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FY09 STA-21 Soup to selection and beyond MEGA thread

StillAlive said:
I've spent several hours on this site reading through most of the ECP threads and have a question that I see has been brought up on this specific thread. I have an LOR coming from my past CO (they had a change of command in January) and I will, of course, have one from my present CO [mind you both are 0-6s]. My Dept Head (O-6) said that he would happily give me one, too. So with LORs from three captains, is that just insufficient? Honestly, I am not asking opinions from anyone, moreso somone that has seen it the selection process. Additionally, what weight does an O-4 LOR have (Div. Head)? Anyone's input who has seen success w/ LORs would be greatly appreciated.
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Well I only had two LOR's from O-6's and I got picked up. I also asked a lowly Chief to write me one (he was my LCPO back on the boat so I figured it was a good representation of work I had done). I really don't think there's a min number or that rank is really going to be the breaking point of anyone's package.
 
I think this was mentioned from a thread a couple years ago but I'm not sure. I heeded this advice though. My COB from my old boat wrote me a LOR. Also had one from an old CO. I think having a MC say that he would proudly serve under my leadership holds a hell of alot more weight than a CO saying I would make a fine addition to his wardroom or what have you. Just a thought on who you pursue to get a LOR from when applying.
 
What are some of the different questions or topics that come up during the boards/interviews? I know it's a BAD idea to bs your way through but don't most boards ask the same types of questions? "Why do you want to be an officer? What would you do to benefit the Navy as an officer?" I am just curious what are some of the non-standard (if such thing) questions some of you guys were asked.
 
ac2NASTY said:
What are some of the different questions or topics that come up during the boards/interviews? I know it's a BAD idea to bs your way through but don't most boards ask the same types of questions? "Why do you want to be an officer? What would you do to benefit the Navy as an officer?" I am just curious what are some of the non-standard (if such thing) questions some of you guys were asked.
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My first board we talked about who was going to do the best during the NFL season and why I think I could be an outstanding officer.

The second board asked me 500 questions from current events, to my opinions of iraq and woman in the military. Every board is a crapshoot that depends who is on it. The board at your command will most likely be the easier of the 2 considering you may already know the officers involved.

Just relax and answer the questions honestly. Your not trying to win Miss America... or are you... :confused:
 
I have done about 6 boards now and each one of them was different. A good thing to know when you go into a board is have a question to ask them. Keep a good two way communication and answer the questions clearly. Many of the questions will be:

Why do you want to be an officer?
If your going for Naval Aviator then why?
Leadership history?
Command involvement?
If we were going to pick only one person to be selected for this program, why you?

Questions like that. Just have fun and know that its not a test, its more explaining what you want and who you are.

Good luck!
 
StillAlive said:
I've spent several hours on this site reading through most of the ECP threads and have a question that I see has been brought up on this specific thread. I have an LOR coming from my past CO (they had a change of command in January) and I will, of course, have one from my present CO [mind you both are 0-6s]. My Dept Head (O-6) said that he would happily give me one, too. So with LORs from three captains, is that just insufficient? Honestly, I am not asking opinions from anyone, moreso somone that has seen it the selection process. Additionally, what weight does an O-4 LOR have (Div. Head)? Anyone's input who has seen success w/ LORs would be greatly appreciated.
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Those LOR's definitely won't hurt your package and is absolutely sufficient. I wouldn't worry about LOR's too much, put them in there and get the rest of your package locked on. Start taking an honest look at yourself and be prepared to sell yourself at your boards. The board Officer's appraisals will carry a lot in your package. Look over some of the other threads for types of questions you'll likely be asked and start thinking about how you would answer them, honestly. The personal statement you write will also be a good way to project the kind of person you are to the board members.

As far as my package went, I only had one LOR in my package last year. It was from an O-4 (retired) that sat one of my boards a few years ago and we have kept in touch since then. I think LOR's will carry more weight if it is your first time applying and/or you don't have a lot of time in service to augment your package. If you have sustained outstanding performance, etc. then LOR's will be more like "icing on the cake", not "meat and potatoes".
 
I never got asked why I want to be an officer. I got asked why I was a submariner, what was my degree goal, what current events were in politics and what I would do if I was the CO of NPTU. I only had LORs from 2 O-2s and an O-6, I would try to find a balance between quality and quantity. The board members have to read everything, so they might get annoyed if you have 23 LORs, but that would be better than none. I just noticed that this answered nothing, but I am going to post it anyway. Sorry for wasting your time.
 
