<p>I have an interview with this outgoing, chattering alumni from Barnard on Jan. 20.</p>
<p>we spent an hour just chatting even though it wasn’t a phone interview. 10 minutes of that was just planning the date and such. I guess we’re both really talkative. haha</p>
<p>She invited me to a ballet recital with her family, where we can talk 45 minutes before the show about barnard. I guess we’re on a good start but I don’t want it to turn sour because I really want to go to Barnard.</p>
<p>Please, can you guys give me any tips about interviews? What I should wear (its a recital, so i’m guessing a dress not too formal)? Can we talk about random things besides Barnard? Should I spend my time asking questions about Barnard rather than actually TALKING about barnard? i feel pretty confident about this interview, but who knows how it’ll end up if i’m not prepared. Can I be sarcastically funny if that’s my personality? i don’t want to scare her.
What kind of questions is she going to ask me? Can I give her a resume? OH! And can I give her a picture of me for her to attach with her evaluation on me for Barnard? or is it better that I just mail in my picture separately?</p>
<p>I got a little screwed over in my interview. I went to the campus for one, and got put in a room with a current senior... who just wasn't particularly interested in carrying on a conversation. She asked me the four questions on her sheet in rapid succession and dismissed me, for a total time of 15 minutes.</p>
<p>So hopefully yours will go better. I had a resume with me, but was never asked for anything like it (even though I had my interview before I sent in my application). My guess is if they have your application, they may already have all the info they need in that regard (I mailed in a resume separately).</p>
<p>I don't specifically remember the questions I was asked, but I do know that one of them had to do with "what would your dream college be", and another "if you had all the funding you needed, what project would you run and why". I have no idea if you'll be asked the same ones, but needless to say I was thoroughly unprepared for those and kinda stumbled my way through them.</p>
<p>My advice would be to act sarcastically funny if that's your personality. They're trying to see if you match what they want in a Barnard girl, so holding back or faking something will influence that. Also, think up a list of questions to ask, but make sure the answers aren't readily available on the website. They like to know you've done your research, and are truly interested in what the school has to offer. I asked about general courseload, job and internship opportunities, grad school stuff, and sentiments between Barnard and Columbia. Naturally, my interviewer gave me the most mediocre responses... haha. I feel so cheated.</p>
<p>Just keep in mind that even if your interview goes badly (like mine did), it really can't hurt you all that much; they're mostly there to give someone an extra kick if they absolutely need it. After all, I'm officially a Barnard girl as of December 16... and I don't think my interviewer wrote down anything about me.</p>
<p>It seems like you are off to a great start -- obviously you hit it off with the alumni interviewer. So I would just say keep on doing things the same. Dress nicely, but don't overdo it. Be polite. If you are a dancer yourself, don't make any negative comments about the quality of the dancers at the recital, even if they are awful -- they might be your interviewer's friends or relatives. (I say that because my daughter is a dancer, and frankly over the years I have seem some really horrible dancing at various recitals -- my daughter is very discerning and quick to notice poor technique, so if you are like her then you might just have to bite your tongue). Also, my daughter has found as a student AT Barnard that her sarcastic wit doesn't go over so well, so despite mysteryflavored's advice to be yourself, I would suggest that you tone down the humor and avoid saying something that could be misinterpreted. Yes, be yourself -- but be the polite "self" you can be when you are around older adults, even if the alumni interviewer is closer to your age. </p>
<p>My daughter had an excellent interview on campus that was very conversational, so I honestly think that the purpose of the interview is to get to know you & get a sense of your personality and interests, not to pass judgment. So I don't think you can really go wrong, especially since you obviously already have a rapport with your interviewer.</p>