Do I have what it takes to make it into the United States Naval Academy?

I have been looking into becoming a Marine Officer. I'm just not sure if I'd make a competetive candidate:

I'm a sophomore in high school right now. My freshman GPA was 3.8, and my sophomore GPA was 3.6. I was in accelerated classes this year (history and biology) and next year I'll be taking AP English and AP History. I act, sing, and play violin actively at school, as well as running for the spring track team. I work with the School Senate and Government often. Outside of school, I am active in community service, particularly with my church. In the summer I have a job as a camp counselor. I was also appointed to participate in the National Youth Leaders Convention this summer. I am in good physical shape. I plan to join DECA (a business club at school) and Model UN next year.

Thank you in advance for your help.

You sound like a great candidate for any commissioned officer in any branch. The only advice I would offer is to put all your experiences behind you. The military wants your heart. They need you to be tough, decisive and disciplined.

Good luck. By the way, as a sophomore you can begin paperwork with parental permission right now.

there is one very important thing you should do. get your congressman or senator to recommend you. they do it all the time. everything else being equal, this will give you a big advantage. a career in the armed services is a very noble one, one in which you can suceed in as no other career will allow.

Looking at what you have done so far, I would say yes. But only you can determine if you are competetive enough. Continue to stay in school and get good grades along with that physical toughness it takes to be a Marine Officer and you should have a good chance.

that is a very imressive record you got there! i would say you are a fine candidate. in order to go to Annapolis you have to receive a reccomendation from your congressman as well. just continue to do well in school and keep up your extracuricular activities and im sure you will do fine. good luck

You will need a Congressional recommendation from one of your congressmen - they are usually very happy to do it.

Simply write a nice letter to one of the requesting a recommendation for the academy and be sure to include it with your application.

Apply to the Academy and you'll find out; they're the ones that make the determination; not the Yahoo Q&A forum.

Ryan, please apply to The Academy. I am 43 and was courted by the USN in the early 1980, and my grades and extracurricular activities nearly mirrored your own.
I chose instead to attend a local university in Chattanooga, start a garage band and become a raft guide on the Ocoee river, with all the herbal trimmings included. I made lots of love with beautiful women and all of a sudden I turned around and 20 years were gone.
Join and graduate and by the time you are 48 you will be retired will outstanding leadership and technical skills.
Run, don't walk to Annapolis, follow the rules, graduate, and then start a band and make love to beautiful women. They love the uniform, too.

Ryan,
Tomorrow morning, go to your guidance counselor and find out who the "Blue and Gold Officer" is for your area. You have a lot of the stuff they are looking for. You will need to score around a 1460 on your SAT's. If you live fairly close to the academy may also want to see about some type of sports camp. My son attended football camp at the Academy for several years and then Coach Paul Johnson began to pave the way for his entrance. Unfortunately, he was thawarted by a knee injury. Make sure that when the Blue and Gold Officer asks you why you want to go to the Academy, you state something to the affect that you want to command ships, or fly Naval jets, be a leader of Marines, or something along those lines. Look into your heart and check your motivation for going to the Academy. USNA is a military collage where you will be tested academically, physically, and mentally everyday....especially during your first year. If you truly want to attend, go for all of it. If you don't want any part of the Navy or the Marines, then you should explore other options. Best of luck with this decision.