I want a no-BS assessment

[Jonez]

Hey guys,

I'll be a senior in high school next year, and I have begun the application process for an appointment to USNA. I first decided that I wanted to go to the Naval Academy in the fall of my junior year. I went to Annapolis to visit last April, and seeing the place has made me strive to get there even harder. I was put in contact with a Commander who is a USNA-grad who now lives at the Academy through a friend-of-a-friend type of situation, and he met me there and showed me around. He's also a BGO for his area, so I've been in email contact with him for a while now.

Anyway, the bottom line is, it is my strongest desire at this point to get my appointment to the Naval Academy, and I want your opinion as to whether or not you think I can hack it. I did not get into Summer Seminar*, which was a disappointment to say the least, but when I visited the Yard, all the officers I talked to assured me it was no big deal. Anyway, I'll go ahead and explain my resume and you can judge if it's good enough for the class of 2009:

6th out of 183 in class (will go up slightly after grades are processed for second semester of junior year; also, this is at a very competitive private school)
1400 SAT (680 math and 720 verbal)
4.6 GPA for 10th-11th grades (my counselor says this is the important one, will also go up slightly)
Many honors and AP classes
A lot of various community service
President of AP history club
Peer tutoring
Total of six academic awards for 9th, 10th, and 11th grades
California Scholastic Federation
National Honors Society
Varsity football
Church group
Out-of-school rifle club
Out-of-school golf club


I should also add, I'll be needing a vision waiver. My vision is correctable to 20/20, and looking into things further, I will indeed be eligible for a waiver. I realize this will make things much more difficult.

Also, concerning a nomination, I may have an excellent connection. My neighbor is a county supervisor, who is a personal friend of our congresswoman. Last month when she was in town he introduced us, and said he would write her a letter later on recommending me personally. He used to teach at Naval Postgraduate School down in Monterey, so he's seen young officers, some graduates of Annapolis, and was impressed with them.

So, in your opinion, do I have what it takes to become a mid? I really hope so




*When I applied for SS my SAT was only 1290 and I didn't have any sports. Both have changed since then. My Area Coordinator told me while I was at the Yard that I didn't get accepted because I didn't have any sports. They must have thought I was some kind of disgusting fatbody like Pvt. Pyle!

 

[cdb21]

No one hear can give a any real assurance of your chances. We are not on the admissions board. I do have some advice though. I went through the service academy games twice, got in twice-but not to my first choice. I will be reporting to KP on july 9, so it all worked out in the end( you should have already assumed there was a problem for me if I got in twice but did not go the first time). Anyway, applying to a service academy is a bit of crap shoot. You look like you got great scores/activities/grades. Well, DODMERB could still DQ you, you could get shafted out of a nom, you could have a rap sheet, there are a million things that can screw you over. All you can do is work hard, make sure the academy is really what you want, and give it your best shot. I will assure you there is some ******* star football player/ bball player/runner who has the idea the academy is a regular college with uniforms and does not have a clue to what the military let alone navy is who will get the nod from admissions because they are a blue chip. Hey it will happen ands its unfair but so what-life is that way sometimes.


From my experiance there are 3 things you need to do

1. Do not put yourself in a one academy hole. Apply to all the service academies and to all branchs for ROTC scholorships. If you are not willing to do this then I would question your will to serve and your commitment. Everyone needs many back up plans( this is coming from experiance)
2. Make as many connections as you can. Call your BGO/other academy reps at least every two weeks and more when the time crunchs in. Try to find grads that can help you. Try to make whatever networking connections you can. Show them how bad you want it.
3.Realize what being in the military really means, because many people do not, and then make sure you are up to the commitment. I cannot really tell you how to do this, I wanted to be in the military my whole life but did not know what it really meant till very recently. I would say read every military book you can( a good semi academy-the old style prior PC days- experience one is lords or discipline) and talk to vets, active duty, whomever you can.

Good luck and just work hard. No one will tell you that you are a shoo in because no one really knows.

 

[big]

Good post by cdb, reread it.

Like he said, noone can assure you of anything. There are TONS of things that can help you or screw you, some of which include your eyesight, geographical region, who else is applying against you and how many, your interview and essay, blah blah blah just like any old college.

For instance, your SAT score is very good; I got in and I only had a 1340. However, I live in Nevada, which is 2nd to bottom on the national list education wise, so my SAT score stands out bigtime vs. my peers here in Vegas. Also, Nevada only has 3 congressional regions and not that many people (I'm going to an academy farewell party for the state on Sunday and only 4 people from here are going to USNA this year) where California has an insane amount of regions and an insane amount of applicants.

Sooooo basicly, you can't really tell if you're gonna get in or not because of the diversity of the whole process. Athletes can kill you too. I know a dude whos an absolute moron punker kid who doesn't even like the mil, and he got appointed to NAPS wherein others who are just as dedicated as you are got screwed for the 2nd or 3rd time.

If you want it, don't give up. I didn't get in my first year either, only this past year have I been fortunate enough to earn an appointment. I could have given up and just done NROTC or BDCP etc, but I chose to dedicate my time to getting back into the academy and it paid off. Don't worry about it, just do your best and prepare some back up plans in case you don't get in. Apply for a 4-year NROTC and remember that after 4 years of college, the NROTC, OCS and academy folks all get the same commission.

Good Luck!!

Edit: BTW Jonez I sent you a private message.

