Hi everyone -
So I was invited to interview for the Ignatian Scholars program at Loyola! I was wondering if anyone else here did the interview and had an advice. What were the questions about? Did you think it was easy or hard? How selective is it?
Thanks 
So did I but I havent scheduled it yet! Did you do it?
@melonstarbursts Not yet but I’m doing it on Friday! Haven’t been able to find much advice online… I’ll probably just be winging it haha. I assume they’ll ask about community service work and why we like Loyola but other than that I’m pretty clueless…
II grew up in New Orleans & attended Loyola - a long time ago though. I see this about the scholarship:
Ignatian Scholarship for Academic Excellence:
"Candidates for the Ignatian Scholarship are identified by the admissions staff via the application process. We encourage applicants to submit supplemental resumes, personal statements and/or activity listings to highlight their community involvement, demonstrated leadership and history of service throughout high school. If selected to interview for the Ignatian scholarship, students will be contacted directly by their admissions counselor. "
I think an ability to demonstrate commitment to serving the less fortunate is helpful. But please look to this as guidance - the philosophy & mission statement of Loyola New Orleans:
http://www.loyno.edu/mission-statements/university-identity-statement.php
I think these points are relevant to think about - how do you exhibit these traits (from the Jesuit portion of the mission statement --:
Hope this helps – New Orleans is a great city - but there is poverty and a need for more supports for some less fortunate. While at Loyola I got involved in Circle K - a business oriented service organization.
I am sure you can google about what Loyola students are doing for service now and what local organizations Loyola works with. Hope this helps you & Good Luck!
I did the Skype interview on January 27th, and I think it went really well! Have you done any other college interviews (specifically any Ivy League ones)? Whereas those seem to be more fluid, there are definitely specific questions you will be asked here, and it will probably last 30 minutes or so. However specific the questions may be, though, you are certainly able to expand on them. I’m not sure if you’ll be asked the same exact questions I was, but incase you are, I won’t post them here verbatim (they like the spontaneity of it). Be prepared to talk about why you’re interested in Loyola and, as CA1543 states, be focused on what you want to do for the community. I would also be researched on your specific major program. Also be ready to elaborate on some specific community service/volunteering activities you’ve done, and why they’re important to you. The last question is really unusual, but they know that, and that’s the point of it. My interviewer (who was awesome) told me to just be comfortable with it, and to take a minute or more to think about my response before answering. And I don’t think you have to have the most elaborate or profound response; just something that reinforces you passions and academic or service goals. For me, it was a nice way to wrap up the interview, as I was able to incorporate multiple points that I talked about into this “closing statement” type response.
Considering whether is was easy or hard, there’s really a lot that rides on that. I thought it was pretty easy, as my interviewer was really cool and relaxed. Whether you do it in person or over Skype/phone, make sure you have a water bottle with you, as 30 minutes is a lot of time to be doing most of the talking. Also, at the end, your interviewer will likely ask if you have any questions for them about Loyola, and I would definitely think of a few to ask, because that seems to show deeper interest.
We did get to talking about the selection process a little, but I don’t have much detailed information. She said that they do award more than just one, but it doesn’t seem to be a set number they award; I guess it just depends on the year and the applicant pool. I know it’s a little outdated, but on their website, there’s an article detailing 9 scholarship recipients out of the 450+ that were considered. However, this article was published in August (only including those who were attending), so they likely awarded more scholarships to people who chose to go elsewhere.
Here is the link to that: http://www.loyno.edu/news/story/2013/8/27/3256
Hopefully this is helpful! Let me know if you have any other questions, and I’ll see if I can help. Best of luck to both of you! Make sure to let me know how it goes!
Just got the request for an interview! If chosen, do I have to attend?
How was it? Mine is tomorrow!
@melonstarbursts I just had it! It was a pretty straightforward interview. How about you?
Did they tell you when the decisions / notifications would be made? My D interviewed, too. This is her first choice school, so we’re really keeping our fingers crossed!
It went well until the last question haha! I think they said beginning of next month
Hey everyone!
Well, now that all the interviews are over with and I’m not giving my competition any help ( 
) I figured I’d give some future classes a hand.
The interview was super informal. I did a bunch of research beforehand on how to act for a scholarship interview and then I connected with my interviewer on Skype and she was like “hey lol”. She was super sweet and comfortable to talk to. She told me to talk to her as if I were talking to a friend. They were running five minutes late, but I expected that. If you haven’t done an interview on Skype I highly recommend looking up tips specifically for Skype interviews as I found that helped me immensely.
The questions were pretty straightforward, as someone else mentioned. The nomination email sent out said that the interview covers “questions related to personal experiences, academic plans, and future goals, as well as your interests in service, leadership and social justice.” I think that pretty much covers it. They asked what drew me to Loyola, what I planned to major in at Loyola and what I want to do in the future, my involvement in community service (and my plans in staying involved with community service at Loyola), what my most significant leadership experience was. I think that was about it - it was only three or four questions. The last question was what threw me (and pretty much everyone else) off. It was something about if you had your picture hanging some place where would it be and what would you want it to say underneath. The interviewer told me she knew it was a hard question and understood if I needed to think about it. I provided an absurdly cliche answer that probably ruined my chance at getting the award.
She was writing down answers the whole time, so I don’t think she made many notes on my body language or anything. I had taken notes before the interviewer and used them since she didn’t make eye contact with me as I answered the questions haha.
The interviewer then asked if I had any questions. I got a text an hour before with her name, and upon a Google search I found she was a recent Loyola grad, so I asked what she got out of Loyola and why she chose it. I also asked about the Social Justice Scholars. She was happy to answer both of my questions.
I haven’t gotten my decision yet but I almost hope I don’t because then I’ll feel obligated to go to Loyno and I have another school that I like more… I will let everyone know what the results were though!
Thanks for everyone’s responses, and good luck to future applicants! Just remember that no matter what happens it’s an honor to simply be nominated