Any other DS/DD’s get an email asking for a second CFA?

Hopeful Plebe Mom

Hopeful Plebe Mom

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DS did great on his first CFA (ran four years of varsity cross country and is about to start his fourth year of varsity swim) but got an email a couple weeks ago from USNA asking him to submit a second CFA.... Any thoughts on this or Anyone else get that notice? He’s NOT a recruited athlete either...
 
Neither being a swimmer nor running cross country would guarantee a good CFA score. My son does neither, but he trained HARD for each specific event. Other than the run (he was really tired, he said) he either Max’ed or came close to maxing each event per USMA scale - yes even the BB throw. If they want him to take it again, it’s because they want him to improve his scores. Take it as a good sign - if they weren’t taking a good look at him they probably wouldn’t bother asking.
 
This is becoming more common. I had a candidate last cycle in the same situation. Most candidates feel tired when they run the mile... by design. The CFA is a test of endurance and athletic potential as a loaded exam, each event builds on top of the other. This is why practicing each event individually often does not adequately prepare a candidate for success. Instead, it is in a Candidate's best interest to practice the entire 40-minute battery from start-to-finish multiple times to increase stamina and muscle memory. Good luck. Don't give up the ship!
 
MidCakePa said:
He’s being given a second chance. Don’t question it — just do it. There are many who don’t get a re-do.
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DS has emailed his BGO to retake it when both of them return from winter break (BGO teaches at a different high school in our area) & is probably out of town like us.)

@justdoit19 - DS was CPR since August, I’ll have to dig out his results when we get back home, feels like a thousand years ago 😂😂
 
Hopeful Plebe Mom said:
DS was CPR since August, I’ll have to dig out his results when we get back home, feels like a thousand years ago 😂😂
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I should have been more clear...the crux of what I was getting at, was if it could be either the actual RESULTS or the way it was administered. I've not heard or read of a request for a re-do for USNA. It doesn't mean it doesn't happen though!
 
I’m guessing because it was administered so long ago maybe they would have caught it in the last four months already if something was wrong? Anyways, it's good practice for him/us in military life to get used to just jumping when they say “JUMP” instead of asking why 👍🏼
 
justdoit19 said:
I should have been more clear...the crux of what I was getting at, was if it could be either the actual RESULTS or the way it was administered. I've not heard or read of a request for a re-do for USNA. It doesn't mean it doesn't happen though!
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I’m guessing because it was administered so long ago maybe they would have caught it in the last four months already if something was wrong? Anyways, it's good practice for him/us in military life to get used to just jumping when they say “JUMP” instead of asking why 👍🏼
 
Hopeful Plebe Mom said:
I’m guessing because it was administered so long ago maybe they would have caught it in the last four months already if something was wrong? Anyways, it's good practice for him/us in military life to get used to just jumping when they say “JUMP” instead of asking why [emoji1360]
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My DD had a similar story during the last application cycle.

She was CPR with the USNA in early Sept with a nom and DODMERB qualified.

In early December, she got a notice saying her English teacher did her evaluation wrong. They emailed the English teacher a new link to redo the evaluation. The teacher completed it before Christmas.

I’m thinking why didn’t someone catch the error between September and December?

I speculated (pure speculation here) her file was going to go up before the board and a final review revealed the error.

Didn’t matter much in terms of timing. She got her USNA appointment in mid-January. I figured once her file was finally squared away, she was looked at in early January resulting in the appointment soon after.
 
Our DS B&G officer fwd’d a general email about retaking the CFA, if not at max on all events. The email was directly to him from the USNA area liaison and to no candidate in specific. He encouraged all to take appropriate action on the CFA, if needed. My DS did extremely well on his CFA and maxed two events. He decided to see if he can do better. If he does he will request to have new scores sent. If not, he just got a free workout for the day.

Our advice to him is submit the best package you can and this CFA is the last thing you have control over improving in your package.
 
Hopeful Plebe Mom said:
DS did great on his first CFA (ran four years of varsity cross country and is about to start his fourth year of varsity swim) but got an email a couple weeks ago from USNA asking him to submit a second CFA.... Any thoughts on this or Anyone else get that notice? He’s NOT a recruited athlete either...
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Yes, my DS received the same request.
 
I had a similar experience this year. I want to start by saying that my scores were not great by any means. I'm sure that in a few categories, I barely passed, but I did work really hard for my scores and was really proud of how much I improved them, especially in the month before I took it. A few days after my exam was entered into the portal, I asked my BGO if I passed my CFA (they do not see your scores, but they can see if you passed/failed) and he said that I was physically qualified which is to say that I passed. I then got an email from USNA a day or two after this exchange with my BGO that said that they'd like me to retake the CFA. I was then convinced that I failed because why would they email me asking for a retake if I passed? I was so paranoid that I literally forwarded that email to my BGO asking if I really did pass and he said that I was still physically qualified but that retaking it would help my chances of admission. While I absolutely see why people wouldn't want to retake the CFA, I actually really appreciate the mindset behind the test. It's kind of like, "yeah, you passed, but instead of just wanting to meet the bare minimum, why don't you push yourself and train hard to obtain the maximum scores?" I think it's really what the service academies are about: creating persistent, hardworking individuals who strive for excellence.
 
Information is a little dated (couple of years ago), but still probably holds true...
Admissions counselors would email candidates if their CFA was just above passing, in order to give them another opportunity to increase the scores before sending the package to the Admissions Board. My hunch is that this is probably what this is.

There is no reason for admissions to contact the candidate if their scores are competitive.
 
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