First off, I'm very interested in the Coast Guard and in particular CGA. I made a trip to New London this past summer and all I can say is wow those hills are steep........ Anyway, with CGA not accepting congressional/senatorial/VP/Presidential nominations and therefore not having to choose students from each state, which criteria do they use to choose their new swabs?? I mean, I know academics, leadership, fitness, etc. are used to weed out the students who will struggle, but it seems at the end of the day there will be a whole bunch of qualified people left. What separates the applicants? Is it the letters of recommendation? Does having someone with stars and bars write a recommendation letter carry any weight? Does knowing someone help? I have been in contact with the baseball staff, as I would like to play there, but with an admission of about 300 cadets annually, I really can't see that they are extremely worried about athletics.
Admissions Process
- Thread starter PG#7
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In each SA admissions cycle, there will always be more fully qualified candidates with noms (if required), than there are seats available in the class. That is a norm across all SAs.
My impression of USCGA is, perhaps more than other SAs, they like candidates who want CG as not only their top choice but only choice for academy, service and career - all in.
Letters of recommendation. See my post at link below with general comments about LOR strategy.
Post in thread 'Letters of Recommendation for Congressmen?'
https://www.serviceacademyforums.co...ommendation-for-congressmen.90248/post-972099
The only thing you have control over is the quality and timeliness of your application. Focus on that. USCGA looks for the things you mentioned as well as other factors important to their class-building strategy. I am sure they do their best to be geographically diverse.
If you find yourself reapplying this time next year after executing your alternate plan, you might well have taken advantage of what I have read about here on SAF, that USCGA Admissions is very good about giving feedback to those not offered appointments.
My impression of USCGA is, perhaps more than other SAs, they like candidates who want CG as not only their top choice but only choice for academy, service and career - all in.
Letters of recommendation. See my post at link below with general comments about LOR strategy.
Post in thread 'Letters of Recommendation for Congressmen?'
https://www.serviceacademyforums.co...ommendation-for-congressmen.90248/post-972099
The only thing you have control over is the quality and timeliness of your application. Focus on that. USCGA looks for the things you mentioned as well as other factors important to their class-building strategy. I am sure they do their best to be geographically diverse.
If you find yourself reapplying this time next year after executing your alternate plan, you might well have taken advantage of what I have read about here on SAF, that USCGA Admissions is very good about giving feedback to those not offered appointments.
@Capt MJ thanks for the reply. I am currently a Junior in high school so I have a bit of time yet. I'm just trying to improve my overall admissions package and skillset at the moment. I was just curious as the other academies have the advantage of the nomination process to weed out the weaker candidates.
Actually athletics is one of the 3 main areas CGA is interested in: Academics, Leadership, and Athletics.
Academics: Are you taking the highest level STEM classes available and excelling in them? What are your SAT/ACT scores like (these are optional for CGA but if yours are high, then send them in)?
Leadership: In addition to actual leadership positions, what did you DO in those positions? How did you lead? How did you improve the club or the team? Leadership can be non-traditional positions like starting up and leading a service project.
Athletics: The vast majority of accepted athletes are varsity sport athletes. Definitely reach out to the coach of your sport (which you say you have) because they do have a seat at the table when decisions are being made. Every applicant gets both an athletic score and a music score so having the coach pull for you can help to a degree. The PFE is important. I suggest not submitting until you can hit at least 200, but higher would be better.
Community service is also a major factor.
Your essays are important. Make yourself stand out. What is unique about you? Show your passions and show why you are interested in the Coast Guard and the Coast Guard Academy.
Letters of Recommendation are important and they should come from someone who knows you well. It won't help to have a LOR from someone with stars and bars if they don't know you personally. The people writing your essay need to be able to speak about your qualities as a person and why you would be a good fit for CGA.
Some applicants are interviewed. If you are chosen for an interview, make sure to make a good impression. Speak about your passions. The interviewer is trying to determine what you are like as a person and whether you'd be a good fit for CGA.
And although nominations are not required, CGA does try to get students from all areas of the country. If there are no qualified applicants from a state, then so be it. But if it comes down to a bunch of qualified applicants all vying for the last few spots, somebody from a state without a lot of applicants may have a better chance.
What is their process? First, 2 people will look at your application just to see if they feel you are qualified to be looked at farther. If both say no, then you are done. If both say yes, you go through to the next phase. If they disagree, then a 3rd person looks at the application. This is also the time when you may be considered for Prep School. After that, there is a larger board that reads through all the applications. There will definitely be some standouts who are considered a definite "yes", and there may be some weeded out as "no's", but there will be a lot in the middle that are highly qualified. Then it comes down to just trying to rank those. At that point, things like your major, the area of the country where you live, your sport, etc.. all can come into play.
You say you are a junior. If at all possible, I suggest you apply for AIM for next summer. It is CGA's summer program for rising seniors. Applications open in the spring. It is a week long summer program that gives you a taste of what swab summer is like. Also, it isn't too early to reach out to your Admissions Officer to ask questions.
