What will the online application page say?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Air Force Academy - Colorado Springs
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<p>GreatAmerican; was wondering if you've gotten any updates on your child's application? They finally update my Son's to show the medical as Qualified. The only thing they haven't processed is the personal data which was submitted on 6/23/07 online. Shows received, not processed. I think you said your child's was done a week prior to that. </p>

<p>Hopefully the web site being outdated isn't related to the real process. I'd hate for my son to not be considered in the early fall slection process because they say his package wasn't completed on time. We've had everything 100% complete since about 20 July 2007. My son's ALO has calls in to the councilor. Hoping she will resply to the phone calls. Haven't heard anything back from the councilor yet. Anyway, hopefully your child's application is moving along well also. Later... Mike....</p>

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<p>^^^^^
The status of my daughter's online application hasn't changed yet. I'm guessing that the admissions office hasn't processed any of the Form 146s yet. My daughter's medical is also missing because she scheduled the exam for 31 August after her braces are removed. The medical status is transmitted electronially to the service academies by DODMERB.</p>

<p>Last year the admissions board didn't meet until November; so there is plenty of time to hurry up and wait. Welcome to the military.</p>

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<p>You can always contact the Admissions Counselor and ask. They are very helpfull, and will be able to answer any questions about the page.</p>

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<p>My son's ALO has a couple of calls into the councilor. The councilor just hasn't called back yet. I know that the couple of times we called the councilor, we always had to leave a message and have her call us back. Because the ALO's status screen shows pretty much the same as ours, we thought it would look better if the councilor got a question from the ALO instead of a PITA parent. Especially considering how busy they are down there. Unfortunately, they don't provide an email address for the councilor. But then again, even if they had 26 councilors; 1 for each letter of the alphabet, that could average about 385 applicants each. The councilor would never get any work done. </p>

<p>We'll just have to see next week. We called the councilor about it a month ago. Even though it said they hadn't processed certain things, she assured us that everything was received and good to go. Our only concern is making sure he is eligible for the early selections. I've spoken to a lot of past cadets and current officers. Even though they aren't selecting the early until Oct or Nov, they aren't considering applicants who finish the application in Oct or Nov prior to the selection. According to quite a few officers, there is a lot of reviewing that goes on with applications to make sure the information is consistent and valid. From what many have said, getting the application completed prior to Aug 1st gives you an almost guaranty to be considered during the early selection. By September 1st gives you a pretty good chance. After that and it's a crap shoot.</p>

<p>Of course, being considered during the early selection period doesn't guarantee anything. Plenty of people aren't selected during the early consideration and later are given an appointment in March. Just like there are some who have everything thing in early and ready to go, and never get selected for an appointment ever. For us, the early selection would be nice, because of many other options my son has. Plus, we have discussed what the rest of the senior year would be if he gets an early appointment. For instance; an early appointment in Oct-Nov or a Letter of Intent, would almost certainly mean not playing Soccer in the spring. (Matter of fact, a letter of intent means he can't play another sport anyway). But, without an early appointment or a letter of intent, Soccer is one avenue that certain schools have an interest in him for. Not playing it in the spring "Hoping" he gets an appointment in March is not realistic. So, risking injury is something to be considered.</p>

<p>We know that once Football season is over in November, that things get very busy. Schools and students start doing the mad rush. Being the academy is my son's first joy and desire; above all other schools, it would be nice to get the early selection taken care of. This way, the rest of the school offers or opportunities can be put into perspective. Anyway, I'm sure that even though it says incomplete online, that everything is in good shape. It took more than a week from the DODMRB to say "Qualified" before it showed up on the online application. Maybe the personal data form isn't finished being processed and showing so online until all other things are done. who knows? We'll just wait and see. Everyone have a nice weekend and the rest of your summer. Later.... Mike....</p>

