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Colleges and Universities A-Z Air Force Academy - Colorado Springs
1

<p>This isn’t easy for me to say. I need some advice from people that have the same goals as I do. I need advice from parents that understand. And I need advice from Air Force Officers. If you fit into any of those categories, please find the time to help me out by lending your ears. This is very personal to me, but I don’t know who to turn to. </p>

<p>Everyday, it is getting difficult. My situation at home just makes want to quit. I didn’t grow up with certain traditional family values that I would like to have had. Okay, I want to make my life as happy as possible. If I do that, I know I will be able to work at my full potential to get into the Academy. Thing is, you may have heard this before, but both of my parents work, so I spend all my day after school, taking care of my sibling. cleaning, cooking, laundry, ironing, helping brother with and such and such. When my parents get home, there is always constant fighting, my mom between my father, my mom and I, my brother and I. And it never stops. Never. I can’t study or even find time for myself because my mom needs me to help her with her homework (she’s is trying to get her education) or she needs me to help her with this and that. The tight space also is a reason for all the fighting, there’s five of us that live in a small one bedroom apartment. There isn’t a lot of space for stuff for my books. I’ve looked around to find SAT books, and I got a few. And I like to read. It’s the only thing I do for entertainment besides play the piano or sax. Just to give you an example of how’s these fights start, today my mom told me she’s going to throw away all my stuff, books, important documents, academy stuff. That got me furious, very furious. And the fights go on. My father does nothing. He only pays the bills, and he thinks that enough. I taught myself everything. He wasn’t really a father to me at all. I have gotten plenty of fist fights with him in order to protect my mother. I have sinned so much, haven’t atoned for any single one of them. I’ve never been to confession to repent for my sins. It may sound silly, but fear and shame is holding me back. And that’s just the stuff at home. Not to mention the stuff that happens outside of home. I’m a big believer in giving respect. Not only because it is like that in the military, but because you act stupid around someone in my neighborhood and you’ll get seriously messed up. Excuse my language, but I’ve taken a lot of s**** because of it. I try to keep my cool when people have walked all over me because of it. I try to keep my cool when I’m getting harrased by the cops during scanning at school. I’ve made a decision for myself, that after I graduate from the Academy, after I become a Combat Rescue Officer, or special forces pilot, I’m going to have a big happy family, eat at the family table every morning and evening, make my kids feel like they can come up to me for anything. Give my kids the things that I didn’t. I know the academy will be my “ticket” out of here. but I’m worried what will my family do when I leave. How are they going to survive? That worries me. What worries me even more, I don’t think I’ll survive another day. There are days that I just want to quit. I really can’t talk to anyone. One thing that my parents have taught me is pride. I guess right now I’m swallowing my pride and my parents will kill me if they found out about the things im saying right now. But no one here knows my name lol. Just to clarify a few things, im NOT making excuses, and im NOT asking for sympathy. Last thing I want to do is seem like some charity case. I guess, what I really wanted to do is let off some steam. And this was the safest way to do it. Thanks for listening. I have to go. I should be studying. :)</p>

2

<p>Where there is a derise to do what you want, one can only achieve it. Work hard and get it done. Yes, you may leave your family, but you will one day no matter what. Nothing in life is easy, and many people went through hell and high water to get into the academy, but it is possible but dont see it as a "ticket" out, see it more as a "gift." That is how i see my appointment, i worked hard and faught through many things. But never characterize it that way. If you do, you are destined to fail because it is not what you want, you just want to get away. YOu have to want to make it to make it. </p>

<p>My bottom line is, you have a full plate and a tought plate at that. But with the right attitude, right frame of mind, and right desire, everything you ever want will come true. </p>

<p>Here is a suggestion, for everytime you hear or are in a fight. Make yourself study five minutes. So if you hear six arguments throughoug the day, thats 30 extra minutes of studying. Prioritize and, as my favorite show says "Do Work Son. Do Work." Its the motto I live by and this:</p>

<p>"To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift."</p>

3

<p>I don't see the Academy as just as a way out. If I did, I would just enlist. No. I want the Academy because I want to be the best officer I can possibly be. It is something that I cannot and will not and refuse to fail at. But maybe thats my problem. My refusal to fail. I failed two classes last semester because of the same reason and it might happen again this semester. I didn't want to quit, my counselor, teachers and college advisors told me to drop the class. But I didn't want to quit while I was ahead. I didn't want to quit because I saw it as failure, and I failed anyway. The day I start quiting, is the day I quit everything else in life. Even quit on myself.</p>

