Primary v. Principal Nomination

Drenns3

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I received an email from my Congressman today saying I have the Primary nomination to USMMA. I am the # 1 alternate to another SA. I have searched the forum to see if there is a difference between Primary and Principal and I could not find any concrete information. I was hoping @azmilmom or @kpmom2013 may be able to shed some light on that. Thank you.
 
Principal means that the SA has to take you if you pass all of the other requirements (medical, CFA, etc.)
I don't recall a Primary designation in the listing of the 3 ways MOC's (governed by Federal law) submit their lists of candidates. From the USNA Admissions website with my additions in Bold:

"Each member of Congress can have five constituents attending the Naval Academy at any time. When a constituents leaves the academy, a vacancy is created. Members may use any one of the following methods to nominate candidates to fill their vacancies:
  • Nominate 10 candidates for each vacancy, permitting the Naval Academy to evaluate and select them for admission on a competitive basis; Competitive (most popular way used by MOC's)
  • Designate one principal nominee and nine other candidates as alternates, ranked in order of preference; Principal with Numbered Alternates: (maybe this where Primary comes in)
  • Nominate one principal nominee and nine other candidates as competitors, permitting the Naval Academy to select the alternate competitors for admission. Principal with Competing Alternates"
I'm thinking one MOC may use the term Primary while the other uses #1 Alternate meaning the same thing.

 
The term is usually "Principal." Not sure what "Primary" means. Why not send a thank you e-mail back to the Congressman and ask for clarification as to what the "Primary" nomination means.
I am planning to send a thank-you note. Wanted to see if anyone had the answer, first, before I asked him.
 
There is no principal nomination to USMMA. Each congressman is not guaranteed a spot, therefore there is no No. 1 Principal. Your MOC may have listed you as No. 1 in his list, but, for USMMA, that is not the same as for the DOD schools.
 
There is no principal nomination to USMMA. Each congressman is not guaranteed a spot, therefore there is no No. 1 Principal. Your MOC may have listed you as No. 1 in his list, but, for USMMA, that is not the same as for the DOD schools.
Correct, my MOC listed me as #1. I realized there is no guarantee of appointment like the DOD schools, on another post.
 
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There is no principal nomination to USMMA. Each congressman is not guaranteed a spot, therefore there is no No. 1 Principal. Your MOC may have listed you as No. 1 in his list, but, for USMMA, that is not the same as for the DOD schools.
I do have a question- I completely understand what you are saying and that USMMA treats all nominations as equal. Why is there a block on the class profile page: https://www.usmma.edu/class-profile that says "Declined Principal Appointment"? I know there is a difference between a nomination and an appointment. What is a Principal Appointment? I am not being rude, it's honestly just a question. Thanks.
 
“Candidates are appointed competitively by the Academy for the vacancies allocated to their state or geographical area. Each state has an assigned number of appointees proportionate to its representation in Congress. After the Academy has selected its principal appointees, the remaining qualified candidates will be designated as alternates to be appointed in order of merit should openings occur within their states.”

 
“Candidates are appointed competitively by the Academy for the vacancies allocated to their state or geographical area. Each state has an assigned number of appointees proportionate to its representation in Congress. After the Academy has selected its principal appointees, the remaining qualified candidates will be designated as alternates to be appointed in order of merit should openings occur within their states.”

Thank you for the link. I don't know why I couldn't find it. I was searching the wrong words but now see it on their APPOINTMENTS page in big capital letters.
 
There are some older threads that discuss the decline statistic, as the numbers used do not add up totally. I believe that the principal declined is not just allocated vacancies. In the past principal appointment has shown up on the portal for later rounds of appointments, when, arguably, the "allocated" spots have been offered. Additionally, the allocated spots do not equal the total number of admissions. don't get to caught up in the numbers or statistics. They are good to look at, and consider, but, do not take them as a direction your application may or may not be taking.
 
Congratulations on your nominations to two service academies. Looks like your questions have already been answered here. As a general rule, I recommend contacting your MOC service academy staff person to get definitive answers to nomination questions to make sure there are no misunderstandings. Make sure to write a thank you note for the nominations, double check that your application files are complete, then resume the seemingly interminable waiting. Good luck!
 
Congratulations on your nominations to two service academies. Looks like your questions have already been answered here. As a general rule, I recommend contacting your MOC service academy staff person to get definitive answers to nomination questions to make sure there are no misunderstandings. Make sure to write a thank you note for the nominations, double check that your application files are complete, then resume the seemingly interminable waiting. Good luck!
Thank you for responding.
 
Back in the 70s, I was nominated to all three academies that I requested. In those days, you would be informed by mail where you stood. I was not a principal appointment to KP, but was high on the alternate list, and was notified that an appointment was "likely". I received my appointment less than a week later. The other two didn't want me, and I am very much okay with that.
 
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