Getting admitted

Mallen · 05-09-2008, 08:19 PM

I know this isn't the first one of these questions that you guys have answered, but I would really like some help.As you migh have guessed, I would like to obtain admission to the USMMA, and have a few questions (I am glad I found this site). Anyway...

As of know, I am a freshman in high school, and I have a 3.8 gpa (2 honors classes), and plan on raising it above a 4.0 (I had a bad 1st semester). I am awaiting a board of review for my eagle scout, am in band (marching/concert), active in my church, and am by all means physically fit (65 push-ups, 10 dead hang pull-ups, 6:05 mile, and 90 situps/2 min.). I am applying to be a peer counsilor for the next year and also plan on joining a club of some sort. I have also been umpiring for my leauge for 5 years now (paid, not community service).

The only things that are going to affect (I hope) me severely are that I go to a large school, so my class rank might not be in the top 10% and I am not doing any sports (I am not the most competitive person), but plan on doing JV track (very small chance of getting on varsity in any of my years)

So my questions are as follows:

1) What else can I do to help me get into the academy (I plan on majoring in ocean engineering and joining the navy submarine program)?

2) Is the USMMA as competitive as the other 4 (I rulled them out because of sports)?

3) And, if anyone has past experience, what is it like, and is it worth the efforts?

Thanks and I look foward to hearing from people.

Cheers!

kp2010mom&dad · 05-09-2008, 09:34 PM

Mallen, First of all good luck, it's smart to start looking at and planning for college now. That being said you should check out all of the links on the Kings Point site. United States Merchant Marine Academy There is a fund of information there as well as checking out the posts new and old here. Try the running if for no other reason it will help you prepare for Indoc. Lots of running there. Again best of luck!

kp2010mom&dad · 05-09-2008, 09:36 PM

The link United States Merchant Marine Academy

suzannegra · 05-09-2008, 09:57 PM

One more word of advice. SAT's. Take them early and often and make sure you study for them. Even if your first SAT's are low, they will take the highest grades, so I would start taking them in your Sophmore year just so you can get a feel for them.

is2day4him · 05-10-2008, 10:39 AM

i agree with suzannegra and mom&dad,
take the SAT at least twice. study the SATprep material that you can usually get through your school. it helped me out quite a bit. i took the test twice and my score improved 90 points the second try.
you're a freshman, so you have PLENTY of time, but keep your eye on the prize. just know that USMMA is not like the other academies... we just had the Superintendants and Commandants from all the academies here and they were quite surprised at how we operate.
here's a few major differences that come to mind:
1) we're about 1/5 the size of the bigger academies
2) we are D 3 for sports, which means you can pretty much walk on for a sport.
3) KP is a bit easier to get into, but it's substantially harder to graduate from. my class started with 273 candidates, i'd say we're below 200 now.

if you want to be an engineer, go for it. it's a difficult path. do yourself a favor, if you can take calculus do it, as high as you can. take physics, chemistry, and the other sciences, but focus on physics... calc based if possible.
also, take a drafting/ Auto CAD class. it'll help you out a lot. learn excel.

i got in this place without being in the top 10%, as i graduated out of a class of 712 students. i didn't do varsity sports either, but they get over that. if you stay active, stay in good shape and make up for the lack of sports with other activities, you should be fine. community service helps!
keep focused and don't give up!

Mallen · 05-10-2008, 11:56 AM

Thanks everyone who replied, but expecially is2day4him, your answer really helped. I am planning on taking 6 AP classes (AP Physics 2 years, AP chem, AP Calc 2 years, and AP Gov which is a graduation requirment). However, can you please enlighten me on what a drafting/ Auto CAD class is, as I have no clue.

Cheers!

is2day4him · 05-10-2008, 01:02 PM

drafting and CAD are ways to do engineering drawings. not sure what your school might call it, but it's a technical drawing class. you'll be doing lots of them here as an engineer. i never took the class in high school, but now i'm wishing i would have. would have made plebe year/ sea a lot easier.

hope that helps!
: )