USNA Admissions FAQs -- "What Are My Chances"

If I am getting this right, someone who has a nomination from an MOC is put on a slate with 9 other people who have a nomination from that same MOC, and the candidate with the highest WCS is given the appointment?
Not necessarily. Look at the different ways MOC’s can present their slates (ranked, competitive, principal). It can be that a principal nominee could have a lower ‘WCS’ than others on the slate, but due to being a principal nominee, receive the appointment.
 
I believe my district is competitive, but there is only 9 people who attempted to gain a nomination and after talking to one, he only applied to USCGA. I guess that improves my odds to 1 of 8 on a slate, given the remaining 7 applied to USNA.
 
I believe my district is competitive, but there is only 9 people who attempted to gain a nomination and after talking to one, he only applied to USCGA. I guess that improves my odds to 1 of 8 on a slate, given the remaining 7 applied to USNA.
You still have to be considered qualified by the SA. That is one thing I think people sometimes don’t understand. A nomination is one piece. USNA decides the rest.

Good luck to you!!
 
Yes, I understand all of the process except the slating. I thought it was you versus all other candidates rather than you versus your nominating slate.
 
Every MOC can have five charged constituents attending the Academy at one time. Every year, one person graduates and barring any other type of attrition, one vacancy opens up per year unless you are in a double year. Every MOC can nominate 10 people per vacancy. Whoever wins the slate (the names of the 10 people nominated) gets offered an appointment granted they are qualified in all aspects. The appointee off of that slate is who is charged to the MOC. Other qualified applicants are sent to the National Pool and are racked and stacked against all other applicants who did not win their slate.

How you win your slate is up to your MOC. Most have a competitive system where they just give the slate to USNA and USNA gets to decide who is the slate winner. Others use a Principal/Ranked Alternate system. In this case, the MOC will rank all the nominees in order of how they want them considered. If the principal nominee is qualified, they get the appointment. If they are not, then #2 will get the appointment, and so on. A hybrid system involves a competitive alternate system where alternate nominees are unranked and USNA will decide who gets the appointment.

So to clarify, everyone competes on their slate initially, but those who do not get in off the slate will compete amongst the other applicants. If you max out your nominations, you can get 3 shots at winning the slate before heading to the pool.
 
If I am getting this right, someone who has a nomination from an MOC is put on a slate with 9 other people who have a nomination from that same MOC, and the candidate with the highest WCS is given the appointment?
The elected official can put up to 10 names on a slate for each appointment slot they have open. They can have up to 5 appointments to 1 SA charged to them spread over 4 classes. Most years, that means 1 slot is open, but occasionally 2, so there could be 2 slates.

The elected official has complete discretion over how they run their selection process, in terms of criteria, interview or not, etc. They can also choose to rank the slate or not, with a couple of different methods. If they use the principal nom method, the SA is expected to offer the appointment to that candidate, if fully qualified, regardless of WCS or how the SA compares them to others on the slate.

One of the fully qualified applicants (medical - DoDMERB, physical - CFA, academic plus all other evaluated factors) wil be offered the appointment charged to the official.

Fully qualified others on the slate may also be offered appointments by the SA; they wil be charged to other nomination authorities held and managed by the SA.

Where the appointments finally get charged can be fluid until the end, as the clas settles into its final form.
 
Yes, I understand all of the process except the slating. I thought it was you versus all other candidates rather than you versus your nominating slate.
It is you vs every other fully qualified candidate in each nomination category “bucket.”

Therefore, you compete against fully qualified others on your slate for the appointment to be charged to the elected official from that slate.

You compete nationally against all fully qualified candidates from other slates for the appointments that can be charged to other nom authorities.

You complete against all fully qualified candidates who applied for the VP noms.

If you have a Presidential, you compete for one of the 100 appointments that can be charged against that with potentially hundreds of fully qualified others also given that nom due to eligibility.

Ditto for other nom buckets, if you are eligible for other categories.
 
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Hello—I’m looking to find information on nomination competitiveness by state. Any advise? I know we live in a highly competitive area (as per the Academy) and I’m trying to find out how other states rank. Thank you!
 
