Best time to visit USNA in the fall?

M

meganbuzbee

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Hi!

My son is extremely interested in visiting the Naval Academy. Would a visit of the week of Thanksgiving be appropriate as long as school as in session or is better to go on a certain week? Any feedback is appreciated. We are learning throughout this process as a family. Thank you for this forum and website. This is truly an amazing group of people willing to give insight and knowledge.

Best,
Megan
 
Mids are gone by early afternoon on Wed, and staff goes to holiday routine through Sunday.

For first-time visitors, I and others here often recommend:

- walking tour or self-guided tour of USNA Yard, which hits the highlights visitors are allowed to see
http://www.usnabsd.com/for-visitors/


- attending the Admissions Brief in Halsey Field House, which also houses the Visitir Center, just inside Main Gate
https://www.usna.edu/Admissions/Visit-USNA/index.php

A phone call might be needed to determine the schedule that week.

Late Sep-Oct is usually great fall weather.

Watch out for Annapolis Boat Show weeks and home football weekends - town is jammed.
 
+1 to avoiding Thanksgiving and CAPT MJ's recommendations. USNA is probably pretty deserted. Recommend arriving on a weekday if you can swing it.You might be able to observe a Prade, or even noon meal formation , which is pretty impressive (unless you've been in them !). Football weekend would be fun, but I don't know what ticket availability is these days . Even if you can't get into the game, you might be interested in seeing the Brigade marchover , and there are usually plenty of old grads that are happy to talk to you.
 
+1 to not visiting during the boat show. We were there for the 4th and the town was hopping, but when we took the water taxi across to Carol's they said that for the boat show week they actually bring in more water taxi boats and you still could wait 40 minutes to get across.

Plus, I would assume that you would expect to wait a long time to get any table at the must eat at places like the Iron Rooster, Chick N Ruths, etc., or even getting some ice cream from Kilwins.
 
What year is your son? If he is a junior or senior, the Candidate Visit Weekend is probably the 'best' time to go as they would get paired up with a Plebe and 'experience' Mid life for a couple of days during the academic year. If your son is younger - apply for STEM/NASS programs - NASS in particular is intended to provide a glimpse at what Mid life in general is about and Plebe life in particular.

Graduation week and I Day are probably the 'most exciting' times to visit, but neither of those reflect the reality of day to day Mid life - though seeing a graduation ceremony is a great image to keep in mind during the more mundane or dark days of Mid life.

Overall, there is not really a 'bad' time to visit USNA as it is a beautiful campus year round.

Please note: No matter how many times you visit, participate in USNA programs, talk to graduates, and/or watch YouTube videos about Plebe Summer - you never really quite appreciate what you are getting into until you are actually experiencing it.
 
Cerberi said:
What year is your son? If he is a junior or senior, the Candidate Visit Weekend is probably the 'best' time to go as they would get paired up with a Plebe and 'experience' Mid life for a couple of days during the academic year. If your son is younger - apply for STEM/NASS programs - NASS in particular is intended to provide a glimpse at what Mid life in general is about and Plebe life in particular.

Graduation week and I Day are probably the 'most exciting' times to visit, but neither of those reflect the reality of day to day Mid life - though seeing a graduation ceremony is a great image to keep in mind during the more mundane or dark days of Mid life.

Overall, there is not really a 'bad' time to visit USNA as it is a beautiful campus year round.

Please note: No matter how many times you visit, participate in USNA programs, talk to graduates, and/or watch YouTube videos about Plebe Summer - you never really quite appreciate what you are getting into until you are actually experiencing it.
Click to expand...

Question, is Candidate Visit Weekend by invitation only during the senior year?
 
CVWs are by invitation only. The fall CVWs typically are for high school seniors. Spring CVWs tend to be high school junior heavy with some seniors who possibly have an appointment and are trying to make a final decision. I mentioned typical, because it's not 100% but for the most part this holds true.
 
NavyHoops said:
CVWs are by invitation only. The fall CVWs typically are for high school seniors. Spring CVWs tend to be high school junior heavy with some seniors who possibly have an appointment and are trying to make a final decision. I mentioned typical, because it's not 100% but for the most part this holds true.
Click to expand...
How do you go about getting an invitation as a junior? Do you start the application process early?
 
My son, now a youngster, was invited to a CVW in the fall of his junior year of high school, well before applying to NASS. At that point, he hadn't expressed interest in USNA - only in USAFA. So we're not sure where the CVW invitation came from. But we are ever so grateful he was invited, because that was when he realized the Navy was the right choice for him. A CVW is a terrific experience and better than NASS for getting realistic insight into Academy life.
 
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