Nomination Interview - Page 2

bulletandpima · 10-17-2008, 09:20 AM

DS had that question too. I guess he answered it well since he got the nom

hornetguy · 10-17-2008, 10:14 AM

I'm probably one of the few that never had to interview. Go figure.

Viper24 · 10-17-2008, 10:32 AM

make sure you know basic AF knowledge, such as the core values, horor code, mission and vision, what you want to do in the Air Force...

When I told them I wanted to be a pilot, they asked me the armament of the f-16, luckily i knew it from Summer Seminar, but they then asked which planes needed navigators, and I drew a blank. So i ended up saying, "well, not many because there is a little black box that was invented...it's called a GPS..." they really liked that!

Nobillity08 · 10-17-2008, 03:20 PM

I remember they asked me if I saw cheating and high school and then asked why I did not report it. They then asked if I would be able to turn in my best friend here.

If you need some extra time to collect your thoughts before you answer, just reply that is a very good question then proceed with your response.

bulletandpima · 10-17-2008, 04:22 PM

I am surprised by that question Viper...that is like asking what is the difference between a bomb and a missile. Many kids don't want to fly. I am guessing you have an association to the 16, thus, go figure that's why you chose Viper as your moniker

I strongly suggest not to use that as an answer...a navigator or WSO on the board would not have taken to it very kindly...better answer is would be the role of navigators are changing daily, I respect them, but I am not sure the role they will play when I graduate from UPT in 2014. Or a real easy answer the F-15E Strike has WSO's and that jet isn't known to be lawn darts!

Bullet...I couldn't resist...I still have that WSO wife mentality

DS also had the cheating question.

Always remember you do not know the background of the interviewers...saying a navigator can be replaced by a gps will not give you pts if there is a nav on the board. It is kind of like saying the line from the movie Turner and Hooch...if you aren't a flyer, than you're sweeping up bird***** on the runway...not cool.

RaptorDad2013 · 10-17-2008, 06:04 PM

My son had his interview last Wednesday with his ALO (actually, two of them) and I asked him Petco's "Disney Princess" question. He first had a funny look on his face, thought about 5 seconds, smiled and said "Snow White!" I asked why and he said, with a big grin, "Then I could get all the drwarfs' money!" We both laughed about it and he said he wished they'd actually asked him that question!

packermatt7 · 10-17-2008, 06:53 PM

Well, I just received a LOA. Should I make copies and bring it to the interview?

Viper24 · 10-17-2008, 07:52 PM

yeah, that whole nav. thing, i honestly just had a huge mental block...i couldn't think of anything!!! i was trying to remember different planes and all i could remember was the F-16 and F-22!

as for taking a copy of your LOA, the Academy emails the LOA's to the senators and congressmen. That's where i actually first found out I had one! You can take a copy if you'd like though. but not necessary!

BlueSuiter · 10-18-2008, 08:54 PM

Wow, sounds like ya'll have it tougher than I did. I just had to meet with my commander for about five minutes before he selected me to send to the P school.

kmc2usafa · 01-10-2009, 05:57 PM

I was asked what I wanted to do in the Air Force (I said Intelligence) and was then asked what I thought Intelligence people did. So if you know what you want to do, be prepared to expound on that...

Also, I had a psychologist or similar in one of my interviews. It was weird because she seriously asked me questions like "I'm unfamiliar with this term...please explain." and "you do know you may be sent overseas...how do you *feel* about that?" Be ready to answer weird questions (favorite color and why; favorite author/book and why) and to explain things that may not make sense.

Definitely review your resumé before going in so if they ask if there's anything else you can pull that information out.

Finally, another question I was asked which surprised me was: "is there any question that you thought we'd ask and we didn't? If so, go ahead and answer it now." (Really, I think they just wanted me to give a conclusion as to why they should nominate me but I thought they seriously wanted a question so I started digging through my mind, lol.)

Just be yourself. Talk about yourself. Prove to them that you are Academy material.

futureafacadet · 01-19-2009, 08:33 PM

to whoever is doing the nomination interviews...are you starting them early as a junior or are you a senior?

Gasdoc · 01-19-2009, 08:41 PM

Visit your Representative and Senators' websites. They usually have information regarding acadamy nominations. The usual time line is to submit your completed packet and recommendations by October (the earlier the better), interview in November, and then wait to hear by December or January. So you ought to be working on this over the summer between junior and senior year.

capt_newman · 01-28-2009, 11:02 AM

Yeah earlier the better i heard.

one thing though don't talk badly about any other services...like an idiot i said i didn't like the army to a west point grad on the board of decisionerz. but i played it off and well...i got my nomination so it wasn't so bad. I've made lots of mistakes in high school and i made great turnarounds from them so the aforementioned question about
"what hard moral decisions have you had, and what would you do different if you were presented with that situation again."

Otherwise it was good for me anyways to keep the mood light and not so much 5 guys watching your every move so they can find something wrong with you.

samarrama · 01-31-2009, 01:31 AM

haha yeah. ^^
the board asked me a question as to why I only applied for a nom to usafa, and somewhat jokingly (even though we all know its true) said that it was because usafa was the best. There was a usna and a usma graduate sitting there, so we had a little laugh after they told me where they had come from. I covered it up somehow, i forget. Ended up getting the nom, but i already had an LOA and an appointment so i doubt saying anything bad about the other SA's wouldve prevented me from getting the nom anyway

packermatt7 · 01-31-2009, 09:59 AM

The board asked me why not USNA, USMA, USMMA, or USCGA.
There was one active duty Air Force Colonel on the board, a retired Navy Vietnam vet, and a retired USMA grad (veteran of Desert Storm and War on Terror).
They joked a few times about each other. The USMA grad at one point said "Yeah, don't worry, the Air Force isn't difficult at all."