United States Naval Academy (USNA) Visit

The USNA holds a Centers of Influence visit for Counselors, Teachers, Administrators, Coaches, and Social Workers from around the country and US territories to come to their campus to learn about the USNA. Ms. Wood from the Counseling Department was able to attend, and here's what she learned!

Campus: The USNA started in 1845 and is located in Annapolis, MD, which is about 40 minutes east of DC and 40 minutes north of Baltimore. It sits on 338 acres, next to the water, and is a beautiful campus. The mission seeks to develop men and women morally, mentally, and physically.  It has the largest dormitory in the US, Bancroft Hall, which also houses Memorial Hall, where they have set aside space dedicated to the men and women who have lost their lives while serving.

Bancroft Hall

King Hall

Other side of Bancroft Hall

King Hall, which is their dining hall, holds all 4,400 midshipmen for their meals. They are divided by companies, and eat with those same 130-140 people every day. They also live in the dorm by hall with their company. Currently, there are 30 companies.

Entrance in Bancroft Hall

Bancroft Hall-Memorial Hall entrance

Each freshman starts out in the summer after their senior year, moving up to Annapolis in late June/early July to go through Plebe Summer, which is a 6 week training where they have no access to phones or the outside world. After that, they begin their freshman year. Every day, they have a strict schedule, where they are up about 18 hours a day. Plebes have Plebe Formation, which they do every weekday at noon, and can only leave campus on Saturdays from 12 pm-12 midnight. They have to stay dressed in their Naval uniforms (have one for summer and winter), and gradually earn more freedom as they move up into upperclassmen.
All 4,400 students are called the Brigade (student body) of Midshipmen (officers-in-training).
Freshman-->Plebe
Sophomore-->Youngster
Junior-->2nd class
Senior-->1st class
Most colleges will report their 6-year graduation rate, but since the USNA is a 4-year program and structured differently, they measure their graduation rate after each senior class leaves, and the Class of 2019 had an 89% graduation rate, which is very high! Here is the newest profile of the impressive Class of 2023 to give you an idea of the men and women who are the newest brigade of midshipmen.

Academics/Activities: There are 25 majors and they are divided into three areas: Engineering, Math & Science, and Humanities. Every midshipman graduates with a Bachelor of Science degree, even if they are an English major. 65% of their graduates are STEM majors and their core curriculum, which is 145 hours, includes classes in Chemistry, Physics, Cyber, Math (through Calc III or beyond), Engineering, Ethics, Law, Seamanship, and Physical Education. Students take a minimum of 15 hours and most take 18-21 during their time, since there is also a Naval curriculum to prepare them for the area that they will enter into after graduation. 50% of their faculty are civilians, while the other 50% are from the Navy. 33% of faculty are women. Each person will take Physical Education every semester, whether it is in a D-1 (33 teams), club (16 teams), or intramural (10 teams) sport. In the summer, they will have 1 month off, with the other two months having various activities that relate to the service-piece of the Naval academy.

Last year there were 28,000 hours given to the academy and community outside of what is required. There are also plenty of clubs/activities that students can join, as well as a Gospel Choir and Glee Club (men's and women's) that perform around the nation. There are also clubs specifically for LGBTQ and minorities. Currently, the USNA is 26% female, 74% male, and 36% minority. Students will also have a host family in the local Annapolis area. This is a family who is able to be a home-away-from-home, to visit with and to have as a mentor while at USNA. Many of these relationships last a lifetime!

Admissions: The admissions process for an academy is unlike any other college application. For the USNA, the first thing to check is eligibility. You must be 17, not married, pregnant, or have any dependents, and be a US Citizen. Then, you will fill out is their pre-application. Once they have received it and looked that over, you will get an email (remember to check spam) to complete the application. They start to send those emails out as early as May of your Junior year. They advise to get started sooner rather than later due to all the steps in the process. One of the things they look for, besides the qualifications below, is your resiliency. What have you faced and how have you responded? What leadership roles have you taken and how have you influenced change in your community?

One of the biggest differences with the academies is the Nomination. Every person that becomes a part of the academy has a nomination from a US Representative or US Senator that represent your district as well as the Vice President of the US. There are also ways to get a nomination from an active US Marine or Naval officer. This is a separate process from the application and each Congressman has their own application process with different deadlines from the USNA.

