rightseat

I totally and completely concur about aviationinterviews.com. It is the best site to get a really good understanding of what is going to happen on your Interview Day. However, please note that it is a subscription at $19.99 per month. With all the craziness of getting hired, getting to class, IOE, etc. I did not notice and paid for several months. Even at that - it was well worth the money!! You should post your experience and then cancel your subscription.

Squallrider

Yes I subscribed and def notes the recurring payment. Don’t interview for another month but trying to get the info lined up.
I see a lot of suggestions for not doing a interview prep, I am leaning toward doing the gouge having my TMAAT stories thought of but I don’t want to come in with canned answers. Anyone else think that’s the correct way to do it? Southwest is top of my list so I don’t mind spending money if it’ll give me a edge

2strokin

Just my .02:

I wouldn't spend the money on the prep. Read through the gouge, look through your logbook to refresh yourself on some TMAAT questions, and just be yourself.

Have your logbooks up to date and in order. Tab the info they requested. Have a breakdown of your times for months 0-12, 12-24, 24-36, etc, up to 5 years.

After the 7 min drill, do a good debrief. Positive, negatives, and what you would have done different given more time.

Walking out of the interview, I really felt like they just wanted to know the real you.

Did I feel 100% sure that I got the job? No. Did I get hired? Yes.

EngineOut

I coupled aviationinterviews with insight from some friends who had recently interviewed. I was hired FWIW. I probably would have been more comfortable with prep, as everyone else had done it. It's not a guarantee, though. Most in my interview group had prepped and only 50% of us were hired.

Squallrider

I’ve heard 50-75% get the job, I guess it just depends on the candidates more than how many they need to hire

flensr

The guys I know who used a prep service appeared confident and afterwards seemed somewhat relieved by being "over-prepped". At least two guys who I think didn't use a prep service looked like they were going to barf the whole time from stress, even though their backgrounds were at least as good as anyone else's. A couple started off cool and collected, and seemed to get anxious as the day progressed.

At an interview I did some time ago, one candidate showed up with a logbook summary instead of a full logbook. Instant self-induced interview failure that probably would have been caught by a prep service. What's avoiding a 6-12 month re-attempt wait worth to you?

Some people get one shot at this, and some people just aren't naturally good about talking about themselves. Arriving relaxed and confident that you've done all you can do seems to be a good approach for a lot of people. Some people show up cold, and just naturally knock it out of the park. I don't think too many people can do that.

saab2000

I paid for prep and it was absolutely worth it for me. But I hadn't really done an interview for a big company in well over a decade. My interview at Sun Country was a much more casual affair and not one on which to base the experience with a major airline. No negatives towards Sun Country, but they're different and much smaller.

Anyway, the prep I did was not cheap but was 100% worth it because they helped me formulate my thoughts into a more concise presentation. It gave me much more confidence that I was ready and they really double checked all the paperwork. I felt that I was as ready as it was possible to be when I walked in that morning. And I had the best interview I've ever had, in large part because the preparation put me at ease.

This was my experience and everyone has to do their own thing. I know many people get hired with no preparation from a paid service. It really depends on the individual. If I were going to interview at another major carrier (I'm not) I would definitely pay for prep from somebody who knows the process of that particular carrier.

Squallrider

Thanks for the response, who did you use? (Can PM). I’ve been on the recruiting team for two years so I have some experience in what to say, obviously not same as SWA. Just don’t want to come across as canned answers, I have some TMAAT thoughts but I’d be willing to pay for a good service and a check of paperwork /logbook summaries.

RJSAviator76

It really depends on how one uses a prep. Don't use canned answers. Use the examples from your previous jobs to support what you're telling them about yourself.

The interview itself is a nonevent. It's a very low threat environment, and aside from LOI exercise, there's nothing remotely stressful about it. But there's a lot riding on it, try a multi-million dollar career. Rocky makes it a point to say they can hire each and every interviewee that day or they can not hire anyone that day. It's really down to an individual - no quotas. So, if you received the invite, the job is yours to lose.

TheBlueBaron

I only used Aviationinterviews.com. I also talked to several buddies that had interviewed in the last year to get the full scoop. None of them suggested to use the paid prep services. IMO, using just these resources should give you all the information you need unless you are just extremely nervous. Then the paid prep may give you tips on staying calm during the interview.

I hadn't interviewed anywhere in over 17 years and I got the job. I got the impression during the interview that they know you can fly and can be trained, but really want to find out if they would like sitting next to you in the cockpit on a 4 day trip. The key, again just my opinion, is that you must turn on the charm, and prove to them that SWA is the ONLY place you want to fly at for the rest of your career. You must also be a lady or gentlemen using you absolute best manners. That means standing to shake hands, standing until the interviewer(s) is seated first, looking them in the eye, etc...

Also, the person that did my logbook review said that he can tell in the first 5 minutes if the interviewee really wants to be there or not.

Hope this helps somebody.