Letter -- 3Q and on National Waiting List

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franknd

5-Year Member
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Dec 8, 2018
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A letter popped up in my son's portal saying he's 3Q and on the NWL. I gather that means they've already evaluated his MOC slate and appointed someone else?
 
franknd said:
A letter popped up in my son's portal saying he's 3Q and on the NWL. I gather that means they've already evaluated his MOC slate and appointed someone else?
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Pretty much YES. When did he get his portal all green?
 
Technically it just went all green today because they had kept CFA as "pending" for more than a month. But the last actual item to be submitted was his college transcript, which was about three weeks ago. His MOC nom just came in last week also, but before that he had a ROTC nom (which, oddly, disappeared the week before last; not exactly clear why, although apparently the AO told my son it will be restored).
 
franknd said:
A letter popped up in my son's portal saying he's 3Q and on the NWL. I gather that means they've already evaluated his MOC slate and appointed someone else?
Click to expand...
3Q+NWL is a great accomplishment, you should be proud. Now the real waiting game starts. Continue to get good grades & update admissions with any new test scores/extracurriculars. Best of luck!
 
IF there is one thing I've learned from my own experience and the experiences of people on this board over the years, it is that, when it comes to admissions, nobody really knows anything. It is a pretty mysterious process, and all any of us knows from what you wrote is that your son is still right there in the running.
 
Pattonsghost said:
IF there is one thing I've learned from my own experience and the experiences of people on this board over the years, it is that, when it comes to admissions, nobody really knows anything. It is a pretty mysterious process, and all any of us knows from what you wrote is that your son is still right there in the running.
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Right. I guess what I was trying to confirm is that he did not win his MOC slate. Otherwise, why would he be on the NWL rather than still in the running to win his slate?

I suppose the other question is whether anyone else this cycle has received this letter? It seems kind of early to me to already be on the NWL, with MOC slate decided, but maybe it's not.
 
franknd said:
Right. I guess what I was trying to confirm is that he did not win his MOC slate. Otherwise, why would he be on the NWL rather than still in the running to win his slate?

I suppose the other question is whether anyone else this cycle has received this letter? It seems kind of early to me to already be on the NWL, with MOC slate decided, but maybe it's not.
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It doesn't necessarily mean that he didn't win his slate. They might not have even considered his slate yet. Some people get the letter your son did. Others don't. When I was applying in the past, I didn't. I contacted my regional officer and she said there is no such thing as a 3q letter OR a national waiting list. Others have had their regionals say the opposite. There is disagreement on this board about whether there is an actual "waiting list" such as one would find at a traditional college, or if what USMA calls a waiting list is simply where they put candidates whose fate has not yet been considered. That's what my original post was getting at. Admissions at USMA is not a straightforward experience and you will find certainty at any stage of the process very hard to come by. Unless there is a LOA, a letter of appointment, or a letter of non-appointment, you will not know for sure anything. I mention this all the time, but last year, there was a candidate who got a non-appointment letter in February. A full-on, case closed, best of luck but we don't want you we hope you have a plan-B, rejection letter. Two months later, out of nowhere, an appointment letter appeared in this person's portal. No explanation. The regional officer couldn't explain it. My point is this: this process is composed of uncertainty mixed with confusion and topped with mystery. So, no, you will not be able to confirm if he did not win his slate. Maybe he didn't. You won't know, most of the people at admissions don't know and they won't tell you even if they do
 
I don’t think there is as much uncertainty as people say. The process is defined by law.

Generally, each slate has ten candidates that they need to compare. It takes time to get candidates 3q. The uncertainty is not knowing where they are in a specific process, and what your competition is.
 
franknd said:
Right. I guess what I was trying to confirm is that he did not win his MOC slate. Otherwise, why would he be on the NWL rather than still in the running to win his slate?

I suppose the other question is whether anyone else this cycle has received this letter? It seems kind of early to me to already be on the NWL, with MOC slate decided, but maybe it's not.
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I got a letter exactly like this on Dec 18th. I believe all it really means is the review board looked over your file and found you qualified. I don’t think this means your MOC slate was decided either. I got an appointment on the 30th so I am guessing they didn’t decide slate winners when they first looked at my application. Plus since the application isn’t due to January 31st I imagine if there is a strong candidate in your slate that hasn’t finished their application they might wait to keep there options open.
 
franknd said:
I suppose the other question is whether anyone else this cycle has received this letter? It seems kind of early to me to already be on the NWL, with MOC slate decided, but maybe it's not.
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I received this letter too. I figured it was just a way for admissions to let me know I was found fully qualified. And I (assumed) that everybody who is found qualified goes on the NWL until admissions decides their fate.
Of course, I do not work in USMA admissions so I’m just speculating. All I know is that some receive a letter, some don’t. It’s best to not stress or overthink the process since these things are out of your control.
 
