<p>im a sophomore in high school looking to get into either afa, usma, or usna. our school is known for a very high percentage of 4 year college students and outstanding classes. i have a 3.8/4.0, 1380 on sats, 32 on act, i will be a 4 year letter winner in football, track and powerlifting, and i think a 3 year letter winner for baseball as well. i was in the young marines and received medals of physical excellence nationally and i reached the rank of sergeant in 2 years time which is the min. you can get. i also went to florida air academy for a year and got "top classmen of the year" medal and reached a rank higher than any of my other classmates. ive been doing community service for 2 years now and ive made 8/32 in my weight class at state for powerlifting and was wondering what my chances could be</p>
<p>Class Rank? That will be a bigger determiner than gpa. The rest looks good assuming your sat/act scores stay that way and the "letter" means varsity letter. (Not sure, but the only sat/act scores they will count are ones taken after your junior year starts--I assume the scores you are posting are practice tests). Assuming you actually do all that you have a good chance--good luck over your next 2 1/2 years of high school!</p>
<p>Tex 21:
You don't have a chance unless you can show how you can do 4 high school varsity sports for each of 4 years ("4 year letter winner")when there are only 3 sports seasons per year. If you can't, then you have stretched the truth and violated the honor code, and you are toast.
CM</p>
<p><strong>sigh</strong> candidate mom, at our school we have baseball during the summer 1 week before track ends.. track starts here during march (spring break)... baseball starts early june. so yes, i am telling the truth. and cm, i took sats during fall last year and acts last spring... yes, as a freshman. shogun, we really dont do class rank here, but the usna.edu page says estimate and TONS of kids get 4.0s but do not do sports or any community service. i would say overall im about a 23/376 or so... not so good as many other ppl i see here obviously. and yes they were varsity letters except baseball which was jv.. varsity fball, varsity track, varsity powerlifting and jv baseball.</p>
<p>truly sorry to anyone who gets a lil suspective to the 1480 or 1380 that was a typo of the 4, it was a 1380**</p>
<p>i dont NEED to show YOU cm how i can do 4 high school varsity sports when there are 3 sport seasons b/c you can either ask joe thomas, who goes to wisconsin and starts both ways as a sophomore and was a 16 total varsity letter winner OR i can just show the academies that its true because like you, they most likely wont believe it until they decide to call my 4 coaches, or w/e they would like to know that its possible... haha, its not like ANYONE has to prove to another in these forums that we did something or not.. b/c most likely, a lot of ppl believe things and a lot of ppl dont... but about a person is elected to each of teh academies at my school every year ( 3 total) and some of them like one last year going to afa is a winner of 4 var letters his sr year.. sry to come across angry or immature or whatever you feel i am acting.... im pretty angry considering you didnt give me some time to explain rather then go off saying "i have no chance" b/c im lying...</p>
<p>you should take the sats again. if you know what you'll major in, focus on that. Do more ecs. Take the toughest courses next year and senior year.</p>
<p>Please know that although there are three sport seasons, that being Fall, Winter and Spring, an athlete my participate in more than one sport per season providing he/she does not compete in both sports in any one given day. So, though it may be rather difficult, a student can potentially play up to 6 sports per school year. Case in point-my son played varsity soccer during the Fall (earned a letter), wrestled (varsity-earned letter) and was on the rifle team (varsity-earned letter) during the Winter and will swim during the Spring. To the student that desires to attend a Service Academy: continue to challenge yourself academically, stay motivated and involved, and your nose clean, and while there are no guarantees in life, you'll have a good chance of becoming an official candidate providing you obtain a nomination. Good Luck!</p>
<p>Tex, no one here is going to flame you, but you had better expect straight talk just the same. Talking about what you "expect to do" over the next 2 1/2 years of high school is not going to get much more of an answer from folks here other than, "well yes, if you do everything you 'expect to do' you will be competitive". Most of the candidates here have already "done" a lot of what they "expected to do"--their records speak for themselves. Learn from their posts, apply what you've learned, and finally..."just do it". Good luck!</p>
<p>Tex 21
My purpose is not to try to "flame" you but to make yourself more introspective. In our state as in many, High School is in session for only ten months. There are only 3 sports seasons, and an athlete is prohibited from participating in more than one sport per season. Many athletes participate in "club" level or "premier" sports outside of school, certainly an admirable and worthy involvement, but of course these do not count toward "varsity" letters.
