Branch Week was held in early fall, 2012, and it serves to educate the entire Corps. It involved an integrated effort with faculty encouraged to discuss branches in the classroom, lead tours of branch equipment and review mission capabilities. Cadets in the Military Science, or MS200, course are required to write a paper listing their top three branch choices and explain why they are suited to those branches.

Washington State’s own Class of 2014 Cadet Kyle Cardillo, Company I-4, made a beeline toward the aviation displays early Tuesday morning. “I knew when I came to West Point that I wanted to be a pilot, so that’s obviously my top choice,” said Cardillo, from Bellingham, Wash. “Now it’s just a matter of cycling out my B and C plans, and those constantly change. All the branches do cool stuff and they all have unique missions. So it may come down to that night before Branch Night when you think, ‘What do I really want to do?’ and then submit the top three choices.”

Class of 2014 Cadet Emily Monk, Company H-2, said Branch Week was a great opportunity to explore Army careers, and because it is a week-long event, what she didn’t get to visit one day will still be available the next.  “For me, it’s a great chance to learn more about what each branch is all about, so I can make a more informed decision about what I want to do,” Monk, from Rochester, Minn., said. She said because not every class previously had this amount of branch orientation before, Branch Week was a unique event she hopes will be available every year.

Read the full article here:

http://www.usma.edu/news/SitePages/2012%20Branch%20Week.aspx