Advice/criticism for a future applicant

dav1y

dav1y

USNA '26
Joined
Aug 5, 2019
Messages
421
Hi everyone,

I just wanted to reach out and ask for some advice since I'll be starting my summer seminar application in December.

I'm currently a junior and I live in Japan, but I'm a resident of Arizona.

Academics: 3.8 UW gpa, 1430 SAT (680 w/r 750 math), I took 2 AP's last year (Chinese and World History) and I'm taking 2 (Lang and US History) this year, planning on taking 4 next year. (School doesn't have honors classes)

Extracurriculars: JV Cross Country last year and this year, varsity baseball in 9th grade (season was cancelled in 10th grade)
Actively participating in 5 clubs, applying for leadership positions in all of them later this year. (2 of them are community service clubs so I do a lot of helping out)
Over the summer I made educational videos for schools in India and Indonesia to help out a little
I also play violin, I've been playing for around 8 years now and I am going to start teaching kids at school soon.
I also do this program where I basically introduce new kids and their families to the school and Japan, gives me around 80 hours of service throughout the entire year
Going to apply for captain of the baseball team in the spring, but usually it's only for seniors so we'll see how that goes

Any help would be awesome!
 
^^^ THIS ^^^

Start with USAFA primary sources, then the SAF search function. No one can “chance you” with any accuracy, but you can educate yourself quite a bit.

At the very least: Take the hardest classes your school has to offer — especially in STEM and English — and excel at them. Demonstrate real leadership — not just titles and clubs — by making a genuine impact on your community. And remain active in team sports. Focus on quality of your activities, not quantity.
 
^^^^ LISTEN ^^^^

Looks like you are in a good place as you start the process with grades and test scores. Develop your plan B as well - for many (like my DS) that included applying to a few civilian colleges and AFROTC Scholarship. Compared to SA application process, AFRTOC is simpler and there is some overlap. I would also consider USNA as well if USAFA interests you. Different lifestyles once on active duty usually, but if you are open to it, consider it.
 
Agree with all post above

AND....

The way you write you seem to be trying to fit yourself into the High School Anywhere, USA model. You aren't. Don't sell yourself short.

I hear: Live in Japan, AP Chinese, make videos for kids in India & Indonesia....Your life experience is very different. Run with it! Are you fluent in Chinese? It's a highly desired language. How do your engagement and leadership in your life experiences prepare you, set you apart, and make you a must have Lego piece for USAFA? Some SA's (maybe USAFA?) application a bubble field was "2 or more speeches before any audience". Does your introduction to Japanese school count as a speech? Give guided tours? Your list does run a bit like a laundry list so difficult to tell what you consider your most major anchoring activities. It's not unusual to have to wait for Captain status to seniors only (I always feel sorry for spring sports!), but hopefully you are also athletically competitive as well - at least as competitive as your "pool" is.

Very strong SAT, BTW, especially the math. That is a strong anchoring score. 8 APs upon graduation sounds respectable, but not unusual. 3.8 UW GPA doesn't mean much w/o seeing your school profile, and could be anything from almost 1 B per 3 As (3.75), or you could have "straight As" like my DD (here were go again! numeric ave / 25 = UW GPA. I. Still. Can't. Get. Over. That. Calculation!).

And last, search the forums for past AZ parents/candidates and search their posts for all things nomination related (hint: Heatherxxxx would be great to follow! You will find her in the bacon threads or USNA; I think she recently posted something in the nom thread re AZ senators).
 
HCopter said:
Agree with all post above

AND....

The way you write you seem to be trying to fit yourself into the High School Anywhere, USA model. You aren't. Don't sell yourself short.

I hear: Live in Japan, AP Chinese, make videos for kids in India & Indonesia....Your life experience is very different. Run with it! Are you fluent in Chinese? It's a highly desired language. How do your engagement and leadership in your life experiences prepare you, set you apart, and make you a must have Lego piece for USAFA? Some SA's (maybe USAFA?) application a bubble field was "2 or more speeches before any audience". Does your introduction to Japanese school count as a speech? Give guided tours? Your list does run a bit like a laundry list so difficult to tell what you consider your most major anchoring activities. It's not unusual to have to wait for Captain status to seniors only (I always feel sorry for spring sports!), but hopefully you are also athletically competitive as well - at least as competitive as your "pool" is.

Very strong SAT, BTW, especially the math. That is a strong anchoring score. 8 APs upon graduation sounds respectable, but not unusual. 3.8 UW GPA doesn't mean much w/o seeing your school profile, and could be anything from almost 1 B per 3 As (3.75), or you could have "straight As" like my DD (here were go again! numeric ave / 25 = UW GPA. I. Still. Can't. Get. Over. That. Calculation!).

And last, search the forums for past AZ parents/candidates and search their posts for all things nomination related (hint: Heatherxxxx would be great to follow! You will find her in the bacon threads or USNA; I think she recently posted something in the nom thread re AZ senators).
Click to expand...
Thanks! Yes I am fluent in Chinese so that's great to hear! Once again thanks for all the help!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top