"Triple Q" is is a term used officially by the Naval Academy but can be used with the other academies as well. It means you are qualified scholastically (grades, leadership, character, extracurricular), physically (passed CFA) and medically (passed DODMERB or waivered). You must be triple Q and have a nomination from a MOC (Member of Congress) to receive an offer of appointment. A Principle Nominee is one of three methods MOC's have for rank ordering their ten nominees. Many MOC's will provide the ten names to the academy in no particular order and let the academy choose based on their selection criteria. MOC's may also rank a candidate as their principle choice for the academy to choose or they may rank all their candidates from one to ten. I hope this helps. Good question to ask. I bet others on the forum have the same question.
