Asked to post this for a fellow parent

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His DS was told his file was not competitive because he is having an issue getting his math SAT score up. it is 600 for MATH. He crushed the competition at the CFA event held in NJ and has everything else one would want. But when he kept emailing admission that he wanted to get medial started and the rest of the items on his portal they block him " figuratively " with that response. So question say his score jumps the required point now he is way behind the 8 ball in time to complete his stuff as compared to my DS who had his open a while ago. why would they do that . Would it not make sense to have it open for anyone applying with a hold on Medical until they see the competitive SAT score.
 
The academy/army will be paying for the medical exam. They don’t want to shell out the money if they deem him not competitive for an appointment. In reality, only USMA knows why they are holding him up. I am just speculating.
 
Could be really off base but i think SAT crushes the CFA when it comes to the competitiveness of a candidate but i can't speak for admissions. Of the thousands of candidates applying for admissions.... most will pass the cfa. The differentiators will be the academic and leadership records. And with so many applications to process... admissions has to start narrowing it down.
 
The bad news...he will most likely not get in this year. The good news is the academy has a long tradition of accepting re-applicants who have enlisted or gone through a year of college. Enlisting is a good option if the SATs are low because the standard for enlisted is lower than high school students. It also shows an active interest in the Army.
 
Agree - the pool of high CFT / mid SAT is much smaller than that of High SAT / mid CFT. The WCS is a mystery but they may have reasons for considering him 'other than fully qualified.'
 
Responding for a friend...cadets are admitted with 600 M scores. You may not get an LOA but you might be one of the people picked up later in the year. NEVER GIVE UP.
REMEMBER, the SAT average for the Class of 2021 was a 1243. Not MIT. Clearly there is a range of scores that are acceptable.
Now, depending on where the person lives, he or she may not get a nomination--but that is another thing entirely.
Do not quit the application process. Take the SATs one more time--or even in January since the deadline is late February.
Keep building. It is only mid-November, there is loads of time. Never, never, never give up.
Has your DS sent in his transcript? His recommendations? If his counselor were to send the transcript and a recommendation that might take him out of the non-competitive category.
 
The academy/army will be paying for the medical exam. They don’t want to shell out the money if they deem him not competitive for an appointment. In reality, only USMA knows why they are holding him up. I am just speculating.
I agree on the medical but why stop a candidate from completing all the other things and posting them to their portal .
 
Could be really off base but i think SAT crushes the CFA when it comes to the competitiveness of a candidate but i can't speak for admissions. Of the thousands of candidates applying for admissions.... most will pass the cfa. The differentiators will be the academic and leadership records. And with so many applications to process... admissions has to start narrowing it down.
I agree SAT needs the key his dad was just trying to question why not allow his DS portal open to work and upload the other stuff ie CFA videos, Statements.
 
Responding for a friend...cadets are admitted with 600 M scores. You may not get an LOA but you might be one of the people picked up later in the year. NEVER GIVE UP.
REMEMBER, the SAT average for the Class of 2021 was a 1243. Not MIT. Clearly there is a range of scores that are acceptable.
Now, depending on where the person lives, he or she may not get a nomination--but that is another thing entirely.
Do not quit the application process. Take the SATs one more time--or even in January since the deadline is late February.
Keep building. It is only mid-November, there is loads of time. Never, never, never give up.
Has your DS sent in his transcript? His recommendations? If his counselor were to send the transcript and a recommendation that might take him out of the non-competitive category.
I agree that is what I told his parent. Like I tell my kids " Aim high and if you fail I'm ok with that Aim low and succeed and I have a problem .." Got that a while ago fro a commencement speak video I watched by Rick Rigsby. If you have never seen it for Cal tech maritime look it up the best inspirational speech you will find. Lessons From a Third Grade Dropout: Rick Rigsby ...
 
His DS was told his file was not competitive because he is having an issue getting his math SAT score up. it is 600 for MATH. He crushed the competition at the CFA event held in NJ and has everything else one would want. But when he kept emailing admission that he wanted to get medial started and the rest of the items on his portal they block him " figuratively " with that response. So question say his score jumps the required point now he is way behind the 8 ball in time to complete his stuff as compared to my DS who had his open a while ago. why would they do that . Would it not make sense to have it open for anyone applying with a hold on Medical until they see the competitive SAT score.
Who is he emailing in admissions? If it is anyone other than the RC, he is corresponding with the wrong person and should contact the RC as soon as possible and find out exactly what the issue is and what standard he needs to get to in order to open the application.

