Lingering Questions Regarding Slots

OP you really are getting in your head about all of this. The nomination is a requirement to go further in the process. Without a local senator/congress nomination, you still aren’t necessarily done. BC each SA has the ability to ‘find you a nom’. You have no control. It happens behind the scenes. And? There is nothing ‘you can do to prepare for this’.

There is the receiving of the nomination piece. And then, separately, there is the CHARGING of the nom piece (re-read @Stealth_81 example). This all happens behind the scenes. In fact, you may be charged to a whole different source than you will ever know. At USNA, in order to see where you were actually CHARGED, a Mid has to seek it out somewhere there on the yard after the class is all buttoned up. And by then? They don’t care. I have no idea where either of my boys were CHARGED. Neither do they. And

Coaches have blue chips they can use. Athletes may not become fully qualified. They may be eligible for noms other than ones you are aware of. Re-read @Capt MJ post.

You are getting muddied up in details, that you cannot know. But the process has been explained. I think, that you think, that you have an understanding, that you actually don’t. But just let it go bc 1) you don’t control anything at this point 2) it doesn’t matter 3) part of this, is not for us to know/see.

BIG PICTURE: you won’t understand all the pieces. You aren’t supposed to. And you are in the game until a TWE arrives. Which can go until May even. 5 more months. Celebrate the Nom, and don’t worry about any other piece.

Hang in there! Hopefully a celebration is headed your way at some point.
 
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Thank you very much for these insights! However, I would like to make note of the fact that I'm seeing many replies about athletic recruits following the first comment, many more than the topics I need answers to.

I'm aware that nobody knows anything for sure about this process. But this post is to gain information about what will happen in this case, not about the case itself.

Some comments feel a little like this:

Q: There seem to be too many bananas growing near me. How can I use them?
-A: Bananas are yellow.
-A: Bananas are good for your health.

These are all great facts about bananas, but they do not answer the question. To add:

-A: I don't have very many bananas in my area.
-A: What makes you think you have a lot of bananas?
-A: Don't think about the different uses of bananas. Just eat them, then they'll be gone.

I know every candidate's job is to play the waiting game. Again, my questions are about what happens in this case, not whether this case can or cannot happen. If you knew you had multiple appointees in your area, wouldn't you want to know what you can do to prepare yourself for the NWL?

Still, thank you all for actively sharing your insights. I've learned a lot through this post today.
 
There is one simple answer to prepare yourself for the NWL: nothing. I apologize for not just answering that for you in my first post. USAFA will shop through the available fully qualified candidates looking for those best suited to fill out the class and meet various class-building goals.

That assumes you have prudently developed alternate plans from the start of your SA application journey, such as colleges with AFROTC units, etc.

I believe most posters here have worked hard to offer you information to dispel your belief or assumption there are no District slots left for you. Most of us write for general readership, as well, so perhaps those readers will find banana lore more useful for the analysis of their own situations. I think we will have to introduce “banana logic” as a new SAF concept. Thank you for that!

Best of luck to you for a successful outcome. Let us know.
 
Your obligation is to apply, secure a nomination, answer any questions admissions or dodmerb might have. Once you secure a nomination, and are deemed 3q by the SA - you are done. There are no preparations left for you other than hope, pray, develop patience, secure backup plans if you don’t get appointed, spend time with your family and friends in your remaining time in high school.

Your offer of appointment is out of your hands.

The SA will appoint candidates based on WCS, available slots they can use. If your WCS is highest on your slates, you will get an offer of appointment.

If you are a very good candidate, but aren’t the best on your slates, you might be considered for the NWL, where you will compete with others that didn’t win their slates.

The people who you say don’t know about this process are people that understand the process. What nobody can tell you is how your application will end because nobody knows your competition, etc but admissions.
 
sky1123 said:
If you knew you had multiple appointees in your area, wouldn't you want to know what you can do to prepare yourself for the NWL?
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There you go. You hadn’t asked that specific question before.

From the National Wait List, the Academy is required to take the first 150 candidates from the top based on their WCS, regardless of their state, district, status, etc. Nothing you can do about that now except make your WCS as high as possible. You can’t do anything about anyone else’s score. After the top 150, the Academy can appoint whomever they choose from the NWL to round out the class to their liking. You won’t know exactly what they are looking for until the very end (neither will they), so nothing you can do there, either.

