what was your GPA before you got accepted into USAFA

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patrickodang

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hi, i am a junior in high school, and i want to go to USAFA. i have been looking around a long time now, and it seems like it is very tough to get into. so i would like to know what everybodies GPA was and what extra curricular activities, if any, have you done.

i have one year left in high school to increase my chances of getting it. right now i have a 3.5 GPA. i have been on the varsity golf team at my school for all 3 years of high school now, next year will be 4. i am very good in math, i will be taking calculus next year which is a college course. i took chemistry as a sophomore.

so next year im gunna work by bum off to try to get a 3.6 or 3.7. my gpa is only low because i didn't try my hardest in my freshman and sophomore years.

so please, if you could tell me what you had in high school, that would help a ton. i just want to know where i stand and what i need to improve.

thanks! =]
 
3.92 Junior GPA
lots of sports, community service, and leadership positions.
Not gonna lie- you're a junior, and they're going to look at your junior GPA. Whether you raise it to a 3.6 0r 3.7, they're going to treat you as a 3.5. The best you can do now is join more sports senior year and keep your grades high.

Your chances are slim. Perhaps someone else can emphasize on why this is true because it would take a lot of writing and explaining. You might want to look at previous posts with similar titles because they will be helpful to you.
 
I wouldn't speculate on your chances... but you have a 0% chance if you don't apply.

Take and retake the ACT and SAT. Do well on those.
I sent you a PM.
 
Have you been taking AP courses since your sophomore year? Which ones? Is that a weighted GPA? If not, what is your waited GPA. Four years of varsity golf is very good. If you have not been, try your hardest to get a captain position on the team. Are you a good enough golfer to approach the golf coach at the Academy? There are many, many variables. Community service is important. Spend the summer helping to coach a little leaque team or teach beginning golf. Do you have people (teachers and others) who will put their name on the line for you with a glowing recommendation?

Leadership is BIG with the Academy. What have you done in a leadership roll?

One other thought..I just got back from a parent/appointee luncheon and MANY of the appointees had applied and been turned down the first time. They went to the prep school and made it in the second time around.

My guess is if you really want it you can do it!
 
packermatt7 said:
I wouldn't speculate on your chances... but you have a 0% chance if you don't apply.
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Exactly right Matt!

The fact is you can't really estimate anything based off of just one number like the GPA. The higher your GPA is, the better...and unless you have a 4.0 it can always be better. The thing to remember is the AFA looks for well rounded individuals, so if your GPA and SATs aren't perfect (but are as good as you can get them) you still may have a good shot assuming that you have a stacked resume.

Since your a junior it's a little bit harder for you to get some big things on your resume, but you can still do a lot over the next year. Make sure you have some good leadership experience, either in student government, National Honor Society, Scouting, Civil Air Patrol, or just being an officer of a club. Also try to play a couple different sports and earn varsity letters (This will pay off on the application and the candidate fitness assessment). Be involved in as much as you can maintain excellence in. Participation in clubs, organizations, events, and volunteer opportunities really helps.

Remember that there are also other avenues to become an officer in the Air Force so it's important to keep you eyes open to other schools as well as the AFROTC program. Make sure you have a couple back-up plans though, better safe than sorry.

Hope I helped. :thumb:
 
Mine was about a 3.2 unweighted, 3.8 weighted at a highly competitive high school with AP and Honors Classes and High SAT Scores so the Academy counted it as 3.9
 
IF you have the time for it, you could join the local CAP detachment or JROTC if your school has it. That looks good, and I hear it is fun and a good experience.
 
capini said:
One other thought..I just got back from a parent/appointee luncheon and MANY of the appointees had applied and been turned down the first time. They went to the prep school and made it in the second time around.
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Hey capini what luncheon was it? I went to one too. Los Angeles County?
 
JustCallMeDan7 said:
Hey capini what luncheon was it? I went to one too. Los Angeles County?
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Tri-Counties (north of you), basically Simi Valley up to San Luis Obispo. Had a GREAT day. Learned so much from the parents and cadets. Some had just graduated and were so very interesting to talk to. I also saw some beautiful USAFA rings! The cadets were very proud of them.
 
4.0 unweighted when i applied. USAFA calculated it to be 4.21

based on my calculations you have a 37.754% chance
 
As already mentioned, the academy looks for well rounded individuals. They want academics; but they also want athletics, leadership, volunteer time, hardest classes available, community involvement, etc... Also, as correctly mentioned, there is a 0% chance of being accepted if you don't apply.

