We live in an era of high-tech online tracking and data collection, so you might think that personal interviews would be outdated and unnecessary. Don’t colleges already have more than enough information to form an opinion about each and every candidate? Yes and no. Even though information about online interests, political leanings, and social causes is plentiful and easy to access, no amount of data can capture the true essence of who you are, how well you will fit, and the kinds of contributions you are likely to make to the campus culture. Some colleges believe that interviews can help bridge this information gap. This leaves two critically important questions for students to consider about pending interviews:
- What information are colleges hoping to learn from my interviews?
- How can I use my interview to make the strongest possible case for admission?
- College interviews are, most likely, not what you think. For most colleges, interviewers are free to ask whatever questions may arise based on the flow of the conversation. Yes, “conversation.” That single word is the main point here. Interviews should not merely be a series of questions and answers; they should be conversations. Your part in the interview is to promote that conversation, rather than providing simple canned responses to questions. The best way to do this is to answer questions in a way that both promotes and requires follow up questions. In addition, simple techniques such as pausing for a moment to think about an answer, acknowledging the complexity of a question, or acknowledging the value of a question are conversation promoters. If you over answer a question by providing too much information, you will stymie the conversation.
Very few students see these interviews for what they really are: opportunities to introduce themselves to colleges on a personal level. Experienced interviewers will make students feel comfortable, as if they are engaged in a friendly dialogue, as opposed to being in an oppositional position or as if they are a used car salesperson. However, with lack of understanding of the intentions and methods used by interviewers, students typically do not take full advantage of the opportunity. Rather, they give long-winded, shallow answers that do little to reveal characteristics deemed most important by college admission committees.
Interviewers will often be told to ask just a few specific questions and to improvise the rest in order to get a feel for the candidate’s personality. So, it follows that colleges are not particularly interested in the substance of the answers given, with the exception of questions generally categorized as “Why us,” and “How will you contribute to the college or campus.”
Admissions committees are far more interested in the interpersonal characteristics that are revealed during the interview. These characteristics include resilience, empathy, innate intelligence, cordiality, charisma, and personality. Further, colleges are interested in your answer to the “why us” question to see how interested in attending you actually are. If you provide a great answer to this question, it can go a long way toward acing the interview. As for the “contribution” question, avoid the temptation of saying anything about how passionate you are about your proposed major. Instead, focus on your characteristics that come through most forcefully in your application essays, activities, and recommendations. For example, you might say that you would like to contribute to the school newspaper, that you would like to join the theater department, that you would like to be involved in student clubs and organizations that interest you (be specific).
2) Do not try to get out all information about yourself in a single answer. The best answer will be anywhere between 30-45 seconds long. Occasionally, it may be necessary to speak for a full minute, but anything more than that might seem long-winded or rambling. If you give away the store answering the first question, there’s no reason for the interviewer to continue shopping. Here’s an example:
Interviewer: “What is one of your favorite classes you have taken in high school?”
Student Bad Answer: “I would have to say that my favorite class in high school is computers. I have always liked computers, and in particular I like computer programming. I have learned three computer languages and in fact I have written my own computer program that helps people organize their time by dividing up time into smaller increments that could be more easily analyzed by businesses in order to increase efficiency.”
Interviewer: “Wow, that’s really great.” What the interviewer is not saying is that you have not just answered his question, but in fact have already answered his next question. Also, you have effectively ended the discussion by saying too much too soon. You have lost his attention. Here is a better way to answer the same question.
Interviewer: “What is one of your favorite classes you have taken in high school?”
Student Good Answer: “My favorite class in high school is computers.”
Interviewer: “Great. Tell me something about the class.”
Student Good Answer: “Sure. I have always liked computers, and in particular I like computer programming. I have learned three computer languages and in fact I have written my own computer program that helps people organize their time by dividing up time into smaller increments that could be more easily analyzed by businesses in order to increase efficiency.”
The advantage of this approach over the first one is that it allows the interview to flow in a more conversational manner and for the interviewer to ask questions he feels are appropriate to obtain the information he requires. Interviewers do not like rambling answers, and they do not like it when you go beyond the confines of the question. Students, on the other hand, feel that they must reveal as much as possible about themselves, and so they tend to overanswer questions. To use a dance analogy, you should let the interviewer lead, and trust that he will take you in the right direction.
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