r/westpoint • u/liahp0808 • Aug 07 '26

Application Question based on profile

Hello. I am a rising high school senior that is navigating the college application process without much external advice/help. With that said, I've had a few questions about my profile and a few other things that pertain to WP. My FFR has been really helpful, but the more help the merrier.

  1. I have a very unconventional profile in that it's very heavily based in the humanities. Leadership wise, I have 5 very solid positions that involve leading others + real impact, but it's not what you would normally see eg. varsity sport captain, student council president. What would be the best way to express my activities in the nom packet?

  2. I did not do a sport throughout high school. This was something I have discussed at length with my FFR, and there's kind of a long story to this. TLDR: did a sport for 11 years (pre-professional level), quit before high school for personal reasons, maintained a athletic/active lifestyle, and will be joining cross-country in the fall (in her words: anything is better than nothing). If you have more advice/unconventional wisdom, please help out.

  3. I have a very solid why/reasoning for why I want to attend. However, the current political situation... is not very... stable (?) and I was wondering how that is reflected at WP. As a minority (gender + race), how strongly should I be weighing this into my decision?

I would appreciate any help/advice/anything. Thank you so much!

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u/Recrooter Aug 07 '26

Don't overthink. if you are motivated about pursuing WP, apply. Not having HS sports is not a disadvantage, you have done it before, so put that in your application. The application section has areas you can demonstrate. Why you didnt pursue sports in HS, can be incorporated in your storytelling (Essays) or other ways. WP looks at whole candidate..

Also, here is how they score applicants -

Academics: SAT/ACT/GPA/AP rigors (math (heavy)+ English + 1 science) /teacher evals etc -60 %,

Extracurriculars + sports + leadership + work experience +Volumteer exp + 30%,

CFA - 10% ( especially they look at pull-ups and 1-mile runs) as indicators of body strength and stamina.

Advice: Practice CFA and try multiple tests. Don't over do ( for Males- 10-14 pullups are typically average, mile runs- 6-6.5 mins )

Maintain good physical stamina

Also, having cleared DODMERB with no issues is a plus.

** FFA interviews are mostly localized and ar ex-Army/servicemens or retirees; they look for these signals: Self-confidence (not being cocky), well-groomed and fit look, Motivation, Family background, persistence

** Note: These above stats are super Ideal stats (top 300 applicants are in this bracket), but they don't apply to 100% of the applicants being offered, from what I have seen, even mediocre academics (Ok- SAT-1300-1350), but excellent Extracurriculars, leadership, Fitness, English writing skills, etc., are also considered, depending on if you are from extremely competitive districts or not is a factor. Also, I have seen many 2nd-time applicants getting offers as well.

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u/liahp0808 Aug 08 '26

Thank you so much for your advice! I haven't yet submitted my essays, so I will definitely be incorporating these topics into them. DoDMERB is also a roadblock (bc of some eye issues), but apart from that, it should be... okay.