Overall Character (grades,sports,community service)

attacklax17

attacklax17

5-Year Member
Joined
Oct 21, 2009
Messages
70
I'm very serious about attending the Naval Academy. Currently I am a sophomore but have been trying to push myself since freshmen year. My unweighted GPA as of now is 3.84 which hopefully I can get up to 3.9. I've played varsity lacrosse since freshman year but this will be my first year as a captain and starter. For community service I give up my 45 minute study hall to help mentor/tutor kids with learning disabilities 3 days a week. I do science club and community service counsel but not really sure if those make a difference.
Does this sound like I am on the right track? What else do I need to do or add? All help and anything else is greatly appreciated :smile:

-Jake
 
Two things i'd recommend while you have time now are to study for the ACT/SAT and start practicing for the CFA. More practice is always better for either of those! Other than that it certainly sounds like you're on the right track to me! :thumb:
 
Sounds like you're definitely on the right track, especially for a sophomore! Captaincy in lacrosse will definitely help, try to get leadership positions in the clubs you're in. Join NHS as well, if they have a chapter at your school.

Your GPA is great, take lots of APs and honors, but be realistic.. you don't want to be pulling straight C's in like 7 advanced classes.

Also remember that your test scores count too. It's never too early to start prepping for the SAT and ACT!

Don't try to pad up your resume too much, just continue doing stuff that you're really interested in doing and have time for, but just maybe you could use a couple more ECs. I would say, think how much time do you spend at home or on weekends doing nothing that you could spend doing community service, getting a part time job, joining some kind of out of school program.. like the Civil Air Patrol for example :D (I recently joined with my friends and we LOOOOOOOOOOOVE it).
 
Thanks so far for the info. Is there any books you would reccomend to use for SAT/ACT studying? How would you say I should get in touch for community service on weekends? Call local churches/libraries/shelters? Hopefully I can get a more leadership role on science club by next year but I only started this year so it'll be a little bit. My state isn't that competive for spots either, about 40 total for all academies, maybe 15 for usna. If I can get the nomination will I have a decent chance if I become an official candidate? Thanks

(ps. - this is from an iPod so sorry for any grammar issues) :cool:
 
I'd say for starters, you can use nearly any - maybe even see if your library has any you can use rather than spending the money now (when the test may change in the next couple years). Once you get an idea of where you need to work, and which test you feel more comfortable with (this may be after you have taken them both more than once junior year if necessary), there are some more advanced books (ACT 36 is one we used) to try to get you that final edge. Or you can just buy one of the books that has like 12 tests in it - we did that with the SAT and it was kind of neat that you could get your essays scored online for just a couple dollars each (think this was Princeton Review). Helped my kids feel a lot more comfortable with the essays in general. At this point just being exposed to them, the format, timing, types of questions, is probably the place to start.

Check to see if your school has some type of volunteer organization. My son's first year in HS he tried to do it on his own (because everyone told him the community service club required so much time/commitment), but it was really hard to track down opportunities - a lot he found asked for over age 18 or were major time commitments (like every weekend, not just one). The next year he joined our school's service league and it's a lot easier - everything is online and there are a zillion opportunities and you can just sign up for what appeals to you. If your school doesn't have something like this, your guidance office probably has some leads and I'm sure your church could always use volunteers.
 
That sounds pretty competitive still, I would say.

And yeah, exactly. Call them up, look for programs you might be interested in out of school, be proactive and don't just wait for opportunities to come to you. :thumb:

I would reccommend the Collegeboard's Official SAT Study Guide, I think it would make sense since Collegeboard is the company that makes the SAT!

Also - http://talk.collegeconfidential.com...ep-forum-faqs-please-read-before-posting.html
 
College Board also has an SAT Question of the Day. Comes on your email early in the morning. My son signed up a couple of years ago. I then signed up, too. We would talk about the tough words on the Vocab questions or he would help me remember how to do some of the geometry and algebra that I long since forgot!

Parents, if you want to sign up, you might try signing up as a student. On that one, when you get the question and answer it, it goes directly to the explanation of whether your answer was correct or not. On the parent thing, it is not so streamlined.
 
attacklax17, I would also recommend the Naval Academy Summer Seminar at the end of your Junior year. Entry is competitive so apply early (as soon as application period opens) Look here http://www.usna.edu/Admissions/nass.htm for info. But as others have pointed out you have a strong resume going.

I think you are referring to a MOC Nomination, right? I far as I know (and others can comment please) a MOC Nomination is NOT required to become an Official Candidate. I'm also going to guess that you're on track for being one (an official candidate that is, but I don't make that determination). A Nomination is only required to gain an Appointment (but that's getting way ahead of yourself!). My advise is to watch those deadline dates and these forums to schedule your approach. Some deadlines come earlier than others and not necessarily in any order that makes sense. And remember, NEVER wait to the deadlines to apply, promptness and commitment count (as I understand it). You can look at next year's applications and such for a heads up on what information will be required (or call your Senators). It can be a very daunting process, but you have an early start and the wherewithal.

You know, I've also hear in these forums, some suggest to go ahead and make your interest known to the Academy, you're obviously not eligible now, but someday you will be, and an interested candidate is a better candidate. Maybe a simple call to Admin next year or so, you've got plenty of questions you can ask. Take names and notes.

Good luck!
 
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Strongly consider taking the SAT next spring. The May test is fine. Just to see how you do - don't even worry about hard core studying. Go to the college board website and take a practice and review how the test is given.
Next fall you will take the PSAT in school - then you can take the SAT again in Jan of your senior year and have time for a couple more retakes with studying if necessary.

