Candidate Visit Weekend 2018

[Capt MJ]

Hello everyone. I accepted a CVW but had my Band Director tell me that I could not miss any days due to our band being national competitive. I tried working it out with him but he told everyone no college visits this fall or a bad grade will be given.

I was so looking forward to CVW and now disappointed.

Have you discussed with a guidance counselor at school, in a respectful and neutral way, to find out if this is school policy or a teacher-specific guideline? There are times to carry the fight just a bit further.

There will be times you have to fight bureaucracy and admin rules on behalf of your troops. Advocating for yourself is great practice for future advocacy for others.

If you have turned off the CVW already, and if you surprise yourself by gaining permission to go, call Admissions and explain to them what happened, ask for another date.

I have never forgotten what a great CO once said to me, as it related to policies: “Unless someone carried it down from a mountaintop engraved on tablets, that does not mean policies cannot be changed, adapted or thrown out.”

 

[THParent]

1. You could ask USNA for an alternate CVW date.
2. You could just comply with his direction, and not go.
3. You could drop out of Band. It is still pretty early in the school year.
4. You could go over his head and ask the Principal if this is the sort of thing the school wants to do with academic standouts such as yourself.

Kind of joking with #3 and #4, but you should ask yourself if you plan to continue with Band at the collegiate level, and how much joy do you get out of being in Band. Also, does he even have the authority to make students not take college visits?

 

[THParent]

I bring up the joy part, because my DS was in band in High School. He played tenor and alto saxophone and loved it.
He quit band because the teacher had "squeezed all the joy out of music" for him. It was sad to see.
The teacher was fired two years later, but long after the same sort of damage was done to many other students who were also friends of my DS.

On the flip side, when he was invited to a CVW, he had to miss a Cross Country meet and he was the Captain of the team.
His coach said "look, this is a great opportunity to go see what you're in for at USNA, you should go!".

 

[USAFA_DAD_DD23]

THP

I bring up the joy part, because my DS was in band in High School. He played tenor and alto saxophone and loved it.
He quit band because the teacher had "squeezed all the joy out of music" for him. It was sad to see.
The teacher was fired two years later, but long after the same sort of damage was done to many other students who were also friends of my DS.

On the flip side, when he was invited to a CVW, he had to miss a Cross Country meet and he was the Captain of the team.
His coach said "look, this is a great opportunity to go see what you're in for at USNA, you should go!".

I have made All-State flute for the past two years and I would like to try this year. I did opt out of the marching band last year but stayed in the concert portion of band. This year our Band Director made it mandatory for all Band Students to compete in the marching portion and pay a $700 fee. My dad has setup an appointment to see the principal on the "The school of allowing 2 days as an excused for College Visits". I have tried to influence this in a positive way and my track/field coach was thrilled I got an invite. We are in a second week of school and I do not like quitting what i have started. It is disappointing to see one teacher seeing this as an opportunity and the other seeing this as a conflict to their program.

 

[NavyHoops]

Call admissions. USNA is usually accommodating to move a CVW to the spring if needed. It happens every year.

 

[HopefulDad3210]

From the USNA.edu website:

Candidate Visit Weekend (CVW) is a program conducted aboard USNA during the Fall and Spring academic semesters to expose candidates to all facets of life as a Midshipmen.
CVW is an opportunity to sample university-level academics at USNA, to discover whether the Naval Academy will help you achieve your goals, and to offer valuable insight into the admissions process.
CVW is offered by invitation only throughout the academic year. Invitations are largely based on the level of completion of your application.

If you received this invite, then they probably gave you the option of selecting one of two (maybe three?) "weekends". I'm putting "Weekends" in quotes, because they typically go from 1700 Thursday through 0900 Saturday. It's not so much a "weekend" as a ;

1. Get-Acquainted Thursday night thing with an informative movie and meeting the 4/C MIDN who has signed up to have you as a "drag".
2. Spending the night in the room with your assigned MIDN either on the floor or in a cot.
3. Spending all day Friday following your MIDN around to PEP, classes, sports, more classes, and having three squares in King Hall.
4. Spending the night in the room with your assigned MIDN either on the floor or in a cot.
5. Having breakfast and here's-your-hat-what's-your-hurry get the heck out of here, kid!

