<p>I've wanted to be a naval officer all my life. I'm a sophmore at a very competitive high school. My gpa is 99 unweighted. I take several AP and honors classes. I'm in the top 10 students in my class. I'm a member of model UN, student council, sophmore council, jazz strings, and orchestra. I scored a 2290 on the PSATs. I am a cadet first lieutenant in the Civil Air Patrol and I am a flight commander in that as well. I volunteer at Ste. Marie among the Iroquois. I was a member of my district's sustainability comittee as well as our freshman leadership team. I am physically fit and play lacrosse for the school. Am I on the right track to be admitted to Annapolis?</p>
<p>Sounds good to me. Just keep up the good work, apply for summer seminar(it’s good to see if you really want to go to a service academy), and you should probably get in when you apply to usna as a senior.</p>
<p>Beware the Summer Seminar!</p>
<p>It generally does not help your chances of admission. The Summer Seminar can sometimes hurt you more than help you. If you were offered a spot in the Summer Seminar, that is already an indication that the academy is impressed with your record. My recommendation is to LEAVE IT AT THAT!</p>
<p>I would go to the Summer Seminar for only ONE REASON - to see if YOU would like the Naval Academy. Don’t go there with the expectation that, somehow, you are going to increase your chances for admission by attending.</p>
<p>Many are surprised that they are administered the CFA during Summer Seminar. This score counts!</p>
<p>As the above poster stated, you should train for the CFA that takes place over NASS. While you can redo if you do bad, it feels very relieving if you do good and get that part of the application out of the way. Furthermore, some of the midshipmen like to call it “Summer Scaminar” because it does not give you a true feel for the place (ie: morning PT is much easier, food tastes better then usual). My squad leader was actaully surprised by the available chocolate milk, haha. However, I myself attended NASS and loved it. The experience has over confirmed that I want to attend the academy, while others decided it wasn’t for them. It’s a good way to see what you think of the Academy and will create memories. And while it could hurt you, conversely, you can look good by going to. I remember when the ROTC coordinator at UCLA came to give a speech to my NJROTC class told of getting a LoA or something at the end of the summer which he did Summer Seminar.</p>
<p>Thanks a lot guys. No one I know has applied to the academy so I had no idea if I was on the right track. Im already preparing for the CFA and next year I’ll be applying for NASS. I have one question though, do misdshipmen have fun at all during their four years or are they allowed no time to relax? Are the rigors of the academy worth it? I’m not lazy or anything but I do want to get a little bit of a feel for what it might be like.</p>
<p>This is one of the most difficult questions midshipmen (or any service academy student) has to answer. They are frequently asked, “Are you having fun there?” People that ask that question usually have no idea what a service academy is all about.</p>
<p>Fun?</p>
<p>Most who apply to a service academy are not even looking for “fun” from their college experience. They’re looking to work hard. Service academies certainly offer THAT opportunity.</p>
<p>Fun?</p>
<p>It can be both frustrating and very rewarding. There is frequently a sense of accomplishment. You feel like you are on-track with your life. But … fun? Uh … not really.</p>
<p>What you’ll find is that your definition of “fun” will change while at the academy. What you will find “fun” would be a joke to a student attending the University of Whatever.</p>
<p>There will be diversions that you will find humorous - even if it’s something like coating the hallway floor with shaving cream and taking a belly first slide to see how far you will go.</p>
<p>Nobody graduates from a service academy, looks back on the experience, and says, “That sure was a lot of fun.”</p>
<p>Most midshipmen/cadets, when asked if they are having fun, usually respond with something like, “I’m where I’m supposed to be.” </p>
<p>Graduates frequently say, “The Naval Academy is a great place to be FROM.”</p>
<p>But, to answer your question … there will moments of fun. But they will not be all that frequent and they will not be all that fun. It’s work!</p>
<p>If you find work fun … then you’re going to have a hell of a great time.</p>
<p>DS just graduated from Small State U. He had a lot of fun. He’s neither proud of his degree or happy with his career opportunities. If you asked him, he’d trade a lot of that “fun” for some more options for the future.</p>
<p>DD is not looking to have a similar level of fun. To each his own.</p>
<p>This was a recent thread over on SA Forums that asked pretty much the same question, with some good replies:</p>
<p>[Able</a> to find balance during USNA? - United States of America Service Academy Forums](<a href=“http://www.serviceacademyforums.com/showthread.php?t=9705]Able”>http://www.serviceacademyforums.com/showthread.php?t=9705)</p>
<p>I think whether you’re going to enjoy any SA depends entirely on you and your expectations. </p>
<p>If you do well in HS, are self motivated, work quickly and efficiently, prioritize well and know how to tolerate all the mindgames they throw at you, you can absolutely have fun. My son, currently a Plebe, absolutely loves it there. His demanding HS prepared him well for the accademic part, and the military side of USNA is right up his alley. Sure, there are things he enjoys more and others he kinda dislikes, but when I asked him the other day if he wouldn’t prefer the life his civilian friends lead, the freedom they have, he responded with a clear “H*** NO!!”</p>
<p>Excelling at the academy and having fun is definitely possible.</p>
<p>Totally agree, Pachrain. My plebe son is doing well and enjoying it also. He is ready to get back and get to the business of getting plebe year over with! I thought he might feel cheated as his older brother gets two more weeks from college for Christmas, but plebe is ready to get back. Two weeks was plenty…that’s his life now and he loves it!</p>
<p>Dittos. Those who thrive seem to have genuinely realized and embraced that this is a life transition, not just 4 years away @ a school he/she must “get thru.” No doubt there is ample variation in assessing and describing any/all aspects of life at USNA and any SA. And there are many common threads, as well, i.e. generalizations that might be true of no single individual and absolutely accurate of the aggregate.</p>