Need help/ opinion about intramurals and clubs in college

TomB

TomB

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Joined
Feb 6, 2018
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140
Hello everyone,

I am a college reapplicant to the Naval Academy and I need help/ opinions on something. Im going to be attending Stockton University in New Jersey and I want to get involved in as much campus clubs or activities as possible to stregthen my application. I am a boxer who has been boxing for 5 years going on 6 but sadly Stockton does not have a boxing club. I was thinking about joining a club sport but Stockton has club sports that I have no experience in (except fishing). The club sports are as follows:
Bowling
Cheerleading
Fencing
Fishing
Ice hockey
Jiu jitsu
Mens golf
Mens rowing
Mens volleyball
Quidditch
Scuba
Table tennis
Tennis
Unified sports
Ultimate frisbee
Weight training

The regular varsity sports (I did not play in high school as I stuck to the sport that I love: boxing) are as follows:
Baseball
Basketball
Cross Country
Lacrosse
Soccer
Track and field (ind/out)

I have been told that I could try for maybe cross country or track as I am a very good runner but I am unsure on what to do. Some questions I have are:

Will the Naval Academy consider my boxing experience?
With they look down if I did intramurals? (im giving these serious thought particularly in basketball, soccer, ultimate football, and other sports I am good at but never played on a varsity level)
And the ultimate question, what do you think I should do?

Im considering rowing, weight training, jiu jitsu, judo, unified sports, ultimate frisbee, and maybe fishing on the club aspect.

On sports level I would consider all of them but I have no experience.

I am very driven to trying to get involved so my application will look good. Any advice will help.

Thank you!

(As a side note: I am very well aware that I might not get in this year as well in which case I will most likely transfer schools and try again).
 
Why not start a boxing club at Stockton University?

You would feed your passion for boxing, while demonstrating your leadership capability.

Also, why switch schools again, if you are turned down? Why not participate in NROTC as a back up?
 
+1 to AROTC-dad on participation in NROTC. Plus, if your re-application is turned down you are already on a path to commissioning.
Not saying you shouldn't follow some of your ideas sports-wise but doing intra-murals is fine too. There is not a lot of skill require to pick up soccer or especially volleyball at the intra-mural level. You could probably take a PE course on any of these as well to help you get started.
 
To strengthen your application, think less in terms of participation and more in terms of leadership impact. Hence, AROTC-dad’s suggestion of starting a boxing club.

The main reason USNA values sports is because of what you learn about leadership, teamwork, perseverance, resilience and competitiveness. So just joining a team now won’t necessarily be better than highlighting the things you learned from many years of boxing.

So perhaps think of this in two parts: Use your boxing experience to highlight personal attributes that USNA highly values. And join an intramural team to show you remain active and fit. Both are important.
 
AROTC-dad said:
Why not start a boxing club at Stockton University?

You would feed your passion for boxing, while demonstrating your leadership capability.

Also, why switch schools again, if you are turned down? Why not participate in NROTC as a back up?
Click to expand...
kinnem said:
+1 to AROTC-dad on participation in NROTC. Plus, if your re-application is turned down you are already on a path to commissioning.
Not saying you shouldn't follow some of your ideas sports-wise but doing intra-murals is fine too. There is not a lot of skill require to pick up soccer or especially volleyball at the intra-mural level. You could probably take a PE course on any of these as well to help you get started.
Click to expand...
When I say this I know it will sound dumb and like a mistake but I was originally going to go to Norwich University but I knew I was not going to be happy if I went there. It also would have costed my parents too much financially, even when I worked this summer. I am interested in NROTC, but I am going to Stockton right now for my current situation. I might go to Rutgers if I am not accepted this year. And if I could I would start a boxing club but I would not know where to start.
 
Came here to chime in, but those two already offered what I was thinking.
Starting a boxing club is a great idea if you want to take a swing at it (pun intended).

NROTC is a great idea, too.
Stockton did put in their strategic plan to "explore" an ROTC program, but nothing has been implemented yet.
 
Not to contradict any of the earlier posts, as a boxing club is a great idea and will provide leadership opportunities. That being said, where do you think your prior application was weak? Did you ever speak to admissions to find out where you could improve? I mention this as we don't know what your application looked like the first time around. Now, I don't consider boxing a team sport, but as my wife will tell you, I'm often wrong. Was your earlier application weak on leadership, relatively speaking? Was it weak on team sports and activities? Of course how can one lead when you're not part of a team of some sort? My only point is to consider where your application was weak when making decisions about your re-application. And.... there is nothing wrong with both pursing a boxing club and intramurals, while making sure you get outstanding grades.
 
