superbison007

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Jul 5, 2019
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When I went to NASS (Naval Academy Summer Seminar) one of the midshipmen told me that to get an appointment you are really only competing against people from your state. They continued to say that this is why it's very hard to get an appointment from Virginia or Maryland (I am from South Carolina). How true is this?
 
You initially compete against people on your slate. If you don't win your slate, you go into the National Pool, where you compete with others from around the country. That's why there are lots of folks at USNA from (certain parts of) VA and MD -- they compete well in the National Pool.

The reason it's hard(er) to get appointments from certain states/districts is that there are so many highly qualified candidates that it's a challenge even to get a nom. For example, VA senators can have 600-700 applications for the 10 spots on the their slate. Winning that slate means you're super-competitive. But, as noted, others from those slates often end up with appointments.
 
You initially compete against people on your slate. If you don't win your slate, you go into the National Pool, where you compete with others from around the country. That's why there are lots of folks at USNA from (certain parts of) VA and MD -- they compete well in the National Pool.

The reason it's hard(er) to get appointments from certain states/districts is that there are so many highly qualified candidates that it's a challenge even to get a nom. For example, VA senators can have 600-700 applications for the 10 spots on the their slate. Winning that slate means you're super-competitive. But, as noted, others from those slates often end up with appointments.

I don't understand what you mean by slate? Do you mean that when you apply you are competing for an appointment from a pool of South Carolina applicants, but if you don't get one from that pool you go onto a National Pool of others who did not get an appointment from their state pools?
 
Slate = “list” from a nominating source.

If you haven’t already done so, go to the Nominations forum and read the Stickies at the very top. Then, browse the forum for the dozens of threads that talk about how the various nom slates work. This is where you can get an understanding of if you are not offered an appointment off of one slate, you go into a pool of people with noms, from across the country. The SA can choose from this pool per certain rules, then may choose others to round out the class. The original nom may have come from Rep X, but the appointment may be CHARGED against another appointment authority.

Additionally, if you haven’t read every page, dropdown and link on USNA.edu, I strongly recommend it. The selection of candidates with noms from a national pool is described at:
https://www.usna.edu/Admissions/Apply/US-Senators-Representatives-and-Delegates.php


Researching the primary source is the first thing to try. USNA.edu has most of the answers.
 
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