Now, not sure if this will make you feel better or worse, but I know personally of 2 people who were NOT given an appointment. One had a 4.0 gpa and the other had a 3.95 gpa. Main reason is because academics was about all they had. If you concentrate mostly on academics, you can get accepted to some really great private colleges in the country with a 4.0 gpa. But the academies want and expect a lot more from a cadet/applicant than a traditional university wants. Best of luck.... Mike....
 
My unweighted GPA was around 3.5, but my weighted was about 4.0.

Be sure to work on everything your SAT/ACT, leadership, community service, and physical fitness.
 
Bombtrack said:
Your chances are slim. Perhaps someone else can emphasize on why this is true because it would take a lot of writing and explaining. You might want to look at previous posts with similar titles because they will be helpful to you.
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:confused:

Bombtrack, you can't tell someone they have slim chances simply because of a GPA. I, for one, had several people tell me my SAT scores were not good enough. I did not listen to them and instead studied hard and took them again and again. I can't tell you how many people told me I was going to get prep school (some of whom also applied and did not get in). I focused on improving everything; academics, athletics, leadership, and community service. I was not the "perfect" candidate, but the academy saw my improvement and desire to be at the academy. I know that my determination will serve me better come June 25th, than a GPA. So keep trying and don't let anyone deter you from following your dream. :thumb:
 
Christcorp said:
Now, not sure if this will make you feel better or worse, but I know personally of 2 people who were NOT given an appointment. One had a 4.0 gpa and the other had a 3.95 gpa. Main reason is because academics was about all they had. If you concentrate mostly on academics, you can get accepted to some really great private colleges in the country with a 4.0 gpa. But the academies want and expect a lot more from a cadet/applicant than a traditional university wants. Best of luck.... Mike....
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yea that did make me feel better. i have played a lot of sports throughout the years. freshman year i played waterpolo but quit because it was messing up my golf game with balance and other things. sophomore i did wrestling. and next year i will be joining polo again. before high school i played club soccer. but i do need to do some community service programs.

also my neighbor used to be a lieutenant colonel in the air force, so hopefully a letter of recommendation will help from him. i just have a ton of work to do.
 
It is the entire package, that is why you have a WCS, they weight everything, from academics to CFA to recs., including ALO. There is an entire panel that will review your package and you will be given a score. The highest score for that nom wins. Certain areas are more competitive than others. You need to put that into the equation. One thing you have absolute control over on the WCS is your CFA. Belt it out of the park. Right now you have your grades, do well in the fall submit your mid-yrs and that can also help. Keep doing EC's, especially sports. The AFA is very concerned about the physical side since they know the altitude is a problem.

It is all about showing the best side.

GOOD LUCK
 
I agree with what everyone has said. One thing to mention though, although you do want to be well rounded, academics (ACT/SAT, GPA) is weighted the most in the scoring system (Not saying other EC's and service aren't important though). But if you haven't figured it out yet; it is nearly IMPOSSIBLE to find out "your chances."

If you want the academy you'll make it one way or another. You know what you should do, and what you want so just work your butt off to get it. But make sure if you do something, do it well (and have fun!)! Just pursue that excellence and good things will follow. Good luck!
 
Apply and find out!

FWIW, I had a 3.95 unweighted, and my school weighted grades on a goofy scale. I had some pretty good leadership experiences, but was seriously lacking in the athletics area (2yrs of tennis) and a relatively low CFA score.
 
JessiG said:
:confused:

Bombtrack, you can't tell someone they have slim chances simply because of a GPA. I, for one, had several people tell me my SAT scores were not good enough. I did not listen to them and instead studied hard and took them again and again. I can't tell you how many people told me I was going to get prep school (some of whom also applied and did not get in). I focused on improving everything; academics, athletics, leadership, and community service. I was not the "perfect" candidate, but the academy saw my improvement and desire to be at the academy. I know that my determination will serve me better come June 25th, than a GPA. So keep trying and don't let anyone deter you from following your dream. :thumb:
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Yes I can. People cannot sugar-coat things for other people. Also, I'm going to guess that when people told you that your chances were slim, you got fired up and tried extra-hard. I know I did. Just imagine when basic starts and a cadre starts yelling at you telling you to quit because you'll never get that final pushup (or whatever) are you going to give in to that? Not so sure I'd want you in my squadron lol.

Improvement and desire can only be seen when everything else doesn't go in your favor. I wasn't telling the person who asked those things to discourage him. I only did to let him/her know it wont be easy. Whether s/he is competitive or not.
 
well, I was just saying that none of us sit on the board that gives out the appointments, so no one can really know for sure anyone's chances. Besides, each year is a different pool. :smile:

I don't really know how you can decide whether you want me in your squadron or not when you don't know anything about me ...:wink: So I guess I will just agree to disagree.

Good Luck patrickodang! I know that if you want to be there you will get there one way or another.
 
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