I applied a few years ago - I love aviation & technology so I figured this could be a great way to combine them. I was very aware of the crap going on but wanted to give it a whirl. All the ATC folks I've known through working in aviation or hanging out reckoned I'd do well and to come on in and splash in the pool.
I'm 30+ and ASA had some concerns about how I hadn't studied since Uni but my results were high enough to get me in. Unfortunately, I washed out on the psych test for the following reasons:
1) I do not respect authority unless it is earned
Whoops - you can see how that could be a bad thing in ASA
2) I do not like being "just" a cog in a machine
ATC folks are wonderful cogs working in the structure that has been set up - they do an amazing job but they have to be able to stay in place and do their cog-work properly for the system to work. One cog not turning properly upsets the lot (that type of thing).
3) I will bend the rules if necessary to get a job done
I'm a great fan of process & procedures but prefer lean to heavy and am willing to bend things a bit here & there (usually with buy-in from those involved). This is not a good trait in a controller.
NOTE: They probably figured this one from answers in the psych test related to "I'll exceed the speed limit if in a hurry"
4) I like to keep myself busy
ATC has large periods of quiet in between the times of extreme insanity. ASA were worried that I'd get bored if there wasn't something happening - apparently more ATC incidents happen during quiet times than busy.
NOTE: this was a few years back - given the lack of staff, I doubt there's much "quiet time" right now
5) I'm always seeking to improve things
I always want to make life better - this is great as a project manager in IT development work but lousy for ATC where processes & procedures are developed by "those who know" and the rest of us just have to do what's required.
So, basically, thanks to the above the HR folks at ASA were concerned that I'd go stir crazy and wouldn't even last the first 5 years in the job. So, they sent me a "Sorry, you're not suitable and please never apply again in future" letter. I had to call back and talk to an HR rep to get the details regarding my psych profile, etc.
So, I guess I'll be using ATC but not working in it. C'est la vie and all that.
(Amusing aside: I passed this information on my father and he cracked up - he'd just had a psych eval during recruitment for a senior exec position which revealed the same stuff - kinda explains the hassles he had in the Air Force
)