In the application you'll need to submit your SAT/ACT scores from the testing agency, as well as mail your transcript (which you can request for $3 from Mrs. Singleton in Counseling). You will also submit a Math Teacher and an English Teacher's recommendation. You'll fill out an activities record, write a personal statement, and put in academic information (ex: class rank). While there is no minimum GPA or SAT/ACT, a strong foundation in Math and Science is important, due to the heavy STEM-curriculum at the USNA.

After 50% of your application is complete, you will be able to get your medical examination done, which is administered by the DoDMERB (Department of Defense Medical Examination Review Board). They will send you to have a sports physical locally and that agency will report back to the DoDMERB once it's completed. There are some disqualifying conditions, but there are also some medical conditions that you can get a waiver for. Each academy differs in what their qualifications are for the medical exam. the DoDMERB knows more than the USNA will about what is considered a concern.

The Candidate Fitness Assessment is the next step. This assessment includes a 1-mile run, basketball throw (on your knees), pull-ups, shuttle run, push-ups, and crunches. The score is out of 600, but each event is scored differently and candidates don't know which part of their score is which event. They advise you to do this assessment multiple times, as the higher the score, the better. Plus, since the demands of the Naval Academy don't stop after this fitness assessment, it's always better to be in the best shape you can be when you enter into the USNA.

The interview, which is with a Blue and Gold Officer (BGO), is a step in the process where students meet with a Naval graduate, parent of a graduate, or civilian, who will be with you throughout the process, and can help guide you. The BGO for the state of Georgia is: Anthony Evangelista
E-mail: tonysevangelista.usna@gmail.com

If you qualify for admission, you will receive a Letter of Assurance, which indicates an intent to offer an Appointment. This letter isn't an acceptance letter, only an intent. The students who don't receive a letter of intent may get selected for an Appointment from the nominating sources. 

Tuition is FREE at the academies. Every student will have medical, dental, room and board, meals, and tuition paid for all 4 years. Midshipmen also receive a monthly salary, and the gross of that covers expenses, while the net increases every year. Plebes get about $100 a month, and by the time you are a 1st class (senior), you can earn around $600.

Each year, they do admit a small group who have gone into the Navy from the fleet (still have to get a nomination), and some students are admitted into NAPS (Naval Academy Preparatory School) for a year before coming to the Academy, which is also paid for, but it's a year to bolster academics. As long as academics and conduct is maintained, most of these students transition into the USNA after that year in Rhode Island at NAPS. 

Here are some additional things to keep in mind when going through the process:

On average, of the 3000 students who fully qualify for the Naval Academy, 1,400 will receive appointments and approximately 1,200 become midshipmen.  

The USNA uses a "rolling admissions" selection process.  Most candidates will be notified of their final status by April 15.

All appointees should notify the Admissions Office of their intention to accept or decline by May 1.

After December 31, new applications to the Class of 2024 will not be accepted.

Applications must be completed by January 31 or will not be considered for admittance into the USNA.

In order to graduate from the USNA, you must maintain a 2.0 GPA, pass a physical readiness test, maintain high honor and conduct, and complete summer training in order to be commissioned. When you graduate from the USNA, the 5 year service commitment begins. Each commissioned officer starts out as a Ensign or 2nd Lieutenant. For some areas, like aviation, it's longer (8 years+2 years of training) For students who left after the first two years, there is no service to pay back. However, the first day of your 2nd class (junior) year, you sign a commitment form for the service after graduation. Every USNA graduate earns a paycheck after they graduate, and 100% are employed. 25% of midshipmen go into the US Marine Corps (that's the maximum that can--and it's usually maxed out), while the other 75% go into the Navy, serving as officers in aviation, special forces (think SEALS), surface warfare (ships), or submarines. In their 1st class year, they rank which area they want to go into, with 85% getting their 1st choice and 90% getting their second. One of the things a panel of Naval officers said was that it's good for students to think about what they want to do after the academy, where they want to be stationed. The Naval service assignments are always going to be by water, so for example, their flight school is in Pensacola, FL. Many had lived in California, Hawaii, Japan, and other coastal places around the world. 

It was an impressive place and visit, with a lot of tradition, a lot of rigor, and a lot of leadership. The men and women who decide to go into one of the academies (West Point, Air Force, or USNA) are signing up for an experience like no other.

USNA, photo courtesy of the Naval Academy