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<p>You may be confusing a "letter of intent" with a "letter of assurance". They are two different things. The first is for athletes and follows NCAA rules. The LOA is just an offer of appointment given prior to receiving a nomination. If your son has a presidential nomination, he will not be sent an LOA, but the actual offer of appointment will come. When the first admissions committee meets in October or November they will consider completed applications that show a certain minimum score in the admissions criteria. From that group they will begin to send out LOA's. Others will be recycled, considered at subsequent meetings, and as new applications are completed they will be added to the pile. LOA's and offers of appointment will continue to be sent out all the way up to March when the bulk of offers will be mailed. Congressional noms have to be to the academy by 1 Feb, so after that no more LOA's will likely be sent - only offers of appointment. Some applicants have had good success calling their admissions counselors during November and later just to see where their apps are sitting at the moment. However, good luck on having a counselor return your voice mail. It never happened for us. We just kept calling until a person actually answered. Occasionally if our counselor was not available, I would ask to talk to just any counselor. Any of them can answer any of your questions. They just divide things up geographically to try to even out the load.</p>

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<p>Thanks for the info. If we don't hear back in a few days, we'll call and talk to any of them that will answer. I was referring however to a "Letter of Intent". If one is received, that will determine a lot of what happens for the rest of the school year. Even though it's the academy, they also have NCAA rules to follow. Coaches from the academy have spoken with the coaches at the high school. Talking to the student wasn't allowed at that time. That too will change in his senior year. My son does real well in a couple of sports; football and soccer. Soccer believe it or not is a lot more dangerous when it comes to breaking bones, blowing out knees, etc... If my son gets an early appointment to the academy or a letter of intent in January, then Soccer is out. Neither we or coaches will allow playing of other sports. We also wouldn't want to see him with a major injury possibly a few weeks prior to going off to basic training and washing him out.</p>

<p>Anyway, we'll see what the counselor says to make sure his application is indeed complete. Hopefully all their information is up to date and it's just the online info that is behind the times. The ROTC application will probably be complete by the end of next week. As well as any congressional nomination requests; just in case. Then it's sit back and wait. Thanks again. Later... Mike....</p>

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<p>


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<p>Not according to The CDC, the National Center for Biotechnology Information, the National Library of Medicine at NIH, or the National Athletic Trainers' Association (NATA), which tracks those injuries and reports that high school football has an injury rate during games (12.09 per 1,000 exposures) that is 3 times higher than soccer (4.22), an injury rate during practice that is 60% higher (2.54 to 1.58), and an overall rate (4.36 to 2.43) almost twice as high as soccer.</p>

<p>An estimated 1,442,533 injuries occurred among U.S. high school student athletes participating in practices or competitions for the nine sports studied. The overall (i.e., practice and competition) injury rate in all sports combined was 2.44 injuries per 1,000 athlete exposures (Table). Football had the highest injury rate (4.36 injuries per 1,000 athlete exposures) followed by wrestling (2.50), boys' (2.43) and girls' (2.36) soccer, and girls' basketball (2.01). Boys' basketball, volleyball, baseball, and softball each had injury rates of less than 2.0 injuries per 1,000 athlete exposures. In each sport, the injury rate was higher in competition than practice settings. Although boys' soccer had slightly higher injury rates than girls' soccer, and girls' basketball had slightly higher injury rates than boys' basketball, no statistically significant differences (p>0.05) by sex were observed for soccer and basketball.</p>

<p>Why does your son's school play soccer in the spring? I've always thought HS Soccer to be a fall sport, at least here in the East.</p>

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<p>Well, I hope there are no injuries actually. And stats can be very misleading. Through experience and other sources, I've seen where soccer has a higher rate of broken bones and more serious sprains. But that's not what this forum is for.</p>

<p>One of the coaches from the academy came this past spring to talk to our coach. Our coach had lined up a meeting between the two, but the air force coach basically said he couldn't talk football. Don't know all the rules. Anyway, also not important to this thread.</p>

