Welcome New College Rep, USNA Admissions

Roger_Dooley · 05-10-2005, 11:32 AM

Please join me in welcoming our latest College Rep, USNA Admissions. As with all of our College Reps, we have have taken appropriate offline steps to verify that the rep is, in fact, from the school.

The USNA forum has been the most popular service academy forum here at CC, and we are happy to have a USNA rep join us. Welcome!

momoftwins · 05-10-2005, 12:10 PM

Great idea! Any chance of getting someone from Admissions on the other service academy forums?

KateLewis · 05-10-2005, 12:23 PM

Outstanding.

MOT - I think Docfrance does a great job for the USAFA forum (because he adds interpretation as well as the sales story).

usna09mom · 05-10-2005, 01:11 PM

This is great news! The information that USNA Admissions has provided on this forum has been very helpful.

bulldog · 05-10-2005, 01:30 PM

Glad to see Admissions is here. Bet they've gotten a real hoot out of some of the postings

Sure could be helpful as there are tough questions to be answered and some on a more official basis than just friendly advice.

momoftwins · 05-10-2005, 01:41 PM

KL,

I agree with you about Docfrance. I think he provides great insight - and I have always wished we had a go-to person for USMA also.

DeepThroat · 05-10-2005, 02:25 PM

"Please join me in welcoming our latest College Rep, USNA Admissions. As with all of our College Reps, we have have taken appropriate offline steps to verify that the rep is, in fact, from the school."

I stand corrected! Mea Culpa!

DeepThroat

Cougar_62 · 05-12-2005, 12:20 PM

You stated in a prior posting that one reason you are here is to try to dispel dangerous myths. I have heard people state on more than one occasion that a candidate to any military academy who achieves the rank of Cadet Colonel in the Civil Air Patrol will get an "automatic appointment." This has always sounded fallacious to me. I have never been able to find anything about this in print. While it is quite an accomplishment for a CAP cadet to become a Colonel I really doubt if there is any such thing as an "automatic appointment."

It's possible that this rumor got started because the last 7 or 8 winners of the National Cadet of the Year award from CAP, who are all Colonels, have all gotten appointments to the Air Force Academy.

Care to comment USNA Admissions?

This is my first posting, but I've been reading posts for a while. I'm one of those parents that some of you don't like because I'm on here instead of my daughter. I'm mostly just searching for information so she can concentrate on developing herself into a good candidate.

fiterace87 · 05-15-2005, 12:18 AM

In reference to the Civil Air Patrol question:
As personnel of the official Auxiliary of the United States Air Force, high achieving Civil Air Patrol cadets who enlist in the Air Force (and almost any service for that matter) are rewarded. AFI 10-2701 (paragraph 4.5.4) specifically states in which way CAP cadet officers are rewarded. According to the Instruction, Spaatz Cadets (C/Col) are given "preferential" treatment in applying to the Air Force Academy. While this Instruction applies specifically to the Air Force (I do not know if there is a similar Navy instruction), it can be assumed that there is unofficial "preference" given by the Naval and Military Academies to Spaatz Cadets. Since there are only approximately 30 individuals per year who earn this award (less that 1% of all CAP cadets who begin the program) it can be inferred that each academy recognizes that Spaatz cadets are truly outstanding individuals and as long as they meet general admission criteria they have a good chance of obtaining an appointment. Spaatz Cadets are not "just another Eagle Scout." While I do not know if the Naval Academy officially recognizes the importance of the Spaatz Award, I would bet that they look highly upon a candidate who earns this coveted award. This is because the academies know that a Spaatz Cadet is exactly someone who they are looking for. Spaatzen are intelligent, athletic and demonstrate the ability to set a long-term goal and achieve it. They have shown in interest in the military and are supposed to have learned the basics of being a successful leader. For these reasons, a Spaatz Cadet stands out among the crowd.
In summary, I do not know if the Naval Academy gives "preferential" treatment to Spaatz Cadets like the Air Force Academy does, but I would be willing to bet that Spaatz Cadets stand a significantly better chance of receiving an appointment that someone who has the same stats who is simply a Mitchell Cadet or an Eagle Scout. If a candidate earns the Spaatz Award, there may be no such thing as an "automatic appointment" but these cadets have a significantly higher chance of gaining admission to any service academy. I hope this answers your question. To read all of AFI 10-2701, just google it and download the pdf file. Good luck!

