Hi everyone,
It looks Like DS journey has come to an end - at least for now.
He was a 4.0 (97.5%) student who will finish with 8 AP courses (all tests to date at 5). 2100 SATs, 3 season varsity athlete, team captain in multiple sports and all-conference honors in several as well. Has over 500 hours of community service much of it as a certified Emergency care provider. Class president, honor society president, Academic bowl captain and all-around good kid. Attended both SLS and SS (USNA). In the end liked the broader based education that West point provided and what he perceived as an increase in the human interaction focus compared with the technical emphasis he perceived at USNA.
In our state and CD you have to choose between the service academies when applying for nomainations, so he chose USMA. DODMRB disqualified him for history of a coagulation disorder because of tests he had done when he was four years old that showed slightly low levels of a clotting factor. (subsequent tests were slightly above normal leaving us unclear about his real diagnosis). Regardless, he was never treated any differently played multiple contact sports including hockey and lacrosse without incident over the years. His doctor provided a letter to this effect saying he had never been treated for any complications or problems etc. as part of the remedial. Nonetheless he was disqualified.
Both USNA and USMA applied for a waiver. USNA granted full clearance for all duties, including USMC. This clearance was made withing 3 weeks of the waiver request. USMA reported back nearly 90 days after the waiver request - without any request for additional information; his waiver was denied. Unfortunately for him his nomination was to West Point... and so the process ends.
Not sure if there are any lessons to be learned or things he should have done differently. I thought at this point in the process I would share his whole story, in the event it fills in any holes or provides any insights. The stories of others have added much to his application process and decisions through the year.
I want to take this opportunity to thank all who have given advice specifically and generally on this forum. It helped make his application as competitive as it was and helped us negotiate this process which can definitely be long and sometimes confusing. The time you spend answering questions and checking in provides a ton of guidance and reassurance through it all. Most importantly, thanks for the constant reminders that you all provide to all these fine young men to keep a plan B and C in their sights. He is actively considering all of these now. While this was a massively disappointing and frustrating endpoint point for him - it is immensely helpful that he has many other good options in place.
It looks Like DS journey has come to an end - at least for now.
He was a 4.0 (97.5%) student who will finish with 8 AP courses (all tests to date at 5). 2100 SATs, 3 season varsity athlete, team captain in multiple sports and all-conference honors in several as well. Has over 500 hours of community service much of it as a certified Emergency care provider. Class president, honor society president, Academic bowl captain and all-around good kid. Attended both SLS and SS (USNA). In the end liked the broader based education that West point provided and what he perceived as an increase in the human interaction focus compared with the technical emphasis he perceived at USNA.
In our state and CD you have to choose between the service academies when applying for nomainations, so he chose USMA. DODMRB disqualified him for history of a coagulation disorder because of tests he had done when he was four years old that showed slightly low levels of a clotting factor. (subsequent tests were slightly above normal leaving us unclear about his real diagnosis). Regardless, he was never treated any differently played multiple contact sports including hockey and lacrosse without incident over the years. His doctor provided a letter to this effect saying he had never been treated for any complications or problems etc. as part of the remedial. Nonetheless he was disqualified.
Both USNA and USMA applied for a waiver. USNA granted full clearance for all duties, including USMC. This clearance was made withing 3 weeks of the waiver request. USMA reported back nearly 90 days after the waiver request - without any request for additional information; his waiver was denied. Unfortunately for him his nomination was to West Point... and so the process ends.
Not sure if there are any lessons to be learned or things he should have done differently. I thought at this point in the process I would share his whole story, in the event it fills in any holes or provides any insights. The stories of others have added much to his application process and decisions through the year.
I want to take this opportunity to thank all who have given advice specifically and generally on this forum. It helped make his application as competitive as it was and helped us negotiate this process which can definitely be long and sometimes confusing. The time you spend answering questions and checking in provides a ton of guidance and reassurance through it all. Most importantly, thanks for the constant reminders that you all provide to all these fine young men to keep a plan B and C in their sights. He is actively considering all of these now. While this was a massively disappointing and frustrating endpoint point for him - it is immensely helpful that he has many other good options in place.