About Bill Taylor Expertise I can answer questions about admissions to West Point; about the history of West Point; about how to travel to West Point, where to eat, where to stay, etc.; and about West Point`s alumni organization, the West Point Association of Graduates.
Experience I am a 1970 Graduate of West Point. I served six years on active duty and another 8 years in the active reserve. I have been actively involved as a Field Admissions Representative for over 15 years and have participated on my Congressman's Academy Selection Panel for over 20 years. I am actively involved in West Point Alumni affairs, serving in roles both with the West Point Association of Graduates and the local alumni chapter in Annapolis, MD. I also have two sons who graduated from West Point in 1995 and 2001. Both are veterans of the Iraq war and continue to serve on Active Duty in the Army.
Question I'm a junior in a small, but very academic private high school. My GPA is 3.4 on a 4.0 scale, but im only ranked 33/147 in my class. I have 3 varsity letters in Cross Country, Track, and Swimming, and I have over 300 community service hours working with various organizations to aid the mentally and physically handicapped. I got a 32 on my act and a 2210 out of 2400 on the SAT. I am involved in student council, Latin club, enviornmental club, biology users group, CAP(civil air patrol), and am active in Boy Scouts. I have a reccomendation letter from my congressman, and have taken six advanced placement courses, including U.S. History, Chemistry, Biology, Physics, European History, and British Literature. I was curious what you think that my chances of acceptance would be, and if my extra-curriculars made up for my GPA deficate.
Answer It's good to hear from you, Kevin. Thanks for your interest in West Point.
As you know, West Point is looking for well rounded young men and women who are good students, good athletes and good leaders. Having a balance in all three areas is important.
In the arena of academic evaluation, the most important metric is your rank in class, followed by SAT/ACT scores and last by GPA. Your SAT/ACT scores seem excellent (the writing part of the SAT is NOT considered for Admission to West Point; only the math and critical reading scores).
For a good comparison check out the statistics for a recent West Point class at:
Your record as summarized here seems to be well balanced, which is a good start. My best recommendation is to take on the toughest challenges you can find in all three areas and perform to the best of your ability in EVERYTHING you do! When you are successful at that you will most certainly be competitive for admission in your senior year.
