Appointment acccepted then turned down

Em_FLA

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Jun 14, 2019
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Just wanted to share my experience of how things can go really wrong on this journey.

Son received an LOA w/ noms from congresswoman and senator... was celebrated in his school, in the paper, and attended numerous award ceremonies including meeting Senator Marco Rubio.

Last week he developed a stomach ache that persisted. As the pain increased we made the decision to go to the ER. He was admitted with a partial small bowel obstruction. They kept him NPO (nothing to eat or drink) for one day and it resolved on its own. He was feeling good as new and sent home w/ a clearance letter.

While he was in the hospital, I notified the B&G officer by VM. B&G officer notified USNA and then called me. I was told my son had to be medically cleared again. We sent in the clearance letter and the records from the hospital and were told someone would reach out to us.

Nobody ever “reached out”. His status changed on the portal today showing that he had been medically turned down because of the hospital trip.

Now here we are, valedictorian... captain of crew team... impressive SAT and GPA... substantial volunteer experiences... former lifeguard for the city. It’s too late for him to get into his plan B school for fall semester even though he was accepted (decisions were due 5/31). So my hardworking child is now applying for jobs at fast food locations and has no opportunity to go to college until January.

Had I known all of this could’ve happened, I certainly would’ve encouraged him to take a different path.

Im not putting this out there for any reason other than to let you know that things like this can happen and it really leaves your child in a bind.

I-Day is in 13 days.
 
Until he is cleared, the portal will stay that way. The paperwork has to catch up, and someone has to physically do a few keystrokes and update the portal. It will be resolved. They are dealing with a bunch of NASS participants right now.

Call Admissions, just to make sure that they got the letter and records, if it makes you feel better.
I am here to tell you that that my confidence is high that this is going to be okay. :)
 
I am REALLY sorry to read this. Can he do community college to get those basic classes done and have them transfer in January?

Also could it be a timing thing? That there will be a waiver granted? Has he called admissions? As disappointing as this news is, so grateful your DS is ok. And maybe this will still turn out as originally planned!
 
We sent in the clearance letter and the records from the hospital and were told someone would reach out to us. Nobody ever “reached out”. His status changed on the portal today showing that he had been medically turned down because of the hospital trip.
Had I known all of this could’ve happened, I certainly would’ve encouraged him to take a different path.

WOW... I am trying to restrain my reaction here, but what path would you have encouraged DS to take ? I truly hope you aren't suggesting that you would have discouraged DS from applying to a Service Academy because the risk something like this could happen.

What I see from the post is that DS had a medical condition that appears to be disqualifying, and his portal changed. This all happened in the course of a week, and you are jumping to conclusions because nobody ever reached out to you. I certainly hope you have reached out to USNA to determine whether this is a permanent disqualification, or something that can be cured by time, or waived, before making your first post here as a rant against the system.

Nothing I see is extraordinary ... Otherwise qualified candidate has a medical condition, and becomes disqualified. If this is a permanent disqualification, its because the medical condition disqualifies DS from serving in the military. USNA is going to want that ensure that DS can serve --that's the whole purpose of the Naval Academy.

It's possible this could be resolved before I Day--talk to USNA. If it can't be resolved before I day, but isn't a permanent disqualification, USNA would likely defer Admission a year.

There are plenty of threads discussing "what ifs" and "bubble wrapping" your candidate. Unfortunately , there are bumps in the road of life and this is one of them.
 
Have you called USNA and talked with them? Not the BGO, but admissions themselves. BGO should not be involved in medical items.

We called our contact in the medical department and she said his offer of appointment has been rescinded and he’s disqualified. When asked if he could reapply next year, she said he can try. She wasn’t very helpful, to be frank.
 
Well. That is not what I expected.

Normally with something like that, they give the candidate a Letter of Assurance (LOA) for the next class (2024) and it is a pretty simple matter of opening a new application and getting a nomination.

Sorry to hear about the kick in the gut. I simply cannot imagine.
 
Normally with something like that, they give the candidate a Letter of Assurance (LOA) for the next class (2024) and it is a pretty simple matter of opening a new application and getting a nomination.

Agree...if it's temporary issue, e.g., broke arm that heals in a few months. Bowel obstruction could be more complicated, and very well could be a permanent DQ. Someone has posted a link to the Medical Manual here before, and couldn't hurt to find that, talk with the Doc and find out what you are dealing with.

Again, this situation is only a week old, and nothing moves fast, even with I Day a couple weeks away. Keep the faith and don't burn bridges -its never over until its over.
 
Seems like your DS' medical condition should have been looked into by the USNA more thoroughly before reaching such a quick decision. "A partial small bowel blockage?" I am no doctor, but this could have been constipation from something he ate. When my DS was a small child, like maybe 4 yrs old, we had Chinese Food one day and all he would eat was white rice. Well, he ate so much that he got constipated and didn't go #2 for several days without telling us. He then got a stomach ache and we had to take him to the ER and he had an X-Ray. He finally fessed-up and told us about the constipation and the Docs and we figured it was from eating like a QUART of Chinese white rice!! It cleared up right away after that. It was NOTHING!! That's how a healthy body is supposed to react from eating too much white rice and nothing else.

