IL nominations

things change...

Durbin: Doesnt interview-in years past he picked his ten nominees and those ten were notified prior to Kirk’s interviews. Those ten were never called to interview for Kirk. Son received nomination from Durbin (no interview required) to USNA. He never heard from Kirk at all. …May be different this year.

Kirk: A short screening and then a full interview??? I dont think so. If so this is very different from years past. Two yrs ago he did not interview at all (recovering from a stroke?) Last year one very brief interview. Though I know congress isn’t “doing much at all” these days I doubt they are doing screenings and then interviews. But I didn’t get that email so I could be wrong.

Rep: son’s rep interview was 10-15 minutes. He got the nom.


Here is a link to a more historical perspective:
http://www.serviceacademyforums.com/showthread.php?t=23495
 
In Kirk's email it says, "Please plan on arriving 10 minutes prior to your scheduled interview."

Thus it IS an interview. Although they are only ten minutes each, it is important to keep in mind how many people the board has to get through that day. If I counted correctly, there are 56 applicants being interviewed, and two nom boards interviewing at the same time to get through all of them.
 
FYI, deleted name from Kirk's list

jjlma said:
DS received congressional-16, nominations to USAFA & USNA:beer1:
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Sen. Kirk asked to be notified if a congressional nom. was received, DS did that, so he was deleted from Kirk's list. Good luck to all who remain on his list.
 
jjlma said:
DS received congressional-16, nominations to USAFA & USNA:beer1:
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CONGRATS!!!! Very exciting to have that nom in hand!!


jjlma said:
Sen. Kirk asked to be notified if a congressional nom. was received, DS did that, so he was deleted from Kirk's list. Good luck to all who remain on his list.
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hummm. this is a new twist in Illinois NOMs. In the past you couldn't duplicate Kirk/Durbin Noms but you could duplicate one of them with your U.S. Representative. And some U.S. Representatives, (like IL-16) give you noms to two schools, like your son was able to receive

Does your son already have an LOA? Perhaps that is why Kirk's office doesn't see the need to duplicate noms.
 
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no, nothing new.

Vista123 said:
CONGRATS!!!! Very exciting to have that nom in hand!!




hummm. this is a new twist in Illinois NOMs. In the past you couldn't duplicate Kirk/Durbin Noms but you could duplicate one of them with your U.S. Representative. And some U.S. Representatives, (like IL-16) give you noms to two schools, like your son was able to receive

Does your son already have an LOA? Perhaps that is why Kirk's office doesn't see the need to duplicate noms.
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only one nomination per Academy is needed, they are all equal. Duplicate noms. only take away from another candidate. They Sen. Kirks staff requested to be notified in their email to all applicatants & DS.
 
jjlma said:
only one nomination per Academy is needed, they are all equal. Duplicate noms. only take away from another candidate. They Sen. Kirks staff requested to be notified in their email to all applicants & DS.
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This is absolutely new to Illinois. I can name current plebes and 3/Cs who have had kirk/durbin + rep nom. (my son included).

Only one nomination is required this is true. and yes it is true that all nominations are equal. However it benefits your son to be on multiple slates if they do not have an LOA. In fact my son got Durbin's first and asked his BGO if he should still go and interview for the rep nom and he was specifically instructed (perhaps advised or encouraged is the better word...)to do so.

I am sure someone else can explain this better than I can.....
 
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usna1985 said:
Nomination FAQs continued . . .


Can I get more than one nomination to the same SA?

Theoretically, yes. In reality . . . maybe, maybe not. In theory, each of your MOCs could nominate you to each SA to which you’re applying. So, you could have 3 noms to 4 SAs! However, in competitive states/districts competitive, MOCs are generally unwilling to do this. Some will ask you if you already have a nom to the SA from ANY source and, if so, not consider you. Some will get together with the other MOCs in the state and ensure no one gets more than one nom to any particular SA. And some will get together such that a candidate will receive only 1 nom to 1 SA, period.

Again, you likely will have little to no idea how your MOC approaches things, although you can certainly ask your MOC’s representative. You may get a clue if your MOC asks you to rank your SAs or to pick only one – that’s a good sign that there is “rationing” of nominations. The above said, those in super-competitive district may still receive multiple MOC noms to the same SA.

MOCs can approach this however they like. And, the fact things worked a certain way last year does not mean they’ll work the same way this year. MOCs change (retire, are defeated) and even the same MOC can simply change his/her approach from year to year. So while it may help to understand the system, there is nothing that you or the SAs can do to impact/change it.



I got a nom from one of my Senators. Should I withdraw my application from my other MOCs?

No – with one exception. Having multiple MOC noms gives the SA more opportunities to “slot” you and thus to offer you an appointment. Let’s say Candidate A “only” has a nom from her Senator whereas Candidate B has a nom from his Senator, his Rep, and the Pres. If USNA doesn’t slot Candidate A to that Senator, she goes immediately into the national pool. If USNA doesn’t slot Candidate B to his Senator, they can still slot him to his Rep or to the Pres – two more places to fit him before sending him to the national pool. Also, MOC noms in most areas of the country are competitive and getting two shows you competed well against your peers.