4

<p>Part of being an officer is knowing when to ask for help. Even if it means you have to quit something, get help so you can come back and suceed.</p>

5

<p>If you don't mind my asking, how old is your sibling? Because I have two younger sisters and when I was supposed to take care of them and had homework, I would try to get them involved somehow so that I could at least make an attempt at studying. It all probably depends on your sibling though. Also, this is a kind of random and obscure suggestion, but for your SATs, one thing you could do to improve your vocabulary and thus your reading/writing score is read SAT novels. These books incorporate around a thousand SAT words into the text and have definitions in the back. You may be able to find them at a library, but I think I have one somewhere that I could mail to you if you want it. I know that this was a much better way for me to improve my vocabulary because I love to read, but studying words is boring.</p>

6

<p>Just wanted to add, sparknotes has the books I was talking about online.</p>

7

<p>I hate to rain on the parade, but if you really do want to be a CRO, you've got a lot of work to do. From a physical fitness standpoint, the average cadet is probably in the top 5% of the nation. I'd say that at least 99% of USAFA cadets are not in good enough physical condition to handle to CRO/STO pipeline (myself included here). Not to discourage you, but there are people who inprocess with biceps twice the size of mine, who spend three hours in the gym every day, and who still cannot get into the CRO program.</p>

<p>The only piece of advice I can offer is to work hard. Always work hard. If the Academy is what you want, go for it. If your dream is to work for AFSOC, then go for it. Each of these goals will require long, long days that are mentally and physically draining. But many before you have done both successfully; anything's possible with the right combination of desire and initiative. There's simply no substitute in life for hard work, so give it your all and go make it happen.</p>

<p>One last note - your family goals are going to contrast starkly with your Spec Ops goals, but that's a story for another day. If you'd like me to elaborate, send a PM my way. I'm sure our officers/airmen/retired members know more about the career field than I do as well, so feel free to draw upon their knowledge too.</p>

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<p>Don't give up. I can tell you've worked really hard for this. Keep at it. One peice of advice I have for you: Look into ROTC scholarships. I know it wouldn't be as nice as the academy, but it will still make you and officer, and possibly get the job you want.
Honestly, from your other posts, it looks like you have hardly any time to do your academy application. The ROTC application doesn't take long at all. You just need to make a resume, couselor cert of extracurriculars, a 50-100 word personal statement, a physical fitness test (only includes 1.5 mile, crunches, and pushups), and eventually you do an interview.</p>

<p>Work hard, and you'll get what you want.</p>

9

<p>


</p>

<p>Wrong. You can talk to someone. Who that person is depends on you. </p>

<p>A school counselor, your priest/pastor/reverend, a grandparent/aunt/uncle, or some other trusted person who you can rely on.</p>

<p>I recommend sooner rather than later.</p>

10

<p>From a Mom's point...</p>

<p>Siit down with your mom in a calm adult voice now before a fight starts. Explain to her that no matter what you will be gone next year, be it to the SA or to college, and ask her what will she do without you there for your sibllings? Then calmly explain to her that although you are helping her get her education, it is time for you to put your education first. Every parent in the world wants their child to be better than them. Never raise your voice, if she starts to raise hers ask her in your very calmest voice to please don't yell and say I just want to talk about this as 2 adults, I love you, but yiou need to listen to me. Let her understand that by you acting like the man of the house you are paying for it at school. Explain to her that you are still a kid and it is unfair to make you be a parent. Tell her you are thankful for the roof over your head and you know how hard she is working, but ask her if she sees how much pain you are in?</p>

<p>As far as your grades, I have to admit, you need to swallow your pride. Failing does not help you get into any school. Getting an A in an honors course looks alot better than an F in AP. Also remember you are not only hurting yourself, but you are hurting your classmates. When teachers have to go at a slower pace the information that needs to be covered might not be addressed and now every kid in the class doesn't have the foundation they needed for the test.</p>

<p>Petko is right about Spec Ops. I remember when Bullet was with the 82nd as an ALO he sent one his guys to Ranger school, this guy was the fittest person I ever saw in my life, but he openly admitted the training was painful and he almost rang the bell. It is not only physically painful, but mentally is just as difficult. </p>

<p>However, for now you need to clear the first hurdle, that is to get into the AFA, which means addressing how you will explain to the board the F's. You also will need to get your CFA's up high and hope that b/c of your weight that you are in the right limits for BMI and not need a waiver for Dodmerb. I remember one the admission directors had stated that the CFA is something really look at the AFA b/c the alt. hurts many cadets, so they really want you to be close to the max, since when you get there it is not unusual for your level to drop...if you are already at the bottom, when you have to take your yr PT test you might actually not pass, which then causes a problem</p>

