What to wear for interview at home?

mx130

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My BGO will be coming to my home for my BGO interview. What should I be wearing? Should I wear shoes if my family does not normally wear shoes inside the house? And should I ask my parents to put on socks/shoes as well?

Thanks in advance for any responses!
 
Personally I'd wear shoes and go sharp business casual... pretty much what I would wear to an interview in his or her office. In other words, wear what's appropriate for the seriousness of the interview, not the location it's being held.

If I were to wear what I normally wear around my house, I'd be in a bathrobe which is obviously inappropriate. :D Follow the same logic.
 
As I have said before, meeting your BGO in board shorts, an AC/DC tour shirt, flip flops and smelling like Don Julio and bad choices, is not the right move. :D

@kinnem gives the right advice there. Sharp, business casual is great. If wearing a tie isn't something that you normally do, don't wear one.
The last thing you want is to be uncomfortable. Wear a suit and tie to those nomination interviews, though!
 
If you don’t wear shoes in your home, that’s ok. However, please wear socks. Seriously. I once interviewed someone in his bare feet (and sweats). It was not pleasant.

Also, suggest you don’t ask your BGO to remove his/her shoes. If he /she volunteers, then it’s fine. But the person may not wear socks (common for women in summer), etc. and may find it uncomfortable removing shoes.

Other than that, wear what you’d wear to an interview elsewhere. There is guidance in the BGO sticky at the top of this forum.
 
I hadn't thought of the shoes angle. We never wore shoes in the house when I was growing up, and we don't in our household now.
We never tell guests to take their shoes off, however.
My DS had his BGO interview at our home, and we all wore shoes that day!

Most of our friends take their shoes off when they get to our house, however.
They have even changed over the years to do the same thing (no shoes) in their houses.
I guess we're trend-setters. :)
 
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I would absolutely wear shoes and have your parents do so this one time, as well. I would never ask the BGO to remove their shoes, either.
 
Wear Shoes ! Dress professionally, and that includes shoes.

Simple hint, clothes and appearance should never be an issue -that means finding the right balance between casual and formal. First impressions count. In my experience, the candidate that dresses too casual often is too casual in his speech and mannerisms , and the candidate that over dresses is often uptight and stiff.
 
Is there a polite way for DS to ask the BGO to NOT have the interview at the candidate's home?

We live in what DS has dubbed "casa chaos" - three overly friendly dogs, moving boxes stacked everywhere (from my recently deceased mother-in-law's house), several "in progress" DIY remodeling projects, stacks of jars in the dining room with entomological samples from DW's wetland sampling job, and two college sons who use the basement as their dormitory room (and all that entails). DS doesn't even like to invite his friends over.
 
We had a similar situation with our three kids who applied to a combined 14 service academies. They all did their interviews "off site" including in restaurants over lunch, in a private meeting room at our local library, and even at a Scout camp where our DS was working over the summer. They did not make a big deal or give a long-winded explanation, just told the interviewer that they preferred to meet somewhere other than home. It was never a problem, and they all got extremely good feedback from their interviews.
 
Is there a polite way for DS to ask the BGO to NOT have the interview at the candidate's home?

I am curious how many BGO's actually do interviews at the Candidates home ? I do most of mine at my office, usually on Saturday AM, but occasionally during the work day. I've done a couple at my home, but never really even considered suggesting that we do it at the candidate's home. Many of my candidates travel 1-2 hours, so perhaps its more common when the BGO is more local.

Keep in mind, some BGO's insist on talking to or including parents in part of the interview, so doing the interview at the Candidates home makes this easier. As some may be able to tell from my posts here, I take the minimalist approach to parental involvement -- I am happy to talk with them and answer questions, but view this as the Candidates' application, and don't need to talk to parents. There have been many that I never meet until I present a Certificate of Appointment at HS Awards night, and others I speak with briefly in our lobby before or after the interview.

