Will Civil Air Patrol look good on my application?

frenzymando

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I'm currently leaning towards Air Force over Army right now, so I have decided to join Civil Air Patrol. Would this only look good on an Air Force Academy application or would it look good on a West Point application as well? Btw, I am a Junior right now so I will only be able to participate in Civil Air Patrol the rest of this year and my senior year. I am also considering joining boy scouts for the rest of this year and my senior year. Also, is there a Civil Air Patrol equivalent for the Army?
 
I'm not sure how it will really look for Air Force, but since you are unlikely to reach any level of significant leadership like some of your competitors have, it won't have much weight on your West Point application. Same for Boy Scouts. Unless you are reaching levels like Spaatz award (civil patrol) or senior patrol leader/Eagle Scout, it just looks like you are doing the events to pad your resume for your application.
 
I'm not sure how it will really look for Air Force, but since you are unlikely to reach any level of significant leadership like some of your competitors have, it won't have much weight on your West Point application. Same for Boy Scouts. Unless you are reaching levels like Spaatz award (civil patrol) or senior patrol leader/Eagle Scout, it just looks like you are doing the events to pad your resume for your application.
:thumb:Yep, and West Point and other colleges are wise to this. Frenzymando, colleges want to see that you have a passion and long-term interest/commitment to something and that you aren't just a "serial joiner."
 
So joining these programs won't have much of a positive impact on my resume? Dang that sucks. Would it actually look bad that I'm trying to "pad" my resume? I have JROTC but my resume is looking kinda thin in the non-athletic extracurricular activities(AFJROTC(held leadership position, flight superintendent as well as academic team commander) Academic team(held leadership position, team commander), and NHS are basically all I have in that category) so I was looking to add another activity or two. I'm not very concerned about the amount of leadership I have since along with those two leadership roles mentioned I was captain of a rec league basketball team for 3 years, I was mainly just looking to "pad" my resume with a few more activities. How about getting a job, would that benefit my application?
 
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You could certainly join the groups but just keep in mind most Scouts your age have either completed their Eagle or are working on the final stages, having been in Scouts for years and years. Join Civil Air Patrol if you have a genuine interest and would enjoy it.

Have you ever looked at the "What Are My Chances" sticky at the top of the USMA page? Those are the class profiles---take a look at the type of activities current cadets and grads did. Since you are a junior, is it too late to try for a spot for Boys' State? Ask your guidance counselor how your school picks its rep.
 
When my DS applied, his Billy Mitchell Award (becoming 2nd LT) was equivalent to Eagle Scout in terms of merit, a box to check, and from what he was told it was given the same weighting. It certainly has the same weighting as Eagle Scout when enlisting in terms of higher grade upon completing basic, etc. Achieving Mitchell is generally about a two-year achievement cycle/process, that varies depending upon your ability to promote which includes your squadron’s promotion ethos. None of that is to take away from what has been said about why to join, it is only to clarify what has been the historic value of the program relative to Scouting achievements. All things being equal, obtaining the Mitchell would likely be something valued that you can objectively count on in terms of your application. That is/was from USMA’s perspective. There is the separate perspective of how your MOCs value CAP’s Mitchell, my DS was in a position of having to explain that, even though there was a USAF Col on his MOCs interview board. So, I recommend you do additional investigation with your MOCs offices as well as verifying with USMA Admissions regarding their value of the Mitchell if you think you want to pursue that. He pursued CAP simply because there was no local equivalent to it in some type of Army JROTC in our area, turned out he really enjoyed it and learned a lot about land nav that helped him later on, too.
 
You could certainly join the groups but just keep in mind most Scouts your age have either completed their Eagle or are working on the final stages, having been in Scouts for years and years. Join Civil Air Patrol if you have a genuine interest and would enjoy it.

Have you ever looked at the "What Are My Chances" sticky at the top of the USMA page? Those are the class profiles---take a look at the type of activities current cadets and grads did. Since you are a junior, is it too late to try for a spot for Boys' State? Ask your guidance counselor how your school picks its rep.
I have seen that and I noticed that there were scouts that were not Eagle scouts. I'm above average on all my test scores(SAT and ACT) when compared to people at the Academy and I will also most likely be a National Merit Finalist, so academically I'm not very concerned. Physically I believe I will be fine too. Non athletic ECs is the only area I am worried. I do have 3 varsity letters(all football) and I have played rec league basketball(was a captain all 3 years) so I think I'm fine in athletic ECs. But non-athletically all I have is JROTC NHS and Academic Team so I feel the need to improve that area. I will try to get into Boys state(I don't think it's too late) but I doubt I will get in as I go to an extremely competitive school(A 3.86UW/4.3weighted GPA gives me a class rank of 66/426). Thanks for your advice, if there's any more you could give I would greatly appreciate it. I still plan on joining scouts even if it doesn't benefit me very much in the application process.
 