11

<p>Also if you believe you are going to fail a class or there is a chance and you know it now, I suggest you change your course. You have placed yourself into a self fulfilling prophecy by saying I already know I am going to fail one course. Listen to your GC's they have experience in getting kids into the schools they want, you might believe you are ready for the course, but they know the other kids and as much as this might hurt you, they are saying for whatever reason you shouldn't be in it, but by law they can't force you not to take it. Part of maturity that the SA wants to see is that you know your limits and push yourself to them, but they don't want to see you fail...remember it is our tax dollars that is paying the education... </p>

<p>As I said b4 you have hurdles to clear, first to be an applicant, second to get a nom, third to get an appt. I suggest you look at the 11 profile and rank yourself against them. I also suggest you look at what courses you will be madated in taking and ask yourself how you will handle these courses. If I recall correctly 1 of your F's was in math. The AFA may now give out diplomas in history, but you still need to take a lot of math and science courses. From perusing this site during the academic yr many cadets talked about how Calc and org chem was killing them. </p>

<p>I do believe that when you get there you will actually do better b/c you will have alot of time to yourself to study, and not being a parent anymore, however, academics is just 1 part, the other is physical, which you will need to address</p>

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<p>AFPJ, let me start by saying I understand the kind of home you are living in. I lived in that kind of environment with my children for way too many years. My husband was very abusive to all of us and I KNOW how hard you try to keep it a secret. My kids didn't have someone who was what a father should be either. When you say that people won't understand, you're probably right to a certain extent, but it doesn't mean that they can't help you! Many people say "why didn't you tell me"? or "why didn't you just leave"? They didn't understand how emotionally and mentally twisted you can be. I do, and I want to say that when I finally told someone what was going on, it became such a HUGE relief. I didn't have to hide it anymore! Like Luigi said, "who that person is depends on you". You can choose who you want to tell! It can be a counselor or even a teacher you admire or relate to. Even though you may be afraid of what changes may happen because of telling, I promise things will get better and you will feel the burden lifted! Find someone you can trust to help you and let them know what is your circumstance. You will survive! Look what you've lived through so far. You can do anything!</p>

<p>Your worries about not confessing things you may have done wrong will eventually be resolved in one way or another. However you choose to come to terms with it. But I believe God is loving, knows who you are and knows what challenges you are going through. He knows what is in your heart!</p>

<p>Now, about working to get into the AFA. The things you have had to do to keep your family functioning can be really beneficial to helping you succeed in the future at the academy. After all, you have had to be a leader with your siblings, prioritize what needs to be done first, take initiative to study on your own, and practice time management to keep all of this going at the same time. Don't give up! Find the time to do what you need to keep your grades up. Sometimes I find that late at night or very early in the morning are the best times to get things done like studying. Everybody is still in bed and there is actually some kind of quietness in my home. It does take a little sacrifice on sleep though.</p>

<p>My daughter was very much like you and looked at succeeding at her educational goals as a way out and creating her own future. We didn't get out of our situation until about 7 months ago. You can make whatever you want of your life and you can succeed even though you have had to go through some very hard things at home. Make the most of school and push yourself to work harder. Go in either before or after school to ask your teachers for help in the classes you are struggling in. If they know you care, they will work even harder to help you understand. You can do this! I will be both praying and rooting for you!</p>

13

<ol>
<li> It's YOUR life. Focus on improving YOU. Do what YOU can do to reach YOUR goals.</li>
<li> In the midst of chaos, do what you can to improve the situation. If you need help, get it. Sometimes these forums are a source of help/support</li>
<li> Post your stats...the others might be able to give you some guidance. You mention that you failed a course or two. That might be a problem...then again it could be something that you can overcome and still get in to a SA.<br></li>
<li> Each of us has unique challenges that we must face and meet. We each have the capacity to meet them full on. As Nike says...DO IT!</li>
<li> School counselors are there for help. We are here for help. Ask for it...listen...apply.<br></li>
<li> As long as you consistently pick yourself up after falling you should be okay.</li>
</ol>

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<p>One of my favorite quotes is from none other than Rocky Balboa, something to the effect of "It doesn't matter how hard you can punch but rather that you can get punched and keep on going." Just remember that and hang in there. I guarantee you that you can find someone to talk to if you feel overwhelmed, you just have to look. Any religious leader, counselor, friend, etc ought to be more than willing to help and listen, and if they can't help you they ought to be able to point you in the right direction. </p>

