Hi, I'm a junior in high school and just recently got my status updated to a competitive candidate for the class of 2025. You had mentioned that USAFA computes a weighted GPA on their own? My school is very competitive and our school system is ranked the best in the state (our school is number 2 or 3 if flips yearly). But, the downside to this is that our school is weird with grades, we only have A, B, C, D, and F, there are no high As or any of that. On top of that our school weighs honors classes the same as AP classes which for someone who will have taken 10 AP classes when I'm applying kinda sucks. On top of that, no teacher is allowed to round scores up to the next letter grade no matter how close, I've gotten an 89.97 in a class and denied the A. All of this combined makes me feel like my school is working against me in all this, I have a 3.25 unweighted and a 3.8 weighted with my school systems calculations. USAFA is my dream school and I want to go and know I'm smart as my SAT score on practice exams is a 1450+ (still haven't taken SAT due to COVID-19 canceling it 3 days before I should have taken it). I should also talk about my extracurriculars, I do track, marching band, indoor percussion, and swim. I also enjoy helping out local homeless people putting together packages of supplies for them in the winter.
I want to go to this school an absurd amount and plan on applying until I get an appointment, but I would love to be granted an appointment my first try and I'm looking for some kind of opinion, thanks.
You can certainly compensate for a lower GPA with high SAT/ACT scores. A rigorous schedule of AP classes and even the ranking of your HS will make a difference. My son's ACT surely had a bigger impact than his unweighted 3.6 GPA. No matter what your GPA, you need to study hard for those tests. Originally my son hadn't planned on taking the ACT but did so on the advice of a school counselor. His converted ACT to SAT score is higher than he actually scored on the SAT. He submitted only the ACT.
Max whatever you can from the chart and hope for the best.
Having said all of that about academics don't underestimate your interview with the academy evaluator. I believe that interview carries a lot of weight especially if you are not a principle nom.
Fom the portal:
Your GPA listed may be refigured by USAFA and may not match the GPA reported by your school.
From a document generated by
https://yumaunion.org/ :
U.S. Air Force Academy Candidates who have received appointments in previous years had SAT scores ranging between 590 - 670 verbal and 620 - 700 Math. ACT scores ranged between 26 - 29 English; 27 - 32 reading; 28 - 32 math; and 27 - 31 science reasoning. The SAT and ACT math scores count more heavily than English. Candidates who score below 590 verbal and 620 math on the SAT or below 27 math/science reasoning and 26 English/reading on the ACT normally will not be competitive for an appointment. The highest SAT/ACT score will be used. The highest score may be taken from two different testings; therefore, to be competitive, the candidate is encouraged to retest one or more times. Extracurricular activities participation and leadership are an important part of the evaluation. All activities including athletics, all-league or all-state recognition, selection as a team captain, leadership in a school club or student government, participation in scouting or the Civil Air Patrol, and involvement in church or community activities or an after-school job are important areas of the Academy's evaluation. Students must rank in the upper 40 percent of their class; however, 57% of the cadets rank in the upper 10 percent.
Chart and text below are from a Rand Corp. document dated 2015.
Rand document - Page 2 1st paragraph:
In its admissions process, current as of 2013, USMA calculates and uses in its admissions decisions a “whole candidate score” (WCS) for each applicant, which consists of a weighted combination of standardized test scores, high school rank (corrected for class size), number and level of extracurricular and athletic activities, physical fitness, and a series of ratings from one of an applicant’s high school teachers.
Rand document - footnote:
“The minimum SAT scores for the academies are 500 verbal and 500 math. The average SAT scores at the academies are 540–620 verbal and 630–710 math. The minimum ACT scores for the academies are 21 English, 19 Social Studies, 24 Mathematics, and 24 Natural Science. The average ACT scores are 23–27 English; 24–29 Social Studies; 27–32 Mathematics; and 28–32 Natural Science (minimum and average scores are slightly higher for the Naval Academy). Virtually all cadets are from the top 25 percent of their high school class.”