Confusion over the academy selection process

[bravemom62]

As a parent that went through this grueling process last year, I would just like to give some advice to those now in the throes of it. Stop trying to make sense of it, so much of it doesn't . You will hear so many different scenarios and so much contradicting information it will make your head spin. My son had an amazing resume (better than many advertised on here....lesser than some advertised on here), a Senatorial Nom, a great BGO interview, and a CVW. However, he never heard about being 3Q'ed (or not, since he needed medical waivers, which our understanding was that they would not be obtained until an offer of appointment.... but that contradicts what others have stated here), about being deferred or not, or any request for updated transcripts. NAPS, we were told, was not for candidates "like" him. There seems to be a different process for different candidates, and it is what it is. It was, and still is, extremely frustrating, the mystery of it all. Hopefully, things will work out as they are meant to. Our son is at a great university on a 4yr NROTC scholarship and couldn't be happier. Good luck and Godspeed to all of the amazing young men and women who aspire to lead and serve our great country!

 

[Cobaltgum5]

Agreed, like most things in the Navy, it's hard to make sense of it. I can see admissions looking at each application and asking for certain things that are unique to each applicant. Sometimes it's better to just sit in for the ride instead of trying to figure out too much

 

[Nobody's Biz]

Agree

Couldn't agree more with Bravemom. Also went through the emotional roller coaster last year at this time with my DS. On paper, no reason to believe he wouldn't get an appointment, but alas, have since learned how random each and every individual case can be.

Like Bravemom, my DS went to Ohio State NROTC and loves it. However, he has decided to reapply and now we are back in the waiting game. Fortunately, we have all learned from the experience and expectations are more cautious this time around. But still can't help getting my hopes up for him. I can only hope the USNA Admissions Board admires his persistence!

 

[osdad]

This and the other recent threads that have lamented the seeming randomness of the admissions process got me to wondering how much weight is placed on those aspects of the application that are not available to the candidate (or her parents). Specifically, the recommendations from her 11th grade Math and English teachers.

I know that I did not see the questionnaire from Navy but I do recall the one from MIT. In it were some probing questions that might shed some light on the process (assuming Navy asks similar).

For example there were two questions that stood out: 1) How long have you been teaching? 2) Where does this candidate rank among all of the students you have taught?

Now consider two candidates with nearly identical resumes (test scores, gpa, class rank, etc) but with widely different teacher recs. One says “I’ve been teaching 20 years and Mary is among the best 5 students I’ve ever taught.” The other “I’ve been teaching 2 years and Sue is about average of the students I teach.” When Mary gets a BFE and Sue gets the thin one, some folks will call the process haphazard. But is it really?

If anyone has seen the questionnaire I’m sure some examples of the questions would be of interest to candidates (assuming the MODS think it appropriate to post such.)