What Should I do to Improve my Chances?

[aidantcbennett]

I'm currently a junior attending a well ranked high school in Virginia, I was wonder what my chances of getting into the Naval Academy were and whether or not I should just give up and just apply for a ROTC scholarship at a public school. I understand my GPA is pretty well below average but could a good sat score(1300-1400) make up for it?

Stats:

• 3.3 unweighted 3.6 weighted(Lazy Freshman and sophomore year)
• 1300 Sat but planning to retake
• Varsity Swim 2 years JV 2 Years
• Rigorous AP Classes that include-US History, World History, Government, Micro/Macro, I will take Calc AB and Physics next year
• Many honors classes
• 100 hours of community service for my local church
• Worked as a lifeguard every summer since freshman year

Not sure how much it affects my chances but both my parents are pretty well ranked officers in the Navy and worked as professors at the naval academy. While my mom is an alumni of the naval academy. I have also moved frequently as the son of military parents, including overseas.

 

[hooorahhhh]

I'm currently a junior attending a well ranked high school in Virginia, I was wonder what my chances of getting into the Naval Academy were and whether or not I should just give up and just apply for a ROTC scholarship at a public school. I understand my GPA is pretty well below average but could a good sat score(1300-1400) make up for it?

Stats:

• 3.3 unweighted 3.6 weighted(Lazy Freshman and sophomore year)
• 1300 Sat but planning to retake
• Varsity Swim 2 years JV 2 Years
• Rigorous AP Classes that include-US History, World History, Government, Micro/Macro, I will take Calc AB and Physics next year
• Many honors classes
• 100 hours of community service for my local church
• Worked as a lifeguard every summer since freshman year

Not sure how much it affects my chances but both my parents are pretty well ranked officers in the Navy and worked as professors at the naval academy. While my mom is an alumni of the naval academy. I have also moved frequently as the son of military parents, including overseas.

The last part is huge, do you qualify for presidential nom?

 

[IronmanDaremo]

There is no "legacy" aspect to a service academy (anymore - not that ever officially was), other than being able to qualify for the Presidential nom bucket. And if both of your parents are career, they certainly meet the 8-year requirement to qualify for that nom category.

And I would not suggest trying to leverage the "my parent's are in the Navy as ranking officers" thing in your actual application. In our area (MD/NoVA), 0-6s are a dime a dozen and 0-7s are doing PowerPoint presentations to staffers. High ranking people are all over the place here.

For NoVA and MD, you are in a super competitive area. You really need to shine and be outstanding in a field of outstanding candidates. Your grades and SAT, while solid, are still probably barely on the cusp of the local kids you'd be competing against. Our area is full of over-achievers with 1500+ SATs and near 4.0 GPAs unweighted and 8 - 12 season varsity athletes.

I'm not trying to discourage you, but you are probably in the position where you would need to step up a lot of your game.

 

[cb7893]

1300 Sat but planning to retake

I will take Calc AB and Physics next year

There is a standard recommendation on this forum to take the hardest classes you can.

Judging by your SAT score I have to ask how you are doing in your math classes. Are you taking Pre-Calc now? If so, how is it going?

My DSes had a HS Calc teacher who had a simply piece of advice, "You get good at Math by doing Math."

Unless you can do high level math in your sleep, it would be a good idea at some point to get a jump on the Calc and Physics sometime before your classes begin. DS #1 took Calculus for Dummies on his year abroad during HS Junior year. DS#2 dicked around with Kahn Academy Calculus. This will not only help you stay ahead in your classes and help your Math SAT score, but also have the knock on effect of making your Math life much easier wherever you pursue your college education.

 

[creation123]

Do you know your class rank?

 

[Heatherg21]

I'm the glass half full girl, make them tell you no if this is something you want. You have places to improve, make a concerted effort. A lot of your peers and some before you have similar 'lazy freshmen' year situations, COVID plays a part to some degree.

Make a plan, execute it, and if it's important to you-- apply. Apply for NROTC as well. At the end of the day, yes you are in a competitive area, but ultimately everyone is based on who their competition is each year in each MOC district. It's a whole-person scenario, and you have some things you can use to demonstrate leadership and responsibility, primarily lifeguarding.

