Southwest Airlines

[IFLY!]

My history includes both airline and corporate flying with over 6,700 hrs. total time and 3200 turbine (currently flying EFIS/FMS king Air 200). I'll be attending higher power in april/may of 06 for my 737 Type Rating. what else can I do to market myself and experience? any help would be appreciated. Also any information on interview prep and LOI interview at SWA.

 

[EA6BDriver]

I'm no SWA expert, but have heard of a few guys w/o type ratings getting the call the past few days. I would imagine if you get your 737 type, plus get some good recs from the inside, you'd get a call pretty soon. If guys w/o types are getting called, I would imagine that's because they've reached the bottom of the "type rated" pile of apps. Just my guess...

 

[Jim Smyth]

I would say that you need to network with as many SWA Pilots as possible. When it comes time for the interview they will be able to guide you through the process and possibly put in a good word to the Chiefs who are the ones that are in the review board at the end and they make the final decisions. This will deffinately help.

 

[PurpleChimp]

My history includes both airline and corporate flying with over 6,700 hrs. total time and 3200 turbine (currently flying EFIS/FMS king Air 200). I'll be attending higher power in april/may of 06 for my 737 Type Rating. what else can I do to market myself and experience? any help would be appreciated. Also any information on interview prep and LOI interview at SWA.

emeraldcoastinterviewconsulting.com

Aaron Hagan provides top-notch prep for both panel interview and LOI. I don't care who you are, if you don't do formal interview prep, you're are at a disadvantage right out of the shoot. I know a number of current 737 captains/FO's who interviewed at SWA and did not get hired. To the man, they failed to do interview prep. (No, Aaron Hagan is not paying me)

 

[IFLY!]

Jim do you have any recommendations for networking within the ranks and what’s your recommendation for interview prep?

 

[Whataburger]

When you got to Higher Power, you will meet a lady named Judy Tarver. For 180 bucks, she will prep you for the SWA interview when you get it. She has been around the industry for a long time. Even used to interview for American. She does not tell you what to say, but how to tell a story and emphasize the important details. It will be the best $180 you'll ever spend.

Secondly, network network network. Then, network some more.

 

[phoenix rising]

I have not posted on here before but I see a lot of you guys trying to get on with SW and others pushing the interview prep. I interviewed with SW and did not do the prep and got the job. I was glad I did not do the prep. In the HR interview she asked me if I did any interview prep. I said no but why do you ask? She said the people that are doing the prep are not getting hired because they sound like robots. They can even tell who is preping them. My advise to all that want the job is look at your log book and think of stories of your flying career. When you have your stories talk with your significant other and talk out your story. This is the best prep you can do. It is natural and from you not someone you paid to help you. There is so much gouge out there on the internet on SW that you can find the typical questions that they ask in the interview. You have to be yourself and be enthusiastic. Show why you love SW and why you are the best person for the job. Just my 2 cents

 

[Oh-ryan]

I have not posted on here before but I see a lot of you guys trying to get on with SW and others pushing the interview prep. I interviewed with SW and did not do the prep and got the job. I was glad I did not do the prep. In the HR interview she asked me if I did any interview prep. I said no but why do you ask? She said the people that are doing the prep are not getting hired because they sound like robots. They can even tell who is preping them. My advise to all that want the job is look at your log book and think of stories of your flying career. When you have your stories talk with your significant other and talk out your story. This is the best prep you can do. It is natural and from you not someone you paid to help you. There is so much gouge out there on the internet on SW that you can find the typical questions that they ask in the interview. You have to be yourself and be enthusiastic. Show why you love SW and why you are the best person for the job. Just my 2 cents

I don't think doing interview prep should be thought of as a negative. Concur you don't want to sound like a robot, but prepping for an interview should not be viewed as negative by HR people in any industry. If I were in a position to hire someone to do a job for me that would place him or her in a position that they are unfamiliar with I hope that they would PREPare for it. But no robots please.

 

[no1pilot2000]

An interviewing technique

I recently spoke to someone who interviewed with AirTran Airways. He told me one of the best interviewing techniques is just to be "yourself". His advice to someone interviewing with an airline is to show your passion for aviation and willingness to go beyond what is expected of you. He told me that those interviewing for any airline pilot position be themselves and show that desire for being a pilot and enjoying one's work.

Besides having the qualifications to be a pilot with SWA, Air Tran, or ect., the key word in an airline pilot job interview is "passion" for flying.

 

[Jim Smyth]

Jim do you have any recommendations for networking within the ranks and what’s your recommendation for interview prep?