Stealth_81
 
I also live in a TX district with some confusing SA nomination processes. I had similar questions and these were the answers and advice I was given:

- Literally, no one knows your chances.
- Calculating your chances won't change those chances (Not that you can calculate them accurately anyways).
- You are responsible for creating a packet showing your potential as an officer, not your potential to be a D1 athlete or a graduate of Harvard Law.
- Regardless of the outcome you will grow from the application experience, (I know I've learned a lot)
- If you haven't been told "no" by USAFA then you are still in the running somewhere.
- A nomination is a nomination - it's a requirement that enables you to be offered an appointment, and worrying about nomination logistics gets you nowhere.
- The admissions process is a complicated knot, and it takes a while to unravel (For some, a decision isn't unraveled until May)
- Once you are done with your packet, go for a run, hang out with friends, and force yourself to not check your portal every hour.

*Take all of this with a grain of salt (or a tablespoon of it). I'm a candidate who has been asking the same questions and is just sharing answers.
 
sky1123 said:
On that note, I would appreciate it greatly if I could gain a little more insight regarding this situation as a whole and what I can do to prepare for the future process (such as NWL).
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Most applicants don't know if someone else has already won their representative's and/or senators slate and been charged to that person. So, most have no idea if their only/last chance is to be selected off the NWL. It is a waiting game all the same. Since your first post said that your file is complete, I assume that you've submitted and gotten a green check mark on your CFA. And there are no SAT or ACT tests in the next several weeks. So, unless are planning on securing a pilot's license or Eagle scout designation, there is no way to improve your WCS (or whatever USAFA uses).

My son applied last year from one of the most competitive districts in CO. Our representative and senators coordinate such that there aren't multiple nominations. Furthermore, our representative rarely gives noms to multiple academies. And to boot, my son's friend since elementary school received the principle nom. So, my son knew his only shot was to be selected off the NWL and that it would be a long ride. Again, you are in a much better situation than many, with better odds to start with.

My son stayed positive, secured plan B and enjoyed being a senior until he got an appointment in early April. That is all most, including you, can do.

Not being a military family, we've learned much over the past year. One things we've learned is that application process is representative of many other processes in academy/military life - you do your best to optimize the processes that you can control, but you must accept that there are many things you can't control or make sense of. There is no point dwelling on them and their outcome. Just stay positive (for your sake and others') and make the best of whatever the outcome is. Good luck!!
 
sky1123 said:
Thank you very much for these insights! However, I would like to make note of the fact that I'm seeing many replies about athletic recruits following the first comment, many more than the topics I need answers to.

I'm aware that nobody knows anything for sure about this process. But this post is to gain information about what will happen in this case, not about the case itself.

Some comments feel a little like this:

Q: There seem to be too many bananas growing near me. How can I use them?
-A: Bananas are yellow.
-A: Bananas are good for your health.

These are all great facts about bananas, but they do not answer the question. To add:

-A: I don't have very many bananas in my area.
-A: What makes you think you have a lot of bananas?
-A: Don't think about the different uses of bananas. Just eat them, then they'll be gone.

I know every candidate's job is to play the waiting game. Again, my questions are about what happens in this case, not whether this case can or cannot happen. If you knew you had multiple appointees in your area, wouldn't you want to know what you can do to prepare yourself for the NWL?

Still, thank you all for actively sharing your insights. I've learned a lot through this post today.
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Posters on the forum are giving you this information because we’re trying to guide you away from attempting to answer an unanswerable question. There is no way to prepare for the NWL.
 
And some of us were answering your original post. That had more ‘nana’s’ 🍌 than “how do I prepare for the NWL”.

All are trying to help! And? It’s good info (ISU sally, but for sure to this point). Well intentioned helpers. There are some serious players here, in the know, on the forums. All donating their time to assist our youth.

Good luck to him.
 
All of your inputs are greatly appreciated. I see there isn’t much more to do for NWL, and I guess this can actually allow me to enjoy the rest of my year. I’ll make sure to keep your replies in mind!

I would like to send special thanks to Capt MJ. I have found that SA Forums is the best platform out there, and it seems members like Capt MJ really lead the forum to be a decent and supportive environment.
 
The reason I posted multiple questions with such detailed context in the beginning is that I was wondering if anyone could make any specific connections between them.

sky1123 said:
5. On Hold. In my portal, my ALO interview has been marked red for the past 2 months since completion. Each time I contact Team Silver, I am only told that my interview is still in the approval chain. This leads me to think my file has been put on hold for some reason. I haven’t heard of a case like mine anywhere else–there may have been erroneous red marks, but the counseling team fixed them immediately upon notification. Do you guys have any thoughts on this? Are there any potential reasons this may be happening?
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sky1123 said:
There do seem to be a lot of interviews to look at. So the one I completed in mid-October has been pushed behind those done after mine, rather than being on hold, since my file is to be on the NWL. I don't think my red mark will be turning green any time soon.
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Could my interview being marked red for so long really have something to do with being put on the NWL even before nominations were released? I don’t want my guess to be true, so please let me know if there are any other potential reasons.
 
sky1123 said:
The reason I posted multiple questions with such detailed context in the beginning is that I was wondering if anyone could make any specific connections between them.



