Weight of Legacy/Family Status

Dolphins2012

Dolphins2012

10-Year Member
Joined
May 2, 2011
Messages
205
How much does it matter if an applicant to the USNA has family members who have 1) served in the Navy, and 2) graduated from the USNA? Is any of this information requested in the application?
Thanks in advance!
Dolphins2012
 
Very little. Having a parent or sibling in the military gets you a slight bump b/c the view is that you have a better idea of what military life is like. Legacy doesn't really make a difference. Even having a parent who's a flag officer doesn't necessarily help -- I've seen kids of flag officers get turned down more than once.
 
And conversely, we've all known of flag officer's offspring who had no business either being admitted or graduated. So, the real answer is, "it depends." Do not underestimate its value. Nor over-weight it. Situations may be highly politicized, but there is no rule on these circumstances. All you have is what is known. This one can cut for a candidate.

And it's almost a lock that it won't hurt. Never.

P.S. And the situation may not even be a function of flag level. This is purely political, not a matter of rank.
 
usna1985 said:
Very little. Having a parent or sibling in the military gets you a slight bump b/c the view is that you have a better idea of what military life is like. Legacy doesn't really make a difference. Even having a parent who's a flag officer doesn't necessarily help -- I've seen kids of flag officers get turned down more than once.
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I've heard otherwise - even from BGO's.

Having a parent who is a USNA grad does give you a few extra points.

In fact, the way I had it explained to me is that having a grad parent is about the equivalent of a well-written personal essay.

Maybe that's because I wrote my sons' essays. Well - let's just say I heavily proofread them. :shake:
 
Memphis9489 said:
I've heard otherwise - even from BGO's.

Having a parent who is a USNA grad does give you a few extra points.

In fact, the way I had it explained to me is that having a grad parent is about the equivalent of a well-written personal essay.

Maybe that's because I wrote my sons' essays. Well - let's just say I heavily proofread them. :shake:
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True. Without being too specific, having a parent who is a grad carries the exact same weight as being an Eagle scout.

Whistle Pig said:
And conversely, we've all known of flag officer's offspring who had no business either being admitted or graduated. So, the real answer is, "it depends." Do not underestimate its value. Nor over-weight it. Situations may be highly politicized, but there is no rule on these circumstances. All you have is what is known. This one can cut for a candidate.

And it's almost a lock that it won't hurt. Never.

P.S. And the situation may not even be a function of flag level. This is purely political, not a matter of rank.
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No, we've not all "known". Do you have examples or is this just hearsay?
 
Mongo, you may want to do some reading, Jerry. No need to re-expose that dirty laundry here, as there's been noted illustration. And you've been around a long time. I'm sure some research on this forum'll provide the info for which you're looking.

btw, for all readers, a little research on the Capital Gazette and other pubs'll reveal that being a firstie, varsity stud, and child of a flag officer does not lend protection against separation for incredibly stupid behavior, either.

Again, politics is politics, and familial scrambled eggs may or may not compensate for scrambled brains.:eek::thumbdown::thumb::yllol: That sword might cut both ways.
 
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Whistle Pig said:
Mongo, you may want to do some reading, Jerry. No need to re-expose that dirty laundry here, as there's been noted illustration. And you've been around a long time. I'm sure some research on this forum'll provide the info for which you're looking.

btw, for all readers, a little research on the Capital Gazette and other pubs'll reveal that being a firstie, varsity stud, and child of a flag officer does not lend protection against separation for incredibly stupid behavior, either.

Again, politics is politics, and familial scrambled eggs may or may not compensate for scrambled brains.:eek::thumbdown::thumb::yllol: That sword might cut both ways.
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Just as I suspected. Nothing factual.
 
Suspect what you will. And do your own homework. In the meantime, you may want to get a snorkle to alleviate breathing issues with head in sand. :shake: Let's keep this on track.:thumb:
 
Dolphins2012
I think usna1985 answered your question with the first reply, echoed by others - "very little", "slight bump" and "several points" essentially means the same thing - don't count on it making any real difference. Focus on the areas you can control - grades, fitness and leadership. Good luck.
 
Let me try again. I'm not naive enough to believe that, if your parent is the CNO or a Senator, and you're marginally qualified, you might have an easier time than someone w/o those connections. Whether fair or not, that's life and it isn't gonna change.

However, as a GENERAL RULE, having a parent or sibling in the MILITARY (not necessarily USNA) gives you a very small bump. It's equivalent to being team captain or Eagle Scout or doing well on your CFA, attending NASS, etc. For MOST candidates, it won't be a difference maker.

