Interview Dress

singaporemom said:
The interviewee should wear what is most comfortable to him/her. My son wore Dockers, Button down shirt, casual dress shoes,(and a figure 8 brace for his broken collarbone). This was his 'lucky outfit' and he didnt want to tempt fate. There were many kids at MOC interview that wore full dress JROTC uniform. When asked as to why he didnt wear his uniform, he replied, "It's about me, not the show."

Something rang true, because he got the nom and the appointment.

I truly think that it's the attitude and resume that get the nom. Not every kid can afford a new suit, but every kid can look well groomed and appropriate.
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Well stated.

First, be neat. Young men should not have the "scruffy" look. Looks great on Hugh Laurie, not on a h.s. senior. A neatly trimmed mustache, goatee, etc. is perfectly fine. I agree that women can wear their hair down -- just keep it neat and DO NOT PLAY WITH IT during the interview. If you can't help but twist your fingers in your hair, put it up.:smile:

Clothes should be pressed and clean. You know what "appropriate" dress is where you live. If you aren't sure, consider what you would wear to a wedding or funeral that takes place during the day. In some places, it may be coat and tie, in others it may be nice jeans. The committee lives where you live . . . they know what to expect.

Ripped jeans, mini-skirts, shorts, revealing tops, T-shirts . . . not saying they will "kill" your chances but they don't make a good first impression. If you don't own a suit . . . do NOT go out and buy one. No one expects it. Wear something nice that you own and feel comfortable in.

At the end of the day you should be judged by who you are and not what you wear. But, if you wear something totally inappropriate, people are people and may draw some initial conclusions that you'll have to overcome.
 
usna1985 said:
In some places, it may be coat and tie........................ Wear something ..........................you feel comfortable in.
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If, by chance, you do deem it a coat and tie and you have never worn it, or only worn it very occassionally, be very careful. As distracting as women playing with their hair is guys fiddling with their tie, cuffs, or jacket buttons. Wear it a few times before hand until you feel comfortable.
 
as a side note to this conversation, our HS Choir has the seniors wear tuxedos (girls wear black 'evening' gowns) for their school and travel performances. Besides looking very sharp for the performance one could see the transformation from September when the boys looked like they were toy soldiers doing the stiff walk to comfortable young men and women in their formal best. There were a couple of football players and basketball players and they all learned how to be comfortable in formal wear.

I know not everyone gets that chance, but as Mongo points out, you need to be comfortable in your clothes. Alas, our DS did not wear a tux but he was comfortable in his CAP uniform AND ready for the "besides that..." question.

Our BGO explained it this way, your are competing for a seat at a military school, show you can be that person successfully. Not every one has the option. But as everyone as said, be comfortable and confident.
 
at the interview

Just came from 3 interviews. Here is what I wish someone had told me:

Parents: stay out of the office.
Candidates: wear conservative suits. Don't wear uniforms. Be empty-handed, don't carry cell.
 
Piper: Excellent observation. There are a few of us here who have said a number of times to NOT wear any type of uniform. It does not present the image you THINK it does. Just like walking into Basic Cadet Training and bragging about being in Civil Air Patrol, JrROTC, or Boy Scouts. You have every right to be proud of those accomplishments; but they don't impress people the way you think they do. On paper? Definitely. Talked about publicly? Not at all. So I will continue to recommend that people don't wear a uniform to an ALO or MOC interview. EXCEPTION: If you are current enlisted, you are FULL TIME MILITARY. This would be appropriate. You aren't pretending to be in the military. You ARE in the military.

Parents: Heed Piper's comments. There is no reason whatsoever for you to follow your son/daughter to an ALO or MOC interview. You're expecting them to become adults and attend the academy. Well, this is the first start. STAY OUT!!! Obviously, if an ALO comes to your house for a visit or interview; which some do; then play that by ear. But give your son/daughter some space. You don't need to be talking to the MOC, their staff, or anyone else. Simply drop them off outside, (If they aren't driving themselves), and tell them you'll wait outside in the car. They can call you if they really need you.

Empty hands: I definitely don't suggest walking in with a brief case, cell phone in your hand, etc... However, it's logical to walk in with a folder with supporting documents. Maybe some letters of recommendations. Maybe a complete copy of the application you submitted. (Remember, you make a copy of EVERYTHING that you send to the ALO, MOC, Academy, etc...) A copy of something might come in handy if the MOC doesn't have it immediately in your file, or it was misplaced or lost. But I agree, don't have a cell phone in your hand. If you're a female, it's acceptable to have a small purse. But your cell phone "Ringer Off" in the purse. For guys, you should be wearing a suit, or at least a shirt and tie. Most cell phones are small/thin enough to put in your pocket. Keep it out of your hands.

Excellent observations there Piper. Hopefully others will heed your comments. Best of luck to you. Mike....\
 
piper said:
Candidates: wear conservative suits. Don't wear uniforms. Be empty-handed, don't carry cell.
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This has been discussed previously with varying positions. I refrained from commenting earlier, but will share an observation:

wearing a uniform seems to work extremely well, or somewhat backfires. Not much middle ground.

