No Nomination? What happens next?

[Trip444]

Hello all,

I currently have a Letter of Assurance to USNA, but I only requested one Nomination for USNA and I SHOULD receive that in late January. I was just curious of what may happen if I should not be awarded a Nomination - is it over? Do I get a chance to go to USNAPS? Just honestly what is next?

***I have applied to (and have Nominations to) the other DoD Academies and hoping for appointments there, as well as applied to ROTC/NROTC scholarships***

Happy New Year to you all, I hope it brings many blessings to you and your families.

 

[txfwindian]

Congratulations OP on getting LOA.

- did you apply VP nom?

In the absence of a nom, if USNA really reallly wants you they can use one of the discretionary noms. In most cases you wont know it until late in the cycle. There is never a guarantee of it. There have been few cases reported on this forum where few candidates did not get a nom despite having a loa.

- what’s is your plan B?
- if appointed to another SA, would you be happy going there.

 

[Capt MJ]

Hello all,

I currently have a Letter of Assurance to USNA, but I only requested one Nomination for USNA and I SHOULD receive that in late January. I was just curious of what may happen if I should not be awarded a Nomination - is it over? Do I get a chance to go to USNAPS? Just honestly what is next?

***I have applied to (and have Nominations to) the other DoD Academies and hoping for appointments there, as well as applied to ROTC/NROTC scholarships***

Happy New Year to you all, I hope it brings many blessings to you and your families.

It is possible with an LOA and no nom, to not get an offer of appointment. USNA would probably look through its bag of discretionary noms they manage to see if they could use one for you, but there are not unlimited numbers of those. Every year we see anecdotal reports of no offer of appointment to LOA holders without a nom.

Typically, candidates apply for all noms for which they are eligible, as recommended by USNA: 2 Senators, 1 Representative, VP and any others they may be eligible for.

NAPS and prep Foundation Scholarships are usually offered to those not found fully qualified by USNA, but highly desired. Those with LOAs are usually considered fully qualified. USNA can, of course, do as it wishes.

What is next? If you get a nom, and you have fulfilled all other requirements and are fully qualified, USNA will in all likelihood offer you an appointment. No nom - you wait, possibly until the very end of the cycle.

If you haven’t applied for the VP, there is still time, I think, since USNA controls those.

 

[Usnavy2019]

Usually that means the end of the road for you, unfortunately. There is a common misconception that USNA will find LOA recipients a nomination, but that is more of an exception rather than the rule. Most MOC staffs are good about getting LOA recipients a nomination since they will get an appointment if they meet all the conditions and that means a happy constituent. And usually an LOA recipient can qualify for a nomination off merit alone.

Sometimes MOC staffs will buy into the rumor that USNA will find a nomination for an LOA recipient and not nominate an LOA recipient. They fall victim to the Bystander Effect and they burn a constituent. Why this happens is because MOC staffs try to please as many candidates as possible. They'll nominate 10 non-LOA constituents since they need that nomination to compete while they bank on the LOA constituent getting a nomination from somewhere else. In theory it sounds like they'll please 11 people, but usually doesn't work out that way.

 

[A1Janitor]

Usually that means the end of the road for you, unfortunately. There is a common misconception that USNA will find LOA recipients a nomination, but that is more of an exception rather than the rule.

I don’t have the numbers to know this or not. But it seems to me the candidates with LOAs usually get at least one nomination. Since they give out like 120 to 140 LOAs, I would think the ones without noms aren’t that many.

I have seen them find nominations for these candidates over the last few years about as many times as not.

 

[Sam0704]

I'm currently in the same situation. I received an LOA just before Christmas and I didn't receive a nomination from either of my senators. My congressman is sending out decisions next week and my state doesn't do multiple nominations usually so I am counting on that. Good luck to you!

 

[akakdkfkrllwlwdc]

I'm currently in the same situation. I received an LOA just before Christmas and I didn't receive a nomination from either of my senators. My congressman is sending out decisions next week and my state doesn't do multiple nominations usually so I am counting on that. Good luck to you!

Hey fellow Sam I'm in nearly the same situation apart from the fact that my nom sources haven't released yet. Good luck with your MOC!

 

[Capt MJ]

I'm currently in the same situation. I received an LOA just before Christmas and I didn't receive a nomination from either of my senators. My congressman is sending out decisions next week and my state doesn't do multiple nominations usually so I am counting on that. Good luck to you!

You applied for VP, yes?

 

[Sam0704]

You applied for VP, yes?

I have not but I plan on doing so if I don’t receive a nom from my MOC next week

 

[Trip444]

Congratulations OP on getting LOA.

- did you apply VP nom?

In the absence of a nom, if USNA really reallly wants you they can use one of the discretionary noms. In most cases you wont know it until late in the cycle. There is never a guarantee of it. There have been few cases reported on this forum where few candidates did not get a nom despite having a loa.

- what’s is your plan B?
- if appointed to another SA, would you be happy going there.

Yes I applied for VP and I would be very happy with any SA - my main goal is to serve (despite having preferred choices) - My parents are both civilian so no real alliances right now

 

[Trip444]

My state is not necessarily the most competitive compared to some areas like North Va, California, etc., and I know for my other Noms (Both Senatorial) I was either #1 or #2 for those slots. I am just hoping my hard work and prayers will pull through for me

I really appreciate all this!

