Which would the Academy rather see?

rubio1996

5-Year Member
Joined
Jun 27, 2011
Messages
54
Would the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy rather see: high grades in a regular class or mediocre grades in an advanced class? For example, during my freshman year, my final grades were a C- in Geometry Honors, an A+ in Concert Band, a C in Chemistry Honors, an A- in Multimedia Design, a B- in English I, a B- in Spanish I, and an A- in Civilizations. Unless something changes, I will be taking mostly regular classes in my sophomore year, which are Algebra II, Concert Band, Biology, Introduction to Computer Science, English II, Spanish II, and World History AP. Would doing excellent in these classes look better than doing mediocre in harder classes?
 
I do not know specifically what USMMA states, but USNA, USAFA, and USMA, will tell you without any question, significantly higher grades in a regular level course are preferred over lower grades in an honor’s level course.
 
I'm not, nor have I ever been in admissions ... but if I were I can tell you what would give me concern about your grades. You appear strong in the arts but weak in math and the sciences. Is concert band an elective? If it is I would consider replacing it with another math or science type course and turn those Cs into As.
 
I'm not, nor have I ever been in admissions ... but if I were I can tell you what would give me concern about your grades. You appear strong in the arts but weak in math and the sciences. Is concert band an elective? If it is I would consider replacing it with another math or science type course and turn those Cs into As.

I agree but I would also say at the end of the day strong math and science grades along with a solid Class Standing Top 10% are what I think they look for.
 
I agree with KP Engineer. You need to focus on science and math and get as much experience as you can. I will give you an example and this is just an example not to compare you and your grades to anyone else but to give you an idea of what you will face when/if you make it into KP. My DD graduated high school having completed six AP classes including calculus and science, statistics, english, etc. She did well in calculus because she had already taken it - other students in the class had a really hard time. On the other hand despite her AP science she had a hard time with Physics. You really need to get as much math and science in as you can even if that means dropping some electives and adding the science and math. KP is academically very challenging as you will complete a four year degree in three years plus have the added sea term and all the regimental requirements. You need a good strong foundation when you enter KP to really help prepare you for success. Keep working hard!
 
I agree with KP Engineer. You need to focus on science and math and get as much experience as you can. I will give you an example and this is just an example not to compare you and your grades to anyone else but to give you an idea of what you will face when/if you make it into KP. My DD graduated high school having completed six AP classes including calculus and science, statistics, english, etc. She did well in calculus because she had already taken it - other students in the class had a really hard time. On the other hand despite her AP science she had a hard time with Physics. You really need to get as much math and science in as you can even if that means dropping some electives and adding the science and math. KP is academically very challenging as you will complete a four year degree in three years plus have the added sea term and all the regimental requirements. You need a good strong foundation when you enter KP to really help prepare you for success. Keep working hard!

I agree but I would also say at the end of the day strong math and science grades along with a solid Class Standing Top 10% are what I think they look for.

I'm not, nor have I ever been in admissions ... but if I were I can tell you what would give me concern about your grades. You appear strong in the arts but weak in math and the sciences. Is concert band an elective? If it is I would consider replacing it with another math or science type course and turn those Cs into As.

I do not know specifically what USMMA states, but USNA, USAFA, and USMA, will tell you without any question, significantly higher grades in a regular level course are preferred over lower grades in an honor’s level course.


In my school, Concert Band is only a half credit elective, meaning that I cannot replace it with a full credit class. Since the only math I can take in my sophomore year is Algebra II, and the only science I can take in my sophomore year is Biology (Regular or Honors, depending on the decision of the department head), I've decided to take Introduction to Computer Science in my sophomore year, which is a prerequisite for AP Computer Science and Robotics & Databases, which I will take in my junior and senior years, respectively.
 
Reach out to your local KP admissions rep and start a dialogue with them. They should be able to give you some guidance and may be familiar with your school and how it is perceived in the admissions process.
Work hard, get those grades up and develop leadership in your extra-curricular activities.
 
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