Is it worth it to take my CFA again?

navyafgirl

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Feb 27, 2016
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So I took the CFA at the summer seminar and I got 95 sit ups, 49 or 50 push ups (i don't remember), 10 sec shuttle run, 34 ft basketball throw, 35 sec flex arm hang and 7:48 min run.
I know I can at least do 1 pull up now and I can probably get 38-42 ft basketball throw and my mile time down by like 10-15 sec. Is it really worth it to take it again?
 
It's worth it to retake the CFA if you can make a substantial improvement. Given that it is only early Sept., you have a LOT of time-- until Jan 31. Agree with the above in terms of doing a single pull-up -- even one is better than the max arm hang. Also, improving your mile to a sub-7:30 would be good. Your sit ups and push ups are good.
 
The short answer is that you should be doing everything that you can to improve your application and no one really knows what is best for you to work on or not.

Now having said that I am assuming that you passed the CFA during Summer Seminar. If so, then in my opinion unless everything else about your application is amazing you could get a much better return on your efforts than improving on your CFA. Most things I have read or seen all show that GPA and SAT scores both weigh very heavily on your application while the CFA is usually more a pass/fail kind of thing. If there is anything you can do to improve either one of those or your ECAs then I would put more effort in those areas than on improving your CFA.

When DS was going through this process last year he worked on improving everything he could right up until he was accepted. He also worked very hard to ensure that his plan B, C and D were all in order just in case.

Good luck and keep up the hard work.
 
The short answer is that you should be doing everything that you can to improve your application and no one really knows what is best for you to work on or not.

Now having said that I am assuming that you passed the CFA during Summer Seminar. If so, then in my opinion unless everything else about your application is amazing you could get a much better return on your efforts than improving on your CFA. Most things I have read or seen all show that GPA and SAT scores both weigh very heavily on your application while the CFA is usually more a pass/fail kind of thing. If there is anything you can do to improve either one of those or your ECAs then I would put more effort in those areas than on improving your CFA.

When DS was going through this process last year he worked on improving everything he could right up until he was accepted. He also worked very hard to ensure that his plan B, C and D were all in order just in case.

Good luck and keep up the hard work.
 
Under what circumstances may an applicant retake the CFA? I was under the impression that once it was taken and the results submitted it was final.
 
Under what circumstances may an applicant retake the CFA? I was under the impression that once it was taken and the results submitted it was final.
I know that for USAFA it is that way unless you fail, then they will have you retake. However, for USNA you may take it as many times as you want. I went to summer seminar and took it there and if I wanted to retake it at a later time then I can.
 
Under what circumstances may an applicant retake the CFA? I was under the impression that once it was taken and the results submitted it was final.

Candidates are permitted to retake the CFA as many times as they want prior to Jan. 31. However, it's not a super-score. Thus, if you want to retake, you tell your Regional Director. He/she will cancel your scores and your new test will replace the old scores. Thus, if you do better, the better score replaces the old score. Conversely, if your new score is worse, that worse score now counts.

This is why it doesn't make sense to retake unless you think you can substantially improve. Incremental improvements don't really help.

The CFA is pass/fail but in a super-competitive admissions environment, a higher CFA score is one more arrow in your quiver.
 
It can never hurt to try and improve your record, as you are competing against candidates who maxed out their CFA.
 
It's really simple... if you think you can do better.. yes.. if no.. no.. don't overthink it!
 
The key is you have to be pretty sure you can do better. The new CFA takes the place of your current one. So, if you happen to do worse, those new scores replace your older, better scores. To be honest, minimal improvements aren't really worth the time and effort of retaking. A significant improvement is.

One other factor, how involved are you in competitive sports, especially those with a running component. The less involved you are, the more your CFA counts b/c it serves as the only/primary indicator of your fitness and the likelihood you'll struggle physically PS.
 
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