The Decision Has Been Made: Harvard/USNA

boston_usmc
Tue, 11 Apr 2006 22:01:07 +0000

To all of my College Confidential friends -

It is with great pain that I have decided to decline my Offer of Appointment for the Class of 2010. I feel privileged to have received this honor, and I am grateful that I was given the opportunity to attend such a prestigious institution as the United States Naval Academy.

      The Naval Academy has been nothing short of completely impressive in every form of contact I have had with it.  From Summer Seminar, to Candidate Weekend Visit, to other admissions events, I have been awed by the level of professionalism and integrity displayed by USNA representatives.  My Blue and Gold officer was fantastic.  Every midshipman I have spoken to has been nothing short of helpful, and I admire every one of them.

      I have decided to attend Harvard College for the fall of 2006, with an NROTC/Marine Corps option scholarship.  This decision was a very difficult one, and I struggled greatly with it for several months.  The Naval Academy stands for everything I believe in, and the lifestyle was very attractive to me.  Up until I received admission to Harvard, I was very set on becoming a member of the Brigade of Midshipmen.  It seemed like the ideal environment for me, and I had already begun preparing myself for the mental and physical rigors that I would encounter upon entrance.

      My decision came mostly to one major thing:  academics.  I have always wanted to be a Classics major, and my strengths lie more in the humanities than in science.  Harvard will allow me to develop my strengths much more than the Naval Academy curriculum, and will better prepare me for law school after I finish my Marine Corps active duty.  Everything else about the Academy is what drew me to it in the first place:  the culture of fitness, the honor concept, the integrity of the student body, and the regimented lifestyle.  That is why it is very difficult to let go of the idea that I will be missing out on these things by going to Harvard instead of USNA.  I still get a knot in my stomach when I think about that.

      I just wanted to thank you all for being a part of my Naval Academy journey on College Confidential.  My Naval Academy experience has been nothing short of incredible, and I will always hold a place in my heart for Annapolis.  I have made so many great friends throughout this process, and I will have the utmost respect for any USNA graduate I meet while I am in the Marine Corps.  I have been impressed by the Naval Academy beyond what words can express.

      I am totally serious when I say that I want to write to you guys during Plebe Summer.  Please PM me with your address when you get it; I can guarantee you at LEAST one letter, lol.

      Again, THANK YOU to all of the students, parents, candidates, and alumni who have supported me throughout this process and given me invaluable advice.  You are an amazing bunch of people, and you should all be very proud of your USNA connections.  And don&#8217;t despair:  I will still hang around these boards, especially to offer advice to future candidates who inquire about NROTC and want to learn more.

      A part of me wants to be at USNA on June 28th more than anything; on the other hand, something else tells me that God has plans for me up there at Harvard&#8230;and I think that this is an opportunity that I really need to take.  Who knows, maybe I personally could be a bigger asset to the Corps with a Harvard education than with a USNA one.  And maybe I will make a lasting impression on that Harvard campus, so that ROTC will begin to thrive there and actually have a major presence.  The important thing is, I will still be a United States Marine when I graduate, I will see all of you future Marines at The Basic School.  Oo-rah!



semper fi,
harvard college/NROTC-Marine Option
class of 2010