<p>Why do they play soccer here in the spring? Excellent question. I've asked myself that since I moved here. I too came from the east coast. I played soccer in the fall in High school. Matter of fact, I played soccer in the fall in college and for the Air Force. It could be that the weather here can be more drastic. The kids play a lot of soccer in the Rockies. Here in Wyoming, Colorado, Nebraska. New Mexico, etc... They even play across the border with each other. It's all in the Spring. Maybe it has to do with the schools being very small out west, and the majority of athletes play more than 1 sport because there aren't that many kids. Anyway, they do.</p>

<p>Anyway, a lot of colleges recruit from the Rockies. Obviously most of them are west of the Mississippi. And the only reason for bringing up sports at all, was because if there is no early appointment, then other options need to be explored. The Air Force academy by far is my son's #1 choice in the world. This is what he wants. This is definitely not something that I or my wife forced on him. Hell, his mom is the typical doesn't want her baby to go off to war type. Even though I was in for 21 years. But, we have to stay practical and realistic. My son will be applying to the 5 schools that he is really interested and who have shown a deep interest in him. Just in in case the air force falls through, he gets injured, etc.... He'll also finish going with an AFROTC scholarship if they approve him. As well as any of the other colleges that want to show an interest. He has the grades and the sports to go to many colleges. And fortunately for us, the western 14 states have a scholarship program called WUE that allows students from any of the other 14 states to go to their schools for almost in state tuition rates. Basically expands the cost of going to college in state to 14 states. Definitely nice if we have to pay for college.</p>

<p>That is why I really wish the best of luck to the many students and their parents on this forum. I think the one thing that makes the people on this forum so different from some others applying to the academy, is that they REALLY want it more than many others. People here on this forum have really researched the academy. They are preparing themselves in their Sophomore and Junior year for applying. They aren't just walking around with the attitude of; "My grades are good and I don't know what I want to do, maybe I'll apply to the military academies". I just wish that the academies could see the real desire in the young men and woman, as well as the support of their family, of those that come to these forums and actually WANT TO ATTEND THE ACADEMY. </p>

<p>I think that there are way too many that apply and have no idea what they are doing. To them, it's a free college education. They have no idea of what defending the constitution actually means. They don't realize that the taxpayers providing them an education is a small price compared to what they may and will have to give back in return to the country. If the review board could see some of these forums, see the soul and heart of the applicants that visit here, and see the support of their families, then many of these students wouldn't have a second thought by the board of being given an appointment. Unfortunately they can't see all this, so instead all we can do is offer up our prayers, thoughts, and best wishes that many of these students will be given the opportunity that they truly deserve. Best of luck to all. We'll just hurry up and wait. Later... Mike....</p>

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<p>very heartfealt post there.. i agree with you! if only they could see our passion.. but i guess thats what the interviews are for, to try and show your real self..</p>

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<p>Got a call back from my son's ALO today, who got a call back from the counselor at the academy. They show my son's application as being complete. She did recognize that the online application page has a difficult time staying updated. And especially, the Form 146 as not updating. But according to the councselor, the application shows complete on their end. I guess that is good enough. Of course it will put a lot of concerns to rest if and when the online application status shows complete.</p>

<p>So, now we get to the "Hurry up and Wait" process. I assume that the early appointments are done some time in October or November. If anyone knows a more accurate time frame, that would be appreciated. </p>

<p>Time now to move on with completing the AFROTC application as well as applying to his Top 5 schools. Didn't realize that the average school charges about $50 for application fees. Plus we have to have sent out about 5 or so more copies of the ACT/SAT at $8-$9 each. Seems like "Getting" to college is almost as expensive as "Going" to college. :) ... Later... Mike....</p>

