<p>Like many seniors, I have my first college interviews coming up in the next few weeks.</p>
<p>The question remains: Is it common practice to bring a resume to an interview, whether or alumni or campus, on which the interviewer can base questions? And if yes, give it to them at the beginning, or wait for them to ask?</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>My daughter brought a resume to all of her interviews. She gave it to them in the beginning. It was based on her GC's advice.</p>
<p>Hm, it seems slightly presumptuous to me, but idk, I'm not very experienced in these matters</p>
<p>It's up to the interviewer I suppose. Kids have given me their resumes and I just set it aside. It's not a plus or a minus.</p>
<p>Most interviewers are not experienced or trained. A resume just helps them to know your top ECs, stats. It is also nice for them to have it after the interview when they are writing their evaluation.</p>
<p>Right. Seems pretty unanimous.</p>
<p>Best advice I've heard is to print one up and once you get there, the interviewer will usually ask, "What's that in your hand?" The answer is, "I've brought along a resume if you'd like." If you're not asked, you can still offer up that you've brought one. S1 did this in about 8 or 9 interviews and I believe that every one of them asked to see it and thanked him for bringing it along, as, in their words, "it made their jobs easier." </p>
<p>You may not believe it, but interviews can cause pressure and anxiety for the interviewer, too. A bad interview makes everyone in the room uncomfortable.</p>
<p>Bring it along in a folder or portfolio or tablet with note paper for taking notes.</p>
<p>But don't offer it immediately. You don't know what direction the interviewer wants to go and by offering it immediately you are effectively shaping the interview in a way the interviewer might not like and perhaps in a way that isn't best for you either. Some interviewers might be more interested in who you are rather than what you do and might ask about your family, your home town, your favorite sports team, or some other conversational question in an attempt to find common ground. Some might be more interested in your what you know about their school or in your reasons for applying. Some are just seeing if you are comfortable in a face-to-face setting. Your resume won't help with any of this.</p>
<p>Instead offer it (1) when asked directly ("Do you have a resume for me?"), (2) when the conversation turns to your activities ("So, what do you do when you're not in class?" "Well, I brought a summary..."), (3) when the interviewer seems at a loss as to know how to proceed ("I brought a list of my EC's, would you like to see it?"), or perhaps, depending on your instincts (4) when you are about to leave ("Oh, I nearly forgot, I brought a resume. Would you like to have a copy?") thereby looking both prepared and relaxed and leaving the interviewer something by which to remember you.</p>
<p>Offer it right away, if they don't need it they will usually politely put it aside. It is strange to give it in the middle of interview. It really just makes their life easier.</p>
<p>Ooh, a dissenter among us? You two, duke it out! I need to decide which approach to use.</p>
<p>(Kidding. You both make great points.)</p>
<p>We got this from my daughter's GC. Let me just be very blunt about it - after paying for 13 years of private school tuition that's close to college tuition, they better be right about this.:) </p>
<p>Seriously, I do a lot of interviews at work, there is nothing worse than when a candidate is not confident and not sure about what to do. Give the resume out because YOU want to give it out, not when someone asks for it. It is yours to give, not for someone to ask.</p>
<p>I also believe you could drive the interview and have your interviewer feel like it was a good interview. There is an art to it. My daughter and I practiced it before she actually went on her first interview. But that's for another thread.</p>
<p>A resume for the interviewer is a good conversation starter, or can be used by the interviewer to go off in another direction. My S almost missed the scheduled tour of his ED college because he spent so much time in his interview. He had a very unusual summer job and he spent a long time discussing it with his interviewer. Another vote for a resume.</p>
<p>I like the idea of bringing a resume and offering it provided that it feels right. My daughter had 3 interviews last year, but only left her resume with one interviewer. At W & M, where the interviewer was a senior, the informational email she received ahead of time said specifically not to bring a resume.</p>
<p>There is really no down side to bringing a resume. The best approach is to hand it to the interviewer at the start of the session and say, "Here is my resume, in case it may be helpful now or afterwards." This way, the interviewer won't feel in any way obliged to refer to it during the interview but does have the option. </p>
<p>When I worked at Smith, I got resumes roughly 10% of the time, maybe even less. I rarely looked at them during the interview because I wanted the applicant to tell me what was important to her without prompts from me based on the resume. But sometimes, in the more painful, teeth-pulling sessions with shy (or petrified?) applicants, the resume was a good "crutch" for both of us. Often, too, it helped to jog my memory when I was doing the interview write-up later. ("Oh, right, she plays lacrosse not field hockey.")</p>
<p>But one thing I didn't like to see at interviews was an art portfolio. I certainly don't have the expertise to evaluate art, and going through a student's collection of drawings, paintings, etc. takes much more time than the typical 30-minute time slot allows. My advice: only bring art portfolios to interviews if they are required or recommended (usually only at art schools).</p>
<p>The college I alum interview for does NOT want me to know SATs and grades; I get a sheet showing academic interests and activities from the admissions office. </p>
<p>So the kids giving me a resume defeats the intent of the admissions office - that I meet the kid without any awareness of their statistics. I think before you go on an alumni or campus interview you should try to find out as much as possible about what is expected from the admissions website. Sometimes you can even access the site where alumni interviewers get THEIR guidelines for interviews from!</p>
<p>Students shouldn't put test scores, GPA, or even classes on a resume. It should be for activities, work experience, awards, etc. Admittedly, many don't seem to know that, so interviewers who don't want access to that information can just set the resume aside if the student says that it includes off-limits data.</p>
<p>My D has had three interviews so far and took a 1-page resume along to each interview. She hasn't applied to any of these schools yet so the schools had no information on her. The resume seemed to help as a conversation starter plus I think putting the resume together helped D to organize her activities in her own mind.</p>
<p>OH! I didn't know test scores and GPS shouldn't be on a resume. Why not?</p>
<p>It's not that GPA and test scores are "off limits". It's just that most alumni volunteer interviewers don't want to be influenced by metrics rather to focus the face to face encounter. I never ask. They could have a 1700SAT & 2.5GPA or 4.0 and 2350SAT but it shouldn't affect my encounter w/the student.</p>
<p>I guess an activity resume without the stats would be helpful to me in interviews since what the college provides isn't very specific, like it says "Music Activity" but the kid is a nationally recognized concert pianist or something. </p>
<p>The only "resumes" I've been handed, though, look like a transcript, with all the classes and grades and test scores at top, and activities at the bottom.</p>