Would you do it again?

I think it's fair to say, that there are some alumni of the academies that if they had it to do all over again, might choose differently.
My son (current 2 degree) visited USAFA during the Fall of his HS senior year. On the plane ride back to Pittsburgh he sat next to a USAFA grad (former AF) that told him that he would NEVER do it again and wouldn't recommend it to anyone else. Too difficult with too little college fun.

Needless to say my son didn't take his advice....and often remarks that he thinks he made the correct choice for himself.
 
I can understand that attitude. It took me a long time to put the Academy experience in perspective. I almost didnt go to the tenth reunion...but am glad i went!

There is a lot of pressure there, not many attaboys given out...mostly a matter of survival.

But it was that antagonistic environment that made us who we are...good or bad.
 
I would definitely do it again but differently. I didn't take enough of an advantage of all the opportunities I had before me due to some personal issues I was going through at the time.

And this is coming from someone who hated most days.
 
I think most know I attended USNA for my plebe year, then separated and attended a liberal arts college. I would have been class of '93. I was talking with a friend about USNA last week and the question came up: Were you glad you left? Would you do it again?

Yes, and YES.

USNA wasn't a good fit for me. Oh, I did fine academically, physically, and militarily - had a 3.401 SQPR :biggrin: after first semester and made the Dean's List. Yet I knew at the end of one semester that it wasn't the right place for me. It wasn’t the stupid day-to-day inconveniences of being a plebe – I knew better than to make a decision based on a state of existence that I knew would end at some point. I wanted to really think deeply about what I was learning and putting together, not just plug-and-chug. I wanted some academic ambiguity, some “gray areas” to wrestle with and fill on my own. The place was still much less of the liberal-arts model they've lurched toward in recent years. The biggest factor, though, and the game changer, was that I figured out I didn't want to be an officer in the USN or USMC. I talked to a lot of people ahead of that decision. They all tried to get me to stay, especially with that SQPR, and being a woman. Remember, this is still the early days of women being at the service academies, and my sense is they were working pretty hard to make sure the right ones succeeded.

So, I put in my separation papers after finals, stayed through June week (outprocessing), and walked out gate 3 in early June 1990 as a civilian. I transferred to a lib-arts college and graduated. A few years later I completed a PhD in a STEM field and am now a college instructor at a large university.

But wait, there's more to it.

Would I do that year over again? Yes, yes, a resounding YES. It was during that year of my life that some of my best habits, both of behavior and thinking, first began to coalesce and harden. I still get more done in less time than many people I know. I can ignore noise - literal and figurative - better than many people I know. When there is something important, really important, that needs completion, my commitment to the deadline is (usually) stronger than emotions or preferences or physical states ("I don't want to, I'm too tired, I'd rather read a book"). I learned to actively seek the people and resources I needed to get a job done. I learned, at a much earlier age than many of my peers, to endure. This isn’t to presume I wouldn’t have developed those habits of mind and behavior if I hadn’t attended USNA – but it would have taken me a lot longer, based on what I saw in my peers. I’m not sure I would have had the stones to handle some of the life situations that came up while I was in college, and shortly after I graduated, without those lessons, even as I struggled to understand what USNA had made me. In other words, the conscious understanding of what USNA had made me came long after the subconscious, but operational lessons.

This conversation came up with my colleague and friend in the context of an all-consuming project we're both working on. I told him about practicing survival breathing, and he asked what I meant, so I told him about the PE class (was it "just" fourth-class swimming, or combat swimming? I've long forgotten) in which the final test was survival breathing. That experience - surviving and breathing for five minutes in the deep end, with my hands and ankles tied - is something I've called on several times in the intervening 24 years. Like so many of my experiences at USNA, the literal has become a powerful metaphor in my life. Most of my time there fell on the disliked-to-hated continuum - and I'm so glad, so deeply thankful, that I had it.
 
Last edited:
a current parent's perspective

It's so interesting to read the responses to this post, especially sitting here as a parent of one midshipman, with youngest son stalking the mailman daily for his letter from USNA admissions...it has been quite the journey for our current 2nd class mid - did all the right things in high school and was fortunate to be picked up and go to USNA right away. His dream for as long as I can remember, it has not been a picnic but he knows it is the right place for him, and he's fully vested in the process. The growth over the last few years is amazing - constantly bouncing back from disappointments, and feeling like he's the only one who barely passes the PRT (not to mention the only one who doesn't have a 4.0). Now that he's an upperclass, his natural leadership abilities are getting a chance to shine, which has brought a new confidence level, but there is still the occasional "I can't stand this place" phone call - usually right after an exam week! The last one had me listening to a 45-minute rant about EE (I learned long ago to ask if he just wanted to let off some steam or was looking for solutions, and this was the former) - his closing words were "I sure hope (younger brother) get's an appointment soon!" My reply - "you mean to this place that you hate..." His response - "Yes, mom, that's the one" :) The back-and-forth is constant, but the underlying pride and commitment is always there...and the Ring Dance is only a few months away!
 
When I drove back from summer leave to start my Firstie year, I drove in from the east. As I passed Limon and could start seeing the Front Range of the Rockies; I for the first time got a rush of excitement...not the impending doom like previous years.

I was completely pumped to the class that now leads the Academy, and in a year, a new 2lt!

I felt like I was the Academy, rather than just barely hanging on to it.
 
I asked DS's ALO (when DS was not around) what his best experience at USAFA was. He hesitated for a moment while looking me square in the eye. He answered, "Seeing the Academy in my rear view mirror on graduation day." He went on to say that "it is a great place to be from". While he was glad he went through and survived the experience, he was grateful he'd never have to do anything like that again. Would he do it again? "Yes, without a doubt."
 
I asked DS's ALO (when DS was not around) what his best experience at USAFA was. He hesitated for a moment while looking me square in the eye. He answered, "Seeing the Academy in my rear view mirror on graduation day." He went on to say that "it is a great place to be from". While he was glad he went through and survived the experience, he was grateful he'd never have to do anything like that again. Would he do it again? "Yes, without a doubt."

That's hilarious - thanks for the laugh!
 
Back
Top