From your brief description, the situation you son was in could be just as minor. I would like to think that the Naval Academy is a little more thorough that they seem to have been in your case. If the docs confirm that it was nothing, I would call up your congressman and ask for help. This is not right. Of course, a bowl obstruction could be something more serious and even re-occurring. No-one on this site has enough information to know
 
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When my DS was a small child, like maybe 4 yrs old, we had Chinese Food one day and all he would eat was white rice. Well, he ate so much that he got constipated and didn't go #2 for several days without telling us. He then got a stomach ache and we had to take him to the ER and he had an X-Ray. He finally fessed-up and told us about the constipation and the Docs and we figured it was from eating like a QUART of Chinese white rice!! It cleared up right away after that. It was NOTHING!! That's how a healthy body is supposed to react from eating too much white rice and nothing else.

That rice is sticky! lol

In all seriousness, isn't a bowel obstruction just a fancy was of saying constipation? I doubt USNA would DQ a kid for being constipated.
 
If the docs confirm that it was nothing, I would call up your congressman and ask for help.

While a common response in today's society, it is not good advice when dealing with the military. There is a system in place for dealing with issues ...called the Chain of Command. In this case, contact Admissions Officer directly and work from there.
 
While a common response in today's society, it is not good advice when dealing with the military. There is a system in place for dealing with issues ...called the Chain of Command. In this case, contact Admissions Officer directly and work from there.

I would do all the above and use every possible means to help my DS. The military is still subject to congressional oversight. Sorry
 
Well. That is not what I expected.

Normally with something like that, they give the candidate a Letter of Assurance (LOA) for the next class (2024) and it is a pretty simple matter of opening a new application and getting a nomination.

Sorry to hear about the kick in the gut. I simply cannot imagine.

It is quite the kick in the gut. My heart is just breaking for my son who has had this dream since 7th grade and has worked incredibly hard to get to where he is now.

It’s left him in a bad position all around. I know people can be disqualified if things happen, I was okay with that going into this. I never imagined one could be DQ’d this late in the game for something so minor.

We’ll email admissions to hopefully get a clearer picture of what happened, but to DQ on the basis of a clearance letter and a hospital admission summary without so much as a phone call (or even an email) is just bewildering.

Thank you all for your input. I wish your sons and daughters the very best.
 
Don’t email. Call. Talk to his admissions counselor directly. Ask if he is in fact DQ they can issue an LOA with medical clearance and Nom as requirements for next year (this is common for late game med DQs after an appointment). He can always reapply, it sounds like he had a very strong package. If this is his goal and dream, it’s not over. It might be delayed, but it’s not over. Enroll at local community college and knock out Plebe like schedule. Get a part time job and volunteer. He will have great essays for next for year.
 
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We’ll email admissions to hopefully get a clearer picture of what happened,
> Pick up the phone and call. If you don't have a phone number for your Admissions Counselor, your BGO can give it to you. While I often preach here that it should be the Candidate making the call , this is probably a good exception.

I would do all the above and use every possible means to help my DS. The military is still subject to congressional oversight. Sorry
> While I understand the sentiment, it is the wrong answer.
 
While a common response in today's society, it is not good advice when dealing with the military. There is a system in place for dealing with issues ...called the Chain of Command. In this case, contact Admissions Officer directly and work from there.

I would do all the above and use every possible means to help my DS. The military is still subject to congressional oversight. Sorry
@GaitherDad sorry this is not civilian life. YOU DO NOT BREAK THE CHAIN OF COMMAND! As others have stated call admissions and speak with your BGO. It is possible BGO can assist and his AC could also.
 
@Em_FLA, I have to go with the prevailing wisdom here: Don't jump to conclusions, pick up the phone and have a direct conversation with admissions. Not the BGO, not with a medical person, but with admissions.

Your son's need to be hospitalized is unusual but not unheard of. Up to and including I-Day, appointees are turned away due to a medical reason. And that typically falls into one of two camps: (1) not fit to enter now, but good to go the following year; (2) not fit to enter because of a reason that prevents active-duty service after graduation. If it's the former, then that person has the next I-Day to look forward to. If it's the latter, then there's a much bigger issue beyond the academy.

So again, talk directly to the source. An outright disqualification of an otherwise fully qualified -- in fact, appointed -- candidate without thorough vetting seems very weird. Sounds like a miscommunication that needs to be clarified directly. Please circle back and tell us the ultimate outcome of your conversation.

With all due respect, it seems like you're unfurling the white flag very prematurely.
 
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So I just had him pull up the portal for me and it says something along the lines of, “We regret to inform you that you have been medically turned down for a condition that is not waiverable. Please await a letter for further instructions.”

So that seems pretty straightforward to me. Luckily we were able to get a full refund on our airbnb. If someone is still looking for accomodations, I can recommend a three bedroom house just minutes from the academy.

Funny how so much can change in the span of one week. I’ll still call on Monday, but not expecting much to come of it.
 
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