I have been out of the interviewing game for a while now but you have alot of good information already on this thread. I would do anything you can to improve your odds of getting hired. If you know any SWA Pilots it would be good to keep them in the loop as you progress down the interview road. The old saying of "who you know rather than what you know may apply here and elsewhere". Best of luck.

 

[pedropcola]

I have to agree completely with Phoenix rising. Looking back at the guys who did and didn't get hired there tons of similarities and very few differences. All my buds were mil and met the mins easily, all good guys, could tell stories without cussing (on occasion!), and should have been hired. My very informal monday morning quarterbacking always came back to one thing and one thing only though. The guys who prepped and who by their own admission had a story for everything got nixed. I think it is real simple, they are trying to get to know you in 15 minutes. If you are prepped, and yes it does show, they can't tell if its you or the preparation coming out. They have plenty of others to choose from so they don't take the chance on that guy. Of course it goes without saying that if you do the professional prep and keep what I'm saying in mind and sound professional but not overly prepped it will probably work. Most of my friends who got hired stumbled here or there and didn't come out of the interview saying "Oh yeah, I nailed that". Practice some questions, I'm not saying not to, but err on the side of not overdoing it. If they get the inkling that you are answering this question for the tenth time, I believe they will move on to the next guy, because they can't risk that you are an a** who just practiced your responses till you don't sound like an a**. Oh well, good luck either way.

 

[Mach 80]

-------------------
Looking back at the guys who did and didn't get hired there tons of similarities and very few differences. All my buds were mil and met the mins easily, all good guys, ....
-------------------


It's all a matter of perspective. Civvys think SWA isn't hiring civvys and military guys think military guys aren't being hired. The fact is that there a lot of military and civilian pilots applying and they all can't get hired. If you are a military guy, all your friends are military so all you hear about is military guys getting turned down and few hired. Same thing goes for a civilian guy. The fact is, it's happening to boith groups due to the numbers of applicants. Perspective comes from your circle of buddies and it isn't an accurate barometer.

A hundred grerat guys might interview in one month, but if SWA only needs 20, some good guys are inevitably are going to get turned down. They didn't necessarily do something wrong in the interview.

 

[Jetlaag]

I will also agree with Phoenix rising in that looking through your history in your logbook should give an answer to most of the questions asked in the interview. Not all the questions though, I asked for another question for one that I did not have an answer for and it was no problem in getting another.

He also suggested going over your stories with your significant other and that is a great idea and to take it one step further, having your wife or whoever video tape you both as a mock interview is a great tool. You can gain a LOT of info by watching yourself on tape. I hated watching myself back on tape but I learned a lot form it...


You can find the answers to these question and more:
Did I smile enough?
Did you look at your interviewer in the eyes?
When asked a question, did you try and find the answer on the ceiling or the floor?
How many times did I say Uh or Umm???

It’s free and I found this method to be extremely helpful for myself and am currently in the pool waiting for a class...

I spoke with another pilot at my company who interviewed recently and did use a prep course, unfortunately he did not get hired but did receive his $350 prep course fee back... Not bad having a money back guarantee...

To each his own I guess and what ever works for you in the end is what you feel comfortable with and that's what really matters is feeling comfortable at the interview.

Good luck to all...

 

[Malter1]

Anyone who says doing interview prep will hurt you is smokin' crack! You tell me of anything else in life in which preparation is detrimental. So, it's better to say "ida know" to a question then to have a well thought out example that relays your experience in an easy to follow way? Plenty of guys get jobs without interview prep, no doubt. But, if you listen and absorb the lessons a well qualified interview coach is teaching, IT WILL HELP you and your chances!!!!

 

[JethroF15]

I have not posted on here before but I see a lot of you guys trying to get on with SW and others pushing the interview prep. I interviewed with SW and did not do the prep and got the job. I was glad I did not do the prep. In the HR interview she asked me if I did any interview prep. I said no but why do you ask? She said the people that are doing the prep are not getting hired because they sound like robots. They can even tell who is preping them. My advise to all that want the job is look at your log book and think of stories of your flying career. When you have your stories talk with your significant other and talk out your story. This is the best prep you can do. It is natural and from you not someone you paid to help you. There is so much gouge out there on the internet on SW that you can find the typical questions that they ask in the interview. You have to be yourself and be enthusiastic. Show why you love SW and why you are the best person for the job. Just my 2 cents

Sorry but I not buying this. For an HR person in the interview process to relay information like this to someone who hasn't even been hired yet just doesn't pass the "sniff test". And the second thing that doesn't smell right is asking an HR person "why" they are asking a particular question in an interview. The numbers show plenty of guys get hired that did do interview prep... plenty! I just wonder, had you not been hired would you have second guessed yourself for not taking every opportunity to better prepare yourself for the interview. I know a lot of guys who did just that after they tubed the interview! Sorry Mr. 1 post rise... I think your story just doesn't pass the truth test.:bomb:

 

[ohplease!]

