SF Preference

Answers to various questions regarding the SMART Scholarship application process. Includes many tips and statistics.
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SF Preference

Post by Guest »

Hi all,
I'm an incoming freshman applying to the scholarship. What are the best SF to put down in order to get an offer? I hear that putting something down that is close to your home can help. But should I put down a smaller facility that has less competition? I'm honestly just more concerned with getting an offer than the location/job. The closest facility for mech engineers is USACE - Seattle. Is that too competitive or just right considering I'm only 30 min north. Any other advice for getting an offer is appreciated. Thanks for the help.

ggguesst

Re: SF Preference

Post by ggguesst »

Hey! Good luck on the application.
Yes, putting something close to where you live is better. If you get chosen by a SF that is within 50 miles of your living address then when you work over the summer they will not pay you an internship stipend (10-15k for the summer); so it's cheaper for them but you'd get paid less during Phase I (you'd still get your normal stipend).
AFAIK Warner Robins, GA is the easiest to get into. However, I'd recommend avoiding it, they are the easiest but have a really high turnover rate for several reasons.
If you put your preferences to locations that you'd be okay living in and bases which match your study focus and/or career goals it's a lot easier for you to focus in on those SF missions in your essays/application.
It's been said on this forum before but this program is focused on recruiting civilian engineers for the long term, that's their goal. So if you write about how you want to work for them, your pride/admiration, and specify their mission you will have a lot better odds at getting accepted.
Cheers

malarious
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Joined: Tue Jun 13, 2017 1:54 am
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Re: SF Preference

Post by malarious »

I started phase 2, and some feedback to think about for you.

According to the SMART coordinator for the facility, you being accepted is not just a lab saying "we will use them", it is a specific team leader potentially signing off. Your lab is fronting you as a cost, so larger facilities may have more ability to get people in. GVSC had 18 people come to the facility tour for the year I was accepted, I do not know how many stayed, but I was informed that the team I am in now is the one who wrote the check. Team leaders often say they would like more people, but they have to be willing to take the dive.

I am very appreciative for the offer, but if someone is having to front the cost, a bigger facility is more likely to have teams with budget.

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