Academics: Are you taking the highest level STEM classes available and excelling in them? What are your SAT/ACT scores like (these are optional for CGA but if yours are high, then send them in)?
Leadership: In addition to actual leadership positions, what did you DO in those positions? How did you lead? How did you improve the club or the team? Leadership can be non-traditional positions like starting up and leading a service project.
Athletics: The vast majority of accepted athletes are varsity sport athletes. Definitely reach out to the coach of your sport (which you say you have) because they do have a seat at the table when decisions are being made. Every applicant gets both an athletic score and a music score so having the coach pull for you can help to a degree. The PFE is important. I suggest not submitting until you can hit at least 200, but higher would be better.
Community service is also a major factor.
Your essays are important. Make yourself stand out. What is unique about you? Show your passions and show why you are interested in the Coast Guard and the Coast Guard Academy.
Letters of Recommendation are important and they should come from someone who knows you well. It won't help to have a LOR from someone with stars and bars if they don't know you personally. The people writing your essay need to be able to speak about your qualities as a person and why you would be a good fit for CGA.
Some applicants are interviewed. If you are chosen for an interview, make sure to make a good impression. Speak about your passions. The interviewer is trying to determine what you are like as a person and whether you'd be a good fit for CGA.
And although nominations are not required, CGA does try to get students from all areas of the country. If there are no qualified applicants from a state, then so be it. But if it comes down to a bunch of qualified applicants all vying for the last few spots, somebody from a state without a lot of applicants may have a better chance.
What is their process? First, 2 people will look at your application just to see if they feel you are qualified to be looked at farther. If both say no, then you are done. If both say yes, you go through to the next phase. If they disagree, then a 3rd person looks at the application. This is also the time when you may be considered for Prep School. After that, there is a larger board that reads through all the applications. There will definitely be some standouts who are considered a definite "yes", and there may be some weeded out as "no's", but there will be a lot in the middle that are highly qualified. Then it comes down to just trying to rank those. At that point, things like your major, the area of the country where you live, your sport, etc.. all can come into play.
You say you are a junior. If at all possible, I suggest you apply for AIM for next summer. It is CGA's summer program for rising seniors. Applications open in the spring. It is a week long summer program that gives you a taste of what swab summer is like. Also, it isn't too early to reach out to your Admissions Officer to ask questions.
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Good that you are doing serious thinking and research now.
The nomination process does not weed out weaker candidates directly for the SAs - not the purpose, not the practice, not the result. A nom is an administrative requirement. To be offered an appointment, a candidate must be fully qualified by the SA: academic/scholastic (all the graded elements of an application not having to do with medical or CFA), medical (DoDMERB Q or waiver), athletic (CFA).
A fully qualified candidate for the 4 SAs that require them must apply for a nom from sources they are eligible to apply to. If you haven’t done this yet, go to the Nominations forum and read the pinned post at the top.
The SA evaluates the candidates to find them admissible. They also check for a nom. Every year, candidates are offered appointments who were unable to obtain a nom. Sometimes the SA uses the VP or other discretionary nom for them.
The Senator and Representative staff and nom review panels use a wide variety of criteria to determine who they will give noms to. They do not see the totality of the applicant’s SA package. There is no “weeding out” done by nom sources that the SA Admissions uses in their own process. It’s a parallel process to meet an administrative requirement.
You can also review the source below, to see how many and from where noms come from.
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@ProudMom7, I will be applying to all of the seminars for next summer. I am a 2 sport athlete (cross country, Baseball) and am a captain on both teams. I have taken the practice CFA's and at the moment I am currently at average to above average in each event. I have yet to attempt CGA's PFE. I am currently testing for the Mitchell, and I am one of the commanders for the color guard in my CAP unit. At the moment, I have a 3.9 GPA, am a member of NHS, and am active in a couple of school clubs. I have attended the USNA Summer Stem (2022), USNA Summer Baseball Leadership Camp (2023), and the USAFA Elite Baseball Camp (2023). This summer, I scheduled and participated in an admissions tour at the CGA. I decided then and there that I wanted to do something on the water......
Now for the downside. I attend a very small rural school that does not offer advanced courses. I have taken the ACT twice and my best score was 18 with a super score of 19. In order to help remedy this, I took 2 math classes at the local community college this past summer (2023) and I am currently taking college algebra there right now. The reason for this is twofold. First I want to improve the strength of my diploma and secondly to help increase my ACT. My main focus at the moment is the ACT. I know that it is not required at the CGA, but in my eyes, I see it as a weak point in my application if I do not submit one.
Now for the downside. I attend a very small rural school that does not offer advanced courses. I have taken the ACT twice and my best score was 18 with a super score of 19. In order to help remedy this, I took 2 math classes at the local community college this past summer (2023) and I am currently taking college algebra there right now. The reason for this is twofold. First I want to improve the strength of my diploma and secondly to help increase my ACT. My main focus at the moment is the ACT. I know that it is not required at the CGA, but in my eyes, I see it as a weak point in my application if I do not submit one.
