Every year, about 10,000 students start the application process for the prestigious United States Military Academy, which is commonly referred to as West Point, and only a little over 1,000 are admitted. Among the 10% of applicants accepted was senior Paul Nguyen.
West Point, located on the Hudson River in West Point, New York, is a four-year academic institution that is nationally renowned as a historic landmark because of its significance in the Revolutionary War and the U.S. Military Academy itself.
“My initial reaction was that I was just really happy,” Nguyen said. “I was really tired and I was about to take a shower, but when I got my acceptance, I was very surprised and I was just so happy to get accepted.”
Requirements to attend West Point include being a U.S. citizen, being between the ages of 17 and 23, obtaining above-average high school or college academic records and having exemplary ACT and SAT scores. As part of the application process, applicants must also take a Physical Aptitude Examination.
“West Point is a very hard school to get into,” Nguyen said. “It’s very rigorous, and your whole life is dedicated to the corps.”
Nguyen begins serving at the “highest level of excellence” on July 10. Cadets are required to serve a minimum of eight years once they graduate West Point, which includes full-time service in the military and reserve component service.
“I just need to mentally, physically and academically prepare myself for what’s to come,” Nguyen said. “I figured that if I was joining the military and I plan on becoming an officer, this would be the best way possible because it’s the most efficient.”
Nguyen wants to do anything he “can do to serve people.” The fields of study he picked reflect this, because out of the 36 majors and 19 minors that West Point offers, he chose political science and pre-law.
“The reason why I want to do that is because I want to go into the JAG (Judge Advocate General’s) Corps once I get into the military, which is the justice system of the military,” Nguyen said. “And I want to become a lawyer, and the biggest major that lawyers take before going into law school would be political science.”
The application process for West Point involves a pre-candidate questionnaire and a nomination from a U.S. representative, senator, the vice-president or the president. Nguyen received his nomination from Jodey Arrington, the U.S. representative for Texas’s 19th congressional district.
“This is the biggest part where people fall out of the process because only a tenth get selected,” Nguyen said. “So I was very scared, but I worked for it and I got it and I’m super happy to have it.”
Nguyen received his acceptance on May 7th, at 3 a.m after returning home from a school event. Upon receiving the news of his acceptance, Nguyen’s family celebrated by taking him out to eat.
“Then, one of my friends’ family also brought me out to go eat,” Nguyen said. “And I told my other family members and told my brother. He was very excited about what I’ve done.”
Out of the advisors, family, and friends that have supported Nguyen, he emphasizes his gratitude towards his brother. His brother is now attending the United States Air Force Academy (USAFA), a service academy in El Paso County, Colorado that educates cadets to serve in the officer corps of the United States Air Force and United States Space Force.
“My brother has helped me immensely because he went through this whole process last year to get into the Air Force Academy,” Nguyen said. “It’s a long process, at least over a semester, and it’s just so much writing. I’ve wrote and typed over 20,000 words in essays and he’s looked over all through it and just made sure it looks good. He’s taught me how I should interview, how I should dress— even the little things.”
Overall, Nguyen attributes his successes to his family.
“I just have a very supportive family, and they’ve pushed me,” Nguyen said. “I was raised in a very good household where my expectations were really set high, and I just want to make the most out of that.”