When my DS applied, his Billy Mitchell Award (becoming 2nd LT) was equivalent to Eagle Scout in terms of merit, a box to check, and from what he was told it was given the same weighting. It certainly has the same weighting as Eagle Scout when enlisting in terms of higher grade upon completing basic, etc. Achieving Mitchell is generally about a two-year achievement cycle/process, that varies depending upon your ability to promote which includes your squadron’s promotion ethos. None of that is to take away from what has been said about why to join, it is only to clarify what has been the historic value of the program relative to Scouting achievements. All things being equal, obtaining the Mitchell would likely be something valued that you can objectively count on in terms of your application. That is/was from USMA’s perspective. There is the separate perspective of how your MOCs value CAP’s Mitchell, my DS was in a position of having to explain that, even though there was a USAF Col on his MOCs interview board. So, I recommend you do additional investigation with your MOCs offices as well as verifying with USMA Admissions regarding their value of the Mitchell if you think you want to pursue that. He pursued CAP simply because there was no local equivalent to it in some type of Army JROTC in our area, turned out he really enjoyed it and learned a lot about land nav that helped him later on, too.
I think it takes a minimum of 18 months to get the Billy Mitchell award, so unfortunately I will not be able to obtain that award. I am however a C/2Lt in Air Force JROTC(I should probably be a C/Captain by graduation.)
 
You could certainly join the groups but just keep in mind most Scouts your age have either completed their Eagle or are working on the final stages, having been in Scouts for years and years. Join Civil Air Patrol if you have a genuine interest and would enjoy it.

Have you ever looked at the "What Are My Chances" sticky at the top of the USMA page? Those are the class profiles---take a look at the type of activities current cadets and grads did. Since you are a junior, is it too late to try for a spot for Boys' State? Ask your guidance counselor how your school picks its rep.
I have seen that and I noticed that there were scouts that were not Eagle scouts. I'm above average on all my test scores(SAT and ACT) when compared to people at the Academy and I will also most likely be a National Merit Finalist, so academically I'm not very concerned. Physically I believe I will be fine too. Non athletic ECs is the only area I am worried. I do have 3 varsity letters(all football) and I have played rec league basketball(was a captain all 3 years) so I think I'm fine in athletic ECs. But non-athletically all I have is JROTC NHS and Academic Team so I feel the need to improve that area. I will try to get into Boys state(I don't think it's too late) but I doubt I will get in as I go to an extremely competitive school(A 3.86UW/4.3weighted GPA gives me a class rank of 66/426). Thanks for your advice, if there's any more you could give I would greatly appreciate it. I still plan on joining scouts even if it doesn't benefit me very much in the application process.

West Point candidates evaluation is 60% academic, 30% leadership, and 10% physical. There is no extra credit. The leadership evaluation is further divided into EC, athletics, and School official evaluation. The academic evaluation is mainly class rank and SAT/ACT. My recommendation is focus more on improving your class rank and ACT/SAT scores. "looking" good doesn't any points to your candidate evaluation.
 
If you're doing JROTC, I don't think CAP adds much additional value. My advice is do something you want to do without respect to the application, and have fun doing it. Also, consider the quality vs quantity perspective. Boys State is a good choice for the summer.
 
You could certainly join the groups but just keep in mind most Scouts your age have either completed their Eagle or are working on the final stages, having been in Scouts for years and years. Join Civil Air Patrol if you have a genuine interest and would enjoy it.

Have you ever looked at the "What Are My Chances" sticky at the top of the USMA page? Those are the class profiles---take a look at the type of activities current cadets and grads did. Since you are a junior, is it too late to try for a spot for Boys' State? Ask your guidance counselor how your school picks its rep.
I have seen that and I noticed that there were scouts that were not Eagle scouts. I'm above average on all my test scores(SAT and ACT) when compared to people at the Academy and I will also most likely be a National Merit Finalist, so academically I'm not very concerned. Physically I believe I will be fine too. Non athletic ECs is the only area I am worried. I do have 3 varsity letters(all football) and I have played rec league basketball(was a captain all 3 years) so I think I'm fine in athletic ECs. But non-athletically all I have is JROTC NHS and Academic Team so I feel the need to improve that area. I will try to get into Boys state(I don't think it's too late) but I doubt I will get in as I go to an extremely competitive school(A 3.86UW/4.3weighted GPA gives me a class rank of 66/426). Thanks for your advice, if there's any more you could give I would greatly appreciate it. I still plan on joining scouts even if it doesn't benefit me very much in the application process.

