One of the best ways to get an education that is 100 percent paid for is to be appointed as a Cadet at the Army U.S. Military Academy at West Point. To gain entrance you have to be appointed by a Congressman from your home state, and it is an appointment that is highly prized and very competitive to obtain. There is another method that is also a lot of hard work, but that can allow a person to attend. That method involves attending a preparatory academy designed to prepare a person for a West Point career, and then after successfully graduation from such a preparation academy you apply for appointment directly by the Secretary of the Army.
Service and receiving an education at West Point is a challenge, but one that if you apply yourself can be very rewarding. It is a four year institution, in which when you graduate after four years you receive a bachelors degree, and a commission in the Armed Forces as an Army 2nd Lieutenant. The West Point Military academy is accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, and a degree from West Point is considered to be one of the most prestigious in the country. The academic program at West Point revolves around a core of 31 different courses offering a balanced Arts and Sciences education. In addition to the 31 course that make up the central core, students attending West Point have an opportunity to take a number of elective courses each year.
The West Point Military Academy is located about 50 miles to the north of New York City on the Hudson River in New York. Candidates must be at least 17 years of age but not yet 23 years old when they are appointed to the Academy. They must be single and not married, and not have any legal obligations for children. Cadets attend the academy for four years, and receive instruction in leadership, basic military skills, and a rigorous and demanding academic coursework. Cadets spend their summertime vacations serving in their 3rd and 4th year in different locations around the world in active duty Army units, in pursuits such as Air Assault, parachuting, or other types of modern and advanced warfare.
Part of the mainstay of an education at West Point Military Academy is the ethical and moral development of cadets. They are taught that Duty Honor And Country is paramount, and a cadet must not engage in unethical or dishonest behavior. The Corps of Cadets is self-regulating through a strict honor board system; cadets and staff members of the Academy make up the honor board, which hears infractions against the ethical and moral standards, which all cadets must honor.