Echoing Fencer (seem to be doing that a lot lately
), pick something you will like doing!
It seems to me that by following this forum for some time now, there seems to be a very prevalent tendency that keeps raising its head. This tendency is how can I smoke my application with the magic 'pixie dust' that will be guaranteed to make me irresistible to the various Academies.
As been pointed out time and time again here by those that really are in the know, after meeting all the basic requirements, what the Academies value in the Whole Candidate Score is passion and willingness/desire to accept and succeed at challenges.
Now, does checking a box off on some "sure to impress activity" really cause you to be passionate about it and have that passion flow to ALO, MOC, and admissions interviews and essays. I don't think so.
It is a given that the majority of applicants have impressive applications and usually all of the Academies are "fishing' out of the same barrel. What is going to make the difference when everyone is so close in performance?
Is it any wonder that a large majority of second time applicants win an appointment? What these applicants have is the passion and desire to attend and have climbed back up from a big disappointment from losing out the first time around. Second time applicants are not usually looking at 'gaming' or 'padding' their applications. What they seem to stress is what they did to pick themselves up after being denied and HOW they have used their time since then. Most everyone will attend some college, take the most challenging courses, bust their butt to make the best grades that they can and all of this with an essay shows passion and dedication. Even the ones that are denied the second time around usually end up pursuing another path to becoming an officer. Isn't that what the end game should be?
Reminds me of a talk that was given at USAFA a year or two ago to Doolies. Backdrop was the classic graduation picture: graduates, hats in the air, and of course Thunderbirds overhead. The challenge from the general was pointing to the graduation picture (paraphrasing) This is what you are looking forward to, graduation? No he continued, look higher than that, you want to be the one flying one of the Thunderbirds, in charge of maintaining them, supplying them.
In other words, the Academy is just a means to an end, officer service the the Active Duty Air Force. Contributing, leading, serving, and making consequential decisions...does this sound like something that would result from seeking the magic admissions check-off instead of pursuing something because you were interested in it, did well in it, achieved leadership positions, if available, or just did it because it made you a better person all around?
Box checkers are seldom passionate about anything other than finding the next box to check-off.
