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<p>Not sure how you understand this. Go to the posted link above - each academy can appoint a maximum of 100 candidates with a presidential nomination. Far more than that number apply - which is why it is important for those who qualify for a presidential to also apply for a congressional nomination.
Not all presidential nominees are legacies - you can have an enlisted parent or a parent who went through OCS or ROTC.</p>
<p>The superintendent may nominate only 50 candidates for appointment. From what I hear - far less than that number get a superintendent’s apppointment each year.</p>
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<p>First of all - the political maneuvering that you suggest is a pretty strong accusation. Some things on the surface may not seem fair but become clearer as more knowledge is attained.
It is important to get all the facts and learn as much as you can about the process before attacking it.</p>
<p>I didn’t see any personal attacks in the above thread - RPIbound came across as whining and willing to blame the system or political maneuvering for his lack of an appointment. While I understand disappointment (my daughter applied twice to USMA before getting her appointment) - it is common for high quality kids to get turned down. RPIBound doesn’t tell us the whole story - he didn’t mention athletics or exceptional leadership. </p>
<p>Again, the Academies use a wholistic approach to admissions - it is not all stat based. They are looking for a scholar/leader/athlete model in a strong candidate. If you are weak in one area then you have to be really, really strong in others to make up for it. Sometimes on the surface it looks like high quality candidates are turned down for lower quality candidates.<br>
Indeed, some very high quality candidates are turned down - some who even got into Harvard. That, however, is a judgement that is difficult to make on a forum such as this as none of us are sitting in the board room examining each candidate package.
Finally, the Service academies are America’s academies. They are bound by law to accept a cross section of Americans from all Congressional districts in the country - that does lend itself to some disctrict being much more competitive than others - fair or not - those are the rules.</p>