<p>Meeting the minimum does not assure appointment, and almost every appointee exceeds the written minimum by a significant margin.</p>
<p>How soon after the Admissions Board reviews the candidate file are LOAs sent out? I understand that the Admissions Board meets every Thursday at this point in the year (excluding Thanksgiving). I know LOAs are based on "whole person" qualifications, but can anyone make some generalizations about candidates who receive an LOA?</p>
<p>Senators in California conduct interviews in January. My daughter's interview with our congressman is scheduled in two weeks, mid-December.</p>
<p>If you read all the threads it appears that USNA sends out many fewer LOA's than other schools. There are three I believe on this site, all female and all very strong athletes. Our first interaction with anyone regarding USNA was when our son was told at a congressional academy night you have two things going against you right from the start...you're a cauc. male. Our son did receive a qualified letter a week following his file being approved by the board (qualified) although we heard that initially he was deferred for more information. We are not sure why that happened. Anyway at CVW we were told to expect the long wait until April 15th if he gets a nomination and that we will :-) What an interesting process!</p>
<p>Can't make any generalization about LOA's at USNA from my small observation sample. But the following might be of interest. Our son received a LOA from West Point but has not received one from USNA. He has received his qualified letter. His friend at school had the opposite experience. He has received a LOA from USNA but nothing from West Point. Fortunately, both received LOA's from their first choice academy. Both attended summer seminars at both academies and applied to both academies.</p>
<p>One item that may have affected his LOA potential from USNA(or, in my opinion, should have affected) is that our son told his BGO during his interview that West Point was his first choice and that he had received a LOA from West Point. If this was relayed back to USNA admissions, it would have made sense for them to issue their LOA to a different qualified applicant.</p>
<p>I know some candidates have received LOA's from both USNA and West Point so my reasoning may be off.</p>
<p>Juniormom, if your son is as smart as his mom, I'm sure he will receive an appointment! Thank you for your informative response. My daughter is also applying to Stanford and several University of California campuses--that is totally a "crap shoot." Last year she had many friends with 4.0 unweighted GPAs (over 15 AP classes) loads of ECs, varsity sports/music/academic honors, who were sometimes accepted by UCLA and rejected by UC Berkeley; or accepted by UC Berkeley and rejected by UCLA! Her heart is set on USNA. Second choice NROTC at Stanford.</p>
<p>wstcoastmom - interesting we suffer from the same admissions inconsistencies as in California. (NY) Our son has an NROTC scholarship to Cornell but application to Cornell from instate is beyond tough. We know of many (as you have listed) that meet all the stats and don't get in. He is really excited about this option but it is really a dice roll if he'll get in. On a positive note, he has received communication from the unit itself wanting to know if he needed help with the application process. I guess this is a waiting game...it teaches patience for students (and especially their parents) in this fast paced / instant response world. Best of luck to your daughter. I read that USNA is trying to increase female mids to 20% in the next year or so...take any help you can get :-)</p>
<p>I can certainly feel for all of the students and parents that are playing the waiting game with USNA and other schools. It was a year ago that I found myself in the same place, hoping that my son would receive the appointment that was so important to him. While we waited, we visited many schools in the hopes of finding another acceptable option. My son did not receive his appointment until after April 15. The waiting is torture but never give up, especially if it is your dream. We were lucky to find out in April but a number of appointments are still made beyond that time. Students have to matriculate by May 1 to most universities and students do change their mind and then all of a sudden, an admission slot becomes available. I started keeping a journal over a year ago and when I read the entries over the last year, that feeling of anxiety comes flooding back. My Mid left this morning to return to USNA from his first leave since Plebe summer. A lot has happened, most of it very good and exciting. Keep up the faith and stay in touch with your BGO and your liason in the Admissions Office. My son's BGO said that in all of his years, he had not met anyone that worked harder than my son to secure his appointment. They do take notice!</p>