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<p>Let me outline a strategy that might save you some time and money (I've already put four children through college, and I'm a high school counselor among other things). Find out the deadlines for the colleges you're interested in. The only reason for applying earlier than that is if you want to be considered for early admission, and since USAFA is his first choice, he can't really seek early admission from highly selective colleges. If a college says that early applicants receive first consideration for scholarships, then go for it. Otherwise, save your time and money.
Consider filling out the Common Application. Most schools accept it, and you only have to do it once. But there is still the application fee for each school you send it to.
Finally, five schools may really be excessive. Common wisdom is that you apply for one selective school that is a stretch, a second school that is highly desirable (but almost a sure thing), and a third school that is a fall-back (a sure thing).
Obtain all the necessary materials, but don't fill them out till you need to. As far as ACT/SAT results, many colleges have somewhat later deadlines to receive them than to receive the application itself.
The service academies are very unusual in that they are both highly selective AND they have rolling admissions. Most colleges with rolling admissions are not very selective at all. They are just more likely to give scholarships to early applicants. Ivy Leagues and other selective schools don't start admitting students until after their deadlines. For them an application for early admission can be crucial, but you can only make ONE early admission application and you must sign an intent to go there if they accept you early. And, yes, they do check among themselves to make sure you're following the rules.
If/when your son is accepted to USAFA will determine in what order you make these other arrangements. So waiting till the first week of December before spending any extra money would probably be just fine
Some parents do continue the application process at backup schools even after being offered an appointment at USAFA. We didn't, but I'm not as OC as some parents about these things. A backup plan would cover any possibility of illness, injury, or sudden change of heart. A few bucks spent for that kind of peace of mind might be well worth it.
Since you have completed your son's USAFA application earlier than anyone I've ever heard of, I can sense that you really do like to be ahead of the game. I can't fault that. I actually had kind of a letdown when my son's application was completed. I was looking around for other exciting things to do. One reason I stay on this forum is because I enjoy seeing other people trying and succeeding. It's kind of a rush.
Looking forward to your son's success.</p>

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<p>Definitely appreciate all the great advice. The main reason for looking at the 5 schools was to coincide with the AFROTC application and their requirements. From what I've been told by my son's ALO, who also happens to be the one who would do the interview for the AFROTC and therefor already has that ready to go, part of their acceptance is the normal grades, act/sat, etc... Another part is based on the schools you are applying to for AFROTC. I believe that they had him list 5 schools. Hence the reason to applying to those 5 schools.</p>

<p>We've tried to attack my son's future from 5 angles. 1st angle of course is the Academy. </p>

<p>2nd angle is the AFROTC and the 5 schools on that list. </p>

<p>3rd angle is that of those 5 schools, 2 of them are also part of what is called out west; WUE. (Western Undergraduate Exchange). It is an exchange program among 14 western states where they all agree that "Many" of their schools in their states will accept students from the other 13 states at close to "In-State" tuition fees. Basically, it's like going to your home state University, but you have schools from 14 states to pick from. This was developed because many of these 14 states are low in population and therefor usually only have 1 main university. This way you can go to a school with different majors. This "Scholarship" type tuition plus regular scholarships can make going to school very inexpensive. </p>

<p>4th angle is for a full ride sports or academic scholarship. Many different avenues to go on this one. There are a number of schools that have shown interest in him academically and through sports. Many of these are NOT his top 5 schools of choice, but they are an option.</p>

<p>5th angle which my son really doesn't want is to stay here and go to the University of Wyoming. Not that it's a bad school. On the contrary. It's a very good school. It's just that he has the military itch to move like I had and still do. He wants to move away and see new things. The thing about Wyoming, is that they have state scholarships. One of which is if you graduate highschool with a 4.0 average and score at least a 28 composite on your ACT, they will pay for all of your tuition, fees, books, etc... to go to the University of Wyoming. Only have to pay living expenses, but they will align other scholarships for you to take care of that. So, as much as it would discourage him, it is an option. Plus, if he gets his IB diploma, the University gives you 28 college credits and starts you off as a Sophomore. </p>