-------------------
Looking back at the guys who did and didn't get hired there tons of similarities and very few differences. All my buds were mil and met the mins easily, all good guys, ....
-------------------


It's all a matter of perspective. Civvys think SWA isn't hiring civvys and military guys think military guys aren't being hired. The fact is that there a lot of military and civilian pilots applying and they all can't get hired. If you are a military guy, all your friends are military so all you hear about is military guys getting turned down and few hired. Same thing goes for a civilian guy. The fact is, it's happening to boith groups due to the numbers of applicants. Perspective comes from your circle of buddies and it isn't an accurate barometer.

A hundred grerat guys might interview in one month, but if SWA only needs 20, some good guys are inevitably are going to get turned down. They didn't necessarily do something wrong in the interview.

uh oh! You used logic...and you're right....they're gonna tar and feather you around here for that.

 

[phoenix rising]

Jethrof15 I was just saying that a lot of people are pushing this prep thing and it is not necessary. Now if your not sure of yourself and think that you need someone to help you organize your thoughts, more power to you. I know there are interview prep people on this board trying to sell their services and that is fine. I just wanted to say that pilots do get hired at SW or any other place for that matter without using the prep. Whether you believe me about the question of "did you use a prep for this interview" is up to you but ask yourself what would be my motive. I interviewed in dec 05 and got that question. I also know 2 pilots from my airline that interviewed in feb and also got that question. Those 2 pilots did not get the job and they did not do the prep. Do they regret not doing the prep, they said no to me. I know when I walked out of the interview I said to myself that I have no regrets about what I said and how I came off. If I didn't get hired I did my best. I knew going into the interview that only 30% approximatly get hired who interview. It is a total gamble with not very good odds. I am very very fortunate to be hired and I wish the best for all that are trying to get hired. Prep or no prep

 

[Malter1]

phoenix rising,

Do you prep for a checkride? I'll bet you do. Can you pass a checkride without preparing? Sure you can. Are you doing everything you can to ensure your chances of passing a checkride by preparing? YES YOU ARE.

To anyone with any sense, this same logic applies to prepping for an interview!

 

[pedropcola]

Malter1 I have to completely disagree with you. This isn't a check ride, it isn't a stan check, NATOPS ride, or whatever. If you are being interviewed then you meet the minimum requirements to pass on to the next step. But, and this is a big but, if you come to the interview and sound anything other than natural, I think that they will take the big pass on you. Not because you're not qualified but because they didn't get out of the interview what they wanted and that is very simply put, who are you really (or as close a facsimile as I can get in 15 minutes). Prep by all means, but if you give some guy 350 bones to prep you, you are probably wasting money for your SW interview. If it makes you feel better do it, but don't talk guys into it by comparing it to an annual ride. Practice questions with the wife with your buds but don't overdo it and don't think that paying for interview prep is required or even necessarily a good idea.

 

[Malter1]

Malter1 I have to completely disagree with you. This isn't a check ride, it isn't a stan check, NATOPS ride, or whatever. If you are being interviewed then you meet the minimum requirements to pass on to the next step. But, and this is a big but, if you come to the interview and sound anything other than natural, I think that they will take the big pass on you. Not because you're not qualified but because they didn't get out of the interview what they wanted and that is very simply put, who are you really (or as close a facsimile as I can get in 15 minutes). Prep by all means, but if you give some guy 350 bones to prep you, you are probably wasting money for your SW interview. If it makes you feel better do it, but don't talk guys into it by comparing it to an annual ride. Practice questions with the wife with your buds but don't overdo it and don't think that paying for interview prep is required or even necessarily a good idea.

I think you have a strange idea of exactly what interview prep is. I did interview prep, it helped me immeasurably, and I landed my dream job partially because of it. Part of what interview prep does is to help you take a raw story and clean it up so it sounds logical, is easy to listen to, and is taylored to the audience that receives it. If you sound like a "robot" when you tell a story, interview prep will give you training in how to not sound like a robot.