They typically get back to you pretty quickly after you respond to their invite, with a "you're all set, see you then!" confirmation EMail. Later, as the weekend gets closer, there will be other EMails to tell you when to plan to be there and when to plan to leave (especially important if you're flying there and back). When arranging aircraft flights, you can fly into BWI (Baltimore–Washington International Airport) or DCA (Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport), with BWI being the closest when it comes to ground transportation.

Depending upon the time of day, it can take over an hour to get to USNA from Washington DC (about 44 miles West of Annapolis), but only about 30 or 40 minutes from Baltimore (about 24 miles Northwest of Annapolis).

The reason I mention DCA is because depending upon where you're coming from, it could be cheaper or faster to get there instead of BWI. The ground transportation takes longer and costs more, so that would be something you need to factor into your travel time to and from USNA.

There are a number of ways to get back and forth. SuperShuttle is a good service. Taxi, of course. Uber or Lyft are options too.

Also keep in mind that depending on the date you select, you may be in school. This should be an excused absence (Thursday and Friday) because it should qualify as a "College Visit". Check with your High School attendance office if that's the case.

Have fun!

For transport from DCA, one could also take metro to New Carrollton and then Uber. That would reduce cost and perhaps time depending on time of day. New Carrollton is also an Amtrak stop if one is on or near that line of Amtrak.

 

[justdoit19]

I have traded PMs with the parent of a candidate in that same boat. This particular DS received a CVW invite in his junior year (last year) and is a candidate this year. He apparently got that invite right out of the blue. Hadn't even begun an application, and wondered how they knew he was interested.

Things like this start making me think that we're actually living in The Matrix.

This is exactly what I was wondering. How do they even know to invite it nothing has been opened yet for a junior [emoji848]

 

[OldRetSWO]

Call admissions. USNA is usually accommodating to move a CVW to the spring if needed. It happens every year.

Admissions wants to and generally does use Fall for Seniors and Spring for Juniors.

 

[OldRetSWO]

In the Brigade, there are 2 Battalions, 15 Companies, and 30 Platoons.

That would be the Plebe Regiment which no longer exists.
The Brigade consists of 2 Regiments which EACH have 3 Battalions and each Battalion consists of 5 Companies.

 

[Old Navy BGO]

My dad has setup an appointment to see the principal on the "The school of allowing 2 days as an excused for College Visits". I have tried to influence this in a positive way and my track/field coach was thrilled I got an invite. We are in a second week of school and I do not like quitting what i have started. It is disappointing to see one teacher seeing this as an opportunity and the other seeing this as a conflict to their program.

This is one of those scenerios where it is totally appropriate to go outside the chain of command and push a little. In my experience, Band Directors live in their own little world, run their program like a fiefdom, and have a tendency to lose sight of reality. Using threats of grades to hold someone back from college visits is unacceptable.

 

[USAFA_DAD_DD23]

My dad has setup an appointment to see the principal on the "The school of allowing 2 days as an excused for College Visits". I have tried to influence this in a positive way and my track/field coach was thrilled I got an invite. We are in a second week of school and I do not like quitting what i have started. It is disappointing to see one teacher seeing this as an opportunity and the other seeing this as a conflict to their program.

This is one of those scenerios where it is totally appropriate to go outside the chain of command and push a little. In my experience, Band Directors live in their own little world, run their program like a fiefdom, and have a tendency to lose sight of reality. Using threats of grades to hold someone back from college visits is unacceptable.

After my dad spoke to our principal, I am now set for Sep 20-22 CVW. I am very excited. The principal knew the importance and he is from a military family. I am so relieved it was worked out and I am very appreciative.

 

[justdoit19]

Good for you!! Sometimes I think people really just plain don’t understand all that’s required to attend an academy. Being patient and explaining will go far. It was fun for us to quote statistics after all was said and done (post nomination acceptance). The process truly is amazing! Good luck to you!

