Chance me for acceptance (c/o 2027)

J

JumpingDogs808

New Member
Joined
Oct 22, 2021
Messages
3
Academics

Class Rank - None (School does not release/have)

GPA: 3.76

SAT: 1140 (Retaking)

AP Classes - None - Competitive Small School (Does not offer / Class Rigor on par/similar to some AP courses)



VOLUNTEER / COMMUNITY SERVICE

150+ Hours of Volunteering through JROTC, school, and organizations.



EXTRACURRICULAR / SCHOOL ACTIVITIES

Transformative Leadership (Elective - 1 Year)

- Writing Books, Holding Conferences, and Spreading Awareness in our Local Community about social, political, and environmental issues.

Global Leadership (Elective - 1 Year)

- Running School Events, Material Drives, Community Service, Holding & Attending conferences, field studies, etc. We go out into our local community to spread awareness about local, national, and global issues; ranging from climate change, employment, homelessness, loss of habitat, etc.



School Choir (6 Years)

School Ceramics/Arts (6 Years)

Army Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC) (Staff Sergeant - LET 2)

Student Body Government Officer (1 Year)

Student Body Government Secretary (1 Year)



Science Lab Assistant (2 Years)

- Assisting Science teachers with setting up, cleaning up, and performing labs during and after school.


JROTC Cadet Ball Board Member (1 Year)

JROTC Dining In Committee Member (1 Year)


School Food Drive Admin/Organizer

- Planning, Organizing, and executing a food drive for the Hawai’i Food Bank that provides food to less fortunate families and people. Together with the school we managed to collect almost 1,000 pounds of dry, canned and bagged food.

School Marines Toys for Tots / Shriners Hospital School Admin/Organizer

- Planning, Organizing, and executing a Toys For Tots drive for both the Marines Toys for Tots and Shriners Hospital for Children. Was responsible for planning, setting up, and communicating with both Shriners Hospital and USMC Toys for Tots in order to promote and collect toys for kids and their family.

Summoning Our Future (2nd Edition) Book Co-Writer

150+ Volunteer Hours



ATHLETICS

ILH Judo (4 Years - Inter, JV, Vars)

Varsity Cross Country (2 Years) (Team Captain - 1 Year)


Unofficial CFA Stats

Mile: 6:03

BB Throw: 58' (Working on it)

Pull Ups: 13

Shuttle Run: 7.8

Sit Ups - 81

Push Ups - 60 (Working on it)



AWARDS / HONORS

Excellent Achievement in Ceramics (Sophomore)

Consistent Effort in Social Studies (Sophomore)

Excellent Achievement in Social Studies (Junior)

Excellent Achievement in Ceramics (Junior)

Excellent Academic Achievement in Honor Roll (x3)

Excellent Achievement in Second Language -Hawaiian (Junior)

2021 Make Visible Virtual Art Exhibit Participant (Junior)

Judo (JV) - 145 Weight Class - Bronze Medalist

Outstanding Judoka Award
 
Academics. Otherwise, you are doing great, keep on with what you have.

USAFA will recalculate your GPA using their metrics. Aim to improve your SAT score, maybe try taking the ACT.
 
Like Pluto said, try to bring up your GPA a bit and study allot to retake the SAT's/ACT's. With allot of studying you can bring up the SAT score about 200 points, which will put you in a competitive position. No one can give you a percentage as it all depends on your nomination source and how competitive your congressional district is. In a highly competitive district you currently would not be even in consideration, in a non competitive district you could be there top choice. If Duel Enrollment is offered with a local college, take a couple courses in leu of the missing AP classes.
 
Uphill battle but not impossible.
Are you a pacific islander or other underrepresented minority class? (asking for Hawaiian as second language) If so, lower than normal academics may not be a deal breaker and could open a door to prep-school if it came to that.