In the class profile on the website, 50% of the class has a math SAT between 600 - 699 and the mean is 645. It seems highly unlikely that a 600 math SAT score alone would prevent an applicant from completing the application. There may be other factors or there may have been an administrative error in admissions.

FYI. The CFA only counts for 10%. The difference in WCS points between maxing it and barely passing is fairly small.
 
His DS was told his file was not competitive because he is having an issue getting his math SAT score up. it is 600 for MATH. He crushed the competition at the CFA event held in NJ and has everything else one would want. But when he kept emailing admission that he wanted to get medial started and the rest of the items on his portal they block him " figuratively " with that response. So question say his score jumps the required point now he is way behind the 8 ball in time to complete his stuff as compared to my DS who had his open a while ago. why would they do that . Would it not make sense to have it open for anyone applying with a hold on Medical until they see the competitive SAT score.
Who is he emailing in admissions? If it is anyone other than the RC, he is corresponding with the wrong person and should contact the RC as soon as possible and find out exactly what the issue is and what standard he needs to get to in order to open the application.

In the class profile on the website, 50% of the class has a math SAT between 600 - 699 and the mean is 645. It seems highly unlikely that a 600 math SAT score alone would prevent an applicant from completing the application. There may be other factors or there may have been an administrative error in admissions.

FYI. The CFA only counts for 10%. The difference in WCS points between maxing it and barely passing is fairly small.
Yes his RC I was told I have know the boy for most of his life he is a fighter so whatever path he finally ends taking he will be successful.
 
The friend may not be getting the entire story or not understanding what they are being told. There are "gates" in the process to move to the next steps and a 600 Math SAT score with everything else exceptional would not stop the process. There has to be some other contributing factors in his application.

You could reach out to your FFR, Field Force Representative, and see if he can provide some more guidance as to what needs to be improved.
 
None of us has visibility into all of the factors that lead into a "competitive" determination and eventual appointment assessments, but historically about 60% of the whole candidate score (WCS) is based on academic score and only 10% is based on physical aptitude exam score. There is a cost (not just medical exam costs, but other personnel and resource time/costs) associated with each applicant that is passed through the "competitive" gate, so a hard line in the sand needs to be established.

I personally think it would also be a disservice to the applicants deemed as non-competitive to spend the time and energy required for the remaining application postal tasks. IMHO, the time would be much better spent working on improving SAT scores and making sure that solid Plan Bs and Plan Cs are in place.
 
.....say his score jumps.......

None of us work in admissions. It isn't wise for any of us to speculate on hypothetical situations. As mentioned above, you may only be getting part of the total story and/or the applicant may have misunderstood what they were told. You should advise the applicant to have a conversation with the appropriate person in WP admissions to get further information/clarification. That should provide more clarity on how to proceed.
 
Retake, retake, retake...

I have a tutor's number if you need it. He helped get my 27 on ACT math up to a 32 and he works for the SAT as well. He's quite an investment at $100 an hour, though, so I'll provide you the # if your friend and his DS are interested.

There's no guarentee he'll get in if his score jumps up, but it gives him a better chance!

And who knows? He could get in with a 600. It's happened before.
 
If the candidate is in a competitive district or state and there are already several others fully qualified already ahead of him in line based on WCS, that could account for the Admissions' response... but things change, someone (or a few someones) in line ahead of the candidate could be injured, get cited for underage drinking, or simply change his or her mind. I would recommend retaking the SAT in December and the ACT in Dec./Jan. and get help or use Khan Academy SAT Prep online (free) to practice, practice, practice. Best of luck - keep plugging away!
 
Admissions will not deliberately fail to open the portal of a candidate whose preliminary information indicates that they may be classified as competitive, regardless of anticipated competition in the district. They might delay the medical, but will not deny the opportunity to complete the application.

"Competitive" is one of several formal classifications of candidate potential recorded in the candidate file and can go higher or lower as new information is evaluated. It is the middle of November. The only reasons that this candidate's portal has not opened by now are:
  • Insufficient information has been submitted to make a determination
  • The information submitted indicates that the candidate does not meet minimum qualifications
  • Human error in admissions
  • Computer glitch (occasionally some applications may not open due to system error, but those are quickly corrected once identified)
 
Try the ACT, it works better than the SAT for some.
Whatever test works for you, buy a Kaplan-like workbook of 12+ previous tests & practice, practice...
It is easier to "tutor up" a student in math, than English, so you should try it. Good luck!
 
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