Most of the 25 guys on the third edition of "The Bachelorette" had seen Jen Schefft before, when she emerged from the third season of "The Bachelor" engaged to Andrew Firestone.

What they might not have known, though, was that she had seen most of them as well.

As is detailed in the premiere of "The Bachelorette" on Monday (Jan. 10), the show's producers let Schefft take part in the casting process -- a first in the history of the "Bachelor"/"Bachelorette" franchise -- to improve her chances of finding a man she wants to marry. (If the recent Us Weekly cover featuring Schefft and the headline "I've found love!" is any indication, mission accomplished.)

"They had a casting weekend where [the finalists] came to L.A., and I was able to be there and ask them questions," the 28-year-old Chicagoan says. "The guys didn't know I was there but I was able to interject questions -- I would talk to the producers and say 'Can you ask this guy that,' as I was watching on a TV monitor."

She didn't have the final say on picking the final 25 -- the producers have to make good TV as well as try to find Schefft a soulmate -- but Schefft says her involvement helped them figure out the types of men she liked.

Schefft also says that seeing some of the men beforehand didn't affect her judgment once they met on the show's first night in New York.

"Seeing someone on video and reading about them, seeing their picture, is completely different that actually seeing them in person," she says. "There could be a spark when you see a picture, but then you meet them in person and realize, Oh, it's not gonna work."

Firestone and Schefft broke off their engagement -- mutually, she says -- a few months after their "Bachelor" ended because they realized their interests didn't fully click. Going from a receiver to a giver of roses on "The Bachelorette" made her face up to a few other things as well.

"I'm the sort of person that in breaking up with someone -- I've lasted in relationships longer than I should have because it's so hard to break up," she says. "Or maybe I'd send an e-mail, all the stupid things. So this definitely forced me to deal with things a little bit differently, and it was really hard."

Things apparently worked out for the best, but Schefft doesn't want to say too much more.

"I just want to maintain that I'm really happy with how everything ended," she says. "But I want everyone to watch and see how it unfolds."