<p>CRO/STo is very hard to get but it is doable. Make sure you can swim really well before you get here if you're interested. PM me for details...You don't necessairely have to have huge biceps, etc, but you must be really strong, ounce for ounce. (this is all from what I hear, I'm not actually in the program). But as a triathlete I'd be more than happy to pm you with a swimming or running workout routine (or biking for that matter)</p>

15

<p>I'll start by saying that i find it really tragic that anyone has to put up with the circumstances you do. Thinking back to various conversations I've had and things I've read, i have no doubt that you can get a slot. It won't be easy, and it may not be conventional, but you can do it. Something to think about, if you look at the admissions process you can break it up a few ways, but a really valid way to look at it is paper vs. personal. On the paper side you have your transcript, your CFA scores, your SAT scores, etc. all these things are nothing more than numbers and letters. on the personal side you have letters of rec and, more importantly, your interview with your liaison and your interview with your senators/congressman. those are your tickets in. Yes the AF is looking for the best and the brightest to attend USAFA, but the truth is they turn away plenty of people with good credentials because they feel they won't make it through (some would argue they don't turn enough of these people away). Talking to my liaison, he told me that they want people that they know will make it through, USAFA will make good officers out of next to anyone who will put up with it for 4 years. your challenge is to get these people to look beyond the paper and see you. with everything you've been and are going through, you've already shown you can make it and push forward. You've shown that your not a quitter. you need to prove this to them, prove that if they put you there you will survive and succeed. So i guess in conclusion, work hard, do the best you can, and whatever you do don't give up.</p>

16

<p>My sibling is five years old. I do get him involved. I love reading. So whenever I'm reading and he's finished with his homework, I read to him whatever I am reading. Whether he understands it or not, I try reading to him. Like right now I'm reading The prince and the discourses by Machiavelli, and next I'm going to read Three Cups of Tea.Lol, he has grown a lot, I remember when I used to change his diapers. Anyway, I'm extremely hesistant to get too personal with the admissions process because I want to earn and compete for an Air Force Academy appointment on a plain and level field. bulletandpima , I'll try to sit down and talk to her, I have tried. That for me is extremely difficult. I don't want to show her that most of the time, I'm in some kind of pain. I want to show her that I'm confident, that nothing can break me because If I start showing signs that I can't handle it, so will she. I love my mom, but sometimes when she starts showing affection towards me, It's unconfortable for me because I'm not used to that kind of treatment. But me and my mom talk. Perhaps more so about my father than anything else we talk about. And I decided when I get married, to treat my wife with all the love and respect in the world. Sometimes, if we get a chance we watch movies and our favorite is the Pursuit of Happyness. Shifting gears, when this semester finishes I'll post my grades and take any suggestions. At the NASS I took the CFA and PFT. I don't remember the exact results but it should be something like this:
Shuttle run - something like 10.8 on both trials
Push ups 24
Situps around 10
Pull ups - 0
Mile Run - 9:54 I think. 10 minutes I failing I think.
BB throw - no idea. </p>

<p>PFT
Push ups - 25
Sit ups- a little more than 40, perhaps 50.
1.5 run, don't remember but It may have been something like 13 minutes. </p>

<p>I'll email my squad leader and get the exact results.
One more thing. I don't know how to study. Even after reading a liot of books about the Academy, and how important it is to study, I really don't know how. Like how to start studying for a math test or anything like that. Does anyone have a particular method that works for them?</p>

17

<p>I wasen;t accepted into AP Physics, and I wanted to AP Chem, so me and my teacher worked out a deal. If I got at least a 75 on the Chem regents next week (NY State Exam) he would take me. So if I don't get into AP Chem, I'll be taking AP Bio so this is what my schedule would look like for next year.
Fall Semester
1. AP Bio/ AP Chem
2. AP Bio/ AP Chem
3. Latin
4. Statistics
5.Economics
6. JROTC
7. Humanities (English)
8. MArching Band
9. AP European History </p>

<p>Semester two same thing except instead of Economics, I'll be taking Gov't
I wanted to take College Algebra, but statistics is a year long course. I won't have a lunch period but that has happened before, including this semster, so It's no big deal.</p>

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<p>I don't know what to tell you about studying...I've never studied for anything in my life! But you really need to talk to your mom. I know what it's like not being in a comfortable situation, but when you talk to her, it will help. It will get you and her on the same page, and that's very important. And if she avoids it, you just have to keep pushing for that talk. My dad didn't want me joining the military. It wasn't until I was accepted to Summer Seminar that he actually took me seriously and started to look into it. He still isn't happy with it though. But when we sat down and talked it out, we at least ended up on the same page.</p>

