<p>I just got a call about my Harvard interview date and will have it in two weeks.
I was just wondering if anyone has any tips on how I should prepare for questions? Or ask my own questions? </p>
<p>Also I was wondering what I should wear. I'm a girl and he said not to worry about attire so I was thinking blazer, pastel shirt, and black skinny jeans. Haha I don't know if it means much, but I want to represent myself in the best possible way!</p>
<p>I had my Brown interview today, and while Brown and Harvard are admittedly very different schools, here are my two cents on interviews:</p>
<p>Make sure you know about the school. Have a good answer for the inevitable “why Harvard?” question, and make sure it’s specific! </p>
<p>I’ve heard stories about interviewers (especially from Ivies) grilling kids on politics, current events, religion, etc. Technically this is inappropriate, but it’s out of your hands. Either way, it’s probably not a good idea to go to the interview totally clueless. Opinions are generally good things to have in greater life, so if you haven’t formed any yet, now’s a good time to start.</p>
<p>It’s also a good idea to come up with a few questions to ask your interviewer, because he will likely open it up to you to ask. Honestly, if you really do want to go to Harvard - or any school for that matter - this will not be difficult. You’ll be curious.</p>
<p>As far as clothes - your outfit sounds good to me, if even a bit too formal. Obviously, it depends on where you’re meeting. My sister’s H interview was at the guy’s house, and he reportedly answered the door in sweatpants. <em>shrug</em> I’m not saying I recommend that, but I’ve had two interviews so far (Brown and Barnard) and went to both in nice, non-ripped jeans and a cute shirt. Totally fine.</p>
<p>Pretty sure there are several threads on here about interview tips, but I’m too lazy to link to them. (Paradoxically, I’m not too lazy to type up my own. Welp, I think that signals the end of internet time for me…)</p>
<p>Why is this technically inappropriate? I usually avoid these questions because I generally don’t find that 17/18-year olds, even very bright ones, give very thoughtful answers, so I just don’t bother. But I’m not sure they’re inappropriate. Political or current event questions are perfectly valid. This is especially true if you’re a potential poly sci/gov concentrator, or if you plan to work with MUN or the IOP. I don’t care what your political views are, as long as you can defend them.</p>
<p>I do find religious questions, if unprompted, to be a bed of nails. But again, if you indicate you’re interested in say, religious studies, you can bet that I will ask you questions about religion.</p>
<p>@windcloud - I don’t see a problem with it at all, but I was under the impression that interviewers’ instructions said to avoid that sort of topic. To be honest, I don’t remember where I read that, so it likely wasn’t true… in any case, that’s what I was referring to in my post. I certainly agree with you that it’s important to be able to defend opinions.</p>
<p>stupiddorkyidiot (nice name!) said: “I don’t see a problem with it at all, but I was under the impression that interviewers’ instructions said to avoid that sort of topic.” </p>
<p>No. We are not supposed to talk about drugs, offer alcohol to interviewees or smoke or drink in their presence. </p>
<p>If an applicant gives me a resume chock-full of religious activities or political activities, yes, by golly we are going to discuss religion and/or politics.</p>
<p>I have mixed feelings about my alma mater, but one thing I do miss about it is the opportunity to have open, spirited, yet civil debate about these so-called hot button issues. Those conversations are my best memories from college. Perhaps things have changed on campus, although I hope they have not. Back in the dark ages, differences of opinion, except in the most egregious instances (apologists for genocidal maniacs were not tolerated), were not enough to drive wedges between people and ruin relationships.</p>
<p>If I am interviewing you, again, I am not checking to see how closely your ideas align with mine. I am more interested in knowing if you think about those “big topics” and how you think about them.</p>
<p>@stupiddorkyidiot: No. Interviewers are not ask to avoid those topics. If someone wrote that, they’re willfully misrepresenting the instructions and guidelines. Interviewers are not prohibited from mentioning/probing the applicant on these topics, but we ARE asked to tread carefully, as some applicants in the past have reported that ‘prolonged discussion’ of political or religious subjects makes them uncomfortable. Interviewers are asked to balance between getting a sense of an applicant’s curiosity without invading their privacy.</p>
<p>As a poster above said, my rule of thumb for interviews was that attire should be appropriate for the venue, where the lower end of the spectrum is a Starbucks and the higher end is the interviewer’s law firm or such.</p>
<p>I will definitely make my own questions and try to have thoughtful answers to his questions. I have a small chance of getting in, so hopefully this interview boosts that chance a little bit :)</p>
<p>D has not been called regarding an interview. She has not submitted subject test as she will take them later this month. Everything else has been submitted. Can an interview be scheduled prior to sub test results?</p>
<p>The promptness of interviewers reaching out to interviewees is dependent upon the availability of interviewers in the area, and thus some applicants receive interviews before others, and rarely some may not even receive interviews at all.</p>