Congressional Nomination Interview

[CocaColaCEO]

I just had my interview and I'm really not sure how it went. I've decided it either went decently or horribly wrong. They asked me two current event issues that I just did not know the answer to, and so I told them, "I don't know." It was a panel of seven people and one of them was kind of rude. I was asked how many times I would apply to West Point and I responded until I get in. then this man asked me for my plan B and I said Army ROTC at these schools. He then proceeded to ask about early decision and I said, "I am not applying early decision anywhere, West Point is my top choice." He responded, "What about early decision at West Point, why didn't you apply to that?" So I said, "West Point doesn't have early decision, it is rolling admissions." He continued to say his daughter applied early decision and found out in November. I simply said, that is not true. West Point does NOT have early decision! He would not give up though! And he is a WP grad. I just find it ridiculous. I have no idea how I did at this interview.

 

[BenjaminZ]

Heard this from my father, who has 30+ years of interviewing experience. When dealing with multiple interviewers such as these congressional nomination boards, many of them play "good cop - bad cop" to see how you react to different behaviors under pressure. You were absolutely correct to say there is no ED to West Point, because that's the truth. Don't feel bad, from what you have explained you did fine. Let's just hope mine goes as well.

 

[LFry94]

I'm going to have to disagree with BenjaminZ on this one.

I wouldn't ever argue with the interview board, or any one individual on it, even if I knew for a fact they were wrong about something. They may have initiated the argument to test your ability to control yourself when someone else claims they're right even when you know they're wrong.

I would have responded the same way as you did when they asked the initiating question, "What about early decision at West Point, why didn't you apply to that?" But when he continues to push his side of the argument, I would have quickly turned the conversation into a test of my own. For example, one response could be, "Honestly, I was never aware that West Point had early decision. Would you be willing to give me a quick overview how the process works for West Point?" If you ask a question like that, and the response is a short moment of silence and the interviewer glances at other interviewers, then you know you've found a hole in their argument. They would probably stop and congratulate you on passing the test at that point.

However, if they respond with something like, "Well, it's too late for that now, and we don't have time to discuss it." I would simply say, "Alright, thank you for bringing it to my attention. I appreciate it, and I'll talk to my ALO about it."

Responses like these not only show your ability disarm an argument, but it shows your ability to control yourself even when you know you're right.

I'll leave you to decide how your interview went, but I just wanted to give you my honest opinion.

-Levi

 

[BenjaminZ]

I honestly never thought about looking about it that way, that's rather good advice. Thanks!

 

[LFry94]

I honestly never thought about looking about it that way, that's rather good advice. Thanks!

You're more than welcome! I actually received a nomination from the last MOC I interviewed with, and if there's any advice I can give for those about to be interviewed, it's try to treat it like a conversation and not an interrogation. Not only will you feel more comfortable, but you'll naturally smile more, make eye contact more, and you'll lighten the mood in the room. There's nothing that says "don't pick me!" like someone who looks disinterested, or someone who gives short, disjointed answers to questions!

Remember, your resume speaks for your achievements. You speak for yourself.

-Levi