Your accomplishments to date seem on track for your goals, but your statements have more to do with expectations of what you plan to do by graduation than what you have already done (since you have had little time to do it as you are only a sophomore.) Life does not always go according to plan. For example, what if you got hurt and had to sit out one or more seasons?
Your resume seems to revolve around sports. You do not mention clubs, or other activities where your leadership skills would be evident. How many hours of community service and what types of activities are you involved in? The academies are looking for the "whole person".
Since you state that your school sends many candidates to the various academies, look at their records and compare them to yours. Also compare your record to the profiles of the previous adademy classes. It will give you an idea of what they are looking for. Are there other students in your school also interested? How do you compare to them?
While your grades are admirable, they are based on only 1 year of classes, and the easiest year. Junior year is the most challenging, by far. Work hard to keep them competitive.
Finally, you asked this forum what your chances are. You listed your accomplishments and asked for input. I gave it, not to be mean, but because I could see glaring conflicts. If I could see them, so would an admission committee. Be prepared for the tough questions. If you get this angry and defensive when asked to explain yourself, you are going to have a difficult time adjusting to life as a plebe, as they face this kind of scrutiny every day. You might want to examine your reasons for pursuing this path.
Good Luck in your quest,
CM</p>
<p>Tex21: In answer to your question, yes, your profile should serve you well. Academics and team sport participation are key components in the evaluation of candidates for the military academies. Look at the class profiles on the USNA website and see how you compare.</p>
<p>Another important area is leadership experience at school, scouts and other clubs/organizations. Given the USNA's goal is to develop leaders, this an essential component. Ask yourself if you like to lead and do people like to follow your leadership?</p>
<p>Finally, try to get a handle on controlling your reactions to criticism - especially whey you believe that criticism is unfounded. Otherwise your plebe year will be extra difficult if you are viewed as someone whose "chain can be yanked" with ease.</p>
<p>Good luck in your pursuits.</p>
<p>At my school, which is in Nevada, we have around 74% going on to either a two or four year college. Many of the kids take the easiest classes and get A's. </p>
<p>About 40 current Seniors take a full class load of AP/Honors classes. Our Honors classes are weighted .25% above "regular" classes. We have a great number of students who have aced regular classes and have non weighted GPA's much higher than mine. Many are not trying to get in to a top notch school, like the Academy. Most will settle for our state school. As a result, my weighted GPA of 3.7 (should be closer to a 4.0 by January) is much lower than the other kids, as is my class rank of 103/535. My rank is also expected to get better. </p>
<p>I know the Academy looks at class rank first, then Math SAT scores. They also look at the type of classes taken. I am in a Magnet Honors Program for Conceptual Physics at my school. I am currently taking 8 classes, versus the five required for the average senior. My class load is as follows:</p>
<p>Physics II BC AP
Pre-Calc Honors (retaking in order to get an A)
English Lit AP
CADD 4th Year
Japanese III Honors/Student Tutor
U.S. Government AP
Trig/Stats Honors
Health (retaking to get an A)</p>
<p>All things considered, I should pull 7A's and 1 B for the Semester. I will re-take the SAT's in December. Current SAT's are 700 Math/640 Verbal. </p>
<p>I received a strong recommendation from my BGO. The Academy called me after Summer Seminar, and told my Mom they were extremely interested in me. I have a long, long list of E/C's and athletics, such as Eagle Scout (with three Palms), Boys State, NHS, Who's Who, Captain of the Varsity Tennis Team, three State Tennis Championships, etc. </p>
<p>I know my file is in the Academy's hands right now. My BGO told me that the Academy would want Senior year first semester grades. Will this hurt me? Congressional Nomination interviews are coming up. I was also told by my RD that I wouldn't get first shot at CVW, but I could hope for the second round. I'm worried, because the Academy is my goal. </p>
<p>Any input would be appreciated.</p>
<p>Thanks, </p>
<p>Doug</p>
<p>Doug:
I wish I had a crystal ball.
