Anyone SUPER nervous about interviews?

Applying to College
1

<p>A couple of the schools I am interested in, (Hamilton, Wesleyan, etc), strongly recommend interviews. I've had a mock interview before, and it went great, but it wasn't with a selective school, and the questions and entire nature of the interview were extremely laid back. I don't do well under pressure, and I'm a little of shy with people I don't know by nature, and I don't know how great I am at thinking on my feet, so I'm really nervous!!</p>

<p>I don't want to make my chances of admission worse by not interviewing! BUT I don't want to make my chances worse by having a bad interview!</p>

<p>Any tips? Has anyone else felt this way? I'm just nervous that I might not do well...</p>

2

<p>I am still seriously considering not applying to one school because I basically have to do an interview.</p>

3

<p>ughhh… i almost feel the same way, but I feel like I should suck it up and do it. It’s not that I’m scared of doing the interview… I’m just scared of doing badly and driving all the way to visit a school, doing an interview, doings apps and all for nothing just because I suck at interviewing!</p>

<p>I hate interviews! :)</p>

4

<p>Just take a deep breath and think of it as a conversation, not an interrogation :]</p>

5

<p>Yeah… it’s just I’ve heard they sometimes ask some really random hard to answer questions… and I’m not good on my feet under pressure…</p>

6

<p>Meh, kind of, kind of not. I am relatively shy, but I think/hope I’ll fare well. My only concern is my lack of experience. Needless to say, the interview experience at Hollister and Victoria’s Secret is probably MUCH different from the top ivies.</p>

7

<p>I’ve never had an interview, but I would want to do one! It’ll help you learn a lot more about the school. Prepare questions that you want to ask beforehand, because the more interested you seem in the school, the better.</p>

8

<p>a note for Wesleyan: the Wes interview is more of a conversation, similar to the laid-back nature you describe for your mock interview. there is no hide-behind-the-clipboard drill. the interviewer simply wants to see what type of person you are… just be yourself and you will come off as genuine. the interview can’t hurt, it can only help.</p>

9

<p>One of my biggest problems is that I have no questions to ask. I am an incredibly good researcher and I like to self-learn. What the heck am I going to ask my interviewer?</p>

10

<p>ask the interviewer something you can’t research… such as things the interviewer likes about the school, things the person doesn’t like, their experience with an EC you are interested in (i.e. do you know anything about the ultimate frisbee team?)… etc.</p>

11

<p>you sound exactly like me. the thought of interviewing scared me so much. however, i resolved to just do them, and i came out alive. yeah, some of them were horrible, but some of them went surprisingly well. i actually got into the school where i thought i had the worst interview ever (and it was with an actual admissions officer). so don’t worry too much! it helped when i thought of interviews as a tool more to test your interest in a school than to strictly evaluate you.
i would definitely learn much about the school before you interview, as it makes the conversation more interesting and you can subtly tailor yourself to the personality of the school. my better interviews were the ones where i could go on about the school and ask very specific questions.
all in all, don’t stress! i’m probably the most awkward person in pressured situations, and it all worked out in the end. if one goes poorly, just laugh it off :)</p>

12

<p>Just pretend your talking to your grandpa or somethin.</p>

13

<p>Thanks! I appreciate the tips and suggestions… I just really want to do well!</p>

14

<p>Also, not all schools’ interviews are evaluative. Like for my Vanderbilt one, it was optional, and after asking me a few questions, the intent was more my alumnus being able to answer questions for me. A more personalized information session, if you will.</p>

15

<p>Anon, most of the interviews you have will probably be laid-back and more like a conversation. Mostly they just want to get to know you, what kind of person you are and why you’re interested in that college.</p>

<p>You might get some useful tips about specific colleges from this thread:
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-admissions/246098-thread-college-interviews.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-admissions/246098-thread-college-interviews.html&lt;/a&gt; (read or search before interviewing)</p>

<p>And afterward, even if your interview didn’t go as well as you’d have liked, you’ll almost certainly be able to look at this thread and say, “Ha! At least that didn’t happen to me!”
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-admissions/424935-favourite-awkward-interview-moments.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-admissions/424935-favourite-awkward-interview-moments.html&lt;/a&gt; (read for a laugh after your interviews ;))</p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

16

<p>What should I wear to an interview?</p>

17

<p>any ideas?</p>

18

<p>If it’s an alumni interviewer at a professional office (i.e. Law Firm), wear business attire (suit & tie/business dress). If it’s on-campus or with an alum outside of a serious professional enviroment, nice casual is fine (polo/dress shirt & khakis/trousers or blouse/skirt)</p>

19

<p>thanks… that helps!</p>

20

<p>If a school offers interviews, do you hurt your chances by not interviewing, even if the schools says that interviews are helpful, but not important?</p>

<p>Like Brandeis, for example. For schools where interviews ARE recommended, like Hamilton and Wesleyan, how much does it hurt not to interview?</p>