I got an appointment as a high school re-applicant.
I'm a Firstie ('20). Ask me anything!
- Thread starter cihper
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I got an appointment as a high school re-applicant.
Nano's Asian Dining is pretty good. Sakura Cafe is not bad as well.
Carpaccio's is a great Italian place with good prices.
Miss Shirley's is great for brunch (They have a walk in only policy, they don't reserve seats).
Red Bean and Annapolis Ice Cream have the best ice cream.
You also have Jimmy John's, Starbucks, and Chipotle in town.
El Cabrito has the best tacos. Ever. You have to drive a bit (10 minutes from downtown max).
Any restaurant at the Town Center is pretty good. Whole Foods is there as well.
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Buddy's Crabs and Armadillo's Bar & Grill both apparently have good food according to my classmates. I can't personally confirm; I frequent both establishments intoxicated & when they're not selling food.
If you're drunk and the midnight munchies kick in, Mangia Italian Grill is the only place open til 2 AM (Not sure. I only go there when I'm intoxicated. Might be 2:30 or 3). They sell whole NY pizzas for 15$ (Might be 20. Again, can't remember)
McGarvey's sells food til 1-2AM along with your regular bar. They're pretty good. I like their wings. If you visit there during Commissioning Week, you'll be able to catch the Blue Angels there.
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Do you home brew?
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Do you home brew?
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No I have not. Current junior. I have access and am able to talk to a lot of mids via SAF, Reddit, friends of friends etc. However I have no one that I can talk to going SpecWar. If I get into USNA, as cliche as it sounds, that's the route I want to take, and I think it would be nice to be able to talk to someone who has gone down that path.
usna1985
15-Year Member
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A couple of parents on this site have noted that their plebe mid is struggling with whether to stay at USNA. Those of us way on the other side of graduation have weighed in. As someone much closer to USNA today and also to being a plebe (but not yet in the Fleet), what advice would you give those plebes (or their parents) in terms of making a decision?
Not from the naval academy, but my opinion is -- Think of the long term career of being a naval officer and what that entails. It has positive aspects like job stability, good benefits, travel, interesting work, leadership, etc. as well as negatives. If you would like that future then stay, if not leave. However, do this with a clear head and not based on what's been going on short term.
I talked to him this morning. His only answer to you is “Get accepted here first”.
Here is what I can tell you.
Your real “metric” begins your 2/C Year when you complete the PST.
If your PST scores are good enough, you will have an opportunity to complete the SEAL Screener that is held either in the Fall or Spring. The Screener is no joke. It’s 24 hours of no sleep and endless pain.
Based on your performance at the Screener, you will be selected to go to SOAS (Seal Officer Assessment and Selection). Think of it as a “mini-BUD/S” for 3 weeks held at Coronado CA.
SOAS is a 3-4 week training held the summer between your 2/C and 1/C Year. Assuming you do well at SOAS, you will be selected to go to BUD/S after graduation.
For reference, about 110 Mids reported to the PST by 2/C Year. By Service Assignment day November of 1/C Year, 35 were selected for SEALs.
Plebe Year is hard! It's not easy. If it was easy it would be called "Freshman Year", not "Plebe Year". There were multiple times throughout my journey here where I said "I should quit."
First and foremost, USNA is a great equalizer. Every superstar from high school finally meet their matches. They finally come face-to-face with their own flaws. It's up to the individual to rise to the occasion; or sink.
If this is something due to Plebe Year difficulties, Youngster Year is exponentially better than Plebe Year. It gets even better after. That I will guarantee. You get to drive a car after two short years of being here, man.
I'd suggest he/she needs to sit down and really think about what is causing this struggle.
There is a difference between struggling as a Plebe VS struggling because the Institution does not fit you. If one is struggling because Plebe Year is difficult, that's perfectly fine. Everyone struggles as a Plebe. To be honest, everyone struggles all four years here! If one is struggling because the Institution does not fit the person, that is totally different. I know multiple Midshipmen who left USNA because it wasn't for them. They are all doing fantastic in the civilian world.
Some good questions to ponder is the grand picture:
- He/she is at an Institution where lifelong friends are made. A decade from now, those friends will be just across the pier; flying the F-35 right next to them; leading the adjacent rifle platoon on the battlefield; or busy managing the boat's reactor when he/she is the OOD. If the circumstances are right, one of those friends may choose to sacrifice themselves so that he/she can come home. A good example is a very recent one: ENS Caleb Watson (USNA '19) who was shot multiple times but was able to give critical pieces of information to law enforcement before he himself collapsed due to his injuries. ENS Watson graduated less than a year ago. These are the type of friends that he/she will encounter.
- The Institution has one sole purpose; creating Unrestricted Line officers. They need to ask if this is the right career path. They may be ordered to kill people; because that's what we do. My 2/C Leadership teacher told us, "Guys, if you stick around long enough, you will go to war."
- I only heard legends about the civilian job-finding power the USNA Alumni Association has.
- Officers eat last and lead from the front. These are the types of leaders that the Fleet expects.
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Last note. If they want I'll talk to them in person. PM.
Old Navy BGO
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Great post Cihper...you reveal that as much as things change, a lot stays the same.
Only 5+ months until graduation....finish STRONG and BEAT ARMY !
Only 5+ months until graduation....finish STRONG and BEAT ARMY !
Correction: College re-applicant.
For me it was USNA or sink. I wanted to go here since 8th grade.
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are you saying you only wanted to become a naval officer if you could go to USNA? or if you didn't get accepted to USNA then you no longer wanted to pursue a commission?
no disrespect, i'm genuinely interested in your response. i sometimes come across this answer during bgo interviews, so i'm interested in what your motivation was when you were a candidate and if anything has changed since then
no disrespect, i'm genuinely interested in your response. i sometimes come across this answer during bgo interviews, so i'm interested in what your motivation was when you were a candidate and if anything has changed since then
Yeah I've read a lot about the process and know it well and the path taken to get SpecWar service select. I wanted to just be able to ask about like personal insight, what someone did to train up to the PST, stuff like that. Wasn't the number selected for SEALs 30? I remember seeing somehwere that the amount for this year was 30 unless I'm wrong.
Two parts.
USNA was my goal since 8th Grade. I'm a very goal oriented person and I was not going to let my childhood dream down. I knew I wanted to commission - if USNA didn't work out I planned on enlisting, then using my GI Bill to get a commission. On top of that, there is something about USNA that's not the same as attending an NROTC unit. It's just not the same. I'm not sure how to describe it.
This is where part two comes in. I was not going to financially burden my parents any further with money. I knew NROTC paid for tuition, but they did not cover room & board (at least that's what I've gathered during research). USNA is completely free.
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Yep. 30 is correct.
Both myself and my classmate's suggestion is that you must focus on getting in here first if that's what you want to do.
Don't worry about the PST nor the SEAL Screener. You have 2 years here to train for it.
The NavSpecWar Center at Coronado also has a training program that you can download.
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cihper, thanks for you response. it sounds like you had a goal and your plan worked out! best of luck to you in the fleet!
that is a very different answer than the one i got from a candidate a few weeks ago. all he wants in the world is to attend USNA, but if that doesn't work out he intends to attend one of the selective colleges he applied to and study business....no interest in nrotc, ocs, or any other commissioning path
that is a very different answer than the one i got from a candidate a few weeks ago. all he wants in the world is to attend USNA, but if that doesn't work out he intends to attend one of the selective colleges he applied to and study business....no interest in nrotc, ocs, or any other commissioning path