Washington, DC – Congressman Sam Farr (D-Carmel) today announced that his office is now accepting applications for nomination to our nation's service academies. Operated by the Army, Air Force, Coast Guard, Merchant Marine and Navy, these academies provide a college education in exchange for a commitment to serve as a commissioned officer.

For all service academies (except the Coast Guard), applicants must be nominated by one of several federal officials including the U.S. representatives, U.S. senators and the vice president.

"The Central Coast has sent some outstanding students to our service academies over the years, and I'm looking forward to nominating another great batch of future leaders," said Congressman Farr. "Our academies offer a fantastic education and the chance to serve our country, and I'm proud of all the local students who have attended in the past."

Candidates must be at least 17 years old but not older than 23 as of July 1, 2012. They must reside in California's 17th Congressional District, be U.S. citizens and must never have been married.

In order to be considered for a nomination, the following information is necessary:

• A completed application form, available from Congressman Farr's office or Web site (www.farr.house.gov).
• A personal statement not to exceed 1,000 words.
• An official high school transcript.
• Official Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores. If you have the scores forwarded by the testing center, Congressman Farr's SAT Score File Number is 4639. If your SAT scores are shown on your high school transcripts, that is acceptable.
• Three letters of recommendation, not from relatives.

DEADLINE: Applicants for the class entering July 2012 must submit all application material no later than Nov. 1, 2011. All materials should be sent to Congressman Sam Farr, ATTN: Julian Chacon, 701 Ocean Street, Room 318, Santa Cruz, CA 95060

Please direct any questions to Julian Chacon at  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it  or call 831-429-1976. More information is available online at www.farr.house.gov.