ROTC interview tips/advice

Colleges and Universities A-Z Air Force Academy - Colorado Springs
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<p>I am fixing on applying for both Army & AF ROTC scholarships, and I have my Army interview up at Penn State next Monday; have previously met the LTC once over a summer visit. I’ve been reading posts everywhere online about tips and suggestions. I’ve noticed that there hasn’t really been much posts w/in the past year or two. Does anyone have any further tips for interview?</p>

<p>Academically sound; 3.89GPA … top 11%; Honors/AP courses, Cross Country/Track … member of 10+ clubs.</p>

<p>I am currently Penn State Class of 2017 (regardless if I get a 4 year scholarship); College of Engineering - Aerospace Eng. and will most likely go AF. I’m not in it to get the money; I’m in it to get that commission, to be a leader of men. I am planning on at least 20 years active + 5-10 Guard/Reserve. I want to Serve my Country.</p>

<p>I’ve ready in many places mixed answers of what to wear to an interview. I’ve heard suits to khakis and everything in between. I am fixing on wearing a suit; is there some wrong with that? I attended Keystone Boys State over the summer and had a chance to speak with the ROTC cadre at Shippensburg. The admissions officer told me to “dress for success”, referencing a suit.</p>

<p>In terms of the interview questions - how many should I prepare for? I’ve got about 30 nailed down so far; how many more should I prepare for? 25? 50? 100? And for the actual questions themselves - would I just pull them from typical job interview questions – but modify it to fit ROTC instead of it being a job?</p>

<p>For the interview, what all should I know? Geneva Convention (to what extent?) Army/AF core values? Army/AF history (to what extent?)</p>

<p>In terms of situational questions, does anyone know where I can find some online? I’ve tried looking for ones involving military situations - couldn’t find any. Are these suppose to be the type of questions in which you can’t really prepare for - requiring on-the-spot answers? … a friend who goes to AFA also told me, that there ARE wrong answers to situational questions - true?</p>

<p>And also, I’ve gotten the general big idea of the essential questions that I will be asked:
Why do you want to be an officer?
Why should I admit you into ROTC?
Why do you want to join the Military?
Biggest high school achievement?
Biggest failure?
What are you strengths?
What are you weaknesses? (then state how to turn them into strengths?)
Tell me about yourself.
Where do you see yourself in 5 years?</p>

<p>Are there any other questions that I am missing? What other questions should I study/prepare for? … how many more questions should I prepare for.</p>

<p>… also; I know this is probably a very, very stupid question. But for answering: Why do you want to be an officer … what could I say? Does anyone have any brainstorming ideas; because frankly - I have no idea what to say about this (I know; I want to be a leader, and can’t answer this question …)</p>

<p>I’ve also run into another issue with some of the questions I’ve been preparing for. For some questions like: “Tell me about yourself”, “greatest high school accomplishment”, “What have you done to prepare”, and “What adversity did you face, how did you handle it?” I seem to be some what repeating myself. For all of the above stated questions, they all have reference to Cross Country. For the first question, I mentioned how basically Cross Country unlocked a whole new world for me; social development; extracurricular involvement (10+ clubs), interest in photography. 2nd question - greatest accomplishment was Cross Country - told me that you can push yourself past what you thought was your physical/mental limit in order to achieve a goal. 3rd question - physical conditioning via Cross Country. 4th question - Cross Country, sprained my ankle during senior year + resprained ankle twice more …
Is this bad that I mentioned Cross Country more than once? Or will it be viewed in a positive manner - how it changed my life?</p>

<p>Be honest and truthful; be confident but NOT cocky/arrogant. Is showing up 30 minutes early okay? or should I just stick to around 15 minutes early?</p>

<p>Any and all help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!</p>

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<p>… also, for those who have applied and got accepted, how long did it take to receive the letter? Is there a general time frame; or does it vary?</p>

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<p>LtThompson, I really recommend going to this forum, you’ll receive some great answer and you can search for the answers to a lot of your questions:[United</a> States of America Service Academy Forums - Powered by vBulletin](<a href=“http://www.serviceacademyforums.com/]United”>http://www.serviceacademyforums.com/)</p>

<p>I definitely recommend a suit; I don’t think that’s over-dressing even, but better to be over-dressed than under-dressed.</p>

<p>Best of luck!</p>

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<p>Will do!</p>

<p>Also, I had another question pop up. As I’ve mentioned before, I am interviewing for Army at Penn State on Monday @1000 EST. </p>

<p>… I have just received news from my local AF ROTC/AFA liaison officer, that due to her schedule she can interview on Monday as well, requesting it @ 1530EST. I’m just a little concerned w/ the time. Worst case scenario, the Army interview lasts for two hours; ending at 1200 - drive back home takes about 2 hours 30 min (w/o traffic) - a little worried that it’s cutting it close - will request to move time to an hour later.</p>

