Can you get a congressional recommendation?

Op here- thanks for all the great advice thus far!

Anonymous wrote:If you don't get a spot your senior year then consider a gap year (join the service as a reservist or guardsman); then apply from within. And also take relevant college courses that line up with the academy's freshmen year requirements and get a B or better.

It is EXTREMELY hard to get an Academy spot as enlisted and is dependent on factors you can't control (like superior officer's willingness to let you go).

College courses + ROTC is a better path.

Yes, the medical stuff is hard. If he's ever been diagnosed with that stuff he will get DQ'ed from the physical and then need a waiver. Some is waiverable, some is not.

Anonymous wrote:If you don't get a spot your senior year then consider a gap year (join the service as a reservist or guardsman); then apply from within. And also take relevant college courses that line up with the academy's freshmen year requirements and get a B or better.

This is good advice, but just know everyone starts in the academy at year 1, no matter what college courses you’ve taken.

Leadership, athleticism, and community service is valued. Be the captain of a sports team, student govt, a student mentor, etc.

Also- figure out if there is anything that would be disqualifying before he gets his heart set on military academy. If he’s ever been diagnosed with adhd, depression, anxiety, a learning disability, food allergies, asthma, eczema- those are all disqualifying.

If you don't get a spot your senior year then consider a gap year (join the service as a reservist or guardsman); then apply from within. And also take relevant college courses that line up with the academy's freshmen year requirements and get a B or better.

Get the best gpa you can and maximize standardized sat scores.

My DD15 is in Sea Cadets as a way to see if she's interested in doing ROTC in college but there's a very large cohort of kids in her unit who are doing it for service academy application purposes.

https://www.seacadets.org/

OP my DC is hoping for an appointment this year. If we had to do high school again I would make sure he goes to the USNA summer STEM program.

do summer seminar at naval academy.

Find a USNA alum to mentor him. DH is a grad and was on the committee for one of the senators' who did recs. He spent quite a bit of time helping kids fine tune their applications, some of them on their 2nd and 3rd try. (That's how DH got in, persistence). Anyway, it's VERY hard from this area. Move to South Dakota. Half kidding. GL

Yes to the service academy forums website. It's quite helpful and you can easily search just about any topic. Also consider applying to and hopefully attending one of the summer seminars at USNA, https://www.usna.edu/Admissions/Programs/NASS.php#fndtn-panel1-Steps-For, which he can do when he's a rising senior. It also wouldn't hurt to visit USNA for any of their home games for soccer, lacrosse, basketball, crew, etc. Good luck!

West Point, Annapolis, and Air Force all value leadership, fitness, community service, and top academics. So he should align his ECs with those things in mind. The 4 year ROTC scholarships also align with those priorities.

check out the service academy forums. lots of good information. my kids are doing rotc. good luck!

https://www.serviceacademyforums.com/index.php

I have a freshman interested in a service academy. He's a STEM type kid, very good student, and athlete. He's a good athlete bute not a standout. The Naval Academy appeals to him but it open to the other academies as well.
He played 2 JV sports this year and a club team for the 1 sport that's a passion. He started a STEM club outside of school for mentoring younger kids and is also hoping to coach in his sport.
Sports keep him busy and he's not interested in doing any school related clubs... Anything else you would recommend doing?