<p>nvminute~is your son happy? Is he glad that he got the opportunity and made the decision to go? Did he secure another school if you were waiting after April 15th? We are planning a spring trip during that time. Not sure if it's a wise decision but our school break happens then and it may be one of the last opportunities we have as a family. Any thoughts and how to keep up with the process when out of town...of course assuming he's gotten a nomination and hasn't received a deline letter? We initially thought it might be good to get away from it all. Last year during that time when on college tours we decided we didn't want to be driving around having a last look that week like so many were...Appreciate any advice! JM</p>
<p>I understand from an earlier post that the board meets every thursday. Do they look at a file again if there is new info like test scores, or would they wait until the Feb/March period where they appoint the masses to evaluate the record again?</p>
<p>Aspen
Our daughter received an LOA from USNA within a week of telling her BGO that she had received one from West Point back in mid-July. I don't think having an LOA from one makes you less likely to receive one from the other--seems quite the opposite.</p>
<p>My son is very happy at USNA and has said on repeated occasions that he cannot imagine being anywhere else. We visited many schools while he was waiting as I wanted him to feel good about his alternatives. We had sent in a deposit to another school in order to secure good housing and had to back out before the May 1 cutoff date. My son updated his file whenever there was something to report--a new award, honor, article from the paper, etc. We sent updated report cards even though they never asked for them. I believe that he also sent copies of the various letters of recommendation that he used for his nomination applications. It is my understanding that an application can be reviewed multiple times. I know that he communicated with his BGO frequently and asked him if there was anything else that he could do to strengthen his candidacy. </p>
<p>I would take a trip in the spring if you can. It is a great diversion if you are still waiting and you will have more than enough time to respond when you return. We took a trip last April over Easter and are glad that we did. It is hard to find time to spend quality time together if your son/daughter does enter USNA. Take advantage while you can.</p>
<p>It seems like last year that a large number of appointments were made in February based on your individual congressional slate. Those that are made later are those based on the at-large pool of candidates. MOC have to have their nominations in by the end of January and then Admissions is very busy looking at all candidates within each individual congressional area and identifying those that will receive appointments.</p>
<p>Hope this helps.</p>
<p>SAT middle 50% score between 600-699; some score below and some score above. Candidates with relatively low scores have strengths in other areas that compensate.</p>
<p>Juniormom- Where did you read that they are trying to increase female mids? I haven't heard that.. and its exciting haha.</p>
<p>JM and Scitsailor - females in the class of 2008 jumped to 20% this year, I believe. A big hike over historical.</p>
<p>I just recently received word that I don't need an interview because of my LOA and that I will receive a nomination letter from my Congressman in the next week or two. I wonder how long it will be before I receive an appointment. Does anyone know? It seems like I read somewhere that it will be in January.</p>
<p>It should be mid- to- late Feb. Congrats and have a good holiday.This was the week I got the same news.Make sure you get something in writing prior to the interview deadline.</p>
<p>Navgirl:</p>
<p>Congratulations on your nomination. Given the congressional members have until the end of January to get in their nominations, I concur with Bkozy that mid to late February is a good guess. </p>
<p>Candidates with early nominations are fortunate. Our son has had only one senatorial interview so far. His second senatorial interview is on Saturday. Our congressional rep. still hasn't set interview dates.</p>
<p>Thanks bkozy and aspen!</p>
<p>bkozy, congrats to you as well! It was a nice early Christmas gift. :-) </p>
<p>aspen, good luck to your son on his remaining interviews. I'm sure he will receive great news shortly.</p>
<p>I am still waiting to hear about EA with Harvard, so I still have another hurdle to cross there. But, I should hear something either the latter part of this week or first part of next.</p>
<p>Aspen~The fact that your son has 2 Senatoral interviews is awesome! Our son has a congressional interview Sat and was pleasantly surprised to receive a request for a Senatoral interview this past Tuesday. Only 3 working days notice for an interview during school in another city but you make plans fast! It appears in many of the larger states things happen in December and Jan and he probably won't hear about the nominations until late January (at least one of them). Just another dip in the rollercoaster ride! Best of luck to your son~I think the interviews are harder on the parents :-)</p>