would enter West Point's class of 2023. Starting this whole process relatively late and being unfamiliar with it to say the least, there wasn't enough time to take a course/train to get a better score. Her desire/goal is to become and officer in the US Army and a Registered Nurse and serve in the nursing corp. but is open to other degrees related to the medical field as well. West Point doesn't offer Nursing as a degree option and there is no guarantee that she would even get into a medically related one . I guess the info/advice we are looking for was if anyone else was faced with a similar decision and what their choices/experiences were? Any advice or thoughts would be helpful.
 
Tough choice with many variables. My DD was almost in the same position last year. My DD chose USMAPS. After many, many trials and tribulations, it looks like everything will work out. The Army ROTC full ride looks, a year later, that it could have been a very good choice for her as well. Given the choice of nursing, the ROTC path may be better. A family member retired after 20 years as a nurse in the military and had a great career.
 
Classof83 said:
Tough choice with many variables. My DD was almost in the same position last year. My DD chose USMAPS. After many, many trials and tribulations, it looks like everything will work out. The Army ROTC full ride looks, a year later, that it could have been a very good choice for her as well. Given the choice of nursing, the ROTC path may be better. A family member retired after 20 years as a nurse in the military and had a great career.
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Very helpful Classof83! Thank you and the best of lucky to your DD!
 
The ROTC choice for our DD would have also been only 2 hours away. That would have been nice.

The med school slots are very tough to get. The daughter of a friend tried and didn't get one. She flies medavac helicopters now and plans on going to med school later. My older DD (2015 grad) had a fantastic experience at West Point and is enjoying the Army as a combat engineer.
 
My son has been at USMAPS the last 10 months and the experience has been extraordinary. I have visited the Prep School several times and had significant interaction with the leadership. I could not speak more highly of the choice my son made to do it. I graduated USMA in 83 and have three good friends who are grads who DD and DS did not get in directly this year. All three would kill for the USMAPS slot. They are each taking different paths (AOG, self and ROTC) but all three wish they could have gotten USMAPS.
 
There is no direct path to Army Nursing through West Point. If she is dead set on being a Nurse, the ROTC option may be better. With that said and I may be a little biased; nothing in the world can compare to the experience of four years at West Point. It will prepare her for almost anything she decides to do. The prep school is a golden ticket and her spot in the Class of 2023 is secure as long as she does her part. Spending a year at prep school will only help her mature and make plebe year significantly easier.
 
I know how long you have been waiting and this news is so exciting. How did your daughter decide on nursing as a career? My DD would have loved to of had the golden ticket last year and been offered AOG or PS, instead we self prepped and waiting/prayed and finally got word of her appointment 3 weeks ago. I think there are so many career choices at West Point that maybe the decision should be if she would chose West Point or Nursing. Then you will have your answer. Has she actually interned at a hospital or shadowed a nurse for for any length, the career is hard at best and the shift work and hours make juggling a family and nursing career hard at best.
 
Hello @DDmom, Yes! The news is exciting and stressful at the same time. This will be one of her biggest life decisions thus far in her short 17 years. We know that there will always be the "what if" no matter which path she chooses. Her Mother/my wife is a RN/BSN and DD has always been interested in anatomy and such, wants to help people, sees herself eventually getting an engineering degree as well and improving prosthetics. Whether that will all pan out or not, well, we will all just have to wait and see. I admire her for being a strong young woman with a great head on her shoulders and knowing what she wants in life. I also admire her passion to serve her country. Now its just a matter of which path she will take. Tough decision ahead for sure.
 
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2022USMAHopefuldad said:
Hello @DDmom, Yes! The news is exciting and stressful at the same time. This will be one of her biggest life decisions thus far in her short 17 years. We know that there will always be the "what if" no matter which path she chooses. Her Mother/my wife is a RN/BSN and DD has always been interested in anatomy and such, wants to help people, sees herself eventually getting an engineering degree as well and improving prosthetics. Whether that will all pan out or not, well, we will all just have to wait and see. I admire her for being a strong young woman with a great head on her shoulders and knowing what she wants in life. I also admire her passion to serve her country. Now its just a matter of which path she will take. Tough decision ahead for sure.
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Congrats to your DD on getting selected for USMAPS and a 4-year scholarship. It boils down to how much she wants to be a nurse and/or how much time she wants to take to get there. If she goes to the school close to your home, then she will have her BSN and be part of the Army Nurse Corps in 4 years. If she goes to USMAPS, then she will be a 2LT in 5 years but will have to will until her active duty service obligation to be completed before she gets to go to nursing school. If she goes this route, then at least there are many accelerated programs out there that will allow her to earn a BSN degree in 15-18 months because she already has a college degree in hand.

Who knows? Maybe if she goes the USMAPS/USMA route, then she can commission as a medical service corps officer and then eventually go to the Army's Physical Therapy program with Baylor University if she's interested in anatomy and prosthetics.

Tough choice...
 
Or she can go into another branch and then come join us at te Uniformed Services University. Medical school is not a one time and you’re out sort of thing. The kids can apply while on active duty to a variety of health related programs including the HPSP. However West Point to Nursing is not a direct path. These are all great choices. I learned a lot as a line officer before transitioning to a health field. I recommend it—the leadership experience is transformational. However she should do some soul searching. At this point it is West Point or nursing—she can become an officer both ways. Good luck.
 
2022usmahopefuldad
Congratulations to you and your DD, she has some excellent opportunities! Both fully funded.
While I don't have any experience regarding a path to nursing in the ARMY, I will give you my .02. If your DD wants WP, and is only hesitant because she doesn't feel nursing is achievable going that route, choose the WP via USMAPS option anyhow. While the path to nursing won't seem clear choosing this route, there are many other things that you don't see right now that will make this route a better choice in the long run IMO. As others mentioned, there are ways to either commission into the health field, or via secondary education later on.
My main point is that if she wants to serve in the ARMY, all of the opportunities and benefits of attending West Point both known and unknown are second to none. She could get her Engineering degree there while more than likely having the opportunity to learn about prosthetics that she's interested in! If after commissioning, she still wants to pursue the healthcare field, she will have all of these great accomplishments behind her that will only add to her continuing success, it would just be a little longer path.....
Either way, best of luck and I wish her the best!
Keep us posted
 
If nursing is the primary goal, ROTC is clearly the best option. If she looks at her future more broadly though, nothing really compares to being a graduate of West Point, both in terms of resume building for either a military career or a civilian career thereafter. The experience at USMA might be more difficult, and less fun in many respects, but the life growth experience can not be substituted. Although my son was a direct appointment, and never experienced the Prep School himself, it is my understanding that being a prep-schooler provides a tremendous academic and military foundation, and gives those cadets a huge advantage when they do start at WP a year later. It isn't a bad thing to get a USMAPS offer; its a great thing.

I think your daughter should treat this decision exactly the same as if she received a WP direct appointment, and weigh that against the ROTC option. Which would she have chosen had she received a direct appointment? If it would have been WP, than she should take the USMAPS appointment. ROTC is frequently an option for most who also receive a USMA appointment. It is always a tough call because they are both incredible options. I felt a little sick when my son rejected his 4 year ROTC scholarship, to schools which also offered other large scholarships covering everything else. I think after two years at WP my son thinks a bit about "what if..?". For him though the choice was clear, and he has no real regrets. The one thing I notice about ROTC is that attrition seems to be much higher than it is at West Point.
 
One more thing to consider is that I believe the year at usmaps counts as one of the five years they owe as service. So after grad WP they only owe 4 years active duty.
 
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