West Point candidates evaluation is 60% academic, 30% leadership, and 10% physical. There is no extra credit. The leadership evaluation is further divided into EC, athletics, and School official evaluation. The academic evaluation is mainly class rank and SAT/ACT. My recommendation is focus more on improving your class rank and ACT/SAT scores. "looking" good doesn't any points to your candidate evaluation.
Would a 66/426 class rank be very detrimental to my application(That's what it is now and it is literally impossible for me to raise it more than a few spots even if I get all A's the rest of the way)? "Unfortunately" I go to an elite high school(Approximately 1/4 of our students get a 30 or above on the ACT) so even with a 3.86 UW/ 4.3 weighted GPA my class rank is not elite. Will they factor in how good my high school is when looking at my class rank?

I took the SAT in January and I'm guessing I got at least a 700 in both math and reading(I got a 70 reading and 71 with on the PSAT), but I didn't do very well on the essay in the writing portion. On the ACT i got a 33 math, 32 English, 30 Reading, 28 Science but I took it without studying at all so I'm sure I'll be able to raise my scores if I just study a bit.
 
If you're doing JROTC, I don't think CAP adds much additional value. My advice is do something you want to do without respect to the application, and have fun doing it. Also, consider the quality vs quantity perspective. Boys State is a good choice for the summer.
I'm really confused about how this Boys state thing works but I'm going to look into it this weekend. I think I read somewhere each school can only send 1 or 2 people? If that is the case I have almost no chance because I go to an elite high school.

Does quantity have any value at all? I believe that already have quality(3 Varisty letters in football, leadership roles in JROTC, academic team and in basketball) so I don't think quality is much of an issue.
 
Also, Civil Air Patrol and Boy Scouts only take up an hour a week each so them taking time away from studying and other stuff isn't really an issue.
 
I'm really confused about how this Boys state thing works but I'm going to look into it this weekend. I think I read somewhere each school can only send 1 or 2 people? If that is the case I have almost no chance because I go to an elite high school.

If your school is already sponsoring (ie paying for) other students to attend Boy's State, you can pay yourself OR check with your local American Legion group. A lot of groups are happy to sponsor interested students, and depending on your state, some may be lacking in interest/participation.
 
Would a 66/426 class rank be very detrimental to my application(That's what it is now and it is literally impossible for me to raise it more than a few spots even if I get all A's the rest of the way)? "Unfortunately" I go to an elite high school(Approximately 1/4 of our students get a 30 or above on the ACT) so even with a 3.86 UW/ 4.3 weighted GPA my class rank is not elite. Will they factor in how good my high school is when looking at my class rank?

I took the SAT in January and I'm guessing I got at least a 700 in both math and reading(I got a 70 reading and 71 with on the PSAT), but I didn't do very well on the essay in the writing portion. On the ACT i got a 33 math, 32 English, 30 Reading, 28 Science but I took it without studying at all so I'm sure I'll be able to raise my scores if I just study a bit.

I don't know for sure, but 66/426 is not going to help. You can hope that no one that is #1 through #65 from your high school that lives in same Congressional district as you and has similiar SAT/ACT scores and won't apply to West Point. From what you are telling me, unless your high school is very liberal, there is a good chance somewith with higher class rank than you have a similar SAT/ACTS socres.

Don't underestimate the power of 7th semester transcript. Yes, there are appointment decisions made based only with 6th semester transcripts, but many cases decisions are made after 7th semster transcript. So if you improve few spots, say 5 now and perhaps improve 10 to 15 spots by the end of the 7th semesters, you could be in the top 40 or top 10%.

It seems like you are looking for what is good enough. Your ACT is very good, but you can hope that it is "good enough" or you can study for it, take it again, and if you score higher, you just increased your chance of appointment. Sometimes the difference between I could have attended West Point vs actually attending West Point is the continous effort.
 
I am going to say one thing, and posters may flame me for it, BUT here goes!