Schedule your classes carefully. Lay out your science and Math so you can take Calculus your senior year, take Chemistry and Physics and if your school offers take at least one advanced Chem or Physics class (AP or Chem II/Physics II).
 
For classes, hopefully next year I'll be able to do pre-calc, physics-1 and maybe chemistry if I can get a spot in the class. I might also try an AP English class but would USNA rather take a student with well distributed credits in normal and AP classes or a larger amount of credits in Physics, Math (trig, calc, stats) and chemistry?

Do you happen to know the level of math on the SATs/ACT? I'm in Math-4 right now but I've heard they only go up to math-2 on the tests?
I will try giving the Admin office a call after Christmas break just to let them know I'm interested and ask a few questions.

Also, the classes at USNA. I think I could probably do alright in them if I ever get in, but what are minimal grades you must maintain? Are the professors good at offering help or extra study/prep time? I've looked at their classes and the plebe classes look decently tough. Once you get past the required classes, do things ease up a bit? I like how the weapons & systems engineering and tech engineering departments look like, any insight on these?

Thanks
Jake
 
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I strongly recommend you check out www.navysports.com for the list of sports camps at USNA. These camps are available to high school underclassmen (some even are available to youth to age 5). This will give you an opportunity to spend a few days at USNA, get to know some midshipmen, and get the attention of some coaches (never a bad thing, especially in lax as it is a big sport at USNA).
For youths who are in junior high or middle school, it would be wise to check into the STEM program (Science - Technology - Engineering - Math). This is a new program at USNA and is getting very good reviews. Its dates and criteria are listed under Visits at www.usna.edu/Admissions. Best wishes to you and congrats on getting an early start.
 
Minimum acceptable grade is 2.0! The educational program is great! Small class sizes - typically 10 to 18 in a classroom. The profs are there to teach midshipmen, not do research projects of their own. There are several levels of opportunity for extra instruction - some ad lib, some scheduled. Some with your prof or another prof in the department and some in Bancroft from savvy midshipmen. Many profs will make their contact info (email, phone numbers, etc) available to the mids in their classes. Some will make tours of Bancroft the night before exams to provide help. Help is there, you just have to let your prof know you need it.
 
Given your athletic participation and success I strongly recommend you visit www.navysports.com and sign up for the Lax summer camp. You are more likely to get the nod to attend, you will spend a couple of days at NAVY, and in addition to interfacing with midshipmen, you will work with some of the Lax coaches who just might like to have you on their team. It never hurts to have a coach in your corner.

BTW, NAVY supports a substantial list of sports camps each year and they are open to high school underclassmen and below. Good way to spend a few days at NAVY - and potentially productive as well.
 
Believe it or not, Spark Notes has sections on both the ACT and SAT. It is a relatively quick read to get an introduction to the tests
 
1964BGO said:
Given your athletic participation and success I strongly recommend you visit www.navysports.com and sign up for the Lax summer camp. You are more likely to get the nod to attend, you will spend a couple of days at NAVY, and in addition to interfacing with midshipmen, you will work with some of the Lax coaches who just might like to have you on their team. It never hurts to have a coach in your corner.

BTW, NAVY supports a substantial list of sports camps each year and they are open to high school underclassmen and below. Good way to spend a few days at NAVY - and potentially productive as well.
Click to expand...

:smile: I've already gone to 2 Navy lax camps and plan to keep going every summer until I graduate! :smile: But even from those few days there, I absolutely loved it. Probably sounds corny, but I felt pretty crappy on the final day of each camp. It's a great experience. Coach Meade demands respect and certainly got it. Getting up at 7am and playing until 9pm each night was pretty tough but you learn a lot of new technique.

Is there any camps other than NASS, STEM, and sport camps? I know I've seen Leader camps at other schools. Is there anything like this?
 
attacklax17 said:
I'm very serious about attending the Naval Academy. Currently I am a sophomore but have been trying to push myself since freshmen year. My unweighted GPA as of now is 3.84 which hopefully I can get up to 3.9. I've played varsity lacrosse since freshman year but this will be my first year as a captain and starter. For community service I give up my 45 minute study hall to help mentor/tutor kids with learning disabilities 3 days a week. I do science club and community service counsel but not really sure if those make a difference.
Does this sound like I am on the right track? What else do I need to do or add? All help and anything else is greatly appreciated :smile:

-Jake
Click to expand...

As a fellow sophomore aspiring to go to an academy, I can confirm that your stats are really something (captain of varsity lacrosse this year...wow), have tutoring (leadership) and volunteering, clubs, and Navy sports camp participation and contacts...man, wish I was that good.
 
2012Cadet said:
As a fellow sophomore aspiring to go to an academy, I can confirm that your stats are really something (captain of varsity lacrosse this year...wow), have tutoring (leadership) and volunteering, clubs, and Navy sports camp participation and contacts...man, wish I was that good.
Click to expand...

Thanks man. If you need help or anything, just PM me or something. Be pretty helpful if we had each other to rely on.
As far as the stats go... I feel good that I have them now, but it was hard getting there. Long story short, my 1st semester GPA as a freshman was 3.5 but I got help every day for 2 months from teachers, which paid off. The captaincy is because my coach found out about me going to the navy lax camps and a local leadership "conference/camp", and took that as a sign of whatever he thought it was. Hopefully I can keep going for 2 more years.
Good luck dude, hope you get it.

As a side note, does anyone know if they care a bunch about your freshman GPA? I had the Academy in mind, but not until end of second semester I wanted my dream to be reality. 1st Sem. I had a 3.5, 2nd Sem I had a 3.6.
I know those aren't terrible, but will they have any downhill effect? Thanks
 
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