The college interview might be the scariest part of the application process. You need good presentation skills and to discuss your achievements and motivation with an actual person. Yikes!
Most colleges in the US recommend an interview and usually try to offer you one with a local alumnus. If you are offered one, it will definitely leave a bad impression if you don’t accept the invitation. However, it’s only one of the many application components, so it usually won’t make or break your application. You should still take it seriously, and my tips will help you feel prepared.
As a side note, if you are not offered an interview, don’t worry. It usually doesn’t mean anything negative, just that there wasn’t a volunteer available to interview you. This happens often to international students because there might not be that many alumni of that school from your country. That happened to me with most schools I applied to. In fact, I only interviewed for Harvard.
Universities outside the US arrange interviews too, such as Oxford and Cambridge in the UK. If you are applying there too, you must note that the interview format is very different. In the UK and other countries, your interview will be very subject-focused, and the instructions to prepare are entirely different. In those interviews, you will have more academic components. For example, my friend who applied to study history at University of Cambridge was sent a paper to read before the interview, and the interview was basically a discussion of that paper. There were also multiple interview rounds. In the future I will write more about the UK style interviews, so make sure to subscribe my page.
In the US, there is no such specific agenda during the interview and there is only one round. It’s more like a casual discussion between you and the interviewer. It’s going to be more open-ended, so practicing might feel more difficult. However, I’ve got you covered here!
Prepare for the most important questions
Each interviewer is different, but in each case, certain topics and questions almost always get covered in the interview. These include:
- Why do you want to study at [insert school]?
- What are your favorite subjects?
- What are your strengths?
- What is an area of weakness and how are you trying to improve?
- What do you want to do after college?
- What is important to you?
You have had to think about these already in the written application a lot, so you may already have some answers to these questions. But you also need to be able to talk about them out loud. Honestly, the way I prepared was that I just talked to myself pretending I’m in the interview, but you can also ask a friend or a family member to ask these questions. Also ask them to give feedback on how well you speak and articulate. Your answers are surely great, but unfortunately e.g. talking too fast, mumbling or just not being logical with your speech can hurt the impression you give of yourself.
Don’t overprepare
While it’s important to prepare beforehand, overpreparing will not serve you for two big reasons:
- It can make you sound inauthentic and like a robot
If you try to rehearse your answers word by word, it could end up sounding weird and just… well, overrehearsed, and not real. You should remember the big picture about what you want to say, not every small detail. Thinking on your feet is also an important quality you in college, because you can’t prepare for every social interaction you have or seminar you participate in.
- You will be thrown off by unexpected questions
From my own experience, my interview ended up being nothing like I had expected. You don’t know what your interviewer will ask or what follow-up questions they may have to your answers. I casually mentioned in the interview that I liked to study philosophy, but didn’t think it sounded that important. To my surprise, my interviewer started asking a lot of follow-up questions about my interest in philosophy, and the interview turned out basically to be a long philosophy conversation. There was no way I could have prepared for that! That’s why it’s extremely important to stay open-minded, and overpreparing can hurt that.
Mind your manners
The pandemic Zoom-era definitely changed our fashion, where comfort has become key. There are good things about that for sure, but you should still dress up for your interview. By putting effort in your appearance you will show respect to the interview situation and and interviewer as a person: they are worth of your time.
The dress code for a college interview would usually be business casual. That means, no jeans, t-shirts, sneakers or flip flops. The clothing also should be modest and clean. For girls, it could be for example dress pants, nice blouse and casual shoes. For boys, it could be khaki pants, collared shirts and casual shoes. Think of what you would wear going to church, a nice restaurant, etc. Especially lately I’ve become more interested in fashion and creating business casual outfits, so I hope you will bookmark my blog and keep an eye on that.
Now that we have the proper fit, you should also think of your basic manners. A nice, firm handshake in the beginning of the interview is always a good idea. Try to have a good posture, don’t slouch. Have eye contact with the interviewer and remember to smile!
It will be a nerve-racking situation for sure, but don’t let that show in your mannerisms. Or at least keep that to a minimum. It’s normal to be nervous, and you can’t completely eliminate that, but try to use it as a fuel to perform well instead of something that will hurt you.
be yourself
Indeed it is important to have good posture, a proper outfit and all that, but you still need to remember to be yourself. Obviously, don’t blatantly lie about your experiences and grades. But also, be comfortable about speaking what truly matters to you. I always get asked about certain requirements you need to meet to get accepted, or whether thing X or thing Y is better for your resume. Don’t try to create a perfect picture of yourself that is fake. Real people are much more interesting. There is no one perfect college candidate, so just show your best self and show what you can bring the university. You’re trying to find the perfect match so that you will really enjoy the university experience you will get.
Ask questions!
Perhaps the most important, and most overlooked point. You’re not only convincing the university that you are a great fit for the university, but you should take the interview as an opportunity to find out if the university is a great fit for you. The interviewer has personally been to the school, which is a great resource for you to learn more from.
Prepare at least 5 questions you can ask not only at the end of the interview, but during it as well. Oftentimes you will get your interviewer’s contact information beforehand, so do your research! Best case scenario, they studied the exact same subject you want to study, or they had interesting extracurriculars, ask about that! If not, you can still learn valuable things about the school. You can also even ask if they know someone from the school who shares your interests and get you connected.
Send a thank-you note
If there was something specific about the interview that was helpful to you, let your interviewer know. Always send a thank you note by email or on LinkedIn to your interviewer after the interview. Best case scenario, you stay connected even after the interview, even if you don’t get into the school you interviewed for.
I hope you found this guide helpful. Have you had an interview experience before? Tell me more about it in the comments! Make sure to also check my other posts and sign up to my newsletter!
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