SAs have a filter like Admission boards for a traditional college...they can see through padding a resume and impo, this is padding. This is the OH CRAP moment....sorry, but I am going to be brutally honest.

As far as the 66 out of 426, I will say they ask for the school profile. If 30% go IVY than 66 isn't horrible, of 3% go, Ivy than yes you have an issue.
~ There are over 2000 hs in this nation.

FYI...you stated in your post you want AF. FWIW, if you apply for an AFROTC scholarship as plan B. They do not look at anything, e. Ept your SAT/ACT BEST SITTING after your junior year. You are spinning wheels!
 
I keep seeing "okay but.." and "I can't because.."

This is not the attitude of an officer.
If I got a 100 in every class my class rank would not go up more than a few spots, what am I supposed to say? And you need 18 months to win a Billy Mitchell award so it's physically impossible for me to get it....
 
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Would a 66/426 class rank be very detrimental to my application(That's what it is now and it is literally impossible for me to raise it more than a few spots even if I get all A's the rest of the way)? "Unfortunately" I go to an elite high school(Approximately 1/4 of our students get a 30 or above on the ACT) so even with a 3.86 UW/ 4.3 weighted GPA my class rank is not elite. Will they factor in how good my high school is when looking at my class rank?

I took the SAT in January and I'm guessing I got at least a 700 in both math and reading(I got a 70 reading and 71 with on the PSAT), but I didn't do very well on the essay in the writing portion. On the ACT i got a 33 math, 32 English, 30 Reading, 28 Science but I took it without studying at all so I'm sure I'll be able to raise my scores if I just study a bit.

I don't know for sure, but 66/426 is not going to help. You can hope that no one that is #1 through #65 from your high school that lives in same Congressional district as you and has similiar SAT/ACT scores and won't apply to West Point. From what you are telling me, unless your high school is very liberal, there is a good chance somewith with higher class rank than you have a similar SAT/ACTS socres.

Don't underestimate the power of 7th semester transcript. Yes, there are appointment decisions made based only with 6th semester transcripts, but many cases decisions are made after 7th semster transcript. So if you improve few spots, say 5 now and perhaps improve 10 to 15 spots by the end of the 7th semesters, you could be in the top 40 or top 10%.

It seems like you are looking for what is good enough. Your ACT is very good, but you can hope that it is "good enough" or you can study for it, take it again, and if you score higher, you just increased your chance of appointment. Sometimes the difference between I could have attended West Point vs actually attending West Point is the continous effort.
There actually is another person at my school that I know very well that is aspiring to make it into West Point as well as the Air Force Academy. I think his rank is around 30ish and his test scores are better than mine. He also has a higher leadership position than me in JROTC. However he has never played a sport in high school so I do have an edge on him there. I am also in better overall physical shape than him if that matters. Can there only be one nomination in each district? That seems like a sort of flawed system to me....

As for class rank, it honestly isn't going to go up very much if at all. My school works on an 18 work course system, so each class is 1 semester, and we take 4 classes a semester. I got all A's last semester with 2 AP classes(That was a 4.0 uw/5.0 weighted) and my rank went down two spots(by down I mean I went from 64->66 and it got worse).
 
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I am going to say one thing, and posters may flame me for it, BUT here goes!

SAs have a filter like Admission boards for a traditional college...they can see through padding a resume and impo, this is padding. This is the OH CRAP moment....sorry, but I am going to be brutally honest.

As far as the 66 out of 426, I will say they ask for the school profile. If 30% go IVY than 66 isn't horrible, of 3% go, Ivy than yes you have an issue.
~ There are over 2000 hs in this nation.

FYI...you stated in your post you want AF. FWIW, if you apply for an AFROTC scholarship as plan B. They do not look at anything, e. Ept your SAT/ACT BEST SITTING after your junior year. You are spinning wheels!
Lol in all honesty I am simply trying to pad my resume, but I don't really see how they could see through that. If a dude has 3 Varsity letters in football but only played for resume purposes, how can the colleges see that the dude was padding(that's not why I played football it's just an example)?

As for how good my school is, would they only look at the colleges the students from my school are going to or would they also look at our ACT scores, SAT scores, number of national merit finalists, etc? Being from Alabama, very few of my peers aspire to get into an Ivy league school to my knowledge. Was that simply an example?

As for ROTC scholarships, I probably won't need one because I will most likely be a national merit finalist so many schools will offer me full ride.

PS: I'm split between air force and army right now.
 
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