If you want to go to a service academy, start the process early. You want your congressional office to know you well before your senior year. Apply to as many nominating sources as you can–not only your representative, but also both of your senators. Each can nominate 10 candidates per year to each military academy; only one of the 10 is admitted. At your interviews, the most important thing is to be confident in your desire to be a military officer. In my interviews–usually with staffers, but the Congress members sometimes do attend–I was asked questions about world events, my high-school accomplishments and my desire to serve. Politics didn’t seem to matter much. I’ve heard of parents joining campaigns to try to help grease the nominating wheels, but since officials are staking their reputation on whether you’ll graduate, they’re more concerned with your abilities than whether your parents are Republicans or Democrats. For the physical-fitness test, candidates are assessed in six events: a kneeling basketball throw, a shuttle run (which measures agility), push-ups, sit-ups, pull-ups and a one-mile run. I spent endless hours with my father practicing the basketball throw (it’s all in the technique), went to the high school track to practice the shuttle run (my weakest event) and did thousands of push-ups, sit-ups and pull-ups. The practice paid off, and I scored relatively well. Throughout the process, remember how competitive it is, and don’t be discouraged if you’re not given a nomination or offered a seat. It took me two attempts to get into West Point. When I applied as a high-school senior, I wasn’t given a seat, and instead received a scholarship to spend a year at Valley Forge Military Academy in Pennsylvania. My route wasn’t unusual: many of my classmates spent a year after high school at a civilian prep school or at the U.S. Military Academy Preparatory School. Some of my friends say they would have simply enrolled in the ROTC program at a civilian college rather than wait an extra year to reapply. While that’s a respectable alternative, I never considered it. I knew West Point was what I wanted, and I was willing to do whatever it took.
After three years of paperwork, in March 2005 I received my admission. I had finally made it. New cadets report in June, just a few weeks after graduating from high school. Over the summer, freshmen (or “plebes”) go through Cadet Basic Training (or “Beast Barracks”) to begin their acclimation to a military lifestyle. Plebe year is the hardest year you’ll have at West Point. Plebes get up around 6 and perform duties such as taking out trash, delivering newspapers and cleaning bathrooms. We have to memorize information (for example, the number of days until the Army-Navy game or menus for the next three meals) as a form of mental development. We cannot talk to other plebes outside our rooms; we must greet all upperclassmen, and we rarely leave campus on weekends. While it is difficult, it’s worth it. I remain in awe of this place. Walking to class, I realize I’m walking the same ground that Eisenhower, Patton, MacArthur, Lee and Grant walked before me. In my plebe year I was elected class historian, and the following spring I helped design our class crest, which will be emblazoned on our class rings. I try to never lose sight of where I am and what I did to get here. Most important, I always remember that I’m working not just toward a degree, but toward the privilege of leading the soldiers of the U.S.Army.
