Although this thread seems to be drifting from the original issue raised on essays, I'm going to ask this question anyway (sorry). A couple of the above posts suggest that there is no benefit to getting your application and supporting materials completed and submitted early (except, possibly, if you're a recruited athlete). On the other hand, I've read other posts on this forum that suggest there are potential benefits to candidates that finish early, since the admissions committee will see their application every month from October through the spring. Could someone clarify these seemingly inconsistent comments? Am I misunderstanding something? Thanks. JR
Lets clarify a couple thing.
1. The admissions board will NOT see your application every month from October through the spring. They will see it 1 time normally. If it isn't 100% complete, the admissions board won't even look at it. So; assuming it's complete, it will go to the board, they will see it, and they will score it. Then, they won't see it again. Unless there are special attributes they want to review.
2. I am the biggest proponent of getting the application done as soon as possible; HOWEVER; I have put in some stipulations. I will state in a moment the person(s) I believe will benefit the most from completing their application early and submitting it. But let me say, that for the majority of applicants; who are "AVERAGE"; it will not benefit you. And average, doesn't mean compared to other high school students at your school. Chances are, you're above average compared to them. But "Average" as in compared to the normal academy applicant. If you are the "Average" with the 3.6-3.9gpa; 29-30 ACT, 1900 SAT, top-10% of class, plays some varsity sports, member of a club or two, etc... Then you are average and most likely won't benefit from an application submitted and ready for the first board to meet.
3. Now; if you're in one of the following categories, an early application reviewed immediately can be beneficial. Remember; while the "Majority" of appointments are given in march-april, not ALL of them are. And not just athletes. Just like any college, the academy is competing for the "BEST of the BEST". So some appointments are given prior to March-April. But the 90%+ will find out in the March-April time frame. The reason for completing the application early is for the human factor. This includes both the admissions board as well as your MOC. So, which applicants do I recommend completing their application as soon as possible? Generally; part of the "NO BRAINER" club. These are the type of applicants that are also usually considered for early admissions to high end colleges/universities. The kick butt academics and total package. To include the following:
3a: Those with ADDITIONAL nominations besides the MOC which won't happen until usually December-January. These include those with a presidential, ROTC, and other military related nominations.
3b: The person who isn't IN the Top-10%, but rather who IS THE TOP. Ranked #1
3c: The person with a MINIMUM GPA of 3.98-4.0 UNWEIGHTED; 32+ minimum ACT; 2200+ SAT. class officer; Varsity team captain; 200+ Volunteer hours; KICKS BUTT ON THE CFA; Leader in other activities; etc...
Put it this way. Answer the FOLLOWING QUESTION. "Are you applying for EARLY ADMISSIONS to significant colleges/universities in the country; not necessarily just Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Stanford, etc...; but significant schools that's AREN'T the normal State University"? If you answer yes to this question, and have all/most of the attributes I listed, then it can benefit you to complete your application early. Admissions may want to compete to get you instead of letting another school get you. If you have a military nomination, they may even give you an early appointment to get you to commit. If you are going up for a MOC nomination and you are in this category, and you can PUT THE FACT that your application is complete when you send it to the MOC for review; etc... these things can possibly impress and influence getting a nomination from them.
So yes; completing your application early can definitely be beneficial. It's human nature for the review board and MOCs to be impressed by the commitment, determination, time management, etc... of an individual. It can definitely make you more desirable. However; if you are the AVERAGE applicant; which 90% +/- are; then it probably won't benefit you much. Then again; the type of person who is doing their application early, is going to do their application early ANYWAY!!! It's in their nature. Just like they applied for early admissions to USC, Harvard, Purdue, Yale, Columbia, Georgetown, etc... They aren't submitting it early because they think they're gaining a leg up. They are submitting early because they know, without being arrogant, that they WILL be considered by all of these schools. If you're asking whether to submit the application early; chances are you aren't in the top-10% of applicants who are doing this anyway; to many schools; because it's what they do.
And there's nothing wrong with that. Nothing wrong with being in the top-90% of academy appointees. While LOA's might NOT be the norm any longer, except possibly for some athletes, that doesn't mean if the academy comes across someone in the "No Brainer" club that they won't give an LOA or an early appointment if they also have a military related nomination. Imagine for a second. A person with a presidential nomination; which is given almost immediate in the summer. They have a 4.0 gpa unweighted. They have ALL classes in the IB program or ALL of their classes are AP classes. Again; a 4.0 in ALL of their classes for 3+ years. They are the class pres/vp/sec. They play 3 varsity sports. (NOT recruited athlete). They are the captain of 2-3 of those varsity sports and they've been varsity for 3 years. They nail the CFA. They belong to 3+ clubs/organizations with leadership roles in those too. They also have 200+ hours of volunteer time. They are totally triple qualified, as well as pilot qualified. They are basically the BEST of the BEST. Do you think the academy wants to let them get away? They will go after them. And yes; there are quite a few of these individuals at the academies.
However; if that SAME PERSON didn't complete their application until January/February and possibly they didn't get a MOC nomination immediately, it is much easier to get turned down. But again; this individual probably will do the application early anyway; because it's in their nature, and they are also applying to a bunch of other universities with early admission. Hope this explains it better. As least for MY OPINION and perspective. And while I've seen a lot more LOA's in the past, and the new appointment process is a lot more competitive; the academy also knows what a member of the "No Brainer" club is. Not saying they are guaranteed an appointment; just that the academy will make an effort to definitely get this person. But they won't even know you exist if your application isn't 100% complete.
P.S. Something the MAJORITY of applicants forget or don't realize. Just because a person is applying to a military academy; DOESN'T MEAN IT'S THEIR #1 CHOICE FOR COLLEGE!!!! This is one of the biggest misconceptions. Too many think if you apply to the academies, it's something you've wanted your entire life. So untrue. To many applicants, it's another school. It's in the quality of that of Harvard, Yale, Brown, Purdue, etc..., but it's still just another school. They have no trouble serving their country and giving 5-6 years. But many of these individuals are also applying to 4-5 other schools. And there are quite a few that if accepted to, they will turn down a military academy appointment in a heart beat.