The biggest single article in your package is your personal statement by far. I read a couple personal statements before I wrote mine and I thought they sounded like they had been copied and slightly changed through the selection cycles. I decided to write my personal statement from scratch so I could discuss my shady highschool history, sell my work ethic a little bit and talk about my aspirations in the navy. I also wanted the board to understand my motivation level and how I feel I could help the Navy as an officer.

Remember your personal statement is the first thing the board looks at. It is your one shot to sell yourself personally. Everyone submitting packages to the board are outstanding sailors, workers, leaders. You need to find a way to break yourself out of the pack and make the board say, "This is our guy!".

You can almost gaurantee one thing, everyone you go against will have great evals, good PT scores, awards, LOR's, and decent to great highschool/college histories. So you don't need to tell them about all that stuff because it is almost a given. Tell them about you and what sets you apart from the rest of the Joe Navies.

Also the boards are your next hurdle for selection. Impress the board and get a good recommendation and you should be good. Just relax, be honest, look everybody in the eye when you talk to them, don't fidget, have a squared away uniform....and RELAX. None of the officer's on the boards are there to trick you or "fail" you. They just want to see how you field questions and your critical thinking skills under pressure.
 
k_smittay said:
The biggest single article in your package is your personal statement by far. I read a couple personal statements before I wrote mine and I thought they sounded like they had been copied and slightly changed through the selection cycles. I decided to write my personal statement from scratch so I could discuss my shady highschool history, sell my work ethic a little bit and talk about my aspirations in the navy. I also wanted the board to understand my motivation level and how I feel I could help the Navy as an officer.

Remember your personal statement is the first thing the board looks at. It is your one shot to sell yourself personally. Everyone submitting packages to the board are outstanding sailors, workers, leaders. You need to find a way to break yourself out of the pack and make the board say, "This is our guy!".

You can almost gaurantee one thing, everyone you go against will have great evals, good PT scores, awards, LOR's, and decent to great highschool/college histories. So you don't need to tell them about all that stuff because it is almost a given. Tell them about you and what sets you apart from the rest of the Joe Navies.

Also the boards are your next hurdle for selection. Impress the board and get a good recommendation and you should be good. Just relax, be honest, look everybody in the eye when you talk to them, don't fidget, have a squared away uniform....and RELAX. None of the officer's on the boards are there to trick you or "fail" you. They just want to see how you field questions and your critical thinking skills under pressure.
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+1!
 
I know that someone brought this up before that LT Boisselle at U.S. Joint Forces Command is holding a STA-21 Career Day at NAS Oceana on the 22nd of February. Well for those of us who cannot wait two more days, he is also holding one at Naval Station Norfolk in Bldg. C-9 at 0900 on the 20th of Feb. Again, his contact info is david.boisselle@jfcom.mil. Additionally, the ASTB is being given on the 15th of February at 0900 at the Norfolk Navy College Office in Classroom #7. An NC1 Wilkinson will be administering the exam. His contact info (to reserve you a seat) is Wilkinso@lhd1.navy.mil. Good luck to all, I'll be there sweating it out.
 
Just to add a bit from my experience. I would deffinately agree that getting a MC to recommend you is awesome. I got one from our CMC and I think I was most grateful for his. The MC told the honest truth, no fluffing. He highlighted the good and the bad and then recommended me--it felt good to have his support. Also, make sure that in your personal statement you highlight and discuss any areas that are difficient in your package. I had a 3.5 GPA in highschool, but I failed college my first year--really bad. I explained why I have changed and how I have matured, and why when I attend this time, I will succeed. Board members can smell BS so just be honest. My honesty got me a spot in NSI. Last, at your boards remember that just as much as the officers are looking for specific answers to the questions they ask you, they are also equally, if in some cases perhaps moreso, watching your manerisms, listening to your voice influxsion and pretty much just observing your overall outward appearance. They already expect you to be nervous, especially on the 2nd board when they hammer you with questions, so they want to see how you handle the pressure. In fact, at my 2nd board, they tried to trip me up a little, and they told me afterwards they did it, not to see me fail, but to observe how I handled myself under stress and frustration and how I negociated the problem. Boards want you to succeed. Its not a weeding out process. Dirtbags typically dont make it to boards.
 
et1nuke said:
I had a previous board member tell me that you can't put too many things in your package. That being said though I would not include any letters from people that don't personally know you. Most board members will see right through that as an attempt to fluff your package up.
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I totally agree. I only had 1 LOR from a LT. I really didn't feel the need. And the OPO who was a mustang said to trust him it wasn't necessary.
 
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