Marion Military Institute

Hey everyone. Curious about the above topic, specifically the experience that other Falcon Foundation Scholars have had there. Hoping some of you can shed some light on the good, the bad, and the neutral. Interested in hearing about some of the quality-of-life things, such as: are civilian clothes allowed? Can you have a car? What are some good ways to spend your free time? Can we decorate our dorms? How is their flight program? And anything else you have to offer! Thank you!

If you go to their website, the LTC has his number and email listed, super nice guy with a lot of great information. I think it’d LTC Bowen but I can’t remember. I was considering MMI for self prep and he gave me a lot of great information.

I can't speak to a Falcon Foundation Scholar, but our DS was self-prep (USNA 2028) at MMI. He had civvies. You can have a car, several do, you can decorate your room. It is about 45 minutes south of Tuscaloosa, almost in the middle of nowhere. That can be an advantage. It is isolated but not out of reach. Birmingham a couple of hours up the road. It's a proven SAP program with success. You will want to contact Lt.Col. Bowen for particulars with respect to the flight program. You may want to take a look through their FB page as well. I would suggest looking into other SAP programs, GMC, NMMI etc. The SAP program is large around 70-80, I could be off on the numbers, but there's a lot of them.

ARMARINE03 said:

I can't speak to a Falcon Foundation Scholar, but our DS was self-prep (USNA 2028) at MMI. He had civvies. You can have a car, several do, you can decorate your room. It is about 45 minutes south of Tuscaloosa, almost in the middle of nowhere. That can be an advantage. It is isolated but not out of reach. Birmingham a couple of hours up the road. It's a proven SAP program with success. You will want to contact Lt.Col. Bowen for particulars with respect to the flight program. You may want to take a look through their FB page as well. I would suggest looking into other SAP programs, GMC, NMMI etc. The SAP program is large around 70-80, I could be off on the numbers, but there's a lot of them.

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Wow! Thanks for all the info haha. I kind of jumped the gun on MMI and opted to go their because it was the only one available with the flight program, and I got a buddy going on a FFS as well

Malst0rme said:

Wow! Thanks for all the info haha. I kind of jumped the gun on MMI and opted to go their because it was the only one available with the flight program, and I got a buddy going on a FFS as well

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If you have any other questions, I'm currently a self-prep here at MMI who will probably be here next semester (assuming I don't get off the NAPS waitlist), so I can provide a 1st person perspective for you of what to expect going in. DM me if you're interested

My DS has just a couple more days at MMI. He went there on an AOG scholarship. If you have any specific question about life at MMI, feel free to message me. More than happy to help!! Congrats!

My son is also finishing up at MMI as a self-prep. He did the Aim High Flight Academy last summer (if that's what you are referring to) and received appointments to AFA and West Point. He ended up choosing West Point. If you are referring to flight training during the school year, my impression is that it's difficult to get a lot of flight hours with everything else going on.

Just finished at MMI on Wednesday. Here are some replies to your questions!

are civilian clothes allowed?
Civies as they’re lovingly referred to as are allied and please bring them! You can wear them everyday basically after your classes. Also, bring more civies than they say in the packing list. You are going to want more than just what they say.

Can you have a car?
Yes you can have a car and I encourage to bring one if you can. It makes life so much easier and allows you to go to different places in the area. My friends and I went to eat in neighboring towns, drove to Tuscaloosa, and went to beaches countless times.

What are some good ways to spend your free time?
Most people spend their free time hanging out with their friends, working out, and going to places in neighboring towns. I personally did all three, especially hanging out with friends!

Can we decorate our dorms?
Yes, within reason. Keep in mind that you we have room inspection twice a semester where your room must be very sparse, called SMIs. Keep this in mind when bringing stuff for your room and putting stuff up in your room. A flag is great or a bean bag, but a rug can be unmanageable storage wise.

How is their flight program?
I did Aim High and had a great time. Flying during the year can be difficult, especially with course work. You will have to see what work best for your schedule.

Please let me know if I can answer any other questions. Feel free to reply to this message.