Hello—I’m looking to find information on nomination competitiveness by state. Any advise? I know we live in a highly competitive area (as per the Academy) and I’m trying to find out how other states rank. Thank you!
It varies district by district within states. Within a given state one district may be highly or even super competitive while others are much less competitive.
Keeping in mind that an MOC will usually have one and might have two actual slots chargeable to them in a given year, I'll offer that my district has 9 plebes in the USNA class of "26 and 17 at USMA. We do not have an abundance of military bases/career military here so clearly, they're getting other nominations and its likely that many are coming out of the "National Pool". Other districts in the state are not quite as intense.
 
It varies district by district within states. Within a given state one district may be highly or even super competitive while others are much less competitive.
Keeping in mind that an MOC will usually have one and might have two actual slots chargeable to them in a given year, I'll offer that my district has 9 plebes in the USNA class of "26 and 17 at USMA. We do not have an abundance of military bases/career military here so clearly, they're getting other nominations and its likely that many are coming out of the "National Pool". Other districts in the state are not quite as intense.
Really appreciate you taking the time and replying! Thank you for the info. It’s so hard to know what to do! We have a second home and are debating which state to apply.
 
Really appreciate you taking the time and replying! Thank you for the info. It’s so hard to know what to do! We have a second home and are debating which state to apply.
You will generally need to apply from where you vote or are otherwise a legal resident of.
 
We have a second home and are debating which state to apply.
You will generally need to apply from where you vote or are otherwise a legal resident of.
Interesting issue -- if still and minor and not registered to vote, how do you determine "legal residence" ? I would expect by the legal residence of parents but have never researched. IF in doubt, contact Admissions and ask where you should apply from.

I would be careful about forum shopping...what do you think the Congressional staffer thinks when you are enrolled in High School in Virginia, and apply to USNA from Wyoming ? (I know, a bit of a stretch, but Wyoming and the Plains states typically have fewer Candidates).

(As an aside -- not trying to start discussion in the Sticky page -if you want other inputs, suggest moving down to the open forums)
 
My daughter is making progress. She completed medical questionnaire last night and scheduled appointments. Met with BGO today. She said she was wonderful. She had a weird glitch with her congressman's submission. His website said we're not his district! Finished CFA with fairly high numbers. She's plugging away.
 
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My daughter is making progress. She completed medical questionnaire last night and scheduled appointment. Met with BGO today. She said she was wonderful. She had a weird glitch with her congressman's submission. His website said we're not his district! Finished CFA with fairly high numbers. She's plugging away.
Check that they didn't redistrict. My congressman just became mine this last election cycle.
 
Is there anything you can do in middle school to help your chances and by suspensions how does that affect your application and do they count middle school ones? Please Answer Fast.
 
Is there anything you can do in middle school to help your chances and by suspensions how does that affect your application and do they count middle school ones? Please Answer Fast.
Welcome Middle Schooler:

Middle School: enroll into solid math, science and English courses. Take pre-AP level if they are offered AND you can handle them (strive for great grades A's or B's). Participate in team sports (track & CC are good too). Stay fit and in shape. Develop excellent study habits by consulting teachers etc. Write down your goals and tape them up so you can visualize them daily. Don't post questionable items on the internet. Participate in extracurricular activities that build skills, practice leadership and are ones you like. Have some fun and remember you will need plans B and C to become an Officer. Fill out the interest form on USNA.edu

Suspensions: I doubt typical suspensions from Middle school will matter. Don't get any more though. Good luck!
 
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Building on @Don't Give Up the Ship excellent answer: Middle school, by itself, won’t make or break your SA application. But it can highly influence it based on the good or bad habits you form then.

For many incoming students, high school is a culture shock. Academically, it moves faster and covers more stuff. Athletically, the others are bigger, faster, more skilled. Socially, it can be a mine field.

So use middle school to build great habits around studying mindfully, working hard, seeking teachers’ help, grinding, grinding, grinding. Use it to develop a physical workout mentality. And use it to understand the pitfalls of social media and peer pressure.

DD declared in the 8th grade that she would attend an SA. (Her freshman “letter to my senior self” literally said “I want to go to the navy academy.”) She set her mind to it and her academic, athletic and social actions in high school reflected that. It’s great to have that goal. And now you can lay the foundation by developing the mindset that all lofty goals require hard work, focused effort and strong willpower.
 
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