Question:
Have you had to do any of those? Do you like them? What have you been asked that you think is either totally random or irrelevant?
I dislike interviews, mainly because I feel like everyone's just being fake. I am not inspired, passion driven, and amazing 100% of the time. Am I supposed to lie to make them think I am? (I don't.)
I've been asked what quality I would have if I woke up tomorrow with a new one, which I actually liked. I hate general questions, though, the ones like, "Tell us about yourself." "Well, I have a dog named Allie. She has bad breath..." What do you want, people?
(P.S. You can give me interview tips if you want. )
Answer:
Hehe... interviews are fun... Actually I've done a really easy interview and one that was rather hard. Really easy = Biola (they asked questions they already asked for their essays), Really hard = Harvard (they... are Harvard, that's enough description there). I think they're nice things to have; they give you a chance to show the interviewer something they couldn't get out of the application. My advice would be to have a friend ask you questions that you're pretty sure the interviewer will ask, just so there isn't a bunch of empty silence or "ummm..."s.
BackToReality
Answer:
Ooh, awesome thread. I have a scholarship interview this Saturday, and I'm somewhat nervous. It's my first (and only) actual interview for college-type stuff.
One piece of advice that I've gotten is to make sure that you also have questions for them. If you don't seem interested in the school, why should they be interested in you?
Answer:
I didn't mind interviews. I just treated them as if they were conversations rather than interrogations. I'm not usually a talkative person, but I remember pretty much taking over the conversation in all of the interviews I participated in. That was probably because they asked me about topics that were important to me: homeschooling, music, theology, religion, etc.
The best advice I can give you is not to try to be anything other than what you are. And I do mean ANYTHING. Don't even go out of your way to be more polite than you usually are. Believe it or not, most interviewers actually want to see how you are on a day-to-day basis (faults and all) and not how you are when you're putting on a show. Also, think how many interviews the people you speak with will have conducted in the past. Hundreds, maybe even thousands. They're experienced. They can spot BS a mile away. That's why they're the ones the college / university chose to do the interviews. They'll know if you're not being entirely genuine.
When they ask specific questions, respond with the first thing that comes to mind rather than sitting and trying to think of a "good answer." This is all about honesty. Don't try to come up with something that you wouldn't normally say. Imagine that your friend had just asked you the same question. How would you respond? Respond the same way to the interviewer.
When they ask broad or general questions, intentionally narrow the scope of the question down. If they say "So, tell us about yourself," you can respond with something like, "Well, I know you already have my basic profile from my application, so let me just tell you about something I've been really interested / involved in lately," and then talk about something cool you've been doing or getting into recently. What have you been doing at church? Have you made any new friends lately? What are some cool things you've experienced recently? They don't just want to hear about your accolades and accomplishments, because they can get all that from the paperwork you turn in. They want to hear about you as a person, what interests you, what moves you, and what you enjoy doing.
Hope that helps some.
In His love,
Nate
Answer:
Originally Posted by jules Ooh, awesome thread. I have a scholarship interview this Saturday, and I'm somewhat nervous. It's my first (and only) actual interview for college-type stuff.
One piece of advice that I've gotten is to make sure that you also have questions for them. If you don't seem interested in the school, why should they be interested in you?
Also with that, do a little research about what the school has to offer you in the field that you are going into. So you can say something like, "I really think Professor Dostov's research in etc. etc. is interesting and I would like to be a part of it someday."
Answer:
Yeah, Nate, I think that's very good advice. I try to be who I am, but sometimes they ask rather difficult questions, like what would be the first thing I would do if I were president? It's difficult to begin, heh.
I've another interview on Friday. I'm going to try to relax and just view it as a conversation, like you said. We'll see how that goes.
Answer:
I HATE interviews. I'm terrible at them because I alway get nervous. Especially when they ask "Tell me about yourself." That is the most awful question in the world. I mean, WHAT THE HELL DO YOU WANT TO KNOW ABOUT ME!??!!?! If you ask that, they reply "what do you want me know?" ...hrmmm... maybe what I put on my resume?
Answer:
Originally Posted by jbm222 Especially when they ask "Tell me about yourself." That is the most awful question in the world. Heh, I took a Sales and Marketing class sophomore year, and we spent an entire unit on the application/interview process. I think we even spent a whole week on "Tell me about yourself." It was crazy. There's four specific areas our teacher told us to talk about, but I'm tired and can't remember them right now. (Sure, it was info to help you get a job, but the information is basically the same as you would use for college. )