What about the exception you mentioned?

IF you have a Letter of Assurance (LOA) and are otherwise fully qualified, ANY nomination is sufficient for an appointment. Thus, once you know you have a nom, you could withdraw your application from other nom sources. That said, BE SURE that you have the nom first. Not only confirm it with the MOC’s office but also contact the SA to make sure THEY have it. The last thing you want is for the MOC not to submit his slate, etc.


I have a Presidential nom so I don’t need to apply for MOC noms, right?

Wrong. Please understand that there are MANY more candidates with Pres noms than there are slots. Thus, you give the SA much more flexibility in slotting you if you also obtain an MOC nom. In addition, Pres noms aren’t competitive and SAs like to see that you competed favorably against your peers. Finally, your BGO, ALO, etc. will likely ask what noms you’re seeking and it looks bad if you aren’t even trying for an MOC nom.
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Here is more information from the FAQ section.
 
jjlma said:
only one nomination per Academy is needed, they are all equal. Duplicate noms. only take away from another candidate. They Sen. Kirks staff requested to be notified in their email to all applicatants & DS.
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+1 to Vista's responses to this same post, not that there is anything to be done about it now. Senators and Congressman can certainly coordinate in any manner they see fit to nominate as many people as possible and avoid any duplication.

That being said, appointments to academies should be viewed as a two tier competition. The first level of competition for an appointment occurs between the nominees on any individual slate (eg. your congressman's). If you lost that contest you move to the national waiting list and compete again there against the entire nation. So your odds are better at the level of the original slate. If you can get multiple congressional nominations then you have multiple "lower tiered" competitions in which you can compete and win. It's sort of like having multiple lottery tickets vs a single lottery ticket... more chances to win. So someone with two Senatorial and one congressional nom has three chances to win an appointment on a slate.

That being said, you did the right think notifying the Senator as that's what was asked of you.

Hope that helps clarify without all the legalese.
 
My DS received the same info from Kirk stating that he wants to be notified if you recieve a nomination from another source. It stated he would then pull you from the list being interviewed this weekend.

Congressman Hultgren will nominate to multiple Academies so he is being considered for both USAFA and USMA. For both Senators (Kirk/Durbin)they required my DS to specify his number one choice and that is all they will consider.

He interviewed last Saturday with Hultgren but to this point has heard no news. They told him he should know by Christmas. I'm not sure how they handle it if he gets notified that he received one after he already interviews with Kirk.... Maybe a late interview with the Congressman will be a good thing.
 
UGH!
4-5 inches of snow predicted for tonight and the morning...wonder if they'll reschedule Senator Kirk's interviews
 
It's Chicago! Of course not! LOL

My son is on a really tight schedule (ACT in the morning, interview mid afternoon with a 75 min. drive) so I sure hope the highways are clear by 1pm!!
 
Oh, I keep forgetting! Lol! We moved out here from Oregon where just the prediction of snow shuts down the state!

My son has his interview in the morning then straight to a diving meet. We decided to forgo an army/navy party and DVR it just in case something gets delayed.

We have 4-wheel drive so he will be there, let's just hope the interviewers are!
But you are right, couple inches of snow are not going to phase them.

Good luck to your son!
 
That is not a good situation... You sure don't want to be rushing on snow packed roads.... My DS will be leaving VERY early so he does not have to rush.

Probably a good idea for everyone to make sure they have a phone number to contact should the weather become an issue.

Good luck to everyone going and above all be safe.
 
Rocko said:
That is not a good situation... You sure don't want to be rushing on snow packed roads.... My DS will be leaving VERY early so he does not have to rush.

Probably a good idea for everyone to make sure they have a phone number to contact should the weather become an issue.

Good luck to everyone going and above all be safe.
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we have 2 hours budgeted for the drive and I think he'll be done with the ACT earlier than what I am predicting (I was padding that time as well). He has to change into his suit in the car (hence the chauffeuring) and then on the way home, will change into his Madrigal knickers/poet shirt and boots for a Festival of Carols concert back at home! :biggrin:

best of luck to all of your kids as well and with the dive meet. Luckily, we do not have a wrestling meet this Saturday! I love how busy our kids are but boy it sure can be exhausting for us parents!
 
Son got the "you were ohhh sooo close" letter from Durbin today.

Fingers crossed that his Kirk interview went well :wink:

Hope you all survived the snow, as usual the highways were fine!
 
My son also got a "you were oooooh soo close" letter from Durbin but had a fantastic (his word) interiew with Kirk's committee. So, hopefully that means good things!

They were running 30 minutes behind at 2:50pm....in case anyone has an interview this evening.
 
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