<p>My S received a surprise invitation to a half-day program during which he'll be interviewed for a huge and unexpected scholarship which he's apparently a finalist for. This came as a complete surprise and will necessitate some quick-as-a-bunny travel arrangements, but that's fine. This S has never had an interview, and while he's an easy-going guy and quite personable, sometimes he speaks more candidly than might be recommended. This interview is obviously quite important, but we know nothing about what he'd be asked about or how much he should just be himself.</p>
<p>I'd like to help him prepare a little for his first interview, and was going to offer to role-play an interview with him. Can anyone whose child (or self!) has been through a scholarship interview suggest some questions I might pose to him, which might come his way during the meeting? I think with this particular kid it's unwise to send him in cold, but of course not to over-prepare him either. Just to give him some feedback on how he answers interview-type questions would be helpful, though. Thanks for any suggestions! (Too bad his very first interview has to be such an important one!)</p>
<p>Mootmom - sorry I can't help with specifics. Since your kid is so easy going and confident, I'm not sure I'd mess with a good thing! A few cautionary tales could be appropriate - like talking about the school being second choice, or such. But I'd be more inclined to just encourage him to be himself. Maybe mention that this kind of interview is not the time to be humble (but not arrogant, either).</p>
<p>Find out as much as you can about who has won the scholarship before and about who is sponsoring the scholarship. Use Google and look on the scholarship web site. </p>
<p>Google the name of the college, company or associaton that's sponsoring the scholarship and also Google the background of top officers. </p>
<p>Through this, you should be able to figure out what the company/association is trying to accomplish by offering the scholarship. Are they trying to encourage students to enter their field? Promote ethics, leadership, academic achievement?</p>
<p>Those are the things that the scholarship committee will be looking for when they interview your S. Those are the things that he should be prepared to highlight. It also would be a good idea for him to bring in a resume to the interview -- a resume that particularly highlights the things that it appears will be of interest to the committee.</p>
<p>For instance, if the scholarship is one offered by a medical association, the association would be far more impressed by any health-related volunteer work or science-related achievements your S has done than by his expertise playing the bassoon.</p>
<p>I also strongly suggest that he wear a suit or at least a button down shirt and tie to the interview. No need to buy anything new or expensive. It can hurt his chances to seem wealthy.</p>
<p>It also would be a very good idea for him to immediately send a thank-you letter after the interview, and to make sure that he thanks them during the interview for considering him. Even if he doesn't get that scholarship, the committee may be able to give him another opportunity.</p>
<p>Certainly, if he gets the scholarship, he also should send a handwritten thank-you note. It always amazes me how few students take the time to do this.</p>
<p>A few years back--2004?--there was a CC parent who had a son who won some MASSIVE scholarship at WUSTL via a casual interview like the one you describe. As I recall, it turned out to be a cocktail party with professors. His son had no idea how to proceed, but fell into deep conversation with one of the professors about some arcane topic (says the architect). There was no official 'interview' as I recall. The family was astounded when the scholarship was presented.</p>
<p>This may seem silly,but if your S has never been in an interview situation,have him practice greeting an adult,using a Sir or Maam salutation.Have him practice a handshake,firm,not floppy.Have him practice looking someone in the eye,not looking at the ground while speaking.Have him practice not mumbling,or fidgeting.Some basic etiquette,like waiting for women to be seated,holding a door open,you never know what they might throw at him.Dress appropriately,better a suit,or sports jacket and tie than not.
My S,last year was thrown into interview situations and looking back, was so happy he had HS experience with public speaking and dealing with adults through a statewide service organization.He also realized that during one interview weekend, he was being judged for most of the time,during a dinner and casual activities in addition to the formal 45 minute actual interview.