Cougar_62 · 05-16-2005, 12:51 PM

Thanks Fiterace87,

That was just what we were looking for. "Preferential Treatment" is one of those interesting intangibles. I guess the obvious thing to do is excel at everything and present the best package.

My daughter should receive her Mitchell Award in September, in the minimum 18 months since she joined. Unfortunately, if she can do everything in the minimum time, she'll get her Spaatz in May of 2007, (38 months) right before she would be entering the class of 2011. Probably not something she can count on to help her, but I guess it will help that she's steadily progressing toward it.

fiterace87 · 05-16-2005, 08:43 PM

Cougar,
I'm glad I could help. I am in the same position as your daughter. I am applying to the Air Force Academy (as well as the other big two) and hope to attempt my Spaatz this autumn, and passing it would be a great boost in my chances for an appointment. Keep in mind that while CAP is a great program, it is not the only thing the academies look at. You are correct in stating that "the obvious thing to do is excel at everything..." and not just CAP. If if comes between maintaining good grades or excelling in CAP, stick with the academics. That is what comes first. While Spaatz cadets may be exceptions to an extent (preferential treatment), they must still meet admission requirements, and other cadet officers who do not reach Spaatz (Mitchell, even Earhart) really blend into the crowd and they need as good academic, athletic and leadership qualifications as other candidates. The Mitchell is considered equivalent to an Eagle and there are a lot of Eagles (and Mitchells for that matter). Encourage your daughter to advance as far in the program as possible and to participate actively. Tell her not to stop at Mitchell because if her goal is to attend an academy, then the Mitchell alone will not make her stand out as much as an Earhart or Eaker will. By the way, good luck flying through the officer program; it is considerably more difficult to advance in grade as a Cadet Officer than it is as a Cadet NCO. I know from experience ;-). Your daughter may have heard of the dreaded SDA; do not be fooled, these papers do take a bit of time to complete in addition to other school work and sports and ECAs etc...I flew through the NCO ranks and have slowly climbed the Cadet Officer ladder. In any case, good luck to your daughter in her CAP endeavours. Good luck with the Mitchell and I hope her officer career goes well. I have really learned much from the cadet program, and hopefully so will your daughter. Best wishes for the future!

xclusive_azian_shawti · 07-06-2005, 03:16 PM

I am also planning on applying to the USNA...In my opinion, it is the best service academy...my brother went there and I love the Army Vs Navy football games!! He said it was the best 4 years of his life...Im enrolled in Navy JROTC and it is my favorite class b/c it gives you leadership, academics, fitness and discipline all in one...If i dont go to USNA, then im surely going to attend ROTC in college and hopefully attend the Uniformed Services med school

By the way...GO NAVY BEAT ARMY LOL

momof1 · 08-10-2005, 11:03 AM

USNA Admissions, are you around? There is a question on another thread as to whether the notation "Presidential Nomination" on the CIS indicates that the nomination was received or just the request. thanks!

Navymom2b · 12-06-2005, 10:50 PM

Is it true that if you get the scholastically qualified letter and you are medically and physically qualifed, you won't get a LOA?
Someone posted this.

hamarcelo · 12-07-2005, 12:55 AM

"I have heard people state on more than one occasion that a candidate to any military academy who achieves the rank of Cadet Colonel in the Civil Air Patrol will get an 'automatic appointment.' This has always sounded fallacious to me."

From what Cougar said, I agree. Last year, I had a CAP cadet commander who was a colonel in my squadron that applied to the Naval Academy. He didn't get in. I don't know why, but it must have been his GPA. But this year, I got appointed to the Naval Academy Prep School and I'm only a cadet staff sergeant. You don't really need Spaatz Award to get in. Motivation is also a big factor. That's why I got in. I spent my most of my time with varsity sports, earning letters, and getting good grades. The Academies look at each candidate differently.