Curious about the U.S. Coast Guard Academy? In this episode, we take a deep dive into what it takes to earn an appointment.

Learn how the Coast Guard Academy’s admissions process stands out from the other service academies, like West Point, the Naval Academy, or the Air Force Academy. From GPA requirements to SAT/ACT scores, extracurricular activities, and the Cadet Candidate Evaluation Board, we’ve got you covered!

📖 Sneak Peek: Our new book on the Coast Guard Academy is officially released! Grab a copy of the book here: bit.ly/coastguardacademybook 🎯

Key Takeaways:

Join hosts LTC Rob Kirkland and Trish Dach as they share expert insights into the admissions process—and today, a special focus on the often-overlooked Merchant Marine Academy.

In this episode, we shine a spotlight on why the Merchant Marine Academy can be a smart choice for high-performing students who excel academically but may not be strong test-takers. With a higher acceptance rate compared to other service academies and unique nomination processes, it’s worth considering if you’re aiming for a career at sea.

We’ll cover critical topics like how nominations work, the breakdown of competitive scores, and why extracurricular activities with military connections matter. If you're interested in learning how to stand out in the application process, especially with upcoming changes in the admissions landscape, you won’t want to miss this episode.

Stay tuned for our upcoming book, Secrets of Merchant Marine Academy Admissions. Make sure to sign up for the waitlist below to get notified as soon as it’s available.

Join the waitlist here.

As always, we’re here to guide you through every step of the academy admissions process. Subscribe now to stay updated on all things related to service academy admissions.

In this episode, we discuss trends we are seeing with Naval Academy admissions.

Bottom line: there is evidence that Naval Academy admissions is choosing candidates according to unknown guidelines, instead of who Members of Congress pick or who the most qualified candidate in the district is according to the legacy Whole Person Multiple.

Today we provide commentary on what makes these 5 Naval Academy interview answers excellent, and how they could be improved. Listen along as you prepare for your interview with your future potential Blue and Gold Officer and Congressional nomination panel. 

The Air Force Academy interview can be extremely intimidating for students, especially those who have little to no interview experience. 

In this episode, we play 5 examples of interview responses that students have given and discuss what makes them good (or bad) and how they could be improved.

If you want to ensure your interview performance is as strong as possible and listen to additional examples of answers from real students, take our USAFA Interview Course.

Were you turned down this year by the Naval Academy?

If you applied to the USNA Class of 2028 as a high school applicant, you had a lower chance of being appointed this year.

More and more post-high school candidates are re-applying and therefore there are less appointments available for direct entries. That's right, we estimate about 450 slots of the 1200 slots this year were given to candidates who were on their second application: NAPS students, Foundation students, and college students.

We go into what this means for high school seniors and reapplicants in this week's episode.

In today's episode, we give feedback on 5 examples of interview questions and answers from West Point candidates.

In today's episode, we cover a great way to develop military propensity and discipline - Danielle Stolz and Patrick Nasdeo, both leaders within the Sea Cadets program join us to talk about the opportunities for young Sea Cadets in the middle school and high school programs.