Question. Once you are in college and applying for the academy, am I correct in thinking that playing for the schools varisty team wouldnt be something that would be necessary? I would imagine that intermurals and club sports would be a good way to show your interest in sports and leadership. Lets be honest, you can be the captain and star player of your baseball team in high school, but the chances of playing D-1 ball at USC or UCLA are slim and its more like getting a MLB minor league contract.
 
TomB said:
And if I could I would start a boxing club but I would not know where to start.
Click to expand...

Really???

Not to sound obnoxious, but have tried google?
Start here: (see "contact us")
https://stockton.edu/event-services/clubs-organizations.html

and here:
http://college.usatoday.com/2016/03/10/5-steps-to-starting-a-club/

and more here:
https://www.pearsoned.com/you-can-start-your-own-club-in-college/

Remember, an officer is a leader. Leaders find a way to get things done. Followers sit around and wait for others to tell them what to do.

Go find a way to start a boxing club!
 
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.... and maybe a big duffel bag full of sand.... and, oh yeah, a hook to hang it on.
 
...perhaps also some smelling salts, a wet sponge and a stool...

(And if “Rocky” is to be believed, a chicken.)
 
MidCakePa said:
To strengthen your application, think less in terms of participation and more in terms of leadership impact. Hence, AROTC-dad’s suggestion of starting a boxing club.

The main reason USNA values sports is because of what you learn about leadership, teamwork, perseverance, resilience and competitiveness. So just joining a team now won’t necessarily be better than highlighting the things you learned from many years of boxing.

So perhaps think of this in two parts: Use your boxing experience to highlight personal attributes that USNA highly values. And
Click to expand...
kinnem said:
Not to contradict any of the earlier posts, as a boxing club is a great idea and will provide leadership opportunities. That being said, where do you think your prior application was weak? Did you ever speak to admissions to find out where you could improve? I mention this as we don't know what your application looked like the first time around. Now, I don't consider boxing a team sport, but as my wife will tell you, I'm often wrong. Was your earlier application weak on leadership, relatively speaking? Was it weak on team sports and activities? Of course how can one lead when you're not part of a team of some sort? My only point is to consider where your application was weak when making decisions about your re-application. And.... there is nothing wrong with both pursing a boxing club and intramurals, while making sure you get outstanding grades.
Click to expand...
the one thing that was a killer for me was my SAT and ACT scores. I had a 1130 SAT and 24 on the ACT which is very low as I am aware. My medical might also be a problem as well because I have some environmental allergies and was prescribed an epipen.... im going to get retested because all the stuff I am aparently allergic too (trees, grass, moss, etc.) is something that was unotices for me because I played in it outside all the time as a kid. The only other problem is pollen but I get what everyone else gets: sneezing and itchy eyes.
 
AROTC-dad said:
TomB said:
And if I could I would start a boxing club but I would not know where to start.
Click to expand...

Really???

Not to sound obnoxious, but have tried google?
Start here: (see "contact us")
https://stockton.edu/event-services/clubs-organizations.html

and here:
http://college.usatoday.com/2016/03/10/5-steps-to-starting-a-club/

and more here:
https://www.pearsoned.com/you-can-start-your-own-club-in-college/

Remember, an officer is a leader. Leaders find a way to get things done. Followers sit around and wait for others to tell them what to do.

Go find a way to start a boxing club!
Click to expand...
Devil Doc said:
I would start with boxing gloves, a jump rope, and a desire to achieve.
Click to expand...
kinnem said:
.... and maybe a big duffel bag full of sand.... and, oh yeah, a hook to hang it on.
Click to expand...
MidCakePa said:
...perhaps also some smelling salts, a wet sponge and a stool...

(And if “Rocky” is to be believed, a chicken.)
Click to expand...
All great inputs :). Thank you all for the help!
 
College students will have limited time and resources to increase all areas of the application and you should focus where you will get the most bang for your buck. Academics is weighted far more heavily than extracurriculars and from your statements that is your weakest area. Regardless of what you may read, the admission process is fairly objective. The Academy has a scoring system and each applicant is ranked against that system. You can only get so many points in each area. I would suggest that the most important thing you can do is to make good grades in a challenging plebe like schedule to demonstrate you can handle college level classes. The next area to focus would be ACT/SAT prep. Raising your score from 24 to 30 would do far more to better your application than joining a club or even starting a club. You could start and lead three clubs next year and would most likely not get an appointment if you just have a 3.0 and your test scores do not improve.