<p>So definitely thank you so much for the great information. It will come in quite valuable in timing how we apply to the schools. I am sure that we can continue on with the majority of AFROTC stuff and wait until Novemeber or December to actually apply to the different schools. We don't feel that getting accepted to a school will be a problem, just paying for it. Different angles have different options. If he gets an appointment and/or an AFROTC scholarship, then pretty much everything is taken care of. Unfortunately, it could be March time frame to find out about either one. So, we need to have some of the other schools lined up. </p>

<p>You have saved me quite a bit of time by understanding more of the different schools submission time tables. Most of the schools my son is interested in have sent him a lot of information already. Especially applications. 3 are waiting until Football season is almost over. We'll hopefully have a better idea by November. Thanks again RTBdad, great information. Later... Mike....</p>

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<p>Just received a phone call from the academy counselor. She said that NONE of the form 146's were being processed because of a glitch. The glitch is now supposedly fixed. She confirmed that my son's application is indeed complete. She said the online application page should be updated and accurate, especially for the form 146, in the next day or two. In case anyone is curious. Later... mike....</p>

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<p>Well, the counselor was correct. The 146 now shows complete and processed. The entire application now shows "COMPLETE". So, now it's just a wait and see situation. If any of you have had discrepancies with your online application, you might recheck it today or tomorrow and see if it's updated. If not, and you know it should be, contact your counselor. Thanks again all for some great information and suggestions. later.. Mike....</p>

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<p>^^^^
I just got of the telephone with the guidance counselor. Based on my conversation, the academy is having some IT problems with the online admissions software. My daughter sumbitted her Candidate Personal Data Record on 16 June 2007 and now it shows as not being submitted.</p>

<p>This computer glitch is supposed to be cleared by tomorrow.</p>

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<p>Yup, same thing here. This morning it showed everything as being 100% complete. Then a couple of hours later it showed that the 146 hadn't been submitted. Thanks for the info. I was going to call back down there, but we'll see what happens tomorrow or the day after. The counselor said that a lot of stuff stays in computer format until they need to print everything out as a package for the selection board. Definitely had concerns if stuff started to disappear. She believes that the actual data which is in their system is separate from what we get to view. Just that the two are linked. Definitely don't want to believe everything is good and then find out that they lost something and the application isn't complete. Thanks for the update. Later... Mike....</p>

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<p>dang, completed already??</p>

<p>wow haha, my app wasnt fully completed until like late september.</p>

<p>way to go!</p>

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<p>I just got an e-mail from USAFA saying that they're having problems with the 146's. The e-mail I received said that the problem was specifically with the mother/father info, but when I went to review the form on there the only things I had to input again were the names of my parents.</p>

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<p>Yea, actually it's been completed since July 19th. That's one reason for starting this thread. According to the counselor, this is only the 2nd year where they had a predominantly on-line process. Guess they are still working out some of the bugs. Was wondering how some of the applicants from last year who just entered this summer as cadets handled it. Was wondering if they had the same issues. </p>

<p>But, as long as the counselor still shows everything as 100% complete, we are fine. She understands and has no problem with calling down there every couple of weeks to verify when what she shows and our online status is different. My son's counselor and ALO have each been doing this for about 8 years and both love their job. They are so supportive and encourage phone calls if there are questions, concerns, or discrepancies. I try to keep a handle on the background stuff like this so my son doesn't have to be overwelmed with it. He's keeping busy now with collecting for his AFROTC packet and for traditional college applications come November. Of course school starts here in 2 weeks and football starts next week, so he takes care of the actual processes and I help out with the followups. later... Mike....</p>

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<p>Soylent, did you re-enter the information again? I saw that also, and my son's ALO said not to input anything into it right now. To wait a couple of days to see if it gets corrected. With my son's 146, if we resubmit it again, it will automatically spit out additional forms he needs to fill out and MAIL to the academy. (He was born overseas at an Air force base). So, we want to make sure it doesn't make us have to send stuff down again. We'll wait a day or two. Thx... Mike....</p>