Advice for Future Applicants

Congrats! This post is so heartwarming, and makes me even more excited while applying, and helps keep me motivated for sure. It's been my dream to be a fighter pilot after my grandpa, great grandpa, and uncle, and I can definitely see why they loved being in the Air Force, and how it was some of the best times in their life. The community here is so supportive, and everyone I see here all want the best for everyone else. Thank you all so much <3
 
Wow. First, congrats on your appointment!!! Second, if you don't mind would you be able to say some of the curve ball questions you got in your interviews?
 
i_like_planes said:
Wow. First, congrats on your appointment!!! Second, if you don't mind would you be able to say some of the curve ball questions you got in your interviews?
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I know I got a "who's the leader you want to be like and why" I was prepared for this as someone who had the ALO earlier warned me about it.

I answered the leader of the Night Witches Marina Raskova. Helps that she was a pilot who risked her life every mission. Also, know your person, the committee remembered me as the "Night Witch" answer because they were so impressed by it.
 
Although KiwiBird previously touched on this, a piece of advice that I would emphasize to anyone applying is to be confident in your plan B, even if you are fairly confident that you will receive an appointment come next spring (BTW, you can never be too sure). I am a recent applicant to the class of 2025 and did not receive an appointment during the big wave. I am still waiting to hear from admissions of a finalized decision, but the chances for me to receive an appointment at this stage are quite low. To give some insight, I have a 4.26/4 GPA, 1420 SAT, 31 ACT, varsity team captain/3x varsity letters, multiple leadership positions in previous jobs, congressional nom, etc., which at the time, I thought was good enough to get into the academy. However, since I prepared for my plan B, I am now sitting in a pretty good position with the state school that I decided on as my backup. So basically, make sure that although the admissions process for USAFA (or an SA for that matter) may take up much of your energy/focus, do not let yourself skimp out on other applications because those schools may end up becoming the only thing available.
 
i_like_planes said:
Wow. First, congrats on your appointment!!! Second, if you don't mind would you be able to say some of the curve ball questions you got in your interviews?
Click to expand...
First of all, I prepared with the interview with my parents, people who know nothing about the military or the academy itself (big mistake). But the question that threw me for a loop. What is your favorite book, and why? I couldn't think of a very deep or "good" answer for it. My biggest mistake in all my interviews. If I'm being honest, you don't have to overly prepare for the interviews. Just do a practice with your ALO and you'll be fine.
 
i_like_planes said:
Wow. First, congrats on your appointment!!! Second, if you don't mind would you be able to say some of the curve ball questions you got in your interviews?
Click to expand...
Sorry, but I don't think that I should. I don't want to give anyone any unfair advantages, but I am sure that you could find them somewhere on the internet if you looked hard enough. I will, however, give you some broader advice concerning them. Be at least somewhat familiar with history. Again, if you say something, make sure that you can elaborate. Don't say something just to sound smart, especially if you don't actually know what it means. Maybe it would also help you to do thinking on your feet type exercises. Also know that I answered one of these curve ball questions horridly, and although I did not receive a nomination from that particular senator, I learned from the experience and ultimately received an appointment. Good luck with your journey!
 
There is such a thing as being over-prepared and coming across as too smooth and rehearsed. Research interview questions on the internet to get a feel for them; they are variations on job interview questions. Many times these questions are to see how you respond when your mind draws a blank, and you have to think quickly to give some type of coherent response, and whether you can maintain composure.

In a job interview, I was once asked the fastest way to empty a passenger jet filled with ping pong balls. I responded since they had obviously been loaded into the plane with a large pressure hose, to simply reverse the pressure and vacuum them out. I have no idea what they were looking for on that one, but I didn’t break stride, treated it seriously and let my imagination run.

Be well prepared and articulate in your thoughts on why you do/do not want to join a particular Service or attend a SA.

Have some questions prepared in case you are given the opportunity to ask any. If an interviewer has a military background, ask them about the two biggest leadership lessons they learned, or what military skill they have found most valuable in civilian life, etc.
 
TheWaterConsumer said:
First of all, I prepared with the interview with my parents, people who know nothing about the military or the academy itself (big mistake). But the question that threw me for a loop. What is your favorite book, and why? I couldn't think of a very deep or "good" answer for it. My biggest mistake in all my interviews. If I'm being honest, you don't have to overly prepare for the interviews. Just do a practice with your ALO and you'll be fine.
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Favorite book. Yeah that would throw me off big time. Now that's got me thinking
 
KiwiBird said:
Sorry, but I don't think that I should. I don't want to give anyone any unfair advantages, but I am sure that you could find them somewhere on the internet if you looked hard enough. I will, however, give you some broader advice concerning them. Be at least somewhat familiar with history. Again, if you say something, make sure that you can elaborate. Don't say something just to sound smart, especially if you don't actually know what it means. Maybe it would also help you to do thinking on your feet type exercises. Also know that I answered one of these curve ball questions horridly, and although I did not receive a nomination from that particular senator, I learned from the experience and ultimately received an appointment. Good luck with your journey!
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Yeah that makes sense, no worries. But by history do you mean just general US history?
 
