CFA Results/Outlook

powerhawk
Mon, 16 Jun 2008 12:13:28 +0000

Preface: This is a decision that I might have to make later, but it’s really bugging me. This is all hypothetical, as I have not even applied to theses colleges yet.

US News shows a peer review score of 3.9 for USNA and a 3.7 for UMCP. Several people at my school have received full ride scholarships to UMCP with less credentials than I have, so I have a good chance of getting the same scholarship.

While I do want to serve and I do feel I fit into the academy lifestyle, it would be illogical for me to devote 5 years of my life when I could be in grad school to the military if there is no significant benefit. To me, it seems that the Academy has so much of a better program simply because classes are so much smaller than those at UMCP, and are all taught by actual devoted professors, not TAs.

So, what it really boils down to is how accurate is the US News report? Are they actually taking into account the class size and how open the professors make themselves?

I just want to be 100% sure that the Academy is superior to UMCP befor plebe summer, if I’m lucky enough to receive a LOA.