<p>Just to clarify, the 3rd Q you are referring to is not just ‘academic’ standing but is officially called ‘scholastic’. It includes not only GPA, class rank; but also SAT/ACT scores, teacher recommendations, sports participation, ECA’s, BGO evaluation…etc. Therefore, you can’t just look at someone’s class rank/GPA and say they will automatically get the 3rd Q, it doesn’t work that way.</p>
<p>LOA’s are an entirely different subject and are usually handed out early in the process, as encouragement to highly regarded candidates to continue to keep USNA on their list since the overall application process takes longer then most civilian colleges.</p>