<p>Anyways; my main question I had, was for my AF interview - how should I word the email requesting to move it back an hour? Should I make any reference to the Army interview? I fear that my chances of 4 year scholarship may decrease if I tell her I’m also interviewing for Army. </p>

<p>Or should I just not mention the Army interview; and just ask to move the time one hour back?</p>

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<p>I wouldn’t worry about them knowing about AROTC, I really doubt that would be counted against you. If anything, it shows how you have a desire to serve in the military and that the branch isn’t as important as the fact that you just wish to serve in the military.</p>

<p>You actually would probably have a better chance of moving it back if you told them about the other interview, so then they’d know that it’s a legit issue.</p>

<p>Write that you respectfully request that your interview be changed to a little later in the day because you have another ROTC interview that could conflict with your AFROTC one.</p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

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<p>They are looking for articulate, mature, and well-reasoned answers. So, yes, there are “wrong” answers. If you said, “I want to be an Army LT to I can kill people and order my troops around,” that would be a wrong answer. Other than stupidity like that, there are actually few wrong answers. They want to see a thinking person who takes things seriously and honestly.</p>

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I just conducted my interview today (October 5, 2016).

The scholarship as of 2016 works as follows:

National Board:
20,000 apply
2,000 are awarded either 4 year or 3 year scholarship (10%)
Only about 500 4 year scholarships are awarded (STEM major at upscale university)
Only about 350 are awarded at the first board convention
All will be fully distributed by the third march board

If you are not awarded do not be alarmed.

All schools have internal ROTC scholarships. Go to the school you desire (with ROTC of course) and apply for the internal scholarships. Every single junior and senior at Baylor University are on scholarship.

Be sure to double-dip on scholarships. Baylor awards scholarships to all students who achieve a 32 or higher on the ACT, and it is worth up to 10,000 a year. This means that some cadets are actually making more then they are spending.

The application:
Be sure to apply early and get before the first review board. I finished my application before the end of September and had my interview on the previously stated date. The application is easy to complete and self-explanatory, so be sure to take care of it quickly. Also, be sure to have a good counselor, pt tester, and have a good editor edit the essays.

The interview:
Be sure to email the school you wish to interview at. Sometimes it is better to interview at a school you are applying to however it is not essential. Be sure to communicate timely and intelligently. Once you have your interview scheduled, be sure to prepare your suit (you will need a suit) and all documents you might need (they requested a resume, color photo, ACT/SAT scores, Letters of Recommendation, PT scores, and any supporting documents that might be helpful). Be sure to arrive at least 30 minutes early in order to find the correct location (always be too early). The officer I interviewed with was nice and concise so do not worry too much because they do want to help you. The interview lasted about 90 minutes with about 60 of those minutes being spent talking about the nitty-gritty of the scholarship with my father in the room. The last 30 minutes was my personal interview to which he asked 3 personal questions, talked about the strength of my application, and allow me to ask questions. He said that I was a very competitive candidate for the scholarship.

My Stats:
4.1 GPA
11.3% Class Rank
33 ACT
1400 SAT
92 ASVAB
5 “5’s” on AP exams
NHS scholar
Various academic awards

Athlete
MCJROTC
Band
Israeli Combat Course
Football (Freshman JV)
SCUBA/Lifeguard Certified
5k runner

Leadership
Band SLT
Venture Crew officer
German Club officer
MCJROTC Commanding Officer
Civic Service Awards

Also play Bagpipes which the interviewer liked.

My academics was extremely strong, and makes me highly competitive for the first board.
My athletics is satisfactory however they do want to see at least one varsity letter
My leadership is satisfactory but my personal weakness.( MCJROTC was not looked upon favorably, JROTC is not well liked by the Army which is completely retarded because I spent all my time at JROTC)

Advice:
JROTC is not well received, do not waste all your time at JROTC
Garner an elected position (class president, captain of team, eagle scout)
Varsity letter is recommended
Solid academics is most essential

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Try to focus on how you have the skills to be a good leader. Most military scholarships, ROTC and Academies are geared toward people who have already shown some measure of leadership in their lives. Rather than say “I want to be a leader of men”, talk about how your experience leading boys has helped to prepare you to be a leader of men. Give concrete examples of things you have actually done to lead others. (mentor younger athletes, tutor other students, etc.) Don’t just repeat what they can read, tell them about specific times that you sacrificed yourself for another teammate/person. For instance: ‘while I was at cross-country practice, I noticed a younger runner struggling to keep up. I helped him by…’ and give specifics on what you did to show leadership. Definitely wear a suit. A suit will rarely hurt your chances, but a lack of a suit may. Why take that chance? It is always better to pull examples from various parts of your life/resume. I understand that can be hard when you are young, but leadership is not always found in formal roles.

BTW, colleges do not always allow stacking of scholarships. Many will reduce one scholarship when you receive others (even those not offered through the university).

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Don’t use the word Fixin

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Tell the interviewer you aren’t in it for the money, that you want to be a leader of men and women.