You do not directly apply to attend USMAPS. You must apply to USMA by completing a Pre-Candidate Questionnaire and by obtaining a nomination, normally from a United States Congressman or Senator. Your admission to USMAPS is determined as part of the USMA Admissions process. Go to the USMA Admission’s webpage for more information. 

You must meet certain requirements specified by public law. You must be a United States citizen, at least 17, and not yet 23 years of age on July 1 of your year of USMA admission. You must not be married, pregnant, or have a legal obligation to support a child or children. If you are a naturalized citizen, you must provide documentation.

The application steps are the same for Soldiers as they are for civilians who apply; however, Soldiers can obtain a nomination from their company commander and are automatically considered for the Preparatory School if not directly admitted to West Point. 

The majority of individuals that earn an offer of admission to USMA will normally receive that offer during the first week of May (just prior to USMAPS graduation). However, offers are made on an individual basis and the timeline can vary.

No, you are not guaranteed admission to USMA. You must earn admission to USMA by completing all requirements prescribed by the USMA admission process.

Yes, you will receive a monthly salary equivalent to cadet pay. For prior enlisted Soldiers, you will receive pay at your current enlistment grade. A portion of your pay is directly deposited into your bank account, while the other portion is deposited into your cadet candidate account to cover incurred expenses throughout the year (school books, laundry services, etc.).

Expenses at USMAPS include initial issue items, books and school supplies, the Army-Navy football game ticket, and a laundry charge. Payments for these expenses will be directly withdrawn from your cadet candidate account.

Yes, you will be able to contact your cadet candidate via US mail. Cadet candidates will be issued a mailbox within the first few days of CCBT. This information will be available to parents on Reception Day (R-Day). 

The following format is how mail and packages should be addressed to cadet candidates throughout CCBT and the entire academic year: 

CC Last Name, First Name 

950 Reynolds Road, # _ _ _ 

West Point, NY 10996 

NOTE: This mailbox is NOT a U.S. Post Office Box (P.O. Box). Please DO NOT write P.O. Box anywhere in the mailing address as this may result in your mail and packages being returned to sender. 

No, cadet candidates are not authorized to receive packages during CCBT. Any packages that do arrive before or during CCBT will be held until the completion of training.

The 24-hour emergency number is 845-476-1529. This is the Staff Duty Officer phone number, and somebody will be available 24 hours a day to assist you. 

Specific box numbers will be issued to Cadet Candidates and family members on R-Day. The following format is how mail and packages should be addressed to Cadet Candidates: 

CC Last Name, First Name 

950 Reynolds Road, # _ _ _ 

West Point, NY 10996 

NOTE: This mailbox is NOT a U.S. Post Office Box (P.O. Box). Please DO NOT write P.O. Box anywhere in the mailing address as this may result in your mail and packages being returned to sender.

The earliest forms of the Prep Schools resemble only slightly the present form, yet the core precedents of a structured environment stressing academic fundamentals still exists today.

The first prep schools were established hastily in the European theater of World War I and in various posts in the United States.  At the prep school in Langre, France, General John J. "Black Jack" Pershing personally conducted the inspection that followed the final exam and the month long course.  Other schools had few students, like one in Fort Totten, New York, which operated in the attic of the post headquarters. Another in Fort Snelling, Minnesota, was run by a lieutenant and the post commander's daughter.

Following World War I, qualified officers were assigned to primary duty as instructors at eight small schools geographically distributed around the country.  With the outbreak of World War II, the preparatory school system was consolidated under the Army Service Forces.  Training was first conducted at three civilian educational institutions, and later exclusively at Amherst College, Massachusetts.

In June of 1946, General Maxwell D. Taylor, then Superintendent of the U.S. Military Academy, established the Army Prep School at Stewart Army Air Field, Newburgh, New York, just north of West Point.  He set forth three principles that essentially remain today.

The school's move in 1957 to Fort Belvoir, Virginia, catalyzed the program by providing space to house modern classrooms and competitive athletics programs.  In 1975, the school moved to Fort Monmouth, NJ and occupied the space previous used by the U.S. Army Signal School.  Now with the school located within 100 miles of West Point the academic, military, and physical programs were more easily coordinated and integrated with those of the Academy.  Finally in July 2011, the school moved to West Point, NY in accordance with the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Law of 2005.  The current campus was designed and built to fully support the school’s mission of preparing Cadet Candidates for success at the United States Military Academy.

It was long recognized that former enlisted Soldiers, upon admission to the Military Academy, provide valuable experience to the Corps of Cadets and later to the Officer Corps.  "Experience shows," said General William C. Westmoreland, Superintendent of West Point in 1963, "that the enlisted ranks of the U.S. Army and other armed services are good sources for outstanding Cadet Candidates."

In 1965, West Point Prep further expanded to open its doors for aspirants from the civilian community.  Candidates who had proven themselves as leaders and athletes were offered another avenue to enter West Point.  Today, West Point continues to enhance the diversity of both the student body at West Point and the Officer Corps of the Army.