 

[mara]

DD with her 4.0 unweighted GPA and 35 ACT along with NASS attendance and CFA passed (4 year xc and track and senior captain, speech and debate clubs and service club founder) was told by her BGO that she is a very strong candidate and will not likely receive a CVW invite. She has seen the academy and is interested USNA knows this, therefore it would be unnecessary. Just food for thought.

 

[Navy Lion]

was told by her BGO that she is a very strong candidate and will not likely receive a CVW invite. She has seen the academy and is interested USNA knows this, therefore it would be unnecessary. Just food for thought.

Personally, I don't think is a particularly good message (or food for thought for that matter). If you would like a CVW and you are a strong candidate who has interest in USNA, you should ask for one. The worst they could do is say no.

 

[mara]

was told by her BGO that she is a very strong candidate and will not likely receive a CVW invite. She has seen the academy and is interested USNA knows this, therefore it would be unnecessary. Just food for thought.

Personally, I don't think is a particularly good message (or food for thought for that matter). If you would like a CVW and you are a strong candidate who has interest in USNA, you should ask for one. The worst they could do is say no.

If she is working through the app and has visited (via NASS) and loved it; I wonder the benefit to potentially taking a visit spot from someone less decided on their plan A,B,C etc. At this point Naval is plan A/B with NROTC the other A/B option depending on the University the NROTC program is associated with. I am truly interested in your take on this. SHe hasn't even considered asking for a CVW. We are still very new to the process. Any help is appreciated.

 

[2022mom]

If she is working through the app and has visited (via NASS) and loved it; I wonder the benefit to potentially taking a visit spot from someone less decided on their plan A,B,C etc. At this point Naval is plan A/B with NROTC the other A/B option depending on the University the NROTC program is associated with. I am truly interested in your take on this. SHe hasn't even considered asking for a CVW. We are still very new to the process. Any help is appreciated.

DS had similar stats last year and we live nearby the academy. He still got a did a CVW. I think it’s a different experience seeing “Day in a life” than you get otherwise. With such a serious decision to make about the next 9plus years of their lives, I wanted him to be as informed as possible.

 

[MidCakePa]

My DD attended STEM and NASS (as well as USMA’s and USAFA’s summer programs), and felt confident making her decision based on that. One reason for a NASS attendee to maybe attend CVW is if they returned from NASS saying, “It wasn’t that hard / grueling / intense.” NASS, while informative and immersive, is still Mid Life Lite. Attendees can opt out of activities, evolutions are toned down, and many of the detailers were plebes just a couple weeks earlier. CVW, in contrast, is all hands on deck. Class is in session, upperclassmen are ubiquitous, and each activity is for real. So while CVW is much shorter, it’s also more authentic.

 

[justdoit19]

TOTALLY agree with @MidCakePa and @2022mom. DS attended a recruiting visit (similar to CVW in that it is the academic/real life Mid experience) as well as NASS. He was decided on USNA before attending, but was ABSOLUTELY confident it was where he was meant to be after. You just don’t have a true representative feeling for the student life unless immersed in it. And that is only through a CVW.

To your point “why take a spot of one is already sure they are attending”? I look at it differently: gathering any and all information available to make an informed decision. Doing ones due diligence. It’s a HUGE decision. Perhaps a CVW isn’t necessary for your DD/DS, but to others, don’t hesitate to take one to help gather any and all info for your decision. It is, indeed, a different look at USNA than SS. Or an admissions tour.

 

[THParent]

Just to add to that a little...
In the past, USNA has extended additional CVW offers to those who had already received LOAs, or put forth strong applications (scoring near the top in several categories in the WCS calculation).
With those cases (of strong applications) my guess is that those became apparent later in the application process, and a CVW invite was extended to make sure they "hooked" that candidate.
In those cases, candidates aren't "taking away" a CVW from anyone.

This isn't to say that everyone who thinks they have a "strong application" should ask for a CVW. They make it clear that the CVW program is by invitation only.
If you receive an LOA however, you will almost surely get a CVW if you ask. Again - that's just my opinion - but I am confident that it's accurate.

 

[ders_dad]

Just out of curiosity- how does USNA know who to extend CVWs invites to without info on the application used to compute WCS? Without info for the WCS, what makes them extend a CVW?