exNavyOffRec
Well-Known Member
That is a good thing considering there isn't an August DCO board, someone titled the thread wrong.
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DC board August-Reserves
- Thread starter manofstyle04
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That is a good thing considering there isn't an August DCO board, someone titled the thread wrong.
Good Morning number9,
My officer recruiter has submitted my request for interviews for intel, I'm hoping for 1825, I had not considered any other intel until reading these forums.
My recruiter advised I read everything I can to prepare for the interview. Now that you've gone through the interview process any recommendations on how to prepare?
Thank you!
There's a high chance I over-index on preparation (applying to business school will do that...) but here goes: in terms of preparation, I did a bunch of different things. I read dozens of threads here to get an idea of the process and (in some cases) what the job looks like; I did the same on reddit (check out r/newtothenavy and, to a lesser extent, r/navyreserve) to soak up as much information as I could. There is relatively little information on the IWC community in Reddit, but there is a fantastic amount of information on what active-duty Navy life is like and a fair amount of what it's like in the reserves. This information got me to a place where I was ready to actually apply.
In terms of interview prep, my OR sent me a sheet with a bunch of sample questions. As @fieldrat has said, they are mostly variations on a couple of themes: why do you want to serve, why do you want to be in the IWC, what can you bring, etc. I reflected on my answers, wrote them out, and then practiced them (mostly with my wife) until they felt good. If I found myself driving somewhere for 30 or 60 minutes I would literally interview myself, out loud, and pretend to be the panel asking me questions and then answer them. I'd make a mental note of the ones I flubbed and then go over them again later. The questions I got in the actual interview did not really surprise me, because I knew broadly what to expect.
Make really, really sure you have your narrative down. Why do you want to join? What is your story? What do you bring to the table? Know what you intend to get out of it (e.g. service/duty, leadership experience) but know what you plan to give: what does the Navy get in return for its considerable investment in you? Maybe you bring a unique skillset or unique experiences, or a fresh way of thinking, or a perspective that they might otherwise lack. It's a very competitive program: what makes you stand out?
I also tried to reach out to people in the community itself to get more information. I spoke to @fieldrat here on AW, but I also trawled LinkedIn: I literally signed up for a recruiter account (so that you don't run out of searches) and cold-emailed people who had IWC designators in their bios. It wasn't very successful -- I have career Navy friends who aren't even on LinkedIn -- but I did learn a couple of things during the process. I went to graduate school with some Navy guys (albeit none in IWC) and got some general info from them as well about what it's like to be an officer.
Last but not least, I tried to read as much as I could. I follow the regular news pretty closely (NYT, WaPo, WSJ, Economist) but for the application tried to think about it from a Navy and/or maritime perspective. The arctic is warming -- I knew that already -- but what does that mean for shipping lanes? They'll open. Ok, what does that mean for force projection? We're going to want to get there first. I also read some Navy books: find a leader you're interested in (e.g. Admiral Halsey) and read about him. You'll get to know about their life, their leadership style, and you'll learn about the Navy along the way. Read Six Frigates, or at least know the broad strokes of the story. Hell, I even signed up for Proceedings and read that. Finally, read up on the general challenges facing the U.S. military; the 2018 National Defense Strategy is a great place to start (there has not been an updated version since 2020).
I had a lot of help to get this far in the application process so I would be glad to pay it forward. PM me, email me, text me, whatever I can do to help I'll do.
Thank you I will PM you!
fieldrat
Fully Qualified 1815
Each one, teach one.
link6
Member
number9, your entire post is excellent, but I found this part^^ especially relevant to my application process. I'm sure my interviews weren't unique in that the very first question asked was, "Please tell us about yourself."
Knowing how to pitch yourself is absolutely critical. Be 100% certain that you can articulate your worth in simple, straightforward terms. Tell everyone you know that you're joining the Navy. When they ask "Why?" aim to convince them of your motivation to serve and your unique value to the organization in 30 seconds or less. (There are loads of helpful videos on how to construct your "self" elevator pitch, fwiw.) Use their follow-up questions to organize and refine your thoughts. Practice, practice, practice until all of this is second nature.
Speaking with a few other recently successful 1835 applicants in my area reinforced the importance of your advice. I spoke with an historian, for example, who had never served, hadn't worked in the Intelligence Community previously, and lacked the skills central to the current recruiting zeitgeist (AI-ML, data-sci, cyber, etc.). Undeterred, he wove a compelling narrative about his deep knowledge of history as an invaluable window into the strategic thinking and motivations of our adversaries. He received top panel scores and was selected on the first pass.
