<p>Could you applicants from last year (which includes me, actually) share some interview stories? Not tips, just stuff on parts that went spiffendously, parts that went horribly, parts that were just memorable... basically, gaffes/quirks/hooks/etc that might be helpful for all new applicants to read and keep in mind.</p>
<p>Anddd entertaining, of course. :B</p>
<p>Thanks a ton, and I'll start!</p>
<p>So for my Andover interview, I had a notebook with me. My interviewer, in the beginning of the interview, was looking for a piece of paper to write on and started looking in a recycle bin. I was watching her awkwardly as she dug through it before realizing brilliantly I COULD JUST RIP A PIECE OUT OF MY NOTEBO-- when it was too late and she already came out with the paper. So I spent the first ten minutes agonizing over my mistake and wondering if she thought I was rude and if it was some kind of test.</p>
<p>Moral: Keep your eyes open. And I've got more for anyone interested, haha.</p>
<p>Good idea!
At my first interview I had someone who loved to talk a lot. First he sat there talking about what an interview was, why they had to do them, and why I shouldn’t be nervous. He seriously went on for 10 minutes before the interview started which made me even more nervous. Then he asked me a couple basic questions. He mentioned that his brother went to college in North Dakota so I asked him why he chose to go there. Then he talked for like 20 minutes on how the future was unpredictable and about the para dime. Then he started talking about this Youtube video he was going to send to me. Out of the whole 30 minute interview I only spoke about 2 minutes, but I think he really liked me for some reason. That was probably my easiest interview, although it was hard to keep up with his rambling.</p>
<p>Don’t have any input, but just wanted to say this would be an amazing thread that would help a lot of us a lot. </p>
<p>Please, if you’re reading this and have a story - it doesn’t even have to be funny! Just something to give us who have yet to interview an idea of what is going to happen to us. </p>
<p>i also had a nice interview
my interviewer was a talker too XD. it was an off campus parent interview, and she just talked about her daughter’s experience. she liked me so much even thought barely talked at all. we’re still in contact :)</p>
<p>At my safety school, the guy was really really talkative. He would ask a question, get distracted and just go on and on rambling. It went on for over 2hrs (during which I spoke for just like 15mins) and he talked about everything under the sun from Obama to APs to McDonald’s!
Since we had to drive a long way, my parents (who I guess were really nervous by then) told the secretary to find out how much longer it would take. So he (my interviewer) decided to adjourn the interview and meet my parents - he told me that he would call me back in 5 min to continue the interview!!!
We just made an excuse and ran off.</p>
<p>But seriously, don’t get scared by interview stories on cc (some really freaked me out) or stress about them. They are actually way, way easier than what you imagine - it’s just a conversation. They don’t ask any “trick” questions or try to test you - the purpose is to just know you as a person. I was a late applicant (I learnt about prep schools in May and did the whole process in just a month - including SSAT, essays, recs) applying to fully enrolled schools and an int’l so I was doubly nervous. But as soon as my first interview started, that nervousness just flew away and the interview went off really well. Just be yourself, don’t try to exaggerate (because doing so will automatically make you nervous and they can tell). They did ask me the “what book have you read recently” question in a lots of interviews, and I just frankly told them that I hadn’t read any lately because I was really busy working on apps (all apps were done within a week, and for the SSAT I did everything in 2 days). And I did get in everywhere I applied. Ultimately you will go to a really good school and enjoy high school (which is what matters most).</p>
<p>At Andover, my interviewer was a LAUGHER. You know the type- the kind of person to which everything deserves a guffawing belly-laugh that could shake the floors. Everything I said was funny, and she made me feel really at ease. It was kind of funny, and strange, in any case. I got waitlisted, haha, and I could feel it the entire time, no matter how much she laughed and joked. Oh well. It was my last interview, and I had kind of gotten a feel for it by then.</p>
<p>Choate was great. We spoke a lot about the school and what I wanted there, and she was really nice. She actually knew me already from some emails we had exchanged, about my hair color (I wanted to know if it was dress code appropriate, so as not to give off the wrong image) and so she knew to look for the bright-red-head in the crowd of interviewees!. It was fun.</p>
<p>Exeter was weird. Her office was MIDGET sized and the chair I sat in was tiny, high enough for an adult but width wise, it was for a preschooler. That was really the only remarkable thing about it, though.</p>
<p>At Groton, I had thought that the interview went pretty well. So when the admissions officer called–who was a boring, stuffy type–called in my mother, I wasn’t that worried. Well, apparently he told my mother that I, an international student, should learn how to speak in full sentences. Mind you, I had never lived in the U.S. and did not speak like a native at that time, but I could speak in full sentences and carry on a decent conversation for quite a while. Having traveled half a way around the globe to be so throughly insulted, we swore we would never come to Groton. (And it looked like I wouldn’t be accepted anyway.)</p>
<p>A couple of months later, I was accepted. Even though I had no intention of attending the school, I re-visited the school. I then went on to fell in love with it and attended it.</p>
<p>My daughter left every interview feeling like she was the most special kid in the world. Really, no one else was even close. The interviews were lively and engaging and went on for over 30 minutes each. The interviewers all said how much they would love to have her at his/her school. We were certain she would be accepted at each school, possibly even with a merit scholarship. Fast forward a few months. Accepted at two, waitlisted at two. She was absolutely shocked. She blames it on our request for FA, but really, the thing is, lots of kids are as wonderful as my daughter. What I learned from this is that interviewers really are great at what they do. They truly will make your child feel amazing and wanted. Unfortunately, it may not be a true indicator of their willingness to accept your child (although I am sure they meant it at the time). Take a great interview with a grain of salt.
zp</p>