The other advantage of ROTC is an additional nomination source. You get to compete in another category. I am not familiar with the university, but many colleges have cross-town affiliations with other schools.
 
College students will have limited time and resources to increase all areas of the application and you should focus where you will get the most bang for your buck. Academics is weighted far more heavily than extracurriculars and from your statements that is your weakest area. Regardless of what you may read, the admission process is fairly objective. The Academy has a scoring system and each applicant is ranked against that system. You can only get so many points in each area. I would suggest that the most important thing you can do is to make good grades in a challenging plebe like schedule to demonstrate you can handle college level classes. The next area to focus would be ACT/SAT prep. Raising your score from 24 to 30 would do far more to better your application than joining a club or even starting a club. You could start and lead three clubs next year and would most likely not get an appointment if you just have a 3.0 and your test scores do not improve.

The other advantage of ROTC is an additional nomination source. You get to compete in another category. I am not familiar with the university, but many colleges have cross-town affiliations with other schools.
 
Agree with @USMA 1994.
With both of your standardized test scores at or below the national average, you need to work on those most of all.
You need to lead with information like that.
 
I agree 200% with USMA 1994. Based on your new info on weak scores and what I heard from Admissions this year, you should really focus on getting mostly As in college this fall. This means keeping your GPA above 3.7 or A- with solid courses in Cal, Chem, Lit, Hist/Pol Sci and get your ACT English to 32, Math 32, and Reading Science to 30+, Writing 8+. This way you can have ACT 31 within/above Academy Average. You have to understand that you can struggle with weak Math and English at an Academy. Academy program is STEM Core and you must write well! I don’t see the eloquence in your writing. I’m being honest. I imagine these are your biggest obstacles. Not sure you can pull it off given so little time to prep if you haven’t already. But still possible. Not sure you can actually get Nomination with 24 ACT in New Jersey unless you reside in less competitive district, not many places in NJ.

If I were you all hands on deck and primary mission from now through January would be to demonstrate excellence on College GPA and Test Score. Your Boxing Leadership are all secondary at this point. In parallel, you should seek a college program with on campus ROTC such as Rutgers for next year. And for you to transfer to Rutgers you need strong grades! If I were you I would consider transferring there in case you don’t make it to an Academy program. Also make sure you can DODMERB Qualify to ROTC as well. If you don’t qualify again it is likely you don’t qualify 3rd time and that’s the end of ROTC Commissioning too. It looks like you have several hurdles you must over come before you start something new in college, your priority should be: Strong college GPA, strong test scores, qualify DODMERB, get Nom from Congressman and or ROTC. And maybe start a boxing club. But not at the cost of diminishing return on anything said above by many others on this thread. Please prioritize and time manage. Also remember that there are many ways to serve this great Nation if you don’t make it 2nd time or 3rd time or even 4th time. Good luck!
 
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For other reapplicants lurking here: (1) You must try to understand why you didn’t receive an appointment. If you don’t hear why directly, use your best deductive reasoning. Then focus your efforts there. (2) Remember that academics and test scores are the vast majority of WCS. You must maintain or improve to remain competitive. And it must be via a plebe-like college curriculum. (3) You must prioritize your efforts. There are a lot of things you could be doing while reapplying. Do only what matters most.

TomB, not to pick on you, but your example is instructive. Your OP lists all these sports you could be playing, varsity vs. intramural, whether boxing counts, etc. But in the end, what you need to be devoting 98% of your time on is grades and test scores. Best wishes. I do hope you achieve your goals.
 
MidCakePa said:
For other reapplicants lurking here: (1) You must try to understand why you didn’t receive an appointment. If you don’t hear why directly, use your best deductive reasoning. Then focus your efforts there. (2) Remember that academics and test scores are the vast majority of WCS. You must maintain or improve to remain competitive. And it must be via a plebe-like college curriculum. (3) You must prioritize your efforts. There are a lot of things you could be doing while reapplying. Do only what matters most.

TomB, not to pick on you, but your example is instructive. Your OP lists all these sports you could be playing, varsity vs. intramural, whether boxing counts, etc. But in the end, what you need to be devoting 98% of your time on is grades and test scores. Best wishes. I do hope you achieve your goals.
Click to expand...
Thank you for the advice! I dont think anyone on here is picking on me, I would rather have the brutal truth then anything else. I understand everything everyone is saying and I am determined to try and make it in. Worse comes the worse, I dont make it and I try again or move onto something else. The ultimate goal is serving in the military whether that be through the academy or some by some other means. Maybe this thread will help future candidates as well. My test scores are something I need to improve on and I will put in my best effort to do so. Again, thank you!
 
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