FlyFalcon said:
I know I got a "who's the leader you want to be like and why" I was prepared for this as someone who had the ALO earlier warned me about it.

I answered the leader of the Night Witches Marina Raskova. Helps that she was a pilot who risked her life every mission. Also, know your person, the committee remembered me as the "Night Witch" answer because they were so impressed by it.
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I will definitely be doing a lot of talking with my ALO
 
As always, CaptMj is spot on.
Our son competed in interviews for FBLA, and he had done several interviews for scholarships, Boys State & Nation etc, as well as public speaking so he thought he was good to go.

Fast forward to a West Point parent's club offer to host mock interviews for candidates (they had sign-up sheets at all of the service academy forums). Our son went in relatively confident.
They pulled no punches, tough interview. The feedback he got was that his resume was one of the best they had seen in terms of being a well-rounded candidate. BUT, he was too formal, too robotic. Nerves I am sure were a factor. They wanted to see something that showed them who he was, something to make them remember him long after the interview. They asked him to regroup and they then gave him 10 more minutes.

Feedback was stellar after the adjustment. He had lots of room to improve and that opportunity was likely a game-changer for him. Possibly other states have a parent club willing to host something similar.

Be yourself, be prepared, but not so prepared that you just give rote answers that anyone could give. If you don't know the answer or need a second, take a deep breath and settle yourself before you blurt out nonsense.
Great job by the OP paying it forward.
 
i_like_planes said:
Wow. First, congrats on your appointment!!! Second, if you don't mind would you be able to say some of the curve ball questions you got in your interviews?
Click to expand...
During my senatorial interview one of the interviewers asked me directly "I see you received two B's during your sophomore year. Explain why you received those grades?" Let's just say I internally screamed lol. I've only received 3 B's my entire high school career so I didn't expect for a question like that. It was out of the blue for me. Be prepared for any question.

Best of luck to you!
 
Jman0714 said:
During my senatorial interview one of the interviewers asked me directly "I see you received two B's during your sophomore year. Explain why you received those grades?" Let's just say I internally screamed lol. I've only received 3 B's my entire high school career so I didn't expect for a question like that. It was out of the blue for me. Be prepared for any question.

Best of luck to you!
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Same here, I got 1 B freshman year and 2 during sophomore year. I hope they don't go too far into grades
 
i_like_planes said:
Same here, I got 1 B freshman year and 2 during sophomore year. I hope they don't go too far into grades
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Murphy's law. Be ready for it if it does. Using the advice above, have sorry ready for each case but not a script. Why did you get those B's- topic I was unprepared that I worked on later. Clearly that's not the answer or how you word it but it's how you prepare to answer. Not word for word but with a general idea in mind of how to answer.
 
FlyFalcon said:
Murphy's law. Be ready for it if it does. Using the advice above, have sorry ready for each case but not a script. Why did you get those B's- topic I was unprepared that I worked on later. Clearly that's not the answer or how you word it but it's how you prepare to answer. Not word for word but with a general idea in mind of how to answer.
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In the case regarding grades, I don’t think that “sorry” needs to answer. Perhaps a simple and honest response would impress the interviewer more as in, “It was a difficult class and my first exposure to the subject. I am more proud of the ”B” I earned in that class, than the “A” I earned in xx x. The class taxed my resolve and, as a result, made me a better learner”. Here, you’ve turned the question (which you may have been perceived as a dig) into a positive response by taking full ownership of the grade. It shows personal, as well as, academic accountability. During an interview, you don’t want to respond in a manner that comes off as totally canned or making excuses.
 
WT Door said:
In the case regarding grades, I don’t think that “sorry” needs to answer. Perhaps a simple and honest response would impress the interviewer more as in, “It was a difficult class and my first exposure to the subject. I am more proud of the ”B” I earned in that class, than the “A” I earned in xx x. The class taxed my resolve and, as a result, made me a better learner”. Here, you’ve turned the question (which you may have been perceived as a dig) into a positive response by taking full ownership of the grade. It shows personal, as well as, academic accountability. During an interview, you don’t want to respond in a manner that comes off as totally canned or making excuses.
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Yup, I definitely don't want to come off as someone who just makes excuses for themselves.
 
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