And, I can't even believe you brought up money for interview prep! Don't you fly for an airline that requires you to invest $8,000 for a 20% shot even after you get the call for an interview? What is $350 if it can potentially move you up a notch over just one guy. It could mean the difference between wasting 8 grand and 8 grand being an investment in your future!

 

[phoenix rising]

I don't want to get into a war of not preping at all. This is not what I'm trying to say. Did I prepare for the interview. I sure did. I just didn't need to spend $350 bones to do it. You are so right about spending 8000 on a type what is another 350 in the pot? For those out there that want the job at SW I am just saying that the prep is not absolutly necessary like some like to think. If you need that piece of mind and say that I did the prep, great. Just don't answer "yes I did the prep" in the interview because it will be looked down upon, if the interviewer hasn't already figured it out already. Like I said in my first post, talk to your significant other, friends or video tape yourself is a great idea and think of all your flying experiences, especially the rough ones where you really showed how you handled yourself in the fire.

 

[pedropcola]

I am glad you got your dream job, or at least are swimming in the pool of your dream job, but get your facts straight. Buy the the type, don't buy the type, you can still interview, but lets get back to the question. This thread is titled "Southwest Airlines" not "sitting in the ready room between cones adjusting my ascot". The question came up about prep, at FedEx it may have helped immeasurably, but at Southwest I don't think it will as much. Every airline has its own personality during the interview phase, you must know this. Southwest is very straightforward in this regard, ask the PD, ask your buds who fly here, whatever. If you disagree, once again, good for you, but since you probably didn't interview here, don't want to interview here, and don't have much firsthand intel on the interview here, I stand by my comments.

 

[Malter1]

I am glad you got your dream job, or at least are swimming in the pool of your dream job, but get your facts straight. Buy the the type, don't buy the type, you can still interview, but lets get back to the question. This thread is titled "Southwest Airlines" not "sitting in the ready room between cones adjusting my ascot". The question came up about prep, at FedEx it may have helped immeasurably, but at Southwest I don't think it will as much. Every airline has its own personality during the interview phase, you must know this. Southwest is very straightforward in this regard, ask the PD, ask your buds who fly here, whatever. If you disagree, once again, good for you, but since you probably didn't interview here, don't want to interview here, and don't have much firsthand intel on the interview here, I stand by my comments.

Maybe I'm a little slow, or maybe it's a Navy joke, but I didn't quite get the "sitting in the ready room between cones adjusting my ascot" comment.

Secondly, maybe you're a statistics guy. Check the success rate percentages of EmeraldCoast interview prep vs. the rest of the field (at SWA). Stats don't lie. (And, once again, I have zero ties to EmeraldCoast)

 

[Resume Writer]

I agree that there are some people that need interview prep and some people that do not need it. I have several clients that I do not even suggest interview prep to, as I know they will do fine in the interview. Other clients just need a little polishing of their answers. I have yet to encounter anyone in aviation that is a complete lost cause. If someone is getting interview prep and sounding like a robot, then I sincerely wonder who is doing their interview prep.

Interview prep is not about "fooling" the interviewers. It is about telling your own story, in a succinct, yet understandable manner, avoiding comments that will get you backed into a corner. It is also about understanding how your answers will be viewed by the people sitting on the other side of the table - a side of the table I sat on for six years at two different companies.

SWA hires for many things, including judgment, leadership, teamwork, etc. Their system is copyrighted specifically to their culture and mission. They want to know if you are going to fit into their culture. Not every person has every quality for SWA, and anything you learn from prep can be used at virtually any other company, as about 98% of major corporations (inside and outside of aviation) conduct behavioral-based interviewing.

I interact with Human Resource and Recruiting professionals on a consistent basis. I do this so I can keep a pulse on the hiring process. I learn on a continual basis - even after being in the employment consulting business for almost 19 years.

If you prep with a spouse or significant other, that is helpful, however, unless they are trained in interviewing techniques or the relationship is strong enough to survive criticism, I would be careful. Find a friend or family member that conducts interviewing and prep with them instead.

Be careful about video taping your interview prep (professional or otherwise). It depends on the kind of person you are - will you be constantly obsessing during the interview about your personal quirks, or will you be cognitively aware of them. Know who you are as a person and make your decision from there.

There are plenty of people on this board that do a fine job with interview prep. If you choose to prep, find someone who is reputable and knows how the process works.

Just my opinions on the topic...

 

[na265]

When you got to Higher Power, you will meet a lady named Judy Tarver.

Is Judy the lady who used to work at HQ and then went to inflight? If so, I know her. Actually flew one of my last FA trips with her. Do you have a contact for her? Thanks 265.