 

[NAPSmom05]

I think your scores and academics seems fine (as long as you have a tough load of math and science like calc and physics, a couple years of chem, etc). But, nothing really stood out on your app. Like the other said, have lots of options. I would definitely increase on the athletic side. If you just are adding football, then it's not a whole lot for 4 years. Add some community service and definitely some team sports. You get points for each sport, and for being captain of such sport. Try to add some unique things to stand out. Connections are fine for the nominations, but almost all of the congresspeople use a competitive system which still leaves everything up to the academy in the end. (Still good to have though). You're not out of it by any measure. Just add some sports!!
Good luck.
NAPSmom05

 

[H20man]

well it also depends on what you do if you dont have as many sports. i wrestled frosh year and did Track soph year.

Junior year i worked at 6 flags for the complete season.

the thing is be active in something, throughout HS. i also did clubs through 3 years of HS (NHS, Aviation Club, German Club, some stuff i cant think of right now)

character is also important. and by going to the yard, you put a face with the application.

heck why not aim for USMMA too.

like napsmom was saying having math and science helps too, i had AP Calc and AP Physics my senior year.

USMMA is a smaller school about 280 ppl a year, but we are a service academy, plus we get our choice of all branches of the military, NOAA, or going civilian with the USMS.

 

[petescheu]

there was one thing that stood out... varsity football. the academy LOVES football players, if you're real good at that make sure you get in touch with the coach, maybe you can get recruited. i think you have the academics down, but try and get a little more diverse in the sports if you can. but def work the football deal...

 

[VAmookie]

OH MY GOD DUDE... unless youre a complete moron with no personality (personality goes a long way you know) you are in. I dont say this so you get cocky, but apply early and its gonna be a pretty sure bet

 

[Jonez]

Thanks for all the replies, guys. I asked this question mostly just to see how I've done so far, whether I've got a pretty dang good shot, or if it will be close. I guess the answer is neither really, since academy applications are such a craps shoot. But either way, I'll just keep working hard and hopefully I'll get that damned appointment next year.

I'm sure I don't want to go to a state school though. I'd much rather be a squared away midshipman, even if I do have to get up early and get my ass yelled at by some upperclassman :icon_tong .

 

[VAmookie]

No, you do have a pretty dang good shot. I guess take their advice in that you should not get your hopes up, but you are academy material so i think youve got a shot.

As far as what Michael W said... you say you wouldnt have traded your party college years for anything... its hard for you to say that since you havent experience both. If you were at Navy, you wouldnt have given it up for anything. The Reg sucks... plebe year really sucks... but when you get that ring, it was all worth it... not an awesome party or a money chick could convince you otherwise

 

[thumper]

The Reg sucks... plebe year really sucks... but when you get that ring, it was all worth it... not an awesome party or a money chick could convince you otherwise

snicker...whatever floats your boat, sailor.

 

[NAPSmom05]

Michael, while I would agree with you about the football (are you a "player" or getting water for everyone else) it did seem that it was a last minute, 1 year add on. I think he might want to up the value of golf as well. Anything athletic. But, I take exception to your post that he is going against what we've all said. I know for a fact that I wouldn't have liked a state school and made my mind up 20 years ago about that (well actually a few more than 20...sigh) The type of person I was leaned toward a smaller atmosphere. So, not everyone told him to go to a state school, blah blah blah. But, I also agree with you on really not knowing what kind of candidate he is. One thing is clear though; he seems academically qualified. That is one step in the game. You need to stand out though in other ways, so you're not just another smart guy in the crowd. Also, the other factors are race, area of the country etc. beside athletics. Anyway, just 2 cents worth.
NAPSMom05

 

[Jonez]

Just so you know, the order in which I listed those things has nothing to do their respective importance. Football clearly is the next most important thing besides grades and SAT.

And yes, I am a white male. Isn't racism great?


Another thing. I sent in my preliminary application in early April, and I haven't gotten my candidate packet yet. Apparently they send them out in early July, but some have already gotten theirs I've heard. Anyone know when I should expect it to arrive?

Also, NAPSmom, you mentioned areas of the country. I live in a particularly liberal part of California, where there are probably very very few applying to USNA, will this help? :icon_tong

 

[big]

Backup plans are the most important thing. Whether or not Jonez will get into the academy, its pretty obvious with his stats he will get an NROTC scholarship, so he really needs to apply for that because the academy is just not a sure thing.

Type of school for NROTC or just doing OCS is just a matter of preference. I HAVE been to state school (went to college this year before I was accepted USNA) and I detested it in nearly all ways, same with the university. UNLV = big party school, bunch of unmotivated drunks, I did not like it there. My best friend does, however, so its all just preference Do what you think is best for yourself and remember other people's advice is just that - ADVICE - so if you want the academy then go for it, and if you don't get in try again if you want it that bad. All things will work out in the end for you if you stay focused and work your tail off.

Also, I don't think the order of listing things matters. I always list my academic/club achievements first, sports after and I was an all-state soccer and baseball player in HS. For the academy, though, sports is probably more important than most extracurriculars.

 

[Ironfeliks23]

Squared away MIDMN does not equal squared away Ensign. Enjoy your time at college and go to a state school, somewhere that allows you to have a social life. Then go to OCS for 13 weeks and get your arse kicked By a Marine D.I.

Side question...One of the guys I work with here transfered out of USAFA after his frosh year. He said there were no enlisted to run instruction or PT. Sit that just an air force thing? Are there Sgts. or Chiefs at the USNA? or is it just upper classmen? Simple curiosity.

 

[Jonez]

Heh, what happened to the other half of this thread?