nomination interview?

<p>hey people,
i know alot have already gone through the interviews already. any idea of what to expect? what kind of questions/topics were covered?</p>

<p>And how about that Imagine you are in combat, and an enemy kills your best friend.... you're platoon is able to capture the enemies and you are told to kill the prisoners, who you are fairly sure killed your friend, what would you do? I hear they like to ask that one....... I dont really know exactly how to answer, but I most certainly know that killing the prisoners is not the right action to take.</p>

<p>ok, im pretty sure they don't ask that question...atleast not the vast majority....they are trying to figure out if you are right for the academy, not how your moral state is going to serve you on the battlefield...that will come later..</p>

<p>Each of the MOC nominating committees will ask their own different questions. Most of the time they will just interview the applicant. One time for us on this last go around, they interviewed our son first, then called me in and interviewed both of us! A very pleasant surprise! Parents you are warned! ;)</p>

<p>I want to go to USNA, but at my congressional interview they asked some pretty hard questions. The questions they asked were specific to me, but there was one guy who was pretty in-your-face about what you were saying during the interview. I think it was on purpose to see if I would melt under the pressure, more than that he actually disliked what I was saying.</p>

<p>mind providing some specific questions, usnagirl? ;]</p>

<p>A) The MP says don't kill the prisoners. Back haul them to the bfcp (brigade forward collection point) and then the division assets will come forward, get them, haul them to the DHA (Division holding area), (after they get hit with a chem attack and 40 die). From the DHA, they go to the ITP International transfer point and wait for the end of the conflict.</p>

<p>Hi, I just got out of a week long field problem. I was the link between the DHA and the BFCP. And NO ONE was interested in EPWs they were too interested in the infantry regiment we were tasked to destroy. Which is why 40 EPWs got "killed" in the chem strike. And now we have to do an "investigation" as to why....sorry, off topic. </p>

<p>In response to the original question - My interview wasn't all that bad. I was asked where I saw the Army going in the next twenty years, and how I thought it would change. (this was in 2001) I talked about modularity, how you'd be more able to take parts from different units and interchange them with others, how we were moving away from conventional warfare, and how MOOTWA (military operations other than war) was about to become huge. Bien, I was right!</p>

<p>Pre interview reading - I suggest the Army Times and the international section of a good newspaper. Be able to elucidate WHY you want to go into the military WHICH academy you want to go to and WHY that academy rather than another. Talk about your leadership experiences. Use the opportunity to flesh out the resume/application that they have on you. Be unique. Be interesting. Practice the interview with adults you don't know that well (guidance councelor, teacher you haven't had in a while etc.) Be prepared for ethical questions like the one posted. You can't kill the EPWs, they're protected under the Geneva Conventions. If they don't pose a threat to you, you're WRONG. Althought it is awful to lose your buddy in combat, at least you captured the guy who killed him. Skilled interrogaters will be able to talk to him, and find out who his boss is. The guy will lead you to bigger fish. Killing him out of hand will not bring your buddy back, or further the tactical goals of your mission. Taking him back to the MI interrogators? Actually makes your buddy's death worthwhile.</p>

<p>Uhduh--</p>

<p>Well. Let's see. In the essay for my nomination application, I talked about how I was really drawn to the fact that the core values of the Navy are honor, courage and commitment. They asked why I wanted to go the USNA and I told them that I really liked the idea of honor, that I wanted to be a part of a team, serve my country and be a part of something bigger than myself, and that I thought it could be fun to get the opportunity to travel around the world as a Naval Officer. Naturally, the tough guy seized on the fact that I said I thought it would be fun to travel and sort of asked me
"Well what are you going to do when it's not fun anymore? Huh huh huh? Neiner neiner." Obviously he didn't say it exactly that way but that's the feeling I got. </p>

<p>I answered that that's when you need something more than a desire to have fun. You need to be mindful of your mission and your buddies that you have to look out for. You shouldn't be in the Navy for yourself because it won't always be fun. In short, you need commitment. </p>

<p>Then he asked me what I would do if I had to make a decision where all the options I could choose "hurt my honor." He never asked me what my idea of honor was, and I think he might have been thinking I thought it was some nice feeling about what a wonderful person I am rather than personal integrity that you bring to difficult situations. But I told him everyone has dilemmas sometimes and there's nothing to do but think through which is the lesser of two evils.</p>

<p>Just be honest. Be prepared to articulate why West Point over Annapolis or Colorado Springs. Your straightforward, honest response is the best.</p>

<p>usnagirl,
It sounds like you responded well to the interviewers' questions. At this point just stay competitive. Update your USNA file with awards, retake the SAT/ACT if necessary and keep up your grades! During my daughter's MOC interview the Army guy was pretty rough on her because the only service academy she applied to was USNA along with the NROTC scholarship! He wanted to know why she didn't apply to USMA! It kind of shook her. In the end it didn't matter because she got a competitive nomination from our MOC and was the principal nominee for one of our US senators from California (our senators receive approximately 1,000 applications each year). Your record speaks for itself.</p>

<p>P.S. They do manage to have fun after they finish their work! :)</p>