 

[Trip444]

I'm currently in the same situation. I received an LOA just before Christmas and I didn't receive a nomination from either of my senators. My congressman is sending out decisions next week and my state doesn't do multiple nominations usually so I am counting on that. Good luck to you!

Sounds tough! Good luck to you, hope you get into the school of your choice!

 

[usnabgo08]

The going in assumption for candidates with no nomination, LOA or no LOA, is that you will NOT get an appointment. A few years back at BGO training, the Head of Nominations and Appointments emphatically stated that USNA will not find nominations for candidates. That previous year, only 3 appointments came from a Superintendent nomination of which up to 50 are allowed. None of those appointments were because the candidate failed to get another nomination. Bottom line, USNA can always change business or make exceptions, but based on history…it isn’t common…so don’t go in thinking you might be the exception.

 

[Trip444]

The going in assumption for candidates with no nomination, LOA or no LOA, is that you will NOT get an appointment. A few years back at BGO training, the Head of Nominations and Appointments emphatically stated that USNA will not find nominations for candidates. That previous year, only 3 appointments came from a Superintendent nomination of which up to 50 are allowed. None of those appointments were because the candidate failed to get another nomination. Bottom line, USNA can always change business or make exceptions, but based on history…it isn’t common…so don’t go in thinking you might be the exception.

Gonna be leaning hard on that Congressional Nom, thanks!

 

[Capt MJ]

I have not but I plan on doing so if I don’t receive a nom from my MOC next week

Not meant in any critical way at all, just neutral, but for the benefit of the 2027 cycle applicants, what was your thought process behind not applying to all nom sources? I know for some U.S. citizens who live out of country, they have some limitations. I read your post as only applying to your Representative, so I apologize if I misunderstood.

 

[Trip444]

Not meant in any critical way at all, just neutral, but for the benefit of the 2027 cycle applicants, what was your thought process behind not applying to all nom sources? I know for some U.S. citizens who live out of country, they have some limitations. I read your post as only applying to your Representative, so I apologize if I misunderstood.

No no no, I apologize for the haziness.
I applied to every nom source available, but I only asked for one nomination to USNA

I have two to USMA and one to USAFA (enough vacancies from one of our State Senators to add me on two slates)

3 sources total... just waiting on District Nom

 

[justdoit19]

I don’t have the numbers to know this or not. But it seems to me the candidates with LOAs usually get at least one nomination. Since they give out like 120 to 140 LOAs, I would think the ones without noms aren’t that many.

I have seen them find nominations for these candidates over the last few years about as many times as not.

There were at least two forum members here last year, I recall, in this exact scenario. One didn’t meet the academic criteria for their MOC’s, yet held an LOA. Perhaps not common? But a bummer of it does to you.

 

[Sam0704]

Not meant in any critical way at all, just neutral, but for the benefit of the 2027 cycle applicants, what was your thought process behind not applying to all nom sources? I know for some U.S. citizens who live out of country, they have some limitations. I read your post as only applying to your Representative, so I apologize if I misunderstood.

I understand your confusion as to why I wouldn’t apply to all sources. Of course now I wish I would’ve applied for the VP nom earlier but at the time USNA seemed like a reach school that I had very little chance of getting into. With the already hefty application and applying to several other schools and scholarships I felt my time was best spent applying to my representatives and then moving on to other parts of the application/ different schools. I also had very little knowledge of the nomination process before discovering this forum and how short the VP application was.

Again if I could go back to September/October I would do it right away (and I urge any future applicants to do the same) but atlas I didn’t.
The only reason I am not applying right now is because if I get my nomination next week I will save myself from writing another essay and I am unsure how much a week gap between submitting my application will affect it.

 

[Capt MJ]

I understand your confusion as to why I wouldn’t apply to all sources. Of course now I wish I would’ve applied for the VP nom earlier but at the time USNA seemed like a reach school that I had very little chance of getting into. With the already hefty application and applying to several other schools and scholarships I felt my time was best spent applying to my representatives and then moving on to other parts of the application/ different schools. I also had very little knowledge of the nomination process before discovering this forum and how short the VP application was.

Again if I could go back to September/October I would do it right away (and I urge any future applicants to do the same) but atlas I didn’t.
The only reason I am not applying right now is because if I get my nomination next week I will save myself from writing another essay and I am unsure how much a week gap between submitting my application will affect it.

Much appreciated. So you did apply to all three of your elected officials, good. Your comments will give insight as to the scale, complexity, detail and deadline-driven aspects of this process. Many candidates apply to multiple SAs, all the nom sources they are eligible for, multiple ROTC scholarships, multiple colleges, plus keep up with real-time schoolwork, sports and activities. SA application processes themselves are part of the test for determination, attention to detail and perseverance. All good info for those who follow you.

Good luck! If you get that nom, you should be able to warm up for a happy dance.

 

[txfwindian]

if I get my nomination next week I will save myself from writing another essay

You can literally cut and paste answers for VP nom. You can complete the app within 30 min. There is saying "dont be penny smart and pound foolish".