Cracking 600

[usna1985]

Unquestionably, some Blue & Gold Officer is now going to chime in and say, "Well, there was this one kid I knew ..." Blah, blah, blah. The reason he remembers that "one kid" with the perfect ACT/SAT scores that didn't get in is because it happens so rarely.

Since you asked . . .

Yeah, it happens -- Over the past 8 yrs, I've had numerous kids with >1500 SATs get rejected. However, it's typically some combination of: (1) no sports and poor CFR performance, (2) nerdy personality (noted by teachers, BGO or both), (3) no activities/leadership, and/or (4) someone who makes little effort to obtain noms (e.g., relies on a Pres without applying to MOCs).

However, to the extent that you're saying that academics are the most important element of your application . . . that's absolutely true. Class rank and courses taken to get that rank represent the single most important element of your application. Test scores are probably second. If you're an outstanding student, your chances of getting an appointment definitely go up significantly.

 

[mdsu]

I'll bet you can count on one hand the number of candidates with perfect ACT/SAT scores who were not admitted.

Unquestionably, some Blue & Gold Officer is now going to chime in and say, "Well, there was this one kid I knew ..." Blah, blah, blah. The reason he remembers that "one kid" with the perfect ACT/SAT scores that didn't get in is because it happens so rarely.

you're right, during my BGO interview, he told me he about this girl last year who he could not believe did not get accepted; which made me even more nervous about selection for '14

 

[lil3laiin3laiin]

Since you asked . . .
(1) no sports and poor CFR performance, (2) nerdy personality (noted by teachers, BGO or both), (3) no activities/leadership, and/or (4) someone who makes little effort to obtain noms (e.g., relies on a Pres without applying to MOCs).

Will I get outright rejected if I don't have any varsity sports? My school offers absolutely no sports and the only sport I partake in is a marathon club outside of school. Also, my CFA scores are terrible but I'm working on them, so does this mean no sport = no chance?

I have extracurriculars, and my SAT is 700CR, 670M but how badly will I be affected if I don't have sports?

 

[tallbutshort]

Will I get outright rejected if I don't have any varsity sports? My school offers absolutely no sports and the only sport I partake in is a marathon club outside of school. Also, my CFA scores are terrible but I'm working on them, so does this mean no sport = no chance?

I have extracurriculars, and my SAT is 700CR, 670M but how badly will I be affected if I don't have sports?

No you won't get rejected just because you don't play varsity sports. I went to a USNA information seminar a few weeks ago and they said that around 95% of the midshipmen participated in varsity sports in HS but that the remaining 5% either did athletics outside of school or had great CFA scores that showed they were fit, or both. On your application you should probably make note of the fact that your HS doesn't offer sports.

 

[baileyx3]

I've heard that students usually like either the ACT or SAT, depending on what their strong subjects are. For me, it was the ACT. I've taken it eight times already and each time my score has improved.

I used a lot of those ACT test prep things. Sometimes public libraries have copies of the test books. I asked my math teacher to tutor me in ACT math strategies (my weakest subject) and it really helped.

I did quite a few full-length ACTs to help me figure out what types of questions would be on the test, to get used to "speed reading", and to help me get over those ACT jitters.

Good luck everyone!!!