<p>what kinds of questions are asked? any advice on answering them?</p>
<p>Depends on the interviewer. "Why Princeton?" is the most important I think. They'll ask you about your ECs and school stuff...maybe what you want to study. It's just a pretty casual conversation.</p>
<p>Show that you're an interesting person who's enthusiastic about Princeton. Completing the interview should be by far the least stressful, and probably the least important, part of your application package. You're just chatting with an alum, and they're just telling Princeton -- in a sense -- whether they'd have liked/approved of having you as a classmate. My interviewer was curious about my interests, but it was definitely a two-way conversation; he told me some of his favorite things about the school, and some special programs in which I might be interested. It felt completely non-judgmental, just as if he'd ended up in the plane seat beside me by accident and struck up a conversation.</p>
<p>Yeah, my interviewer suggested numerous activities in which I might be interested based on what I told her about my personal interests.</p>
<p>One thing that really warmed up a lagging/awkward conversation was asking about the interviewer's experience. Don't ask too much about him, of course, the focus must ALWAYS be on you (time is limited). But showing some interest in who he is, what he did, what he liked (<-- or of course 'she', sorry) is a) polite b)shows interest in him and in the school c) shows you know how to get along with people.</p>
<p>eeek i'm so nervous for the interview. One of my worst habits is that i giggle when i'm nervous or when there's an awkward silence, so i end up giving off a dumb-blonde sort of vibe. Do you think the interview is a big factor in admissions?</p>
<p>Make your interviewer's wildest dreams come true.</p>
<p>koala - there's plenty of time for you to practice.
As to how big of a factor it is - admission is very competitive, so everything does count. I would say that you should really work to do well in the interview. That said, the interview is not as important a factor as the interview for Harvard is; it's more an opportunity than a test. If you're familiar with UK admissions, interviews for those school are farrrr more important/crucial/stressful there than at any US school.</p>