 

[Don't Give Up the Ship]

I'm currently a junior attending a well ranked high school in Virginia, I was wonder what my chances of getting into the Naval Academy were and whether or not I should just give up and just apply for a ROTC scholarship at a public school. I understand my GPA is pretty well below average but could a good sat score(1300-1400) make up for it?

Stats:

• 3.3 unweighted 3.6 weighted(Lazy Freshman and sophomore year)
• 1300 Sat but planning to retake
• Varsity Swim 2 years JV 2 Years
• Rigorous AP Classes that include-US History, World History, Government, Micro/Macro, I will take Calc AB and Physics next year
• Many honors classes
• 100 hours of community service for my local church
• Worked as a lifeguard every summer since freshman year

Not sure how much it affects my chances but both my parents are pretty well ranked officers in the Navy and worked as professors at the naval academy. While my mom is an alumni of the naval academy. I have also moved frequently as the son of military parents, including overseas.

OP: if you don't apply, you have 100% chance of not getting Appointed.

 

[aidantcbennett]

I'm the glass half full girl, make them tell you no if this is something you want. You have places to improve, make a concerted effort. A lot of your peers and some before you have similar 'lazy freshmen' year situations, COVID plays a part to some degree.

Make a plan, execute it, and if it's important to you-- apply. Apply for NROTC as well. At the end of the day, yes you are in a competitive area, but ultimately everyone is based on who their competition is each year in each MOC district. It's a whole-person scenario, and you have some things you can use to demonstrate leadership and responsibility, primarily lifeguarding.

I believe I qualify for dual state ship because my parents are technically Pennsylvania residents but I live in Virginia. Would getting a nomination in Pennsylvania be a lot easier then Virginia?

 

[aidantcbennett]

There is no "legacy" aspect to a service academy (anymore - not that ever officially was), other than being able to qualify for the Presidential nom bucket. And if both of your parents are career, they certainly meet the 8-year requirement to qualify for that nom category.

And I would not suggest trying to leverage the "my parent's are in the Navy as ranking officers" thing in your actual application. In our area (MD/NoVA), 0-6s are a dime a dozen and 0-7s are doing PowerPoint presentations to staffers. High ranking people are all over the place here.

For NoVA and MD, you are in a super competitive area. You really need to shine and be outstanding in a field of outstanding candidates. Your grades and SAT, while solid, are still probably barely on the cusp of the local kids you'd be competing against. Our area is full of over-achievers with 1500+ SATs and near 4.0 GPAs unweighted and 8 - 12 season varsity athletes.

I'm not trying to discourage you, but you are probably in the position where you would need to step up a lot of your game.

I believe I qualify for dual state ship because my parents are technically Pennsylvania residents but I live in Virginia. Would getting a nomination in Pennsylvania be a lot easier then Virginia?

 

[Capt MJ]

I believe I qualify for dual state ship because my parents are technically Pennsylvania residents but I live in Virginia. Would getting a nomination in Pennsylvania be a lot easier then Virginia?

Your official residence likely aligns with your parents’ declared state of residence for their voting residence and taxes. Military people are transient residents when they are on orders in other states other than their declared state for tax resident and voting purposes.

 

[Heatherg21]

I believe I qualify for dual state ship because my parents are technically Pennsylvania residents but I live in Virginia. Would getting a nomination in Pennsylvania be a lot easier than Virginia?

To be honest any answer I give you would be speculative. Other BGOs with more experience can weigh in.

Totally dependent on the district in PA and the applicants that cycle.

 

[A1Janitor]

All it takes is one great candidate on a slate in a presumed “noncompetitive district.”

CaptMJ is spot on. I do multi-state tax returns for clients. There is always a resident state and nonresident state. Or two part year resident states (moving in and out of states during year).

Claiming a different district seems like trying to game the system.

Improve your weak areas. And submit the best application you can.

 

[Capt MJ]

Pennsylvania is also a great home state to claim as your permanent residence for tax and voting purposes if you are active duty Navy serving outside the state. PA does not require you to pay state income tax if you are on orders serving outside the state. Husband is a PA native and kept it as his home state for voting and tax purposes his entire career. He was never stationed in PA (not many AD billets in PA - some NROTC, etc., but no major fleet homeports), and never paid state income tax to PA. Army has more AD there, I think.