Handing this $$ out is important to these people, and your S should treat the occasion as such.And above all, he should be proud of himself and whatever acheivements got him to this point.Good Luck to him!!!</p>
<p>"He also realized that during one interview weekend, he was being judged for most of the time,during a dinner and casual activities in addition to the formal 45 minute actual interview."</p>
<p>The above is very important. Things to avoid are: complaining about the food; being rude to the wait staff; gluing oneself to other students instead of also talking to adults; and, of course, lacking general good manners.</p>
<p>If your S is concerned about making small talk in such situations, suggest that he ask adults about their college experiences, how they chose their jobs and majors; how they got involved with the scholarship committee; what they like about their company. If your S is monosyllabic or just talks to the other kids during the reception or dinner he'll seem unfriendly, ungrateful or disinterested, and people tend not to want to give scholarships to people like that.</p>
<p>If this scholarship is coming from a college he is applying to, have him review the essays he wrote with his application- he may be asked about a "passion" he wrote about or he may be asked to talk in depth about an experience or a area of interest mentioned his essays. Best to be prepared. Congratulatons!</p>
<p>Mootmom, Congratulations! What a great surprise and honor for him to be considered for this scholarship.</p>
<p>My oldest did a scholarship weekend with a group of students and he said it was as described above - he felt as if he had to be "on" the whole weekend. Since this was for an engineering scholarship the students had to actually work together on a project and build something or other. The scholarship people sat in the room and watched them interact and problem solve. Sounds pretty weird and stressful to me! But they also did some fun stuff and overall he enjoyed it. </p>
<p>Great news Mootmom. I have no pearls of wisdom except that your son should be himself. He needs to be polite and articulate, yes, but he is a student with specific interests and perhaps that is why he was selected for this interview. I agree....look at who is sponsoring the scholarship and if you know why DS was selected for the interview, consider the reasons as he prepares. This is terrific news and I'll keep my fingers crossed for him.</p>
<p>Yeah, a big thing to realize is that he'll be watched when he's in a social setting with the committee members and not just when he's in the actual interview. Dinners and such are definitely fair game.</p>
<p>Congratulations! S just got back from one of these, 130+ scholarship recipients, 5 of whom will recieve full $$ after the interview weekend. He said the interview itself was a panel and lasted about 40 minutes, including time for him to ask questions. The panel had his entire app. folder, so the advice to review your essays and such is good. A question one of the interviews liked was when S asked them "What do you feel I would particularly bring to your school?" or something like that.
He was also amazed at how many of the prospies blew off where they were supposed to be (like a luncheon) just to walk around or browse the bookstore. They did have folks checking tables, etc.
Tell him to be himself, have fun, and enjoy being a "buyer" :)
Congrats again.</p>
<p>These are all fantastic suggestions, everyone, much appreciated. I'll do some research and have <em>him</em> do some research, and am going to recommend he ask his college counselor at school next week to perhaps do a "mock interview" with him, just so he can get the feel of it. Being aware that he will be obseved the entire time is a valuable observation: I suspect he wouldn't have realized that unless someone (e.g. Mom) came right out and told him that (and it will be more effective still if his college counselor reinforces it). He'll wear his suit that he wears for jazz band concerts, and he's hoping it'll be OK to wear the tie with the drumkits on it (since he's a jazz drummer among his other passions) -- I think that should be fine, don't you? :) He has very long hair, which he normally wears loose but ties back (reluctantly) for his job in a frozen yogurt store: think Counselor should recommend he tie it back for this day also? (Mom's recommendation will not carry as much weight. :) )</p>
<p>We'll report back, especially if it's good news. Thank you all so much!</p>
<p>I like the tie. It could be a conversation starter. I also wouldn't worry about the hair. I don't think your S would be happy in a very staight laced environment.</p>
<p>DS has two ties -- one mathy (lots of formulae) and one that says "ties suck" in binary. They are GREAT for discussion starters! I vote for the drummer tie. It will make your son stand out in the interviewers' eyes, and probably give him a sense of confidence as he goes for it!</p>
<p>two suggestions -- have him practice a "mock" interview with someone else -- preferably someone he doesn't know well (a teacher at school? someone from church? a business associate of dad's?). How he responds to a parent and how he responds to an adult he doesn't know will be different. When I tried to do mock interviews with my son, he complained that he felt very self-conscious when doing it with me. Surprisingly, he felt the mock interview with a stranger much better practice.</p>
<p>Also -- I always have my son go into an interview with 3 questions. I have him research and decide on the questions ahead of time. He has always been asked, at some point in the interview, "do you have any questions" and this way he is always prepared with an intelligent question. He makes sure the questions are sincere and indicate that he has some knowledge of the program/school/association, etc.</p>
<p>My D also has a scholarship interview coming up so I searched the CC archives for tips. One general theme seemed to be that unlike admissions interviews, which are more along the lines of "Tell us about yourself," scholarship ones are more future-oriented, as in "How do you see yourself 10 years from now?" and Do you have any definite plans/goals for the future and how do we fit into those plans?" Along with questions about specific academic interests and how the applicant might contribute to the college community, a few people also mentioned the possibility of current event questions which I hadn't thought of. Many stressed the importance of the handshake, smiling, looking the interviewers in the eyes, and generally appearing enthusiastic. Best of luck to your S.</p>
<p>beckycookie - how many? :)
Yes, simple, stud earrings look better than empty holes. Holes tend to look like you forgot something. But if you have multiple piercings, I'll let someone else answer, since I have no experience.</p>