<p>Lots of good advice here. Digmedia did a post with some great interview tips, I think. You might want to search for that one. </p>
<p>Good luck to him--I don't believe the interview is critical, so don't overworry about it. My son did not interview at any of the ivies as he did not have time, and he still got into one.</p>
<p>Berurah, I apologize for my mother (cangel). She knows better than to mention Orange county in the college search world. That movie was painful, very painful.</p>
<p>But seriously, good luck to your son. Tell him to remember that people wouldn't agree to do alum interviews unless they really like their alma mater. So, while the interview is ostensibly to learn more about the applicant, he can learn a lot about the school and what it is like to be a student there by asking questions. And, from my experience, the interviewers love to delve into the nostalgia of their college days. 1 and 1/2 hours fly by!</p>
<p>Greensleeves,</p>
<p><em>lololol</em> I think your mom is brave to post on the same forum as you! :) I can't imagine how many times my son would apologize for his mom if he were to post here! Thanks for chiming in on this!</p>
<p>To everyone--Thanks so much for your help. I am printing all of this out for my son!</p>
<p>~berurah</p>
<p>On the subject of the dreaded "what other schools did you apply to?" I think your son should be prepared with how he wants to handle his Yale EA situation. If he were mine, I'd advise him to include Yale in the list but not mention the outcome. I can't imagine that any interviewer would be so perverse to ask if the student had been accepted/rejected EA/ED at any other college, but from the reports given on this board it seems anything goes. You son should get his answer ready so it doesn't sound awkward or disappointed. (I put this in the same category as the why did you leave your last job in a job interview. If you were fired, you have to be prepared to give a truthful but not-to-negative answer.) On the other hand, "I've already been accepted to Michigan" is appropriate if asked.</p>
<p>My son interviewed on campus. The interviewers were either current students or adcom members (many of whom were alums). Because they were "professional" interviewers their consistency level was high. For the local alums, it seems that some (including I'm sure those who post on this board) are great, some are less so. I agree with the posters who said that the point of the interview is to get to know the student as a person. It doesn't really matter what you talk about as long as you come across as intelligent, confident (but not arrogant), interested and interesting. Some interviewers talk a lot, some expect the student to carry the weight of the conversation. Some ask open ended questions that require the student to expound -- like tell me about yourself. Trick questions are very, very rare. </p>
<p>It's good to have a few questions ready for the interviewer. What worked best for my son was to cruise through the course catalog in advance to be able to ask about specific classes or majors. Questions about the ambience or philosophy of the school are also good. Avoid simplistic questions like what are the meal plans? </p>
<p>Most importantly, relax, enjoy yourself.</p>
<p>momrath,</p>
<p>Thanks so much for your great advice. I especially appreciate the idea on how to handle the Yale EA rejection. I think your suggestion on that issue is <em>perfect</em>. I have told my son that he is likely to be asked about other schools to which he's applied. I hope that he isn't, but I expect that he will be. If he can get through that part, I think he can make it through the rest just fine. He is a quick-on-his-feet thinker and is quite charismatic. Thanks again, ~berurah</p>
<p>I'm a young alum interviewer. I ask fairly similar questions, with some mixed in when something strikes me... here's the general list (with some answers I would consider to be acceptable underneath - just quick notes):</p>
<p>*Why my alma mater? This is something I especially ask now that I've moved over 600 miles away from it. How did you hear about it? Did you visit? Know anyone who went there?<br>
Answers that I've liked: advisor recommended it (advisor's kid went there); no, haven't visited, what can you tell me about it? I'm going to make the trip up in April if I get in (honestly, it's at least an 8 hour trip - I'm not faulting student for this); great pre-med/international relations. </p>
<p>*What do you do during the summer?
Good answers here are the more complete ones. I don't care what you did - I just care why and what you got out of it. Travelling with your family is great. Going to camps is great. Working is great. Just tell me what you do and show some enthusiasm. I scooped ice cream over the summers... not going to judge. </p>
<p><em>I hit on extracurriculars - why those ones? What do you like about it? What do you dislike about it?
