I'm a parent of a current 2nd class. Let me tell you, I have met some of the best of kids, who are friends of my mid at USNA. Let me also tell you that to a man, not one of those mids would do it again. Not one. On the surface, they'll give you a dishonest 'things are going ok'. In reality, they WOULD NOT RECOMMEND USNA to any prospective student. My mid is a different person than the happy-go-lucky, personable guy he was before USNA. After 2 1/2 years: cynical, bereft of energy; disillusioned; unhappy; a shadow of his former self, who was a 4.00 GPA, 2 sport all conference athlete. "The all-American kid". Other parents I've come to know all have come to the same realization.
Parents, yes, you will be so proud to tell your co-workers, relatives, golf buddies and anyone else who sees your USNA car sticker and USNA sweatshirts, that your DS/DD is at THE USNA!! I qualify for parent of the year! But it's not about you. Gotta understand that ASAP.
The mind-bending time spent at USNA will change your DS/DD and not for the better; you will wonder what ever happened to my Johnny. Decisions made by the Supe, Dant, Company Officers, Brigade Officers, etc will spin your head. Designed to turn these bright, energetic kids into robots who slog through their days, resigned to not thinking on their own. {And you tough, macho, we had it so much harder in my day types, can now be dismissed}
Let me give you a case in point this week. A mid (not mine) who was overweight and therefore considered unsat, worked out to get in shape and lose some weight to get ready for the PRT last weekend; he lost the necessary wt to now be sat! He even passed his PRT! All is good right? No. He lost the necessary wt and passed the PRT. But no, he still is losing his spring break privileges......because he's unsat. Why is he unsat even though he's within weight and passed the PRT? Because the USNA says "he lost too much weight in the given time period". He did too good. That's the logic that mids are dealing with day in and day out. A myriad of such examples of irrational USNA life are there. To the point where they practically wave the white flag and resign themselves to giving up. Still great kids, but certainly not the same. Not changed for the better.
Think it over. Do you want to recognize your bright, optimistic, high-achieving DS/DD in 3 years? Then go elsewhere.
Jomass: I'm not disagreeing with your assessment but I am interested in why your son chose to commit after his second year? Why not just bail then? Do you know whether the USNA is experiencing a large number (%) of mids leaving before commitment? It seems to me if things are that bad that more would leave.....but I could be wrong.I'm a parent of a current 2nd class. Let me tell you, I have met some of the best of kids, who are friends of my mid at USNA. Let me also tell you that to a man, not one of those mids would do it again. Not one. On the surface, they'll give you a dishonest 'things are going ok'. In reality, they WOULD NOT RECOMMEND USNA to any prospective student. My mid is a different person than the happy-go-lucky, personable guy he was before USNA. After 2 1/2 years: cynical, bereft of energy; disillusioned; unhappy; a shadow of his former self, who was a 4.00 GPA, 2 sport all conference athlete. "The all-American kid". Other parents I've come to know all have come to the same realization.
Parents, yes, you will be so proud to tell your co-workers, relatives, golf buddies and anyone else who sees your USNA car sticker and USNA sweatshirts, that your DS/DD is at THE USNA!! I qualify for parent of the year! But it's not about you. Gotta understand that ASAP.
The mind-bending time spent at USNA will change your DS/DD and not for the better; you will wonder what ever happened to my Johnny. Decisions made by the Supe, Dant, Company Officers, Brigade Officers, etc will spin your head. Designed to turn these bright, energetic kids into robots who slog through their days, resigned to not thinking on their own. {And you tough, macho, we had it so much harder in my day types, can now be dismissed}
Let me give you a case in point this week. A mid (not mine) who was overweight and therefore considered unsat, worked out to get in shape and lose some weight to get ready for the PRT last weekend; he lost the necessary wt to now be sat! He even passed his PRT! All is good right? No. He lost the necessary wt and passed the PRT. But no, he still is losing his spring break privileges......because he's unsat. Why is he unsat even though he's within weight and passed the PRT? Because the USNA says "he lost too much weight in the given time period". He did too good. That's the logic that mids are dealing with day in and day out. A myriad of such examples of irrational USNA life are there. To the point where they practically wave the white flag and resign themselves to giving up. Still great kids, but certainly not the same. Not changed for the better.
Think it over. Do you want to recognize your bright, optimistic, high-achieving DS/DD in 3 years? Then go elsewhere
Maybe he thought better of it and decided to step away from the keyboard. The problem with the Internet is that it is almost impossible to "undo" something once it has been posted.I am a bit perplexed at why you would post something like this concerning telling parents not to send their sons or daughters to unsna and then completely delete your entire post.
I'm a parent of a current 2nd class. Let me tell you, I have met some of the best of kids, who are friends of my mid at USNA. Let me also tell you that to a man, not one of those mids would do it again. Not one. On the surface, they'll give you a dishonest 'things are going ok'. In reality, they WOULD NOT RECOMMEND USNA to any prospective student. My mid is a different person than the happy-go-lucky, personable guy he was before USNA. After 2 1/2 years: cynical, bereft of energy; disillusioned; unhappy; a shadow of his former self, who was a 4.00 GPA, 2 sport all conference athlete. "The all-American kid". Other parents I've come to know all have come to the same realization.
Parents, yes, you will be so proud to tell your co-workers, relatives, golf buddies and anyone else who sees your USNA car sticker and USNA sweatshirts, that your DS/DD is at THE USNA!! I qualify for parent of the year! But it's not about you. Gotta understand that ASAP.
The mind-bending time spent at USNA will change your DS/DD and not for the better; you will wonder what ever happened to my Johnny. Decisions made by the Supe, Dant, Company Officers, Brigade Officers, etc will spin your head. Designed to turn these bright, energetic kids into robots who slog through their days, resigned to not thinking on their own. {And you tough, macho, we had it so much harder in my day types, can now be dismissed}
Let me give you a case in point this week. A mid (not mine) who was overweight and therefore considered unsat, worked out to get in shape and lose some weight to get ready for the PRT last weekend; he lost the necessary wt to now be sat! He even passed his PRT! All is good right? No. He lost the necessary wt and passed the PRT. But no, he still is losing his spring break privileges......because he's unsat. Why is he unsat even though he's within weight and passed the PRT? Because the USNA says "he lost too much weight in the given time period". He did too good. That's the logic that mids are dealing with day in and day out. A myriad of such examples of irrational USNA life are there. To the point where they practically wave the white flag and resign themselves to giving up. Still great kids, but certainly not the same. Not changed for the better.
Think it over. Do you want to recognize your bright, optimistic, high-achieving DS/DD in 3 years? Then go elsewhere.