FORT SILL, Okla. (March 3, 2016) -- About 40 Fort Sill Soldiers, many of them in Advanced Individual Training, participated in the Rapid Application Completion Exercise (RACE) Feb. 26, applying to the United States Military Academy.
About 85 slots at West Point are open every year to active-duty Soldiers. Through RACE, they can apply online and take the Candidate Fitness Assessment (CFA) in just a day, said Maj. Jason Dupuis, Soldiers Admission officer at the academy.
"RACE does not change the application process," Dupuis said. "All we do is set the conditions and resources so that everything can be done in one day."
RACE was created last year to encourage Soldiers to apply to West Point, Dupuis said. There are 60,000+ Soldiers who meet the basic eligibility requirements to attend the school, but there was neither marketing nor a program to assist them in applying.
And, the biggest detriment was how long it took Soldiers to complete the application process, the major said.
Dupuis said he learned a lesson from Soldier Readiness Processing, which prepares Soldiers for deployment by getting everything completed in one day, such gear issue, paperwork, medical, etc.
By getting everything complete in one fell swoop, Soldiers can instead focus on their jobs, and most importantly take college classes or aptitude tests to strengthen their application packets, said Dupuis, who was accepted to West Point when he was an infantry Soldier.
At 6 a.m. at Rinehart Fitness Center, applicants were tested on the CFA, which consisted of a 1-mile run, pushups, situps, pullups, a shuttle run and basketball throw.
Then at 9:30 a.m. they went to the Truman Education Center computer lab to apply online. Some of the items they had to submit included SAT or ACT scores, school transcripts, extra-curricular activities records, school teachers' evaluations or evaluations from their chain of command, candidate statements and a nomination.
"Any commander at any level can nominate (a Soldier) with the same authority as a congressmen or senator," said Dupuis.
There were also essay questions on the application.
"We ask some pointed questions on race, gender and equality," Dupuis said. "It's another way to vet someone to see if they're going to be a good fit for West Point."
Many of the application requirements are the same as for the Army's Green-to-Gold commissioning program, Dupuis said.
He estimated about 70 percent of the Soldiers applying through RACE, had never before contemplated attending a prestigious university.
"This constitutes that they are 'swinging for the fences' taking advantage of an opportunity to do their absolute best," he said.
By applying, Soldiers will be given candid feedback about where they stand and that's invaluable, Dupuis said. That could be the biggest benefit from doing this because a lot of them will now have a plan to go Green-to-Gold, or to become noncommissioned officers.
About 1,000 cadets graduate from the USMA each year. Who is a good West Point candidate?
"They come in all shapes and sizes," Dupuis said. "The bottom line is we're looking for people who are not afraid to step into the arena and lead, who understand quality over quantity, who are not afraid to take a chance and do their absolute best at something, and demonstrate ability in academics."
The academy is 60 percent academics, 30 percent leadership and 10 percent physical fitness, Dupuis said. Every graduate earns a bachelor's of science degree, even English majors.
"Some people are stronger in areas than others," he said. "It's a four-year institution. We're looking to develop them (cadets)."
Dupuis said Soldiers do not have to wait to apply through RACE at their post. Any Soldier, platoon, company, team or detachment can do it with their NCO giving them the fitness assessment, and maybe spending the rest of the day at their Army Education Center computer lab to apply online.
For more information about applying to the U.S. Military Academy, see Facebook's West Point Soldier Admissions, or if ready to apply visit www.usma.edu/applynow.
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