<p>You have an exceptional 8th grader on your hands, not a slug. In 8th grade, he really isn’t into the college game yet. To him, the term “military institution” may make him a little apprehensive. Also, 8th graders hear an abundance of propaganda against the military in school, from the media, etc. When it comes time for him to think about college, his life should not have been structured around applying to a service academy. In 8th grade, I had no idea what the service academies were. I had this notion in my mind that all members of the military were there because they weren’t smart enough to go to college. I spent my 8th grade years playing basketball for the boys and girls club thinking that I’d be a basketball star in high school. I made the varsity team in 9th grade and sat the bench. I took up track in the spring of 9th grade and ran every season after that (Cross country in the winter, indoor track in the winter) and became one of the best runners in the state albeit the smallest one. My times were good enough to get calls from Navy, Dartmouth, Tulane, Princeton, all kinds of places… Sometimes you don’t find your niche until high school I’m sure with your guidance, your son won’t be quite as misinformed as I was and he’ll be able to construct his future the way he sees fit along the way.</p>
<p>Point being is that when his friends start talking about colleges, and he has good grades, committment in EC’s, success in sports, he’ll be able to apply anywhere he wants, even a service academy. He’ll do research on his own about colleges, surely, and if he’s doing a search of top schools, he’ll remember that his mom had told him what the service academies entailed. My best advice is to just keep him informed about the options that the academies offer. In the end, coming to an SA might not be what he wants, but you can at least help set up his future by helping him become competitive in any college admissions game that he chooses to exhibit.</p>