Field Force Rep has not sent in interview to USMA

Does anyone know when the field force rep is required to send in a USMA candidate interview? The local FFR was contacted early August for an interview. The FFR did not interview for 2 months following the request. After waiting for this interview, the appt was cancelled by my FFR a few hours before the interview and rescheduled another week later! Now almost 3 months after the interview (5months since initial contact) the FFR has admitted to not sending in the interview to USMA. Not to mention unanswered emails during this period. Does USMA even know of this interview taking place without having the FFR file the interview? Time is running out.

I am not certain, and I'm sure others will comment, but I thought I read that field force interviews and reports are not a "required" component of the application, and that in some cases they are not done. Is your application otherwise complete, and if so does your portal say it is complete, or are you missing a green light?

My FFR said that an interview is not required for my area. We have spoken several times on the phone, he has given me information about my application, and he was sent a copy of my LOA when I received it. He said that he was strictly there to help me with this process and to be an asset.

As a USMA grad, I can say that I was very disappointed with my DS' FFR. He seemed to be totally disinterested and was of no help at all. I don't know if an interview is "required" or not, but since he got an LOE and 3Q letter, I am assuming it's not required. USNA's Blue and Gold officer construct and the USAFA's ALO construct seem to be far superior than USMA's FFRs. It pains me to say that, but I see a lot of consternation about FFRs on this board. Hopefully, it's just anecdotal and not like that across the board. West Point could do a lot better.

To the OP -- the interview should not be a deciding factor on your application package. I've read many times on here that the interview is not required; since not all candidates are being interviewed, it shouldn't hold much weight if not everyone has one on file (but then again, I'm just a parent).

My DS reached out to the FFR listed on his portal many times and never did reach him for an interview (in 2013). The FFR was older, retired and traveling with family (found this out later after DS received his appointment). However, my DS did say that he was interviewed at SLE '13. I'm sure I read on here that those interviews were added to a candidate's application package, but again I don't know how much weight it was given. DS had an LOE and a competitive nomination (not principal).

I'm guessing there isn't a green check mark / line item for "Interview" on the current portal for c/o 2020. You could reach out to the regional commander for your area by e-mail or phone (you should have some correspondence from him/her, or maybe it's on your portal). Good luck!

Frankly, my son's FFR has not been good about responding to any question my son had. He is a WP grad, and did interview my son early in the summer, but never has responded to any questions or requests my son emailed. When he interviewed my son, and met with my wife and me, I asked if he was interviewing all of the candidates he has, and he said "only the top candidates". I thought that was strange, and inconsistent with what I understood.

My son's BGO for USNA has been outstanding, and quite responsive. Interestingly, he was not an Annapolis grad, but his son attended the academy. He was professional but personal, and has always responded to each of my son's emails. He is a great representative of the school.

The field representative for USAFA has been kind of a hybrid between the other two. He responds, but not right away. He interviewed my son, but it was very casual, and actually instructed my son to dress like he does for school.

I think its just luck of the draw, but not sure the FFR interview is required.

BlackKnight89 said:

As a USMA grad, I can say that I was very disappointed with my DS' FFR. He seemed to be totally disinterested and was of no help at all. I don't know if an interview is "required" or not, but since he got an LOE and 3Q letter, I am assuming it's not required. USNA's Blue and Gold officer construct and the USAFA's ALO construct seem to be far superior than USMA's FFRs. It pains me to say that, but I see a lot of consternation about FFRs on this board. Hopefully, it's just anecdotal and not like that across the board. West Point could do a lot better.

Click to expand...

If so, you should volunteer to become a FFR.

Not sure how BGO and ALO works. But given the resource constraint environment, not sure if the FFR construct will ever change. Not sure how the USMA admissions office could fight for more resources, when the end results look okay (I.e. Number of applicants, accepted candidates' accomplishments, meeting the class composition goal, and etc.)

There are good and bad FFRs. I don't know if you realize it or not, but FFR work is strictly volunteer work. FFRs are trying to help (in most cases).

On a side note, there are plenty of times I felt like saying "so what," "who do you think you are," "are you listening to me," and etc to candidates and parents BUT I don't.

MemberLG said:

If so, you should volunteer to become a FFR.

Not sure how BGO and ALO works. But given the resource constraint environment, not sure if the FFR construct will ever change. Not sure how the USMA admissions office could fight for more resources, when the end results look okay (I.e. Number of applicants, accepted candidates' accomplishments, meeting the class composition goal, and etc.)

There are good and bad FFRs. I don't know if you realize it or not, but FFR work is strictly volunteer work. FFRs are trying to help (in most cases).

On a side note, there are plenty of times I felt like saying "so what," "who do you think you are," "are you listening to me," and etc to candidates and parents BUT I don't.

Click to expand...

LG, Actually I plan to do just that, but I wanted both my sons to clear the process first. We live in a super competitive area for all the academies and it pains me to see my alma mater being poorly represented. Again, I observed the process closely with both of my DS while not interfering. As both my DS have cleared this phase, be assured I will be more activist. Based on my on anecdotal observations (not statistically significant I'm sure), Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard are doing a better job in our area (which is a heavily military area). Hit me up on a PM if you want to talk more.