Interview

Some students feel overwhelmed as the college admissions interview date approaches.  Some students want to know if they can have thier interviews with someone else than the assigned interviewers because students who had had interviews with particular interviewers felt that their interviews did not go well.  One logical answer to this issue can be quite simple.  During the interviews, students get really nervous and feel that they are not doing so well.  However, many admissions officers report that when they hear something like that and check their interview reports, the interviewers said only good things about the students.

It is important to remember that interviewers are not trying to scrutinize students and make the interview a difficult process for the student.  It is usually the student who make it more difficult.  Just being comfortable and being himself/herself will make the interview go much smoother and productive.  The interviewer wants to know the personal aspects of the student that are not presented in the application forms.

If your child has an interview coming up and if the interview place is at a quiet public place, you should take your child to that place and order something and spend some time talking with your child. During the real interview, your child will feel more comfortable meeting someone in that place.  I hear that some parents go as far as hiring someone to have mock interviews with their children.  I suppose it is necessary for you or your child to come with some interview questions and have your child practice answering them.  Remember that the interviewers are not there to confirm with your child what your child got on your SAT.  But they might ask your child whether your child’s test scores or GPA’s do reflect your child’s academic potential (i.e. if illness or family circumstances prevented your child from getting good SAT scores or GPA).   Also, have your child come up with some meaningful questions about the college to ask the interviewer.