So much depends on the competition from your state/congressional district. I have been told that the Academy loves Eagle Scouts, and combined with Boys' State, gives you an advantage over those who have not pursued a long range goal.
As I'm sure you have already heard, the Academy is looking for the "whole person". They award points for various categories, and then rank order the candidates based on the total points. Thus, you can make up a deficiency in one category with a higher ranking in another (to some degree)
I have been told that many candidates with superior grades/SAT scores/class rank were not offered appointments because they lacked the rest of the picture that leads to good Naval Officers.
I understand your unease; my son was in the same position last year. Keep pursuing, but make sure you have a viable backup in case things do not work out.
Best of Luck</p>
<p>As an FYI, even thought the catalog states that SAT's come from Junior year on this is not true. Our congressional office called the academy and they told us that this is written because scores are generally better the junior year and senior year. If there are official SAT scores that are on your permanent record they count. Our son as well as many in our state took regular SAT's in 7th grade and 8th grade as part of the John Hopkins talent search. The 8th grade scores are on his record as well as those thaken later. Since he scored 790 on his verbal SAT prior to Junior year we wanted that on his record and it is. If your scores are good check to make sure they are on your record and retake them later on for improvements. Since many students in our area are taking mostly college courses by their Junior / Senior years taking SAT's early is common and many are done with them bfore Jan of Junior year. ~JM~</p>
<p>well, cm first i gotta say im sorry for coming out like a child. and ironically, i did get hurt this year the day before our first game in football by a shattered right wrist bone. i came back 6 games later (wouldnt have happened if i had not gotten surgery) and still earned a varsity letter. yeah, i am pretty around sports and many of the other candidates that were accepted were too. i'd say most of them were involved in a club we call "key clubb" or community service leadership club. the funniest thing was though, so far my freshman year was extremely hard on me as i just moved from the south to the north, which was completely different and they taught completely different too. this year is much much easier and our first 2 grading reports ive gotten a 4.0... but this is still sophomore lvl with chemistry honors and pre calc/ ap stats. im thinking about going back to faa to keep up my grades as i do a whole lot better under structure such as madatory study hall where its completely quiet. im also already in the process of rejoining the young marines at the rank of sergeant (they are letting me do that instead of starting from scratch b/c they had me take the sergeant test again and i passed it) just so it will count. can anyone give me some tips on what kind of clubs i could do that are a little more interesting than book club, math club etc. ireally dont like that stuff. as for plebe year, i read about it as well as heard it first hand from a student that is in his 3rd midshipmen year. im actually one in first person that stays quiet and keeps my thoughts in my head and just gets the job done quick and as accurate as i can. i'd also like to know what kind of courses besides AP courses i should take next year to get a head start in being an engineer.</p>
<p>Tex 21:
I would look for clubs that have a community service component. Key club, which is affiliated with Kiwanis usually does a lot of community service. The club does not have to be affiliated with school. Perhaps something with your church or synagogue. You need some activity that is going to help you get leadership opportunities, as well as provide service for others. Involvement in school government is good, too. You need to round out your experiences.
Being quiet and introverted is not a flaw unless you do not work well with others. Committee work is often a pain, but leadership requires the ability to see things from another's perspective, to compromise when decisions are being made, and then follow through with the plan of action, even if it does not seem to you to be the best way.
Good Luck in your quest. You have plenty of time to fill in the gaps.
CM</p>
<p>On the USNA application is a question: "Have you ever been arrested, conivicted or fined for a criminal offense?" I had one speeding ticket and was fined $50. Does this totally disqualify me?</p>
<p>No. Not even close.</p>
<p>For one thing, a speeding ticket is not a criminal offense, it is a civil violation. Second, speeding tickets (especially if you paid them) are small change compared to what they are looking for.</p>
<p>They want to know if you've ever been busted for shoplifting, assault, drug dealing, etc. No one is going to care about a single speeding ticket.</p>
<p>Wow. Talk about a thread resurrection! :eek:</p>