The United States Military Academy is widely referred to as West Point, located in West Point, NY. To be eligible for admission, applicants must be between the ages of 17 and 23 and cannot be married or have children. According to U.S. News and World Report, West Point’s total enrollment in 2019 is 4,491 students, and about 15% of them are women. Its 2017 acceptance rate was 10%, with a 79% graduation rate.

The second-oldest academy is the United States Naval Academy. Widely known as Annapolis because it is located in Annapolis, MD. This academy trains its students, or midshipmen, to serve in the United States Navy or the United States Marine Corps. Per U.S. News and World Report, USNA’s 2019 total enrollment is 4,495 and the 2017 acceptance rate is 8% with a 90.66% graduation rate. Applicants must meet the minimum requirements of standardized test scores, pass a medical exam, fitness assessment, submit references and complete an official interview with a Blue and Gold Officer.

Popular majors for the midshipmen include economics, political science and systems engineering. Students can also choose between foreign languages, history and robotics. All of the majors focus on science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

The United States Coast Guard, founded in 1876, is located in New London, CT. The USCGA, unlike the other military academies listed here, does not require its applicants to be nominated by a member of Congress, and there are no application quotas for geographic areas. Instead, all applicants are admitted based on academic merit, personal development skills and their applications.

The USCGA had a total enrollment of 1,045 in 2019, with a 21% acceptance rate in 2017 and a 78.34% graduation rate. The USCGA has a 7:1 student to faculty ratio, which gives the students more personalized attention from the instructors. Of those that graduate, an outstanding 80% of the graduates will continue their education in graduate school.

Popular majors include business administration, civil engineering, electrical engineering, operations research, oceanography and political science and government.

The United States Merchant Marine, located in Kings Point, NY, trains future officers for the Merchant Marine, all branches of the military and the transportation industry. The academy’s 2019 total enrollment is 954 students with an acceptance rate of 15% in 2017 and a 72% graduation rate.

All students who attend USMMA must train in fields related to transportation and shipping. Midshipmen must choose between one of five programs: marine transportation, logistics and intermodal transportation, marine engineering, marine engineering systems and marine engineering and shipyard management. Popular majors with the USMMA are marine science, naval architecture and systems engineering.

The newest of the academies, is the United States Air Force Academy, located in Colorado Springs, CO. The USAFA’s 2019 total enrollment is 4,276 with a 12.3% acceptance rate in 2017 and an 83% graduation rate.

Roughly half of all the graduates will opt for flight training and will go on to serve in approximately 15 flying-related careers, including air battle managers or pilots combat systems. The other option is a non-flying role, such as mission support, sortie generation, logistics operation or scientific and technical positions. Air Force Academy grads who choose the pilot route have a 10-year obligation after they complete their pilot training. Naval Aviators must serve 8-10 years depending on the airframe they fly.