- Joined
- Jul 24, 2014
- Messages
- 1,140
You're worried for nothing. Remember, averages are just that. They indicate that about half the pool is above and about half below. Your kid will not be lonely in that upper pool, and it is foolish to be concerned. Your son is not going to be unique, and USMA is not going to waste his time. Our son was that super student, well-prepared coming from a New England boarding school, validated every Plebe class possible and started Plebe year much further along in the curriculum stream. A+ in Jedi math, etc. Graduated at the top of his EE class this past May. He was not a cohort of one, or ten, or even fifty. There is a very large pool of academic achievers at all the of the academies. So let those concerns go.
Here's what we've come to understand. By design, the academies do not value academics the same way civilian colleges weight them. The SAs value a combination of brains, brawn, and leadership somewhat equally--as they must. Until he was fully into his major, our son was underwhelmed by the academics at West Point. The brain trust is there, but cadets sometimes have to seek it out. When he discussed this with his department head, the LTC explained to him that only about one third of any incoming class is selected for academic chops; the other 2/3rds are chosen for other equally shiny traits. All are academically capable, all pass the academic bar, but only that third is what you might label “scholarly.” Our son learned to value those other critical equally shiny traits in his band of brothers very highly. The corps needs a balance of all of them in a way civilian colleges do not as their missions differ vastly. The Army puts it this way (as inscribed in stone at West Point):
The service academies are looking to produce capable officers for each branch of our armed services. It takes a certain kind of kid to go this route, and those kids don’t always look like the applicants to the usual civilian suspects. If academics rather than service is the main concern of any applicant's college evaluation, then the SAs probably aren't for them, not because that applicant can't be academically satisfied (s/he can) but because getting through a service academy and the years of service that follow takes a gut commitment to something else. And it's the "something else" that the academies are about.
Also, if your son is appointed, he will find that where he is strong, he will help others, and where he is weak others will help him. That's how the three pillars (academics, physical, military/leadership) work. Our son was an academic tutor, but he gratefully and humbly received help in areas he was not so strong. Though a champion rower, he struggled with several aspects of the IOCT. He was always amazed at the spirit of competitive cooperation around him. When he was struggling with the rope climb or other maneuver, another cadet always stopped his own workout to assist, give pointers, and help him be better. No one is equally strong in every pillar. All benefit from the different expertises around them. The sooner each cadet learns to accept as well as give help and to sincerely value what each cadet brings to the table, the stronger and more successful s/he will be.
I have posted here many times that I think our son had better college options, but he got the academic experience he needed and was seeking at West Point. West Point was able to deliver; he was not disappointed, and he certainly wasn't alone.
Here's what we've come to understand. By design, the academies do not value academics the same way civilian colleges weight them. The SAs value a combination of brains, brawn, and leadership somewhat equally--as they must. Until he was fully into his major, our son was underwhelmed by the academics at West Point. The brain trust is there, but cadets sometimes have to seek it out. When he discussed this with his department head, the LTC explained to him that only about one third of any incoming class is selected for academic chops; the other 2/3rds are chosen for other equally shiny traits. All are academically capable, all pass the academic bar, but only that third is what you might label “scholarly.” Our son learned to value those other critical equally shiny traits in his band of brothers very highly. The corps needs a balance of all of them in a way civilian colleges do not as their missions differ vastly. The Army puts it this way (as inscribed in stone at West Point):
The service academies are looking to produce capable officers for each branch of our armed services. It takes a certain kind of kid to go this route, and those kids don’t always look like the applicants to the usual civilian suspects. If academics rather than service is the main concern of any applicant's college evaluation, then the SAs probably aren't for them, not because that applicant can't be academically satisfied (s/he can) but because getting through a service academy and the years of service that follow takes a gut commitment to something else. And it's the "something else" that the academies are about.
Also, if your son is appointed, he will find that where he is strong, he will help others, and where he is weak others will help him. That's how the three pillars (academics, physical, military/leadership) work. Our son was an academic tutor, but he gratefully and humbly received help in areas he was not so strong. Though a champion rower, he struggled with several aspects of the IOCT. He was always amazed at the spirit of competitive cooperation around him. When he was struggling with the rope climb or other maneuver, another cadet always stopped his own workout to assist, give pointers, and help him be better. No one is equally strong in every pillar. All benefit from the different expertises around them. The sooner each cadet learns to accept as well as give help and to sincerely value what each cadet brings to the table, the stronger and more successful s/he will be.
I have posted here many times that I think our son had better college options, but he got the academic experience he needed and was seeking at West Point. West Point was able to deliver; he was not disappointed, and he certainly wasn't alone.