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The academies won't hold you responsible for courses your school doesn't offer, but in lieu of AP courses be sure to crush everything within arm's reach, and that includes the ACT/SAT.
Try both the SAT and the ACT, as they work slightly differently and some people do better on one or the other. Do some guided test prep, either using a book or Khan academy or hiring a tutor (if possible.) Take a bunch of tests to get a better feel for which parts you're not good at, then work on those sections. Standardized test scores can be raised with directed and committed effort that is focused on test taking, not just general knowledge.
EDIT: Look around the rest of this site, as many people have offered solid tips on improving your test scores. It's a common problem with reasonable solutions.
Try both the SAT and the ACT, as they work slightly differently and some people do better on one or the other. Do some guided test prep, either using a book or Khan academy or hiring a tutor (if possible.) Take a bunch of tests to get a better feel for which parts you're not good at, then work on those sections. Standardized test scores can be raised with directed and committed effort that is focused on test taking, not just general knowledge.
EDIT: Look around the rest of this site, as many people have offered solid tips on improving your test scores. It's a common problem with reasonable solutions.
I think the minimum math that CGA wants their applicants to have is Pre-Calc. Most will have taken at least through Calculus. Hopefully you will be able to get to at least through Pre-Cal (with good grades) by next year. What about Chemistry and Physics? Those are two others that are important. CGA will receive a profile on your high school, so they will know what courses are offered (or not offered). I agree that you should work to improve your test scores, but if you aren't able to at least get them to the CGA average, don't submit them in your application. They aren't required and low scores will only hurt you.
Something isn’t adding up here. I also grew up in a very small rural school. We did not have any advanced courses. I had no where near a 3.9 GPA (assuming yours is on a 4.0 scale). I scored a 25 on the ACT in my only attempt, at the end of my Junior year. All of my 4th year classes in math, English, science, were taken after tha ACT. I think someone can get about an 18 just be signing their name. Is there a typo in your post?
Last ACT attempt was the fall of my sophomore year. I’m hoping for marked improvement during the October test.
27BearDad
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Keep hammering on your test prep. Definitely try the SAT if you haven’t. My daughter started with the SAT then took the ACT and had better success. Average ACT is 28/29 so you should be trying to get close to that before you consider submitting test scores.
Chemistry, physics are required. Pre calculus is the minimum requirement but Calc 1 is probably preferred. My daughter got in with PreCalc. College classes are looked upon favorably, so getting good grades in those will help.
Athletics are very important. Coaches can’t necessarily just get you in, but they will advocate for you. Each sports recruit is assigned a score of 0, 1 or 2. Basically it’s like 0 is good enough to be in the team, 1 will make a positive contribution to the team, and a 2 is a major game changer on the team. I’d say maybe lean toward whichever sport you think you’d contribute the most. I think it’s possible to be a 2 sport athlete, but it’s a demanding place and that may be a lot.
Like others have said, essays are important. Put a lot of thought into those. Read all the directions carefully and follow them! Use all the words but don’t go over. Get well educated people you trust to proof read. Grammar/spelling errors stick out like a sore thumb.
Also remember even if it says optional (essays, letters or rec), they’re not optional. So everything you can.
Apply for AIM in Feb. It’s a fairly realistic program and will give you a little taste. If you don’t like AIM, then CGA probably isn’t for you. My kid figured out real quick swab summer is much worse.
. They will evaluate you at AIM and that will be considered in your academy application. Also, you’ll do the PFE there and can use it for your application if you’re satisfied with it. In whatever clubs/community organizations you’re active in, try to get into a leadership role. Or, at least take the initiative to spearhead some sort of event or activity that you can own and be able note on your resume or talk about if you get interviewed.
Best of luck!
Mamahopeful
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Definitely look into Boys State through the American Legion Auxiliary. It can help your application stand out. Best of luck!
Good Evening, I am a high school senior who is applying to USCGA this fall but had a few questions on course selection that may hurt my application. This is in relation to my math courses as the highest I have completed is Trigonometry and Statistics though I am worried that it is not necessarily a competitive math class. I was wondering if because of this if I were to take Pre-Calculus in full this semester through a community college and complete it prior to the January deadline it would have any effect?
Yes. Completing Pre-Calc senior year would still meet that qualification. Do you still have time to register for a Pre-Calc course at your community college for this semester? If I were you, I would reach out to your Admissions Officer to ask. This might be a case where it would make sense to apply Regular Admissions instead of EA so that you have time to get that Pre-Calc course completed and on your application (hopefully with a high grade) when you apply. Definitely reach out to your AO about that though.
1). Why not take both classes? Trig at HS, and Pre-calc at JC?
2). Welcome 1st time poster. I suggest that next time you start your own thread. You may get more answers to your questions. Some people don’t look at a thread to give advice more than once, and they already looked before you posted.