Academics - Without AP courses, is the GPA unweighted? Your SAT/ACT is your chance to break free of a bad transcript. If your school does not offer AP courses, USAFA will know it based on the profile submitted by your HS guidance counselors (a regular and ongoing process). If your school does offer them, and you took courses that were not the hardest offered, USAFA will know it. Strong performance on standardized tests can help compensate in this area to demonstrate aptitude.

Leadership - you have some bullets, but do you have achievements in the role(s)? If so, you will want to focus on documenting your impact. Seek to provide context though numbers. In general, the ceramics awards will not add much value BUT could be more compelling than you are letting on. Selected #1 student (of 421) in ceramics 2 Years in a ROW!
In extracurricular, you are either a participant, a leader, or a leader with impact. Participant is ok, but will not generally go far. In this game, the admissions board wants to find the guy/girl who led the activity. If 1000 High School students participated in a coat drive, that is great but the barrier to entry was so low, all you had to do was sign up or raise your hand. The person that organized that event did far more and is more in line with what the Service Academies are looking for. Participating is better than nothing, but understand that type of impact you want to convey to the admissions board. Do you have a leadership position in JROTC for 12th grade?

Fitness - not bad. You are still working on it and will likely improve given time to prepare for the test.

If you get in on the first try - fantastic! If not, and it is still a goal, then don't stop. Repeat applicants generally do well assuming they continue to craft a resume of excellence and service to others.
 
shiner said:
Uphill battle but not impossible.
Are you a pacific islander or other underrepresented minority class? (asking for Hawaiian as second language) If so, lower than normal academics may not be a deal breaker and could open a door to prep-school if it came to that.
Click to expand...
I'm mixed; Hawaiian, Asian, and White. Although, I come from a middle-class family in a relatively competitive area.
shiner said:
Academics - Without AP courses, is the GPA unweighted? Your SAT/ACT is your chance to break free of a bad transcript. If your school does not offer AP courses, USAFA will know it based on the profile submitted by your HS guidance counselors (a regular and ongoing process). If your school does offer them, and you took courses that were not the hardest offered, USAFA will know it. Strong performance on standardized tests can help compensate in this area to demonstrate aptitude.
Click to expand...
3.76 is my UW GPA. Would USAFA look down on such a low GPA? It was mainly caused by freshmen year screwups which caused a Freshmen year GPA of 3.3. Although, I have met or exceeded 3.8 for each consecutive year.
shiner said:
Do you have a leadership position in JROTC for 12th grade?
Click to expand...
Unfortunately, I do not know yet. I'm in a very unique situation; I'm currently in a magnet program that's offered by a much larger school, and within that program, we have 20-ish cadets. Although we're technically a part of the battalion, we're often not looked upon for senior leadership positions (understandably).

As an ALO, are LORs capable of boosting an application? I have some lined up from those in important positions. Also, would it be likely that the prep-school is within reach for me? Thank you.
 
JumpingDogs808 said:
As an ALO, are LORs capable of boosting an application? I have some lined up from those in important positions. Also, would it be likely that the prep-school is within reach for me? Thank you.
Click to expand...
Any element of your candidate profile can boost the application. The LOR is an opportunity for someone who knows you personally to brag about you. I have seen the best LORs come from the most unsuspecting people. I have seen the worst LORs come from famous people. I read one recently from a State Governor. It was clear he had connection to the family, but the language of the LOR suggested he did not really know the applicant. I'll never forget the line "he comes from good stock." Yes - it seriously said that. ALOs, Nomination Board members, and Admissions Board members see enough LOR to read between the lines of the printed words. We want to see that the person writing the LOR actually has first hand experience with you the applicant. Ideally, you made a positive impression on them and they are able to quantify your impact on the mutual activity being written about.

LORs are read by board members. Most will fall into the Blah Blah Blah category, but some do stick out. Some for good reasons and others for bad (good stock ;)). Imagine someone that society may ignore in any other situation. If that person wrote a genuine LOR that described and provided examples of your character - it could be the best thing in your admissions package.

They don't have to be famous - they just have to know you and convey what impresses them about you.
 
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