<p>Has anyone done theirs yet?</p>
<p>How'd it go :D?</p>
<p>I have mine soon.. A little nervous</p>
<p>Good luck with your interview! I had mine about a month ago, and don’t worry, they’re really not that scary!</p>
<p>A few things to know:
- It’s all student interviewers. You wait in the crowded lobby and then they come down and get you individually (I have no idea how they know who you are, all they have is a paper with your name on it!).
- The interviewers are dressed in nicer clothes, but not anything too crazy. I didn’t wear a suit at all (I’m a girl), but I didn’t wear jeans either. Somewhere in-between seems good.
- You are limited to 30 minutes. So don’t feel bad if they just kind of wrap up super abruptly! That’s what happened to me, but it really has nothing to do with you–they just have a super strict schedule to follow.
- I don’t know if this will be true for all, but I got absolutely NO tricky questions–it was really more like a conversation (they would just ask about whatever I brought up). </p>
<p>I’m sure you’ll do well; good luck!</p>
<p>Ahh congratulations! I’m glad it went so well for you! Hopefully, I’ll experience a similar situation.</p>
<p>That’s interesting though that it’s in a crowded area, do you see a lot of other kids waiting for interviews haha?</p>
<p>Yeah, the room was super crowded. But I’m pretty sure that just happened because of the time of day I went at (about 3 in the afternoon, if I remember correctly). There happened to be a Science/Engineering tour leaving just about the same time, so all those kids and their families were packed into the room with me. I did see other kids waiting for interviews, though I didn’t get a chance to talk to them. They all had their entire families with them, which I would say probably isn’t a good idea (especially younger siblings and grandparents, who managed to take up all the benches and annoy everyone else). </p>
<p>Is Yale your first college interview?</p>
<p>It is my first interview :).</p>
<p>I don’t think my parents will be coming inside the building with me. Do they need to be there?</p>
<p>No, they definitely don’t need to be there. At the end of the interview, your interviewer and you will take the elevator down to the lobby, where (if your parent is there) they will ask if your parent has any questions.</p>
<p>I would suggest arriving to the interview alone–you’ll look independent. But if your parent wants to be there at the end of the interview (plan on it lasting about 20 minutes, just to be safe. Mine was a little over 30, but our conversation went super well since we had a lot in common), then that would be fine.</p>
<p>All the interviewers seemed super friendly, though, so really you don’t need to worry too much! 
Good luck! I’d love to hear how it goes for you (maybe we’ll even have the same interviewer!)</p>
<p>I’ll be sure to message you about my interviewer haha, or maybe I’ll even post it here so others can perhaps calm themselves down.</p>
<p>Hello,
I would like to apologize beforehand for the colossal wall of text that may arise (brevity is not one of my qualities). My interview at Yale back in July was my first college interview. I mainly went because I received some mail about it, but I was otherwise disillusioned with the interview processes at most schools from hearing stories about dreadful interviews. I waited for about five minutes after getting to the building, and in those five minutes I noticed that a lot of people were frantically reading the myriad of blue covered books that you find around campus. I chose to sit there and think calmly, which was probably the best for me. When it was time for the interview, my interviewer walked out and cordially introduced himself as you would expect.
The actual interview was more casual that I had thought it was going to be, albeit with the initial bombardment of questions that one expects with college interviews (i.e. Why Yale? What interests you and why Yale for said interest? ect.). Later, after my interviewer had thoroughly tested my knowledge/intellectual-facility via the further questioning of given answers, the interview became more relaxed and informative with respect to the programs at Yale, campus life, ect., this part ran a while past the normal time parameter that they set (there was a small clock in the room). Oddly, I was even asked about my favorite indie film (I hardly remember how the conversation drifted so far into obscurity).
Luckily my interviewer and I shared a common interest in music; and, more specifically, an interest in Bach and the mathematical correlations with music. In terms of advice, I would say: look for a commonality between you and your interviewer (however general it may be) and use that as a medium through which you can portray your interest in Yale/SchoolX and in academia/knowledge as a whole. Because things like service, record, and character can be shown in other aspects of the college application, it is my belief that interests and pursuits are what evaluative interviews were originally designed to assess; separating the erudite quasi-fanatics from the superficial fill-the-resume aficionados. But make sure you take that advice at face value, because I haven’t even applied yet! :).
Also, I wouldn’t advise wearing a full suit or any particularly heavy clothing because I saw a few business-clad people walk in with absolute confidence and walk out red faced, sweat drenched and full of despair lol.</p>
<p>Good advice for anyone who is going to do an on campus interview!</p>
<p>Dress nicely, but certainly don’t overdo it.</p>