Recent content by usna1985

It is great to have AC. Imagine PS, May, September and summer school without it. That was us. No fans allowed for plebes. We spent PS in a perpetual state of sweat!

The OP captures why mids sometimes seem "burned out." What seems so "shiny and new" when you first arrive begins to drain on you. As NavyHoops said, much of it does get better; some never changes. Being a youngster is great. You've been out in the fleet and seen the "real" Navy and Marine...

You could say good-bye when you drop him off or before. He'll immediately start meeting his classmates in line. He won't be alone -- promise you that. And you'll see him again in another 10-12 hours. A decent number of plebes say good-bye at home --lots of parents can't afford to come for...

I think the parking garage has been demolished (but I may be thinking of a different one). It's a pretty long walk from there to Alumni Hall. There is a shuttle from the stadium to the Yard (FYI, the "campus" is called the Yard, not campus or base. Lots of new lingo to learn. :) ). If...

In our day, we definitely stayed off the Yard the night before graduation. I remember that it rained much of the night before (if it rained, our graduation was in Halsey -- no Alumni Hall in those days). My mother stayed up until the rain ended. Graduation day was sunny, low 70s -- gorgeous...

Must confess that graduation week was one of the best times of my life. USNA makes it so very special for every grad and their family. We went to almost every "official" event and quite a few non-official ones. It's a week that just builds and builds until that special moment of graduation /...

IMO, USNA has the same good "problem" that every top school has -- far more incredibly qualified candidates than places in the incoming class. I recall that a Yale admissions officer once said that they could fill their entire freshman class with h.s. valedictorians (in the days when there was...

Do they still allow parents to sit on the field? If memory serves, they did in 2019 but not in 2021. All parents and VIPs were in the stands. Closer to the podium, but still in the stands. Personally, I preferred not to be in the top 100 WRT the ceremony itself. The non-top-100 not only sit...

Agree with the above. USMC typically only wants those who want to be Marines. That said, needs of the military come first. USNA exists to commission line officers. If there is a need for USMC officers (or line officers) and mid is DQ'ed from going USN URL and USMC air, USMC ground may be the...

If the purpose of the visit is to see USNA, take the tour, meet with Admissions staff, you can do that at any time. During the summer, you'll see plebes marching around. However, watching them is a VERY different thing than being among them. It's like watching a parade vs. marching in one...

The single most important thing you can do is excel at USNA 3/c courses, or any plebe courses you’ve not already taken. The other items will help, but not if they take away from your ability to get good grades in tough courses. Fully agree with talking to Admissions. I’d wait until the...

First of all, 10 pushups is more than decent. If you think you can do reasonably well, take it. You'll be done with it. If you think you can do better later, you can always retake. If you think you'll fail it, I would probably wait.

if the CFA is optional AND you think you'll do poorly, AND you're not even sure you want to attend USNA, then I suggest you not take the CFA during Inspire. On the flip side, if you do end up deciding to apply to USNA, I strongly encourage you to get more involved in athletics/sports right...

Most candidates for USNA have been super-high achievers all of their lives. They have excelled at virtually everything they've tried. For those who aren't appointed, this may be their first taste of real disappointment. For parents, it is hard to see their child's dreams crushed and often...

I fully agree with those who have recommended the candidate reach out to USNA for more specifics on the medical issue. There are 3 possibilities. First, the medical issue is not waiverable for this particular candidate. Meaning it will never be waived. In that case, there is no sense in...