Tips for ALO interview this week

Daretodream

5-Year Member
Joined
Sep 17, 2014
Messages
246
My ALO admissions interview is this Friday. I have been in contact with my ALO for several years as I worked towards my senior year and applying to the Academy. He knows me and my credentials pretty well. Any suggestions for preparing or how to approach the interview? Thanks.
 
Just relax and be yourself. I know you said he is familiar with you but it's not always easy to recall all those accomplishments. A prepared resume to refresh his/her memory couldn't hurt.
 
Dress for success (suite/sport coat and tie, or nice business casual) and treat it like a job interview. Be professional, courteous, expand on your answers to his/hers questions (no one word answers), keep phone in car/at home, sit up, use proper English (no slang like "yea" or "you know"), be truthful, smile, breathe, don't assume he knows your history just because you have been in contact him/her, and arrive at least 10 minutes early. Good luck.
 
The ONE thing I will tell ANY candidate: "Be yourself and do NOT DO NOT DO NOT give BS on an answer!" If the ALO asks you a question that you don't know the answer to, say so; do NOT try to "bluff your way out of it." It's very possible the ALO KNOWS you won't have an answer and they want to see how you will comport yourself.

I can easily accept an answer of: "Sir...uh...I've never really thought about that..." than I can a BS answer.

Relax, realize the ALO is ON YOUR SIDE, and enjoy! Don't be afraid to ask the ALO ANY questions that you have!!!

Steve
USAFA ALO
USAFA '83
 
Ask your ALO what he thinks for attire or ask another ALO. I talked to mine and he is very casual. He just wants to do the interview over coffee. I'm going to wear a nice dress but I'm not going to wear business attire for that.
 
I agree with AngelicSkye about the attire. We're here in AZ and I can tell you, with temps over 100F this week, no ALO will expect you to wear a jacket and/or tie! Good gosh - you'd pass out from the heat! ha! My recommendation is business casual.
 
We're here in AZ and I can tell you, with temps over 100F this week, no ALO will expect you to wear a jacket and/or tie! Good gosh - you'd pass out from the heat! ha! My recommendation is business casual.
DD has her interview next week here in AZ as well and her ALO told her to wear business casual as it is an interview. This can be widely interpreted but a safe bet is a sport coat, collared shirt with tie for gents; a jacket with dress slacks/skirt and blouse or a jacketed dress for gals. Dress shoes as appropriate with no stilettos or sandals. Unless the interview will be held outside, one who lives in AZ won't roast too badly on the way in...besides, we are in a cooling trend, right now it's only 98 degrees outside. Yay, it finally feels like Fall. :yllol:

Just like everyone already said, be yourself, no BS; knock it out of the park! Good luck with your interview.
 
We're here in AZ and I can tell you, with temps over 100F this week, no ALO will expect you to wear a jacket and/or tie! Good gosh - you'd pass out from the heat! ha! My recommendation is business casual.
DD has her interview next week here in AZ as well and her ALO told her to wear business casual as it is an interview. This can be widely interpreted but a safe bet is a sport coat, collared shirt with tie for gents; a jacket with dress slacks/skirt and blouse or a jacketed dress for gals. Dress shoes as appropriate with no stilettos or sandals. Unless the interview will be held outside, one who lives in AZ won't roast too badly on the way in...besides, we are in a cooling trend, right now it's only 98 degrees outside. Yay, it finally feels like Fall. :yllol:

Just like everyone already said, be yourself, no BS; knock it out of the park! Good luck with your interview.

True, but my DD's ALO interviewed some of the candidates outside at a little cafe. So, ask your ALO. However, totally agree - business casual.
 
Think of the things that you want the interviewer to know about you; then work these points into the interview. Sit forward, video yourself while having someone interview you, you then can see your body language, review responses, etc. (Just don't have someone in LE interview you; it seems to evolve into an interrogation, just saying...:))
 
Think of the things that you want the interviewer to know about you; then work these points into the interview. Sit forward, video yourself while having someone interview you, you then can see your body language, review responses, etc. (Just don't have someone in LE interview you; it seems to evolve into an interrogation, just saying...:))

... and make EYE contact!
 
My son's was fortunate enough to do a "practice interview" with a friend that was a former ALO. He told my DS that it was very important to be able to talk about himself, and be confident in all of his accomplishments and things that had gotten him that far. Make sure that you dress nice, better to be overdressed, than underdressed. He was told to make sure that he expands upon his answers, not just give short answers. Which also means, the more you talk, the less questions the ALO might ask. lol Think of it as trying to "sell" yourself. Don't be cocky, but be confident. Good eye contact, firm handshake...etc. Don't be afraid to ask your ALO questions, and don't worry if you don't know the answer to something. Just be honest and sincere. Also, bring a "resume" with a list of all of your scores, grades, community service, sports, jobs, etc. This gives the ALO something to look over and ask questions about, and gives YOU the opportunity to shine.
 
One little advice besides all the good info already provided. I know TR was only joking, but don't take the part of "the more you talk, the less questions the alo might ask". We have a set number of questions that we ask. That may be different for each alo, but in fairness, and to help our grading, we ask each candidate the same questions. So, the more you talk, the longer the interview.

But it is important to give detailed answers and not just one or two word answers. It's also important to be confident, without crossing the line of arrogance. Alos are human beings. We want you to succeed. But most have done this for a while and can see BS a mile away. We want honesty. Especially if you don't know an answer. But most questions are subjective and open for interpretation. Therefor, it's very unlikely that you should ever say you don't know or not have an opinion on something.

Just be yourself. Be honest. Be confident. Be articulate. Use proper English and not slang or personal words like, ya know, dude, bro, etc. at the same time, don't use words that we all know a teenager would never use. Example: I worked on an assignment with a classmate and we received an "A". Vs I was involved on a project with a colleague of mine, and we received a commendable from our instructional staff. Example #2. I realized it would be a good idea to change my study time to before football practice. Vs. I discovered that it would behoove me to manage my individual academic time to a time that wouldn't conflict with my athletic participation, and compromise my grades.

You get the point.
 
Back
Top