PA also does not tax military or federal retirement pay.

 

[hooorahhhh]

Pennsylvania is also a great home state to claim as your permanent residence for tax and voting purposes if you are active duty Navy serving outside the state. PA does not require you to pay state income tax if you are on orders serving outside the state. Husband is a PA native and kept it as his home state for voting and tax purposes his entire career. He was never stationed in PA (not many AD billets in PA - some NROTC, etc., but no major fleet homeports), and never paid state income tax to PA.

PA also does not tax military or federal retirement pay.

Wait, I did not know that, thanks!

 

[Capt MJ]

Wait, I did not know that, thanks!

These kinds of things you learn about once you join and are mentored by seniors savvy in how to optimize things.

There are many states which have no state income tax at all. Great states to claim while on AD. But states with no income tax get their money from other state revenue streams, such as sales tax, property tax, etc. There are other states such as PA which do not tax their residents serving AD out of state. There are many states now which do not tax military retirement income or else exclude portions of the retirement income.

My DBIL is also a retired Navy captain and his wife is a retired federal employee. They sold their home in NoVa and retired just over the MD line near Gettysburg, PA. Neither pay state income tax on their govt pensions. They also are not that far from us in Annapolis or married children in NoVa.

Of course, AD military personnel can’t just pick a state out of mid-air and declare it. My home state of GA wanted me to pay state income tax wherever I was stationed. The minute I had orders to FL and began to live there, I registered to vote there (and continued to vote absentee for the rest of my AD career), got a driver’s license, etc. I went to base legal and got help drafting a letter to GA tax division when it was tax time, stating I was no longer a GA resident, and that I had established residency in FL. I then changed my state from GA to FL for military pay purposes.

The link below is a good source, though unofficial.. The info is updated yearly.

State Tax Information for Military Members and Retirees

What tax benefits does your state offer to military members and retirees? Find out which benefits are available to you.

www.military.com

Apologies to the OP for this rabbit hole, but it’s useful stuff.

 

[Don't Give Up the Ship]

Sorry, to go further down the Rabbit hole...PA also doesnt tax Social Security income. Iff you are able to legally avoid paying state income tax (probably about 5% of your income), then invest that $ into the TSP ...Time Value of Money matters most when invested early in a career. It will make a huge difference. Most young people (and many older people), never learn this.

 

[💫💫💫]

I believe I qualify for dual state ship because my parents are technically Pennsylvania residents but I live in Virginia. Would getting a nomination in Pennsylvania be a lot easier then Virginia?

I just went through the PA nomination application process. Feel free to DM me any questions you have about the process. My BGO said PA is one of the hardest states to get in from, but I don’t think it’s as hard as getting in from Virginia.

 

[HardKnockLife]

I'm currently a junior attending a well ranked high school in Virginia, I was wonder what my chances of getting into the Naval Academy were and whether or not I should just give up and just apply for a ROTC scholarship at a public school. I understand my GPA is pretty well below average but could a good sat score(1300-1400) make up for it?

Stats:

• 3.3 unweighted 3.6 weighted(Lazy Freshman and sophomore year)
• 1300 Sat but planning to retake
• Varsity Swim 2 years JV 2 Years
• Rigorous AP Classes that include-US History, World History, Government, Micro/Macro, I will take Calc AB and Physics next year
• Many honors classes
• 100 hours of community service for my local church
• Worked as a lifeguard every summer since freshman year

Not sure how much it affects my chances but both my parents are pretty well ranked officers in the Navy and worked as professors at the naval academy. While my mom is an alumni of the naval academy. I have also moved frequently as the son of military parents, including overseas.

You can still apply for an NROTC scholarship, I would recommend finding a way to take a form of Chemistry. Im not sure of your background or fitness level but make sure you are relatively fit and take the CFA as many times as needed to get the best scores. About the background, The way its bee explained to me is, if you're a "silver spoon" kid and you just dont seem to make the best out of the endless resources you have your chances of joining will be substantially lower than someone who came from a very rough background and paved their own way with the resources they have even if their academics or slightly lower. The Academy looks at EVERYTHING they want the most well rounded people.