<p>Perhaps I can shed some light as an interviewer. Bear in mind that everything that follows is specific to me, so your experience may differ.</p>
<p>First, we are asked to give an evaluation (more or less what was described by a previous poster) but it is borderline meaningless as far as your chances go. My thought on this is that anyone can prepare for an interview and give a “false upward impression” while if you bomb the interview, your application is probably pretty weak as well.</p>
<p>The first year I did interviews, I was pretty brutal and my interviewees were probably petrified the whole time. I’m much gentler know. Chances are, your questions will be pretty standard (do a Google search for common questions and you’ll more than likely be asked several of those). Some interviewers might throw in some “fun questions”. If you happened to be matched with an interviewer who knows about the field you’re interested in, you’d better be ready to have a conversation. Whenever I ask a question, I want the interviewee to give a thoughtful, detailed response. There is absolutely nothing I hate more than a one- or two-sentence answer; it’s awkward for you because you suddenly become silent, and it’s awkward for me because I suddenly need to think of a new question to ask.</p>
<p>You must know your story. I don’t expect you to have your whole career planned, but if you’re interested in biology, tell me why and make it clear that you are passionate. I should leave the interview thinking, “He clearly loves what he’s doing and Hopkins will be an opportunity to love it even more.” Unfortunately, it’s often the case that people state an interest in some subject but they have minimal evidence of actually doing anything to further that passion. On a similar note, expect to be asked about what ECs you’ve done or will do; be ready to talk at length about at least one of them. It is very obvious very quickly when someone did an activity to pad their resume or because they genuinely enjoyed doing it.</p>
<p>Have questions prepared. I encourage interviewees to ask literally anything on their minds because this is your chance to get unfiltered (hopefully) answers. During the first part of the interview, I want to do minimal talking; during the second part, you should make me talk as much as you can. The more penetrating and detailed the question, the more it shows that you’re interested in the school. An interviewer will usually let you know if it’s okay to ask personal questions. I usually don’t mind and in fact, I will not talk about myself at all unless you ask me.</p>
<p>Some final notes: if you want to know whether you should bring a resume or transcript, ask your interviewer. Personally, I have never asked to see any materials and only one person has ever brought me anything; honestly, if you handed me your resume I’d probably just throw it in a recycling bin without reading it (it’s not personal, it’s just that I have other things to do). Again, ask. As for dress, business casual maybe? Don’t wear a suit or the equivalent, and don’t dress like you came from the gym. By dressing nicely, you show that you take the interview seriously. Most interviews will be in public places like coffee shops or restaurants; I personally don’t care if you order food (I’ll order food so we don’t get kicked out). To sum up, while your experience will depend on the interviewer, we all want more or less the same thing out of you: sell yourself, have good, detailed stories ready, be able to articulate your interests, and have lots of questions. If you can do those, you’ll be fine.</p>