Just a parent of a candidate, so I don't have insight into the nom interview process except what my son experienced.

But we have seen many cases of the body language responding to various uniforms at academy days, with jROTC being the most prevalent. Likewise, DS indicated cadet response was pretty distinct at the summer programs and overnights to jROTC.

Net-net: it seems active or past service types seem to recoil a bit at the jROTC uniforms with all the braid & pins.... and sometimes smirk a bit. I'm sure they'd do the same at a scout uniform worn the same event.

Don't know why, but there is something there. This does not mean they don't give credit to the experience & commitment, they clearly do. But there is a vibe there that even we picked up on.

At the summer programs, overnights, etc, the response is even more obvious from the cadets.

My gut sense is that it's a bit of backlash to past experiences where the jROTC applicants overreached a bit at SLS, CVW, NASS, etc. We even saw it as parents at CVW recently, wincing a bit at a question in one of the briefings from a candidate pushing her jNROTC experience a bit loudly.

It's OK to be proud of your accomplishments, and get credit for the hard work. You do that in your application, your essays, and most importantly in interviews in how you answer the questions. And you'll have an advantage in the additional nomination source, some of the earliest appointments that were announced here on the forum were from jROTC connected.

But outside of that, be it scouts, jROTC, varsity, whatever, based on what we've seen you need to treat the interview like a job interview, with professional dress clothes. (blazer, tie, or suit if comfortable). Not a uniform unless you are current active duty.

Shoes shined, hair trimmed & combed. Shaved. Neat, professional, competent, and confident! :smile: These are probably far more important than what you actually wear. You can be well dressed without expensive clothes! :smile:

And yes, parents should stay far away from the nom interviews. I'd not even drive with them unless you had to travel out of town, etc.
 
Do you know what a person who received an early appointment, or an LOA first, or was an Eagle scout, or commander in their CAP, or leader of their JrROTC, or quarterback of their football team, or head cheerleader is called, once they get to the academy?????
CADET!!!

I know people are very proud of their accomplishments. And they rightfully should be. But did you know that 80%+ of all cadets earned a varsity letter. Did you know that almost 1/3 of all cadets were in scouts and JrROTC. That 65% were in the National Honor Society. That the average gpa was a 3.86. That 1 in 10 was class Valedictorian/Salutatorian. 15% (1 in 7) was the class president. MORE THAN HALF were in the top 10% of the class????

No matter how proud you are of your achievements during your high school years, there is someone at the academy is did the exact same thing and possibly more. Remember; you're no longer the BIG FISH in a little pond. You'll now be a SMALL FISH in a BIG OCEAN. With all these 4.0, 31ACT, rank top-10, etc...; there are many who are carrying a 2.5-2.8gpa at the academy. You are NOT the first nomination applicant that your MOC has ever interviewed. You aren't the first applicant to meet with your ALO. Anything you're proud of, you're not the first at the academy to have achieved it. There are going to still be those that say wearing a Civil Air Patrol or JrROTC uniform is a good thing for your MOC or ALO interviews. Do it if you want to. But if you truly are asking for opinions, then I stand by my position of NOT wearing such uniforms. And I'm not alone in this suggestion. Of course, as I've already said, if you're currently an enlisted airman/soldier/seaman/etc..., then wearing your Service Dress uniform is actually expected. Then again, you're actually in the "REAL MILITARY", and that is your NORMAL WORK CLOTHES; so it doesn't appear that you're trying to impress anyone. But all others..... Wear a suit; jacket/shirt/tie; pant-suit; business attire. Wear your Sunday Best type of clothing for the Job Interview of your Life.
 
I would like to put what I've experienced in as well. I have had all of my Congressional interviews, the last one being today.


I am in the Naval Sea Cadet Corps, which is like NJROTC. I listened to everyone on this board and did not wear my dress uniform. I wore a nice suit instead.


Every interview I went into, one of the first questions they asked was why I was not in uniform. They said they wouldn't count it against me, but I should have worn it.

I live in NJ, so make of it what you would.
 
I have had 2 MOC interviews so far and here is what I have noticed. Good number of candidates in JROTC uniforms. I can't tell you if it hurt them but I also can't say it helped them. I am part of the Marine JROTC at my school and one thing about our uniforms that differed from the Army and Air Force JROTC uniforms I saw are we don't get chords for participating in drill/color guard/ raider team. We also do not get a lot of ribbons. First year JROTC when our unit was Army I finished the year with 3 rows of ribbons and after switching to Marine I have only earned 4 total in two years. If I had worn my uniform and been outranked and had a less decorated uniform than other candidates that would on some level affected me knowing they are my competition. This helped me realize like CC says that JROTC/CAP etc are only part of my application and I don't need to throw it in the interviewers face by wearing it.
 
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