Service Academy Nominations

As a member of the United States House of Representatives, each year I have the privilege of recommending a select group of high school graduates for admission to the U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force, and Merchant Marine service academies. The nominations are made on a competitive basis.  Applicants must be graduating high school seniors between the ages of 17 and 22, who reside in the 9th Congressional District, are unmarried with no dependent children, and are United States citizens.

The deadline to submit your request for a nomination is December 1st. There will be no exceptions to the December 1st deadline.  You are strongly encouraged to submit your application earlier than this date. 

To apply for a nomination please open a pre-candidate file with the academy you wish to attend. For information on opening a pre-candidate file at the academy of your choice, please use the links at the bottom of this page. Once the file is opened, please print out and complete the Academy Nomination Form/Letter as directed by the academy with which you have opened a pre-candidate file and mail it to me at:

Office of Congresswoman Barbara Lee

1301 Clay Street, Suite 1000N

Oakland, CA 94612

Be sure to enclose the following information on the form:

• Name
• Social Security Number
• Permanent Address
• Permanent Telephone Number
• Name of Parent(s) or Guardian(s
• Date of Birth
• Place of Birth
• Name of High School
• Address of High School
• Estimated Date of Graduation
• Approximate Cumulative Grade Point Average (GPA)
• SAT Scores  
• Extracurricular Activities
• Your Service Academy Preference (ranked in order): Military, Air Force, Naval Academy, or U.S. Merchant Marine Academy

Please also attach the following:

• Official High School Transcript ( College Transcripts if applicable)
• Essay of no more than 500 words on the topic of "Why I want to attend the Academy"
• Copy of your SAT scores
• Two Letters of recommendation (Non-Family)

In addition, each student should contact their High School/College Counselor to assist in applying for admission to the academies while being considered for nomination by my office. 

Please call my District Office at 510-763-0370 with any questions or to request additional information.

Congressional Nomination Process
Potential nominees are judged on three factors:
a.  Academies: Grade point average, SAT scores, and class rank.

b. Leadership experience and ability:  Applicant must submit a brief statement of extracurricular activities.  Examples should include work, church, school government, and youth or civic organizations.

c. Motivation and writing skills:  Acceptance into an Academy is a highly desired aspiration.  To gauge each applicant’s determination and goals, an essay of 500 words must be submitted on the topic of "Why I want to attend the Academy."

Academy Admissions Process
The U.S. Military, Naval, And Air Force Academy Students nominated by my office will be evaluated by one of the Academy Admissions boards, which will closely examine all aspects of each individual I have nominated.  The nominees will be ranked in order of merit.  The most highly qualified for an appointment will be selected to fill the vacancy. Nominations are made in January, shortly after we conduct personal interviews. Most Academy appointments are offered prior to the end of April.

The U.S. Merchant Marine Academy handles admissions differently.  A Member of Congress may nominate candidates to this Academy.  However, candidates compete statewide for the vacancies and selection is made by the Merchant Marine Academy.

The Coast Guard Academy manages its own selection process.  There are no Congressional nominations.  All applicants must apply directly to:

Director of Admissions
U.S. Coast Guard
New London, Connecticut 06320

For more detailed information on a specific academy including official applications, please visit the following links:

U.S. Merchant MarineAcademy	US Military Academy	Naval Academy	Air Force Academy	Coast Guard Academy