Could my interview being marked red for so long really have something to do with being put on the NWL even before nominations were released? I don’t want my guess to be true, so please let me know if there are any other potential reasons.
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I will let the experts give the right answer.

My guess - no.

Do you know if your slots have been assigned yet? And if not, why torture yourself?

Potential reason you won’t get an appointment assigned to a slot - someone else on your slate has a higher WCS?
 
@sky1123, you’re really pushing your luck here. First, in terms of the posters who’ve very tactfully told you that this is ultimately unknowable, at least with the clarity that you seek. Second, in terms of trying to decipher something that’s simply not worth your time and effort. If you’ve gotten all your inputs in, then you’ve done all you can do. So now you must simply let the process run its course. There are some very knowledgeable and generous posters here. But both attributes have a limit. Time to move on….
 
MidCakePa said:
@sky1123, you’re really pushing your luck here. First, in terms of the posters who’ve very tactfully told you that this is ultimately unknowable, at least with the clarity that you seek. Second, in terms of trying to decipher something that’s simply not worth your time and effort. If you’ve gotten all your inputs in, then you’ve done all you can do. So now you must simply let the process run its course. There are some very knowledgeable and generous posters here. But both attributes have a limit. Time to move on….
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MidCakePa, there was little mention of the question about the lasting red mark, so I only brought it up to bring some attention in case it was overseen. It seems the constant updating must have worn you out a bit, sorry about that!

I hope my curiosity isn’t making anyone feel pressured to come up with an answer. I am open to any guesses that may come up at any time, but I’m not demanding them. It’s all in good spirits.

Hopefully you don’t feel too cross, please enjoy your winter holiday!
 
sky1123 said:
All of your inputs are greatly appreciated. I see there isn’t much more to do for NWL, and I guess this can actually allow me to enjoy the rest of my year. I’ll make sure to keep your replies in mind!

I would like to send special thanks to Capt MJ. I have found that SA Forums is the best platform out there, and it seems members like Capt MJ really lead the forum to be a decent and supportive environment.
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You're absolutely 100% correct regarding Capt MJ!!
 
“5. On Hold. In my portal, my ALO interview has been marked red for the past 2 months since completion. Each time I contact Team Silver, I am only told that my interview is still in the approval chain.”

sky1123 said:
The reason I posted multiple questions with such detailed context in the beginning is that I was wondering if anyone could make any specific connections between them.



Could my interview being marked red for so long really have something to do with being put on the NWL even before nominations were released? I don’t want my guess to be true, so please let me know if there are any other potential reasons.
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Your best source of info is primary source, which is your Silver Team response. Members here really try and stay away from speculating and guessing, as it really serves no purpose. No one here knows, we dont have admissions posting here, as far as I know.

Dont worry, you wont be overlooked. You simply must wait like most other candidates. No way to even know if you are on a NWL unless you have been told that.This is a HUGE puzzle, being worked on daily, by admissions, etc. *Most* will know their outcome by mid April. 4 more months of figuring it all out. Your job is to wait and be patient. Not speculate.
 
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If you don’t earn an appointment, it will be because your admission profile wasn’t good enough, so stop blaming your prospective failure to earn an appointment on athletes.
 
Also see here for general discussion regarding noms for 2027. You might get better answers to you questions, from an audience in your same shoes.

2027 State Nominations Thread

Looks like the same here. Got the informed delivery email this morning. It’s a real bummer. Same here…is that a definite “not nominated”?
www.serviceacademyforums.com
 
Letswaittogether said:
Contact the ALO who interviewed you.
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The Evaluator ALO can't tell a candidate much of anything other than:

a) I submitted my evaluation
b) I haven't submitted my evaluation yet

That's it. Once it's received by USAFA, the admissions folks go over it in detail...do the comments match the grades? Do the grades match the candidate? Does it make sense? Are there "ANY" questions unanswered or any "my spidey sense is tingling" or "something just doesn't feel right..." moments by the reviewer? If there are ANY of those, it's "rejected" and returned to the ALO for a redo. Not the interview, the write-up.

Once it's "acceptable to admissions (and that ONLY means that the numbers align with the comments), then you'll see it processed and you'll get the green check. Not until.

Steve
USAFA ALO
USAFA '83
 
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