Are Congressional offices made aware of LOAs

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Clark Rogers

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My son received a Letter of Assurance last week. He has not yet had congressional interviews. We have been told different things about the nomination process and were interested in gaining further understanding. Are congressional offices told who has/hasn't received an LOA in advance of the interview? Should the candidate make the office staff aware of his LOA during the interview? Thanks in advance.
 
He should certainly make them aware during the interview. He should bring at least one copy with him for their file(s).
 
DD had her congressional interview this past Saturday (29OCT), and the panel informed her of the USAFA LOA. The next day it showed up in her portal. Then last night, she received a call from the senator's office who said they had seen she received an LOA to USAFA, so they've decided to give her two interviews...one for USMA, which was originally scheduled, and now one for the USAFA, which had been listed as her second choice. There certainly appears to be communication between the MoC and the SA's.
 
Definitely bring it up during the interview and offer them a copy of the letter. It seems some MOC know and others do not. It is my guess that they have access to some sort of portal that can give them that information, just some choose not to use it.
 
Exactly as 5Day explained. It might go without saying...but I will say it...I would caution one to be humble in their mentioning of the LOA.
 
Appreciate all the good advice. Son is a recruited athlete. Recently learned that the athletic dept and admissions will send notification to Congressional offices. Advice has been given from both parents and coaching staff about humility...duly noted.
 
When DD was interviewing she received a call from Senator #2 asking, "Even though you have a nomination from Senator #1 for USNA, do you not want to change your request list to include the other SA's in case she didn't earn an appointment to Navy?" When she informed the staffer that she had an LOA from USNA he said "Good luck at Navy!" So this Senator did not know about her LOA but did know about the nom list from Sen #1.

BLUF: be ready to subtly inform them if they don't bring it up.
 
Say you had an LOA and a nomination from your MOC, would you not continue with the nomination process with the senators?
 
wrwildcats said:
Say you had an LOA and a nomination from your MOC, would you not continue with the nomination process with the senators?
Click to expand...
One is sufficient. However, having multiple nominations allows the academy multiple options for how they slate your appointment so they can achieve the best class mix possible.
 
My son knew 3 years ago that he had LOA and Presidential nom when he showed up for 1st MOC interview. Before he even got a word out one of the interviewers congratulated him on it and then proceeded to ask him why he was there. Go figure. I think it must vary by state. Ours is a very competitive state with plenty of solid candidates. I have heard on this forum that the moc's here communicate with each other before they release their slates.
 
USNA's website indicates you should apply for ALL NOM's for which you are eligible, so I would always recommend you follow their official advice. Where a NOM is issued may not be where it is eventually charged. If you have more than 1 NOM, it gives USNA more flexibility on where they eventually charge it.

Each MOC runs their own NOM process, so how one chooses to operate may not be the same as what another one does.
 
If practical, I would still pursue other nominations...especially if there are interviews...at worst, it can only help build confidence and experience in this area (MOC/BGO interviews are typically the first time candidates have done any sort of interview and is unfamiliar territory). If there are no interviews, then why waste all of the work to submit a nomination application? With all this being said, some MOCs ask or require (note: ask OR require) notification if an LOA or other NOMs are obtained...I would read carefully how it is worded and then make any required notifications.
 
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