Okay, thanks. I thought that NWL was what happened to people who didn't win their slate, and that's after reading this board for several years now. Evidently that isn't necessarily so. Thank you.
 
franknd said:
A letter popped up in my son's portal saying he's 3Q and on the NWL. I gather that means they've already evaluated his MOC slate and appointed someone else?
Click to expand...
No, it does not mean that someone else was appointed. It is exactly where your kid needs to be while awaiting notification. So, keep faith.

At USMA, the NWL is not a 'wait list' like at other schools, instead think of it as: These are the kids who are going to be looked at for appointments. May the odds be ever in his favor.
 
My son got that letter from the Great Lakes region in October. His LOA posted in August. I think it’s just a generic letter that you are 3Q. When he was visiting in November they mentioned he was 3Q and had a LOA (no nominations at that point). I think it’s a good sign for your son, not that he didn’t win his slate as there was no slate yet when my son got it (and in theory he should win his slate with a LOA, we think). I think there are different regions that post different letters. His LOA was from a different group in admissions than the 3Q letter, so not sure how all the groups/admissions work. When he got his LOA his videos weren’t reviewed yet, so we took it as a sign that everything was complete from their end (when he got the 3Q letter). Now he’s hoping his appointment comes soon(nominations went in 12/20 and 12/23). Such a confusing process!
 
My daughter received this letter in October and received her appointment offer roughly a month later. She did not have an
LOA.
 
franknd said:
A letter popped up in my son's portal saying he's 3Q and on the NWL. I gather that means they've already evaluated his MOC slate and appointed someone else?
Click to expand...
Not necessarily true as ALL applicants who are 3Q get put on the NWL until any decisions are made. Your son has now met the qualification requirements for USMA and the admissions committee has to make a holistic review and decision sometime between now and May 1.
 
franknd said:
A letter popped up in my son's portal saying he's 3Q and on the NWL. I gather that means they've already evaluated his MOC slate and appointed someone else?
Click to expand...
No, it does not mean someone else won the slate. It only means they completed evaluation of his file and found him 3Q, and he will wait on the NWL with all the other candidates they found 3Q.

Someone may have won the slate if there are no applications working their way through the pipeline, and the WCS scores clearly indicate a winner. Otherwise, the process is still churning inside the black box, and nobody outside admissions can see inside that box. If WCS scores are close, admissions will wait since new information could change the outcome.
 
Pattonsghost said:
It doesn't necessarily mean that he didn't win his slate. They might not have even considered his slate yet. Some people get the letter your son did. Others don't. When I was applying in the past, I didn't. I contacted my regional officer and she said there is no such thing as a 3q letter OR a national waiting list. Others have had their regionals say the opposite. There is disagreement on this board about whether there is an actual "waiting list" such as one would find at a traditional college, or if what USMA calls a waiting list is simply where they put candidates whose fate has not yet been considered. That's what my original post was getting at. Admissions at USMA is not a straightforward experience and you will find certainty at any stage of the process very hard to come by. Unless there is a LOA, a letter of appointment, or a letter of non-appointment, you will not know for sure anything. I mention this all the time, but last year, there was a candidate who got a non-appointment letter in February. A full-on, case closed, best of luck but we don't want you we hope you have a plan-B, rejection letter. Two months later, out of nowhere, an appointment letter appeared in this person's portal. No explanation. The regional officer couldn't explain it. My point is this: this process is composed of uncertainty mixed with confusion and topped with mystery. So, no, you will not be able to confirm if he did not win his slate. Maybe he didn't. You won't know, most of the people at admissions don't know and they won't tell you even if they do
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Was this my DS? I'm not kidding - got the TWE in either late Jan/early Feb, then an appointment early May that his admissions RC could not explain. He was DQ'd right at the same time due to a reported knee injury, so could not accept the offer of appointment. He luckily received the offer of the AOG and his RC told him to take it hoping he could get a medical waiver or cleared medically again for 2028 (which he has been). @franknd your DS could reach out to his RC to find out what that means. It's still great news!
 
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