I wouldn't worry about asking the BGO to hold the interview elsewhere. No one should be uncomfortable, and frankly --if DS tells the BGO that his home is "Casa Chaos" and he would like to hold it somewhere else, I wouldn't expect them to mind.
 
+1 to Old Navy BGO. One might suggest a local coffee shop or some other likely location if asked.
 
DS did his interview for USAFA at Starbucks with me sitting in the car and BGO did interview for USNA in our home {same BGO who did DD knew everyone in the the whole family }. Walking back USAFA interviewer saw the USNA sticker on the Car (DD was a Mid) and said "hope we can add another". It does not matter where the interview is conducted as long as it is comfortable.
 
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I am curious how many BGO's actually do interviews at the Candidates home ?
DD and DS both had BGO interview at our home at the request of the BGO. Being only 1 yr apart it was the same BGO for both. DD was first - he wanted to meet the family then the meeting was turned over to DD. For DS, the BGO already knew us so it was just DS after a quick hello.
 
Is there a polite way for DS to ask the BGO to NOT have the interview at the candidate's home?

I am curious how many BGO's actually do interviews at the Candidates home ? I do most of mine at my office, usually on Saturday AM, but occasionally during the work day. I've done a couple at my home, but never really even considered suggesting that we do it at the candidate's home. Many of my candidates travel 1-2 hours, so perhaps its more common when the BGO is more local.
I have done all of my interviews at their houses during my 25+ yrs in the program but would consider elsewhere if necessary. I always try to spend at least a few mins with the parents and that is easier that their house. My workplaces have all been restricted entry and I don't care to host at my home.
FWIW, I was away on business or Reserves when my son had his BGO interview.
 
I always do interviews at my home, as my office is a long way from where most of my candidates live and it would be very difficult for them to get there on school days and for both of us to get there on WEs. This is easiest for me and my home is fairly close to where most of my candidates live. I used to do some interviews at candidates' homes, but the travel was too difficult for me and I found the situation somewhat awkward. I could do them at a public place, but the closest usable one is nearly 10 miles away and it's just more logistics to arrange.

Parents bring their kids to my house about 40% of the time (which is fine). I always ask the candidates if their parent has any questions and indicate I'm happy to talk with him/her. They take me up on it about 5% of the time.

It's really a personal preference, guided by where the BGO lives and works, distance of BGO from most candidates, how much time he/she has to travel, etc.
 
My son handled everything with his BGO. I still have never met him even though he only lives about a mile from us. The interview was held at his house, but personally as a parent I would have preferred it at a public location for safety. It’s still a 16yo boy/girl going to a complete strangers house. But that’s just me!
 
My son handled everything with his BGO. I still have never met him even though he only lives about a mile from us. The interview was held at his house, but personally as a parent I would have preferred it at a public location for safety. It’s still a 16yo boy/girl going to a complete strangers house. But that’s just me!
When you can't entrust your kid to a BGO things are pretty bad out there.
 
Is there a polite way for DS to ask the BGO to NOT have the interview at the candidate's home?

We live in what DS has dubbed "casa chaos" - three overly friendly dogs, moving boxes stacked everywhere (from my recently deceased mother-in-law's house), several "in progress" DIY remodeling projects, stacks of jars in the dining room with entomological samples from DW's wetland sampling job, and two college sons who use the basement as their dormitory room (and all that entails). DS doesn't even like to invite his friends over.
My suggestion would be put the dogs outside, tell the other two sons to go out for a movie and close their doors, move the boxes and jars to another room and use a the living room (hopefully not part of DIY remodeling project for the interview. Make sure not to give the person a tour of the house. Or you tell him the truth, the house is in middle of a remodel (which is mostly true) and ask to have it somewhere else.
 
When you can't entrust your kid to a BGO things are pretty bad out there.

You could say the same thing about catholic priest or Boy Scout leaders. And honestly, I would think the BGO wouldn’t want the liability of doing it alone at their house! And of course 95 percent of them are amazing volunteers! My son went, all I was saying is that it crossed my mind. And you’re right, it’s sad that it had to.
 
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