Click here for the Application for Nomination
Click here for the Nomination Instructions
The Nomination Process
To be considered for an appointment to a U.S. service academy, an applicant must meet the eligibility requirements established by law and be nominated by an authorized person – including a Member of Congress. I may nominate applicants who are legally domiciled within the boundaries of Michigan’s Sixth Congressional District.
The process of Congressional redistricting may lead to questions about the proper district in which to apply. Candidates should apply in the Congressional district in which they reside through the duration of 2022. Redistricting changes will not take effect until 2023, when the nomination process will be complete. If you are unsure of your Congressional district, please visit http://house.gov to find your representative.
Who Is Eligible?
An applicant for a nomination must meet the following eligibility requirements as of July 1st of the year of admission to a service academy: 1) he or she must be at least 17 years old and not have passed their 23rd birthday; 2) must be a citizen of the United States; 3) must be unmarried and not pregnant; and 4) have no legal obligation to support children or other dependents.
In order to be considered for a service academy nomination through my office, you must complete an “Application for Nomination,” provide all requested documents and follow all outlined guidelines in the “Application for Nomination Instructions.” Those documents may be obtained by clicking the links above or by contacting my constituent service office in St. Joseph at (269) 982-1986.
Applying for a Service Academy Nomination
The “Application for Nomination” and all requested documents outlined in the “Application for Nomination Instructions” must be submitted to my office by the required deadline. No exceptions will be granted. All documents must be submitted to my constituent service office in St. Joseph: U.S. Representative Fred Upton, 720 Main Street, St. Joseph, MI 49085. Please see the instruction packet for ways to submit. The submission deadline for entrance to the service academies in summer 2023 is November 1, 2022, at 5:00 PM Eastern Time. We strongly advise not waiting until the final day to submit your application – once the deadline has passed it will not be possible to make corrections or provide missing documents.
Military Service Academies
There are five military service academies: the United States Air Force Academy (USAFA), the United States Naval Academy (USNA), West Point, the United States Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA), and the United States Coast Guard Academy (USCGA). Nominations are required for all but the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, to which appointments are made on the basis of an annual nationwide competition.
In seeking a nomination to the USAFA, USNA, and USMA, there are various nomination authorities. Each eligible young person may apply to both United States Senators from the applicant’s state, his or her United States Representative, and the Vice President of the United States (if very highly qualified). The other nomination categories are military-affiliated.
With respect to the congressional category, each Representative and each Senator is allowed to have five persons at each academy charged to his or her quota at any one time. There are three methods of nominating applicants to the service academies and I use the competitive method. For each vacancy, ten nominations may be made on a strictly competitive basis. The competitive method provides that the nominees compete among themselves for final appointment determined by the admissions authorities. They take into consideration a nominee’s academic record, extracurricular and athletic activities, physical aptitude, ACT and/or SAT scores, leadership ability and medical qualifications. Such facets of an applicant's record are also considered during the nomination selection process. No person will be offered admission if he or she does not meet the physical standards of the academy unless awarded a medical waiver.
As competition for nomination and appointment is very difficult, it is wise for all interested persons to apply through all sources for which they are eligible and for all academies in which they have a real interest. An individual may be nominated by more than one nominating authority and/or to more than one academy.
With regard to the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, the locality boundary for nomination by a Representative is the State in which the District lies rather than just the District itself. Each Representative and each Senator may nominate ten candidates each year to compete for admission.
If you have any questions or concerns please contact the St. Joseph Office at (269) 982-1986.
