LOA stats

LOA's are extremely rare. They mostly use them to fill "gaps" in the class, i.e. minorities and athletic recruits.

I didn't get one with a 2200 SAT, 34 ACT, 3 sports, clubs, etc.

Remember that the vast majority of people do NOT have a LOA.

Not true - my son got an LO)A and he is not in one of those "gaps".
 
Not true - my son got an LO)A and he is not in one of those "gaps".

Would it be fair to say that he is in the legacy "gap", i.e. another special category, in this case a parent who attended WP? :smile:
 
I have a problem with the ACT because one has to be able to read and answer the questions in very little provided time. I found the reading ACT much easier than the SAT CR but I still only scored a 24. My suggestion to you is to practice skimming over the article quickly and when answering the questions look for the wrong answers and not the right one to narrow the question down. If I am wrong anyone please feel free to correct me.:biggrin:

make sure you bring a watch. practice before hand with a watch to know your time hacks. then when you go in, stick to the plan you rehearsed. don't rely on the proctor or classroom clock.
 
make sure you bring a watch. practice before hand with a watch to know your time hacks. then when you go in, stick to the plan you rehearsed. don't rely on the proctor or classroom clock.

Haha I felt like an idiot because I forgot to hit the start button.. It's alright though. What makes me mad is to hear about my friends who didn't take time themselves, they went back and finished it during the science section. I guess it's karma though that I still got a higher score:yllol: I'm graduating high school this year but I think I'll take the ACT again and super prepare myself.
 
Not true - my son got an LO)A and he is not in one of those "gaps".

DS got an LoA from USMA in July 2009. He also was not in one of those "gaps". (Not a minority, not a legacy, not a recruited athlete, just a very strong candidate). He was told by the admissions officer at USMA that they wanted him to know that they were interested in him before he started getting LoAs from other SA's or offers from other universities.
 
Do you mind telling what made him such a strong candidate?
 
I do not know if I count as a minority. My dad is originally from India, moved here when he was young as served in the Army, now retired. My mom is white, born in the US.

I am homeschooled and got an LOA w/ following:
800 math, 740 reading, 780 writing
- sports individually or w/ homeschool local team
4 years of individual tennis
2 years JV track
3 years JV cross country, 1 year varsity captain
2 years varsity soccer
NHS vp
FIRST robotics - FLL and FTC -homeschool team - captain 2 years
 
DS got an LoA from USMA in July 2009. He also was not in one of those "gaps". (Not a minority, not a legacy, not a recruited athlete, just a very strong candidate). He was told by the admissions officer at USMA that they wanted him to know that they were interested in him before he started getting LoAs from other SA's or offers from other universities.

My daughter also received an LOA and was not in any of these 'gaps'. She was not a minority (other than female), not a legacy, and not a recruited athlete.

She had a 32 ACT and 2100 SAT.

She will have 12 Varsity letters (cc, swimming, track) and captain of cc and swimming.
NHS, Student Council, community service, etc...

Straight A's in High school, although I would not call our high school very competitive. Although she will have six AP classes when she graduates.

It does make the whole process much less stressful. Although until she officially received that appointment in the mail, signed it immediately and then sent it in, she never took anything for granted.


She got the LOA in September.
 
Stats

LOA received July/summer - before senior year started
SAT 2140 took test 3x
GPA 4
AVG 94
RANK 4th of 248
Second Degree Black Belt - Tae Kwon Do
Boys State
West Point SLS
JROTC Officer
JROTC Raider Commander
Musician
Church Community Activities
Most Most Most Important:
IMMEDIATE completion of all forms, essays, updates and
whatever else the Portal required...IMMEDIATE!!!!!!!
Second most important:
Attend ALL local functions so that your Regional Officer knows you
by sight and name. Make An Impression!! By the time my son got to
his overnight visit, the Regional Officer walked into the welcome room
and said "Ah! ______ is here."
 
LOA

My daughter is also not a minority, legacy or in any other of the gap areas. We are not (or were not) a military family. She received her LOA in October.

She is #1 in a class of 730 will have 9 AP classes at the end of this year, 4.0 GPA, only a 29 on the ACT though, 680's across the board on SAT's.

She has lettered 4 years in soccer, Varsity team captain 2 years; All State Soccer Scholar and All State First Team Mid-Field, Art Sterling Scholar, and captain for 8 years on her nationally ranked club team. She wanted to play soccer, but did not get recruited, but decided this was the best place for her regardless.

We certainly still didn't take anything for granted until we have the final nomination and the appointment in had. I truly feel for everyone still waiting for the BFE. I don't know if we could have lasted.
 
We certainly still didn't take anything for granted until we have the final nomination and the appointment in had.

This is good advice. Last year there were a few USNA LoA recipients (from one of the very competitive states) who did not end up getting nominations and therefore did not get appointments. I'm sure this isn't very common, but I know last year we didn't really take a deep breath until after the MOC phone call and the BFE arrival.
 
As we all can see, the LOA's are given to the 'exceptional' candidates...probably the top 10 percent of an already ridiculously competitive group of applicants. Some are definitely also used for minorities and athletes. Getting everything in early is key, but if you don't have the goods, it aint gonna matter! My daughter was extremely competitive, went to SLS, has long family history of WP grads, and had her file done by September. But, no LOA because she wasn't quite as high SAT wise as most listed here, nor did she fit the minority/recruited athlete category. So, while it's very important to get your file done early, just in terms of getting early appointment, it will not help you get an LOA if you aren't one of the very top candidates to begin with.
 
Just want to reiterate the fact that not many appointees get LOAs! I didn't receive one, but was the principal nominee for my MOC so I got my appointment relatively early, in December.

Good luck to all! :smile:
 
My DS got his Loa in the second round in July. It was the first chance after he completed my Application.

His stats:

ACT composite 31 (he took it 3x)
GPA 4 (97.5 avg)
4 AP courses and 10 honors courses
RANK 1st of 304
Black Belt - Karate
Eagle Scout
Senior Patrol Leader
Scout
West Point SLS
JROTC Battalion Commander
JROTC Officer
Lettered in Cross Country (1x)
Lettered in Swimming (2x)
Part-time Job

Start early on the application...you do not know how many LOAs will be given out in any given year, so you do not know when they will stop issuing LOA. If you complete your file in the fall and not the summer, you may miss consideration just because they have given out all the LOAs.
 
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LOA's are extremely rare. They mostly use them to fill "gaps" in the class, i.e. minorities and athletic recruits.

This is not a accurate statement. An LOA is given to HIGHLY qualified applicants that are motivated to complete their application early. The admissions office talks about how these are to help lock-in students who are considering other highly competitive schools.

In addition, the nomination process gets much easier for those with LOAs. It is rare for a candidate with an LOA not to receive a nomination.
 
My son did get an LOA
Some stats
SAT 2000
GPA 4.2
Boys State Senator
NHS
Captain Football Team
Captain Wrestling Team
President Student Body
(NOT A RECRUITED athlete- NOT A MINORITY OR ANY OTHER SPECIAL CATEGORY).
 
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