It's important to note that many candidates are admitted with no military ties and many more with no ties to USNA (myself included). And, many USNA parents of well-qualified applicants find their sons and daughters getting the TWEs -- I've seen it happen.
 
Thanks everyone. That is helpful. Our family's connections are a bit distant now from my DS (his great grandfather '44, and grand-uncles '67 - KIA '69 - and '72, and grandfather was NROTC '69), and I knew it would not be a substantial factor, if at all. I was just curious how it might come out, i.e. in the application, or if it's worth mentioning in the essay, maybe parenthetically like above, etc.
 
There's always that fine line to walk between showing off/bragging and representing your accomplishments and influences as much as they should be that I feel like is hard to tackle throughout the admissions process. I'm an Army brat; that's part of who I am, and its something that I grew up with. It was natural for me to talk about my parents in my essays as role models and their connections to the Army. I wasn't mentioning them to show that I was a legacy, etc. If you kid feels like he's been influenced by your other family members that have served, then by all means, it would definitly be a good thing to mention in the essay, but admissions officers I bet can tell when you're writing about something that actually means something to you versus bringing up something and forcing it in just so its said. I'm not saying that is the case with your son at all, and I think your family should be proud of your family's service and tradition which your son is looking to continue. I'm sure your son will do a great job in representing who he is through his essays in what he decides to say.
 
Question - where do you mark on your application that you have SA/Military connection?
 
Can't speak for USNA, but USMA has a part of the personal information form that you input any parental connections to the military and there is a different area where you fill in any siblings/parental alumni connections. I would imagine USNA probably has a similar item somewhere in the pack you fill out
 
Dolphins2012 said:
Thanks everyone. That is helpful. Our family's connections are a bit distant now from my DS (his great grandfather '44, and grand-uncles '67 - KIA '69 - and '72, and grandfather was NROTC '69), and I knew it would not be a substantial factor, if at all. I was just curious how it might come out, i.e. in the application, or if it's worth mentioning in the essay, maybe parenthetically like above, etc.
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The USNA app only asks for the military ties of parents and siblings, but it might be worth noting in an essay.

MemberLG said:
Question - where do you mark on your application that you have SA/Military connection?
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It was one of the parts of the personal data record.
 
So generally, it will help. Somewhat.

However, it should be understood that cases where it has helped in huge ways, daddy was neither a senator nor CNO. And candidate(s) not even "marginally" qualified. I'll venture out and suggest, it's not fair. And fully agree, that's life and it isn't going to change.

So what's the point? While likely only marginally important in the scheme for most candidates who might be in the position to be wondering about this question, there are those instances when it could be the deal-doer, trumping all deficiencies and disqualifiers that would "generally" be the case.
 
My husband and I are both USMC retirees. I had to submit our DD-214s with my DDs application. Someone at the academy called to tell me that I only submitted page one of the DD-214s and they would need the second pages. The fact that they went to the trouble of asking for the documentation suggests that it counts for something, if only to a small degree.
 
Sure it counts. Thanks for validating that. For some a little, for some it is the deal-maker. Maybe for many. You see, it is only the "margin" that counts in the scoring. Thus if that is what gives the edge? And surely is has for a great many. Well, then it is the deal doer, the tipping point. And again, for a select few, it trumps all, often many deficiencies.

On the "margin" thing, think of it this way ... 90% is A, gets appointment. 89% is B, close only counts in horseshoes and hand-grenades. TWE. The 90% had 2 parents who were USMC enlisted. Was that "edge" a little ... or a lot? It was HUGE. And in the end, that is what literally dozens annually are playing on ... the margin. All the rest simply gets you close.

So, you be the judge.

And in any case, it never hurts.

So, to suggest that there is a "general", ho hum, only lends a few points may not be so true. Conversely we all recognize the obvious need for a "company line" about this, for any notion of political influence runs counter to the publicized process.

This need not be a point of contention, but rather being brutally open and honest about that. We may have varying opinions about this, but do not underestimate nor ignore the potential here, be it large or modest in contributing to one's candidacy evaluation.

In the end, what we are doing here is offering varying "tones" and viewpoints, which we all entitled to, as long as we are fair and civil. But the facts and evidence offer substantially less entitlement to interpretation, it seems to me.
 
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angiern said:
My husband and I are both USMC retirees. I had to submit our DD-214s with my DDs application. Someone at the academy called to tell me that I only submitted page one of the DD-214s and they would need the second pages. The fact that they went to the trouble of asking for the documentation suggests that it counts for something, if only to a small degree.
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It's possible they were simply verifying qualification for a Presidential nomination, rather than using the information as admissions decision criteria.
 
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