Good answers: </em>anything* with enthusiasm. </p>
<p>*Favourite teachers? Favourite classes? Why the major(s) indicated on our forms?
Good answers: anything with enthusiasm. Nothing major or weird here - just want to see that there is something about school that gets the kid energized. If you don't like school and just do it, you're not going to like my alma mater. </p>
<p>*Family - what is it like?
I'll accept any answer here - just want to get a feel for the applicant.</p>
<p>*Do you have any questions for me or anything to add?
Unacceptable answer: "No," or something halfhearted. I'm young. Prior to interviews, I always tell the kids that I'm young, that I really want them to ask questions, that I don't care if they ask about dorms or food; I know what it's like to be a student there now. I also let them know that they can bring written questions - I'm big on "whatever makes you feel comfortable so you can interview well." If the kid, after that, does not have anything to ask, that looks bad. Good questions have included what I've disliked about my alma mater, why I'm an alum interviewer, questions about food, financial aid, workload, and campus life. In my mind, if the student is seriously thinking about going to my alma mater, she's goign to want to know what day-to-day life is like. </p>
<p>I think some alum interviewers are very different... but that is the typical Aries interview. Works for me, seems to work for the students (well, they give me hugs afterwards - doesn't appear to be a grueling experience).</p>
<p>aries,</p>
<p>Thanks so much for taking the time to post such a thorough and helpful piece! You sound like the type of interviewer I'd love for my son to encounter on Monday! The kids who are fortunate enough to run across you as an interviewer are very lucky indeed! ~berurah</p>
<p>A lot of people have said "enthusiam." Is there a line an interviewee can cross when they become so enthusiastic that they seem to be faking it and where is this line?</p>
<p>I've never felt as if a kid is faking anything... I'm not asking jumping up and down enthusiam, just asking what the kid likes. Now, if a 17-year-old were to get all excited about doing clerical work or washing dishes, I would be a little suspicious. I'm anal and OCD, and even I don't like washing dishes. Anything outside of that - different strokes for different folks. I think that details tend to make a kid more credible. If they get all excited about even low-level work at a hospital, I can understand that - he might say that he's pre-med, wanted to be a doctor for a while, etc. If there is someone at the ER who has been a mentor, great - I can see that you would love the job. Likewise, when I ask about academics, details about what makes your favourite teacher great makes you a more credible interviewee. If everything is fantastic but there are no reasons for it being fantastic, it would be weird. Long post short, the details make the interview and the enthusiasm credible. Cool lab experiments, great books the kid has read, a family interest in something (had a student whose mom is a prof) will all help to make a kid very credible in his enthusiasm. </p>
<p>Then again... I'm broad-minded. When someone told me that he liked the smell of a ER, I believed it - as a horse lover, I like the smell of barns because it reminds me of riding.</p>
<p>Kids don't need to act any differently than they are. Some people are very obvious in their enthusiasm. Others are more subtle. The students being interviewed simply need to show their true selves and admit to themselves that if their true self turns off the college, then that's not the college for them.</p>
<p>I agree with ariesathena. It is the details that make the interview credible. That also is how interviewers can tell the difference between those who are faking and those who are not. For instance, students who are faking ECs become very obvious because they lack the details about them. This includes students who have leadership positions that are resume dressing only. When asked for details about how their leadership has affected the organization -- what projects they have created, what problems they have faced -- their answers are so vague that it's clear that the position was in name only.</p>
<p>The same thing happens when students come up with a fake answer to their favorite book. Some students pick such books by whatever they think will impress the interviewer even though the student hasn't read the book. In one case, the student brought a book into the interview. It was an obscure book that probably the student latched onto because the student thought that would lead credibility to an image the student was trying to project of themselves.</p>
<p>Unfortunately for the student, I was very familiar with the book, and was delighted to think that I had found another person who loved the book. When I asked the student about the book, however, the student's answers were so vague and so very wrong that I immediately knew that the book was a prop only, which caused me to suspect everything else the student attempted to project about themselves.</p>
<p>.</p>
<p>Risky Business.....</p>
<p>It came on TV the day before my Penn interview :)</p>