<p>Like a small cute dog, sometimes it can be a bunny too.</p>
<p>Wait, I’m sort of confused. Maybe I’m just stupid, but huh? xD</p>
<p>When I applied last year (3 waitlists) I didn’t really reach out to any people in departments I was interested in. I want to this year but what do you talk to them about? Do just express your interest and talk about your experience? I feel like with that the conversation could become stale VERY quickly. If there really aren’t any questions is it worth reaching out? And is talking to 4 people a lot?</p>
<p>Best to focus on coaches and heads of ECs where you have a particular strength or interest. Reaching out a month or so before your interview allows you to set up a meeting without having exhausted topics via email. Be selective, though. These are busy people, so you should be respectful of their time.</p>
<p>Speaking as a boarding school coach/head of a major EC, I’m always happy to hear from kids who are interested in joining my team/group. Because I am so busy, it’s a lot easier for me (and I’m way more impressed) when I am contacted with a very specific question or two rather than a general “your program looks amazing!!! Tell me more about it!!!” If it’s an activity you love and have been involved with before, take the time to generate a good question or two that isn’t already answered on the website. And remember, the adults who work at boarding schools like teenagers and are around them a lot, so while you do want your written contact to use excellent grammar, spelling and capitalization, you don’t have to worry that your contact is thinking negative things about you.
In a way, this ties into the character part of the discussion. I think that mostly this manifests in the energy you bring to your interactions with people at the school. Extroverts and kids who are poised and comfortable talking with adults (without coming across as rehearsed) have an edge in admissions. I’d recommend practicing interviewing with friends of your parents until you are comfortable not only answering questions from adults you don’t know well but in asking them follow up questions and talking to them like regular people. The confidence you’ve all earned from having gone through the process before should help you on the second round. Best of luck to all “re-applicants!”</p>
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<p>This is easier said than done for 8th graders. Don’t put them through hoops. They will naturally get it at the appropriate age like 9th or 10th grades according to laws of nature. Boarding schools are not above the laws of nature. :D</p>
<p>“Easier said than done” for many, I absolutely agree. But just as some kids will practice their SSAT’s to get better scores, others might want to practice their interviewing skills, especially if they get flustered or are uncomforatble talking with admissions folks. I don’t even know that that’s the case with any of the posters here, but someone was talking about the importance of “showing character” and I think that this often gets interpreted as the poise and energy they show in an interview. When I said that poised and extroverted kids have an edge, it’s because I’ve seen it time and time again; I didn’t say that I thought it was justified or that shy kids have no chance at all. As a naturally shy person myself, I’ve had to work really hard for many years to get more comfortable talking with strangers. And no, not every kid “naturally gets it according to the laws of nature” as a 9th or 10th grader. Some need to practice to get more comfortable.
I was just trying to offer a suggestion for kids looking at what to do differently in the second round. :D</p>
<p>I think for me, I did very well at interviews. The people who interviewed me, for the most part, were AMAZING at what they did-you shouldn’t be worried at all! They were very nice and very engaging. I think my topics on the essays were a little stale though. I have a slight question. I didn’t really reach out to the faculty-does that affect your admission decision (like an acceptance vs. waitlist?) Additionally, this goes to Albion, but have people that aren’t able to interview on campus still contact you? Is it nice that they do?</p>
<p>Oh, and by the way, aaralyn, I think you mentioned somewhere that you did interview via Skype and phone. How was that like? I know I will probably do that next year, so I would love to hear of your experience with that.</p>
<p>@circlemidnight,
Reaching out to faculty members DOES impact your decision. I got into contact with some faculty members at prep schools, and I think that it really helped my application. If you can, set up an appointment to meet up with a faculty member during your interview. I found that to be really helpful. What are interested that you want to contact a faculty member? (English, soccer, tennis, visual art, etc.)</p>
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<p>This doesn’t help that much most of the time unless you have a significant accomplishment in that area. Most of the time the faculty members don’t even read your app file, done mostly by AOs.</p>
<p>@circlemidnight; I did one Skype interview, and that was with Milton Academy. It was alright, I guess. I would obviously have preferred being face to face, but it wasn’t that bad. It gets sort of awkward because Skype lags a little, so you could be saying ‘okay’ or asking a question, and would interrupt what your interview is saying. And the sound is also sort of static-y at times, so be careful with that. :)</p>
<p>@ifax-What I’m mostly interested in is instrumental music, English, and History. However, my family won’t be able to fly over to the East Coast (We live all the way in the West Coast), so I think it might be more important to email them.</p>
<p>@aaralyn-Oh, I guess that happens when you do Skype. But have you done any interviews during boarding school fairs, or when an admissions officer visits your area?</p>
<p>Try setting up a camcorder and recording yourself answering standard questions to an adult preferably other than a parent. This will help you “see yourself as others see you,” and minimize any presentation issues including posture and gestures that you may have.</p>
<p>@circlemidnight,
Wow, those are some of my interests too! But, if I were you, I’d email each of these program heads asking about their programs, try to set up a meeting on the phone/Skype with them to learn more about their programs, and possibly send in something from that particular subject to the admission office. As a musician, you should definitely send in a recording of you playing.</p>
<p>What are some schools with strong humanities? And also with study abroad programs other than just SYA?</p>
<p>@circlemidnight; I live in China, so there really aren’t any boarding school fairs that I’ve heard of, but I have had a couple AO visits in my city. If my memory is correct, I believe my Concord and Hotchkiss interviews were with visiting admissions officers. Other than those two and the Milton skype one, all the other schools I had alumni interviews.</p>
<p>@aaralyn</p>
<p>Middlesex, Milton, Andover, and many other schools came to your city last year.</p>
<p>There’s also a TABS fair.</p>
<p>@circlemidnight: It’s a nice thing to be contacted by kids who really really want to go to the school I’m teaching at if they are actually interested in being involved with the sport/activity I’m in charge of. I certainly have walked over to the admissions office and given a verbal endorsement of an applicant after an email conversation, but I can’t say whether it made all that much difference. Keep in mind that not every teacher or coach is going to go out of his/her way to endorse every kid that contacts them, and even a ringing endorsement may have limited value at a school that is swamped with applications. But if you have a genuine interest in being a real part of a specific activity and you want to contact the faculty member in charge (I recommend email, since it’s a lot easier for the teacher to reply when s/he has time), go ahead. don’t worry about whether or not you can make it to the campus.The teachers I know (my friends and I are all “Hidden Gems” types, so I can’t speak for teachers who work at pressure cooker schools) are always happy to talk with kids who are seriously considering joining us.</p>
<p>@Prep2011; I did interview with Middlesex, but did not end up applying. I did not learn abou Milton’s visit until they were already here and did not have any openings, and I did not make the cut with my interview essay for Andover. I did not know there was a TABS fair though! When was that? Also, how do you know what city I’m from? o.o</p>
<p>@aaralyn</p>
<p>Wow I didn’t know they already put this online: [Asia</a> Fairs - The Association of Boarding Schools (TABS)](<a href=“http://www.boardingschools.com/find-a-school/explore-your-options/asia-fairs.aspx]Asia”>http://www.boardingschools.com/find-a-school/explore-your-options/asia-fairs.aspx)</p>
<p>But I don’t think those “good” schools actually participate in this fair.</p>
<p>Also note that Thacher didn’t publish their travel schedule, so I thought they wouldn’t come. Actually you have to email and ask.</p>
<p>You told me where you were from, I guess =)</p>