Services
for Wisconsinites
Academy
Nominations
Application
Instructions
Application
Form
Academy Day
Each September Senator Kohl, Congressman
Petri, Congressman Green, and I hold an Academy Information
Day. This year's event is Saturday, September 23rd, from 10:00am-12:30pm
at the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) Aviation Center
in Oshkosh. The Aviation Center is located at 3000 Poberezny
Road. Academy representatives are on hand to answer questions,
and congressional representatives will explain the nomination
process. In the fall, watch for announcements in your local
media outlets, contact your guidance counselor, or call any
of my offices. If you are interested in applying to a military
academy, I think you may find Academy Day helpful.
General Information
US Senators and Representatives can
make nominations toward one vacancy per year at each of the
three Service Academies: U.S. Military Academy (West Point),
U.S. Naval Academy (Annapolis), and U.S. Air Force Academy (Colorado
Springs). The Vice President of the United States can also nominate
candidates to the academies from across the country.
The Merchant Marine Academy's nomination
process is a little different. The Academy picks four applicants
from each state based on the nominations of the state's congressional
delegation. All of Wisconsin's applicants compete for these
four vacancies.
If you are interested in the U.S. Coast
Guard Academy, you need to apply directly to the Academy by
writing to: US Coast Guard Academy, Admissions Office, New
London, Connecticut, 06320-4195. You can also apply on their
website.
There is no congressional nomination required.
In order to qualify for entrance into
a United States Service Academy, you must be a United States
Citizen and at least 17 and not past your 23rd birthday on
1 July of the year you would enter the academy. You must also
be a resident of the State of Wisconsin to be considered by
my office. Full scholarships are available to students interested
in attending one of our nation's premier military academies.
These schools offer a quality college education in exchange
for a commitment to serve our country as an officer in the
United States military.
Nomination Process
Application
materials are available from my office beginning the spring
of your junior year in high school. You should contact my Middleton
office at (608) 828-1200 to receive the application
form or access them through the links on this page.
In addition to completing the nomination
application, it is also necessary for you to open a pre- candidate
file with each of the academies you are interested in. You
can open a file by filling out the form on the academy websites,
and a list of those web addresses are at the bottom of this
page.
In order to be eligible for a nomination,
your completed application, which includes the application
form, short essay, high school transcripts, ACT or SAT scores,
and letters of recommendation, must be received by Friday,
October 20, 2006. Please only send applications
to my Middleton office as listed on the application form.
Incomplete applications, or those submitted after the deadline,
will not be considered.
Your application will be reviewed once
it has been received by my office. If you are found eligible
for an interview, you will receive notification by mail of
the date and time. I have appointed an Academy Selection Board
that conducts interviews in October and November. The board
interviews candidates in my Middleton and Milwaukee offices
plus one other state office.
The nomination process is completed when
my Academy Selection Board has reviewed all pertinent information.
By the end of the year, you will be notified if you have received
a nomination from my office.
Nomination File
Your application file must be
completed and received by my office on or before Friday,
October 20, 2006. A complete application includes all
of the following items: Application
Form
Be thorough and complete. Be sure to indicate your first choice
of an academy. Be sure to numerically rank your academy preferences.
All information on the application is required for you to
be considered for a nomination.
Essay
In 200 words or less, state why you want to attend a service
academy. Please attach this statement to the application.
List of Activities
Please provide a brief listing of the following:
a). All school activities in which you have participated.
Include clubs, athletics, school organizations, etc. Indicate
any leadership roles within those activities.
b). All Scholastic honors, awards, and scholarships
received.
c). All extracurricular honors, achievements and awards received.
d). All non-school related activities in which you have participated
(community groups, church groups, scouting. etc).
e). If you are currently employed or have worked previously
(i.e. summer, part-time, after school) please list your employer
name, responsibilities, dates of employment and number of
hours worked.
f). Any other activities you would like to include (hobbies,
special interests, recreational activities).
High School Transcripts
Include an official transcript of your high school records.
It must show your final grades through your junior year, your
current grade point average, and your numerical class rank.
If your high school does not rank students, please indicate
"Does Not Rank" in this field.
College Board Test Scores
The Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) or the American College
Test (ACT) are essentially the entrance exams for the service
academies. A set of scores must be received
by the application deadline of October 20th.
No one is considered for admission unless they have taken
one of these tests. It is recommended that you take one of
the exams prior to September in order to provide the results
to this office for your nomination file. It takes approximately
six weeks to receive test results. If you wish to retake one
of the tests, please forward a copy of those results to my
office.
My office will accept the scores directly
from the test providers or on a certified copy of the high
school transcript. You can have the results sent directly
to my office by listing my code for the SAT (1383) or ACT
(7197) tests in the space on the exam where it asks you to
list colleges you want to receive your results. Please check
with your school guidance counselor for more information about
scheduling yourself for these college boards.
Letters of Recommendation
You are required to submit three letters of recommendation.
They should come from people in the community who know you
personally.
PREPARATION FOR THE ACADEMIES
All of the military academies are
very competitive in gaining a nomination and receive an offer
of appointment. Each of the academies recommend a strong preparatory
education during high school to prepare you for the rigorous
curriculum provided by the academy. For the U.S. Air Force
Academy, students must rank in the top 25% of their high school
class, but most successful candidates rank in the upper 10%
of their class. For the U.S. Military Academy, students should
rank in the top 20% of their high school class. For the U.S.
Naval Academy, students should rank in the top two fifths
of their high school class.
All of the academies strongly recommend
these classes to be the most competitive candidate:
Math: four years with a strong
foundation in algebra, geometry, trigonometry, pre-calculus
and calculus (if possible)
Science: two to four years
of chemistry and/or physics class(es) with a lab
English: four years of course
work with emphasis on composition, grammar and speech as well
as classes in English and American literature
Foreign language: two to
four years of a foreign language focusing both on the spoken
language and grammar
History: one to three years
of US History and, if possible, a class on World or European
History
Computer: knowledge on the
use of a personal computer, operating systems and spreadsheets
will be very helpful Classes in geography, government and
economics will also be helpful Athletic and non-athletic extracurricular
activities
In addition to the academics, you need
to be highly motivated to go through the application and nomination
process and then the difficult schedule at the academy. You
should make sure this is something you are really motivated
to do, rather than being influenced by a relative, teacher,
coach or anyone else. To be the most competitive candidate,
you should be well balanced in academics, community service,
outside activities and athletics.
One option the U.S. Air Force, U.S. Naval
and U.S. Military Academies offer are summer seminar programs
to high school seniors. It provides them with the opportunity
to visit the Academy for one week during the summer and these
programs are very competitive. There are no Congressional
nominations required for any of these programs. Here are the
links to the Academies' web pages on their summer seminar
programs:
U.S.
Air Force Academy Center
U.S.
Naval Academy
U.S.
Military Academy
USEFUL WEBPAGE ADDRESSES
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