dpe
  








usma
Frequently Asked Questions 


Q.  What are the prerequisites for selection?

A.  You may start a file at any time during your career, but in order to be considered for selection to an Instructor position you must be a branch qualified Captain prior to beginning graduate school (not prior to application to DPE).

Q:  Who is eligible to become a DPE Instructor for the Selection Board that is scheduled for January 2010?

 A:  You must be a competitive category Army CPT or 1LT(P) and have your completed application submitted by 01DEC09 to be given full consideration.  Additionally, the following eligibility criteria apply for the JAN10 board that selects officers to begin graduate school in the Summer of ‘11: 

  • Must be Year Group ’03, ’04, or ‘05 

  • Must be on schedule to complete your successful command(s) NLT MAY10

The oldest eligible year group criterion above is set to ensure that Captains who come to West Point will begin serving as an Instructor absolutely NLT the start of their ninth year of commissioned service- which translates into having sufficient time to get branch qualified as a Major prior to primary zone (PZ) LTC promotion board.  

Q:  How important is the impact of teaching Physical Education?

A.  The DPE Mission is to develop warrior leaders of character who are physically and mentally tough by engaging cadets in activities that promote and enhance a healthy lifestyle, physical fitness, movement behavior, and psychomotor performance.  Physical development provides leaders with physical skills, self-confidence, the warrior spirit, respect for fair play, and a commitment to maintain their own physical fitness and that of their soldiers.  USMA is the sole college in the nation whose only responsibility is to prepare each student for professional service as a regular Army officer.  Thus, the physical education taught in the West Point environment is comprised of experiential, cognitive, and psychomotor learning domains designed to promote critical thinking, disseminate knowledge, integrate discovery and develop expertise… the impact of achieving these objectives is far reaching and serves to strengthen the officer corps and the Army.  

Q:  What kind of officer teaches in DPE?

A:  Our instructors are proven leaders of operational units who are dedicated to careers in the U.S. Army.   

·        Current and incoming instructors represent all the commissioning sources (OCS, ROTC, USMA) and IN, TC, AV, FA, AD, MP, FI, QM, AG, SF, AR and MI branches.  DPE instructors have a variety of undergraduate degrees (including physical education, exercise science, and kinesiology) and come from diverse ethnic backgrounds. 

·        Current DPE instructors have been promoted early (BZ) to Major at a rate above the Army average.

·        Current and incoming DPE instructors have combat/operational-deployment leadership experience.

·        Active-duty or recently retired General Officers who taught in DPE:

GEN Larry R. Ellis                          

Commanding General

United States Forces Command

Fort McPherson, GA 

 

LTG James L. Campbell

Special Assistant to the Vice Chief of Staff

Office of the Chief of Staff

United States Army Pentagon

 

LTG Franklin L. Hagenbeck

Superintendent

United States Military Academy

 

LTG James J. Lovelace, Jr.

Director of the Army Staff

United States Army Pentagon

 

MG David P. Valcourt

Commanding General

United States Army Field Artillery Center

Fort Sill, OK

 

BG Charles A. Anderson

Assistant Division Commander (Support)

2d Infantry Division

Eighth United States Army

APO AP

 

BG Mark P. Hertling

Commanding General

7th Army Training Command

APO AE

Q:  Where do DPE instructors receive their graduate degrees?

A:  University of Virginia (Charlottesville, VA), Indiana University (Bloomington, IN), and Texas A&M University (College Station, TX)

Q:  What does an instructor do besides teach?

A:  Officers typically have other responsibilities, to include an Administrative Duty (Testing, Guidance, Operations) and a role as a Sport Educator in the Intramural Program.  Other activities are voluntary; currently, officers in the Department serve as the officers in charge or officer representatives of numerous cadet teams and clubs (examples include Football, Hockey, Baseball, Triathlon, and Officer Christian Fellowship) and members of (cadet) company Values Education Teams.

Q:  How competitive is it to become a member of DPE faculty?

A:  It is very competitive; we historically have over three completed applications for every officer selected.  We pride ourselves in selecting those officers who display exceptional ability to command operational organizations in complex environments while developing others.  We typically select six captains a year.

Q:  What does a typical instructor do during the first summer after completing graduate schooling?

A:  Most incoming instructors have a June arrival date at West Point.  After in-processing, officers serve in some capacity as physical training monitors for the Cadet Summer Training Program.  During this time, officers also undergo cross-training with their course directors.

Q:  What electives can I expect to teach in addition to teaching core courses?

A: Some of the current electives that an Instructor could have the opportunity to teach include:

  • Aerobic Fitness

  • Alpine Skiing

  • Cross Country Skiing

  • Golf

  • Basketball

  • Volleyball

  • SCUBA

  • Strength Development

  • Cycling

  • Advanced Combatives 

Assignment to teach elective courses is based upon departmental needs, individuals strengths/experience, and interest.

Q:  I am currently (or will be) deployed and physically cannot get the application completed by the deadline - can I have an extension to the application deadline?

A:  If requested in writing (a brief memo is fine), we will definitely consider incomplete applications of deployed personnel.  We understand that if you are scheduled to deploy then that should be your priority but we still encourage you to get everything you can in as soon as possible- we will consider your file with missing items.

Q:  What is the application timeline for this year’s selection cycle?

A:   NLT 1DEC09:  Complete application due

                   JAN10:  Selection Board convenes

      NLT 1MAR10:  Selections/acceptances announced for June 2011 start dates

          JUN-SEP10:  USMA seeks/receives official by-name approval for these officers from Army HRC and your branch

          JUL-DEC09:  Incoming Instructors apply to graduate schools

       MAY-JUN11:  Instructors PCS to their grad school locations and start their 1-yr Masters program

         MAY-JUN11:  Instructors graduate from their programs and PCS to USMA

Q:  Are officers eligible to leave West Point after two years as an instructor (instead of the normal three)?

A:  Historically, some officers who are promoted below the zone (BZ) to Major have been given the option to PCS after two years as an instructor.  However, all others serve a three-year utilization tour.

Q:  What is housing like at USMA for Captains?

A:  For this year’s (2009) captain Cohort, every captain who came to USMA (from all departments) with dependents who wanted a house on post received one.  USMA has either built new or completely renovated four on-post neighborhoods for captains/majors within the last five years (New Brick, Old Brick, Grey Ghost, and Stony Lonesome II), so the housing situation is predicted to remain very favorable.  If permitted to live off post (incoming officers this year were not given the option, DPE policy is that all RMO instructors live on post). The current BAH allowance for captains at USMA is approximately $2,455 (03, w/dep) /month or  $1980 (03, w/o dep)/month