"Chance" Me for United States Military Academy / West Point (2023, current junior)

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

Hello!

I am currently a junior and am aiming at West Point admission (Class of 2023) as a goal over the next year and a half or so. I’m wondering if any of you have any advice on how I can improve my chances and how I currently stand.

Academically, I take all honors and AP classes, and have about a 3.8 unweighted and 4.35 weighted. I’m taking all the most challenging courses my school has to offer, including AP Physics, AP U.S. History, AP Lang, etc this year and I am on track to take AP Chemistry and AP Calculus next year. We do not know our class ranks but I am likely in the top 10%.

I’ve taken the ACT twice, my scores are…

  • Math: 30
  • Science: 29
  • English: 34
  • Reading: 33
  • Composite: 32

I’ve also only taken the SAT once; I got a 1400 (700 for both sections).

For my extracurriculars…

  • Student government (hoping to be President next year, but if not I will have a high position)
  • Lettered all through high school in soccer, indoor track, and lacrosse
  • Track captain and will likely be a lacrosse captain come spring
  • All-Conference honors in soccer and lacrosse, All-State in lacrosse
  • President/founder of a politics and civics club (1 yr)
  • Volunteer in Unified Sports (3 yrs)
  • Spanish Honors Society (2 yrs)
  • Percussion Section Leader for school band, drummer in school Jazz Ensemble (3 yrs)
  • Music Honors Society (1 yr)
  • Robotics Team (3 yrs)
  • Math Team (2 yrs)
  • Freshman Class President (1 yr)
  • Hugh O’Brian Leadership Conference & START Leadership Conference (I was faculty nominated for both as the only attendee from our school)
  • Not current, but I will most likely be inducted into National Honors Society in the spring.

I have started training for my CFA, but I haven’t officially taken it yet. I do not know if it matters, but I have spoken with my Field Force Representative, my Regional Admissions official, and have done a day visit to USMA. I’m also working on getting a nomination for Girls’ State, which I know USMA likes to see.

I’m looking for some advice on what I can improve on to make myself more competitive for admissions. My academics are pretty much set in stone at this point, but any other extracurriculars, tips, or other things I should know about would be very helpful.

Thank you!

2

You have very impressive credentials, but you are asking the wrong forum for advice. Go to the service academy forums, and read as much as you can. All of your questions will be answered there many times over. Get your application completed as early as possible and have back up plans A, B and C. My DS is a senior and just received a 4-year NROTC scholarship to one of his top schools, and also is awaiting word from the USNA on whether he will receive an appointment, so we just went through the application process. He is also a HOBY alum! He has solid academic credentials, and leadership, but mostly he has a burning desire to be a Marine and serve his country. Good luck.

3

Thank you for your advice! I am very active on the Service Academy Forums and was curious if I would get some other perspectives if I posted on here as well. Congratulations to your son on the NROTC scholarship and good luck to him on the appointment!

4

Stats are really good. West Point admissions people are a funny bunch anyway, so it’s going to be a gamble either way. You may want to consider Texas A&M. It was founded as a military college. The A&M Corp of Cadets graduates more officers than any other school next to the academies. Also, the Corp of Cadets offers lots of scholarships if you don’t want to commit to the Army right away. You could then get a ROTC scholarship for your Junior/Senior year.

5

I know two kids who made it very far in the ROTC scholarship process only to be derailed by previously unknown medical issues. One had color blindness so subtle it had never been detected before and the other one had an undiagnosed heart condition. Both were removed from consideration. My suggestion to you is make sure all health issues are resolved - get that eye exam, see the cardiologist, etc. before you go into the process. If you don’t have any disqualifying conditions, great. If you do, reassess your plan.