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<p>Hi, I know I'm new here, but you asked about studying, and I think I might know some methods that might help you. I took a small workshop on note taking and study skills this past spring,and here are some things they taught.
First, you need to know what type of learner you are. Are you a visual learner, meaning do you best learn thing when you can see them, either in real life or with pictures and graphs? An audio learner, meaning do retain information you hear really well? Are you kinesthetic? Do you learn by try and error, doing things for you self, or hands on? Another type of learner is a reader/writer. This person has to read something for themselves to understand it. They like writing, and making lists. </p>

<p>Once you can identify how you learn best, then you can learn the most effective methods for studying. I don't remember all the things they taught for each group, but I do remember the things for reader/writers (which is what I am), so I'll try to outline them and the things I do to study.
Say I'm studying for a math test. I like to read over my notes, or maybe scan through the chapter, and paraphrase key concepts. I'll write them down in my notebook in my own words, making sure I understand what I'm learning. If there is a particular area I'm unsure about, I'll try to work through a few problems until I know what I'm doing.
The main thing to do for me, in anysubject, it to paraphrase things, make lists of certain rules, laws, or theorems (for Geometry), define new terms, and do practice problems. Also, try to read aloud to yourself, if possible, this helps me focus and remember things better.
Anyway, like I said, I'm new here and you don't know me, but I hope this helps. I really feel for you and your situation, and if you don't mind I'll be praying for you. I think it was very courageous of you to post this online, and it shows how much you want to go to the AFA. As others have said, work hard and don't give up. Basically hang in there. :)</p>

20

<p>AFPJ, how did you go from being able to do 10 sit-ups on the CFA to doing 40-50 during the PFT? How far apart were the tests? It looks like you've got a lot of work to do for the CFA, but I guess you have to start somewhere. </p>

<p>I know you say you don't have all that much free time to work out, but judging by the amount you post on the forum, you probably could squeeze in a few workouts a day. Even if you took five minutes that you would have spent reading a thread or writing a post and did as many sit-ups and push-ups as you could in that time period instead, you'd probably be seeing significant improvement pretty quickly. Sit-ups and push-ups can take a lot of work to improve on, but I feel like they're the easiest to improve on in a short time. </p>

<p>As for studying for a math test, work through as many practice problems as you can in your book. With math, either you know it or you don't, so by practicing the use of certain equations and understanding how they are derived, you eventually feel confident in knowing when to apply what you've learned to a specific problem. Some people are quicker than others at doing this, but that doesn't mean you should ever have an excuse to quit trying. Especially since your free time is so rare and limited, I recommend putting down the book about the Academy and picking up your school books instead. It's nice to have something to look forward to, but you have got to focus on getting the best grades possible in order to garner an appointment. It's critical that you prioritize your time to make the best of your situation.</p>

<p>Lastly, you say that you want to avoid making the admissions process too personal because you fear that you will put yourself on an uneven playing field. That simply isn't true. When you're interviewed by your ALO, there's no room to act like a desensitized robot. Like sharkbait said, if the Air Force sees that you have the guts and determination to make it through four years at USAFA, then Uncle Sam could very likely place you ahead of somebody with stellar credentials but not that much drive. Furthermore, I understand you've got a rough situation with your mother, but it's possible to show her that you need help while at the same time staying confident. I just hope you aren't confusing confidence with toughness, because they are certainly separate things. Considering that you aspire to be a Spec Ops officer, I think it's necessary that you learn to ask for help when you need it. After all, teamwork is a core part of virtually any workplace environment, and even moreso in the military. Playing it stoic just won't cut it. </p>

<p>I suppose the most important thing I want you to think about is whether you have the motivation to improve yourself as much as possible in order to better your chances of obtaining an appointment. When I began looking up what I would have to do to apply back in January of '07, I saw the physical requirements for the CFA and decided to buckle down. I was in awful physical shape (except for running, thanks to cross country and track), but I stuck with it for a while because I knew that nobody else was going to do it for me. At first, I could only do 20 push-ups, 40 sit-ups, and 0 pullups. When July rolled around, I took my CFA and did 18 pullups, a 9.0 second shuttle run, 95 situps, a 68' basketball throw, 70 pushups, and a 6:07 mile. Hopefully that gives you some inspiration. You need to develop a stick-with-it attitude, and fast, if you want to achieve your goal. The above example only applies to the physical aspect, but the attitude to succeed in the face of adversity is common to the entire process. With that said, ask yourself if YOU have what it takes. Being told what to do is easy, but actually getting out there and doing it is what sets the weak apart from the strong.</p>