U.S. Service Academy Nominations

To be considered for an appointment to a Department of Defense United States Service Academy (U.S. Air Force Academy, U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, U.S. Naval Academy or West Point Military Academy), an applicant must have a nomination from an authorized nominating source. Title 10, U.S. Code, establishes two nomination categories -- Congressional and military service-connected. Applicants who meet eligibility criteria may apply for and receive nominations in both categories.

Members of the United States Senate and House of Representatives may nominate applicants who meet eligibility requirements established by law. Senators nominate from applicants throughout the entire state, while Representatives nominate from applicants living in their congressional districts. Applicants may apply for and receive nominations from both of their U.S. Senators and Congressman. Senator Lugar encourages applicants to contact all nominating sources for which they are eligible to apply.

Applicants should begin the application process spring of their junior year of high school, and they should contact all nominating sources as early as possible to ensure timely completion of all application deadlines.

For more information or questions on applying for a nomination to a U.S. Service Academies, contact Dawn Herring at (317) 226-5555.

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA:

Basic Requirements:

• Applicants must be at least 17 years of age by July 1st of the year of admission to the academy and may not have passed their 22nd birthday.
  
• Applicants must be U.S. citizens.
  
• Applicants must be unmarried, not pregnant, and have no legal obligation to support children or other dependents.

Academic Requirements:

• Each academy has different standards for applicants. Applicants must provide complete scholastic transcripts and extracurricular record, the results of any ACT and/or SAT exams and three letters of recommendation. Leadership, community, extracurricular, and athletic involvement are also considered in the overall evaluation. To directly submit your SAT/ACT scores to Senator Lugar's office, please use the SAT code of 0208 and the ACT code of 7128.

Effective immediately, candidates for the USMA Class of 2012 (i.e. entering USMA in 2008 and later) are required to submit a writing score with their SAT and/or ACT exam. The SAT requires the writing exam as part of the test itself. However, the writing portion on the ACT is currently optional. If you register for the ACT, you must select the “ACT Plus Writing” exam. If you have already registered for an upcoming ACT and did not select the “ACT Plus Writing” exam, you should immediately contact ACT (319-337-1270) to add the writing portion. For more information, please visit ACT.

Medical Requirements:

• Each applicant must complete a Department of Defense (DOD) medical examination to qualify. The examination is traditionally performed at a military/civilian contract facility near the candidate's home. Scheduling and evaluation of the medical exam is done by the DOD Medical Examination Review Board (DODMERB).

In an effort to ensure the most objective and thorough review, each application packet is reviewed by Senator Lugar’s Merit Selection Committee (MSC).  The MSC is responsible for reviewing each packet, choosing students to interview, conducting interviews, and choosing the most qualified candidates for nomination. Senator Lugar also chooses to nominate candidates on a “competitive” slate.  This means that names are submitted to each of the Service Academies in alphabetical order and Academies make the final determination on admission.

For more information on applying for a nomination to one or more of the United States Service Academies, contact Dawn Herring at 317-226-5555.

Academy Admissions Offices:

U.S. Air Force Academy Admissions Office
HQ USAFA/RRS
2304 Cadet Drive, Suite 200
USAF Academy, Colorado 80840-5025
800-443-9266
http://www.usafa.af.mil

U.S. Merchant Marine Academy Admissions Office
300 Steamboat Road
Kings Point, New York 11024-1699
866-547-4778
http://www.usmma.edu

U.S. Military Academy Admissions Office
Building 606
West Point, New York 10996-1797
845-938-4041
http://www.usma.edu

U.S. Naval Academy Admissions Office
117 Decatur Road
Annapolis, Maryland 21402-5018
410-293-4361
http://www.usna.edu

The U.S. Coast Guard Academy is the only one of the service academies that offers appointments solely on the basis of an annual nationwide competition. There are no congressional nominations. Many of the same eligibility criteria that apply to the other service academies apply to the U.S. Coast Guard Academy. Applicants are required to complete a four page pre-candidate questionnaire between July 1 and December 15 prior to the entrance of the new class the following July. The academy will send additional forms for the applicant to fill out by January 15. To receive information, please contact the U.S. Coast Guard Academy:

U.S. Coast Guard Academy
Admissions Office
New London, CT 06320-8444
(203) 444-8444
http://www.cga.edu

NOTICE: Any link to a commercial website found on this page is provided only as a courtesy and should not be considered in any way as an endorsement or promotion by Senator Lugar. In addition, Senator Lugar is not responsible for any offensive or objectionable content that may be found at any of the sites provided above.