Naval Academy Admission

I am currently a High School Junior in Florida and I'm seeking appointment to the Naval Academy. Feedback would be helpful. Here is my background background.

GPA: 3.3 have taken 9 AP Classes so far
SAT: 550 Reading 550 Math only taken once
ACT: 31 Math 28 English only taken once
Rank: 51 out of 600
Varsity Football and Lacrosse(Captain)
Junior Class President

Classes that will be taken by end of Senior Year
AP and Hon Chemistry
AP and Hon Physics
Hon Biology
Hon English I-III and AP Lit.
AP U.S History AP World History AP Government AP Economics
Hon Geometry Hon Algebra I Hon Algebra II Pre-Calculus AP Calculus Analysis of Functions
AP Statistics
3 years of Spanish
4 years of MCJROTC
2 years of Concert and Jazz Band

400+ Community Service Hours through Church, ROTC, and Children's Camps
Recommendations from HS Principle, Senior Marine Instructor Colonel/MCJROTC unit Nomination, and two other instructors: One is a Major and the other is a First Sergeant. Also from both of my church's Priest. Applying for Nominations with Senator and Congressmen.

Candidate Fitness Assessment
Pushups: 102
Sit-ups: 112
Pullups: 13
Shuttle run: 7.2
B-ball throw: 101
Mile Run: 6:30

I would say you look pretty good except for SAT scores, bit ACT seems OK. Keep taking them and pull them up. I assume you'll also apply NROTC MO (you should) in which case you need to improve those pullups and the 3 mile run time (which I assume is slower than your 1 mile pace). Good luck! Thanks for being willing to serve.

Your stats look amazing. I got my appointment back in January and you seem a little more physically fit than me and almost as academically strong as I am. Keep taking the ACT and I strongly recommend you looking into Boys State this summer.

I would say you are already more than qualified, but I'm not on the admissions board. Keep trying harder in sports and on standardized tests. Keep adding things to your application even after you turn it in so that they know you're serious about it.

kinnem said:

I would say you look pretty good except for SAT scores, bit ACT seems OK. Keep taking them and pull them up. I assume you'll also apply NROTC MO (you should) in which case you need to improve those pullups and the 3 mile run time (which I assume is slower than your 1 mile pace). Good luck! Thanks for being willing to serve.

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Concur...You might want to read the "What are my Chances..." Sticky notes.

I attended the National Youth Leadership Forum on National Security last spring and I was invited to the collegiate presidential inaugural conference next year.

bluedarter1,

In addition to what others have said, all of your eggs are almost in the basket, so finish up H.S. strong and strive to take SAT/ACT a few times.

You have a bonus of being in ROTC, where a recommendation by an N/MC ROTC instructor could carry some emphasis (not necessarily weight), so make sure he/she specifically makes a comment/recommendation about your aptitude to become a MIDN and commissioned officer, if you submit an additional letter of recommendation to USNA/MOC.
If able to in your Senior year, try to assume a leadership position within your unit (i.e. Platoon, Company, Battalion Commander).

Otherwise, if you have lurked the forum, you will see that a number of exceptional/outstanding candidates are being wait listed/turndown. So give it your best shot, and that is all you can do.

I second all that has been said above with the caveat that the Admissions scene is in a process of change and will continue to get tighter due to budget constraints that has hit all of the service academies. It makes it all the more important that you do your very best to be your very best, and keep in mind that there will be very stiff competition for however many slots there will be. Best wishes to you.

One quick comment that may or may not be obvious. You have great CFA scores and some are over the maximums. You may want to consider stopping when you hit the ones you have maxed and saving some of that energy for the mile run.

bandad said:

One quick comment that may or may not be obvious. You have great CFA scores and some are over the maximums. You may want to consider stopping when you hit the ones you have maxed and saving some of that energy for the mile run.

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and the pull-ups. If you can hit that many push-ups, you ought to be able to max out on pull-ups.

Also, I was told the mile run is the single most important part of CFA. 6:30 beats average but not by much.


The rest of your stats appear to be up there.
Continue working on ACT-they do appear decent

Weak points that I see are GPA and SAT scores. They're not bad, but if you get those up (700 in each section/3.7 or so GPA), you'll definitely be very competitive.

Start getting A's in all your classes and score 2100+ on your SAT, and I would say you have a great chance at an appointment.

1964BGO said:

I second all that has been said above with the caveat that the Admissions scene is in a process of change and will continue to get tighter due to budget constraints that has hit all of the service academies. It makes it all the more important that you do your very best to be your very best, and keep in mind that there will be very stiff competition for however many slots there will be. Best wishes to you.

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Why be so cryptic? What specifically do you mean by "the Admissions scene is in the process of change"?

Are you saying you have confirmation that subsequent classes will be reduced in size? If so, I'm not surprised. If not, I can't imagine how the budget could play any role in effecting the difficulty of a candidate's quest to earn an appointment.

If anything, it's becoming more difficult to earn an appointment because of the increased competition. The number of applicants has been on a steady rise and that is mostly a reflection of the state of the economy, not the military budget.