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I finally got cleared to go to MEPS! I'm going next week; my entire packet has to be submitted by August 13th so this is cutting it closer than I would have liked. It took almost two months of hand-wringing and finger-pointing to get my medical history from my provider, despite the fact I've only seen one healthcare system in the last 10 years. ?
fieldrat
Fully Qualified 1815
I've been giving the same information to folks for the past few years, so it's nice to see others "use different words to say the same thing"...
Flubbing the "elevator pitch" is akin to failing at "Gentle(wo)men, take your mark!". You literally are gonna be on the back foot the rest of the interview, and everyone in the room will know it. Whether or not you get a softball question to regain your bearings is completely up to the individual board member(s).
-BR-
To everyone who has a package going to this board, I hope for you the best. If something I wrote/said was helpful, I'm humbled. If I neglected to respond to a question/call, I'm contrite; know that it wasn't intentional.
For those wondering whether advanced standing is possible, I can confirm (personally) at least one candidate commissioned directly as an O-3 last cycle. However, their package, and experience was extensive.
I haven't seen much ODS-specific MEPS gouge, so I thought I'd add my $0.02 from yesterday. Here is a rough breakdown of the day at MEPS Boston:
The doors opened at 5:45am. A few minutes of initial processing (including meeting the Navy liaison) and then the first test of the day which was a hearing test administered in a soundproof room. From there we went to a few vision tests: color blindness, depth perception, uncorrected vision, and corrected vision. Interestingly, they checked my vision while I wore glasses but did not ask me to put in my contact lenses. They don't tell you how you did on any of these tests but I assume they will tell you if you fail one of them. They checked our pulses as well.
After that we got herded into a room for a brief PowerPoint presentation, followed by filling out some forms and updating your medical & legal history if anything had changed since your packet was submitted. At this time you can look through your results from the earlier tests, and (with the exception of hearing) it's clear if you passed or failed. From there we were immediately breathalyzed and then split up into different groups. My group had the urinalysis test right off the bat, followed by a blood draw. I went to have my height & weight measured (no tape) after that and then a quick physical with the Doc. I did not have to do the ? walk, which was a shame as I was looking forward to it!
Finally I had to get fingerprinted. A brief chat with another Navy liaison and I was pretty much done: at this point it was just after 11am. There were probably ~20 applicants at MEPS in total, but only 1 other officer (she was Air Force). That's it.
The doors opened at 5:45am. A few minutes of initial processing (including meeting the Navy liaison) and then the first test of the day which was a hearing test administered in a soundproof room. From there we went to a few vision tests: color blindness, depth perception, uncorrected vision, and corrected vision. Interestingly, they checked my vision while I wore glasses but did not ask me to put in my contact lenses. They don't tell you how you did on any of these tests but I assume they will tell you if you fail one of them. They checked our pulses as well.
After that we got herded into a room for a brief PowerPoint presentation, followed by filling out some forms and updating your medical & legal history if anything had changed since your packet was submitted. At this time you can look through your results from the earlier tests, and (with the exception of hearing) it's clear if you passed or failed. From there we were immediately breathalyzed and then split up into different groups. My group had the urinalysis test right off the bat, followed by a blood draw. I went to have my height & weight measured (no tape) after that and then a quick physical with the Doc. I did not have to do the ? walk, which was a shame as I was looking forward to it!
Finally I had to get fingerprinted. A brief chat with another Navy liaison and I was pretty much done: at this point it was just after 11am. There were probably ~20 applicants at MEPS in total, but only 1 other officer (she was Air Force). That's it.
Interesting, I had to do the duck walk and all the other mobility exercises at MEPS a few months ago. The only difference I noticed for the physical between myself and the enlisted recruits was they generally tried to get me to the front of the line.
I was concerned enough about not doing any mobility stuff that the Navy liaison called the recruiter to make sure I was okay to skip it; my package has to be complete by August 13th so I don't have time to go back and do it over. But, apparently, it's fine that I didn't. The other officer applicant was at the front of all the lines, but I was mixed in with everybody else. I was purposely left for last to do the physical!
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I went to MEPS a few months ago. My recruiting station was extremely busy with at least 200 candidates that day (mostly enlisted as my recruiter said only 2 other individuals were going for a commission there). Got there at 4:45 and didn’t leave til 4 due to how busy it was. Definitely prepare to be there a while at a busy location. I was picked up at the latest CEC DCO board so not IWC.