Episode 93: Crushing the College Interview

Episode 93 Transcript

• EPISODE 93

  [INTERVIEW]

  [0:00:07] BT: The application is the main way colleges and universities get to know you as an applicant. But it's not the only way. At some schools, students are invited to share their story in person through an admissions interview.

  [0:00:18] BHA: The interview is a chance to bring your interests, goals and future plans to life for an admissions office. I'm Becca Haupt Aldredge from Bucknell University. In this episode of College Admissions Insider, we're sharing everything you need to know about this important opportunity.

  [0:00:33] BT: I'm Brooke Thames, also from Bucknell. We'll learn why interviews are valuable in the admissions process, what you can do to practice and prepare, and how building interview skills can benefit you in the future.

  [0:00:44] BHA: Our guest is Alison Slater, founder of Interview Prep, which provides personalized coaching for high school students to help them make the most of college interviews. Welcome to the podcast.

  [0:00:54] AS: Thanks. I'm so happy to be here.

  [0:00:56] BT: Yeah, we're so happy to have you. To start, let's hear a little bit more about you and your business — maybe starting with the fact that you're a Bucknell alum.

  [0:01:04] AS: Yeah, I am actually. I graduated from Bucknell in 2007. In the last three semesters that I was there, I was an interviewer in the Admissions office, back at a time when Bucknell offered admission interviews. As the volume of applications has risen at Bucknell, it's something that they've pivoted away from, but some schools still offer them. It just depends on how they approach admission.

  I spent the first 15 years of my career in admission at a small selective college, and the interviews were one of my favorite parts. It was so fun to get to know students, to have a little bit of time with them one-on-one, instead of just reading their application, and sometimes just meeting them through PDFs. When I left admission, I explored a career in a different area, but I really missed working with teenagers. I started Interview Prep to have an opportunity to get back to working with students, but also, to hopefully, bring something that would be helpful to them through this process. Because a lot of times, admission is just a really stressful process for students, and hopefully, it doesn't have to be. But an interview is a missed opportunity if a student's just winging it.

  It may be the first time they've ever been interviewed. They don't necessarily even know how to prepare for something like that. They might think, “Hey, I'm an expert in the subject, if the subject matter here is myself,” and they totally are. But I think it can be helpful to have somebody to guide them through a little bit of preparation, so that they can feel really confident in their interview.

  [0:02:29] BHA: As the founder of Interview Prep, your consulting business, how do you work with students to help them make the most of college interviews?

  [0:02:36] AS: I typically meet with students three times. One of the benefits is that I often don't know them in advance. They're meeting somebody who's brand new, just like they would in an interview, and we start right away with a mock interview. We go into, usually, a Zoom meeting and introduce ourselves and get started with a handful of questions. I ask some that are typical, some that are a little bit tougher, some that are just my favorite questions.

  After a few minutes of doing that, we break character. We stop and say, “How did that go? Is it what you expected an interview to feel like? How do you feel like you did?” Then we talk about any feedback, if I have some advice for them in moving forward. But then, we also go through a whole bunch of typical questions. How to answer tough questions when they come up, especially questions that feel way too broad, or questions that maybe start to feel really narrow, if you're answering yes or no. Often, you can do the yes and, and provide a little bit more information.

  Then we'll meet a couple more times. We do a lot of self-reflection. I think it's helpful for students to just recognize in themselves, what are your strongest traits? What are the most important things you've been involved with? What are the pieces of your experience that you really want to highlight? Then, they go into the interview with a list. I call it a "personal elevator pitch," but really, a small list in their head of the most important things to share. Most of the time, they'll come up naturally, because the interviewer knows what they're doing. As they get towards the end, if they say, “Hey, is there anything we haven't talked about yet that's important?” It'll be really easy for that student to say, “Oh, yeah. I definitely wanted to talk about this as well.”

  Instead of having that feeling, we've probably all had after a certain conversation, where it's a couple hours later and you go, “Oh, my gosh. I wish I had said this," or "Oh, if only I had approached it this way.” It felt like a first draft. By doing some preparation before interviews, students won't have that feeling.

  [0:04:23] BT: That sounds like a really thorough and in-depth process for helping students prepare for these interviews. We'll want to dig in a little bit deeper throughout the episode, especially about the elevator pitch. You mentioned up top that this process might not apply to every single student. Bucknell, for example, is a school that does not offer interviews any longer. Generally, how many schools do incorporate interviews into their admissions process?

  [0:04:44] BHA: Yeah. NACAC is a professional organization that many admission officers are a part of, and they do research about which factors colleges use in making their admission decisions. There aren't very many colleges at all for whom an interview is a huge factor. I think that feels right, because you want your academics to be at the core of the decision when you're applying to a college. If you add up all of the colleges who say, it is a factor, or it's a medium factor, or it's a pretty big factor, actually, 45% of colleges are using interviews in some capacity. The majority of them don't require those interviews, though. So, it's often optional at a college where you might be applying.

  I feel like interview skills are life skills, and that's something that I would hope every teenager could at least think a little bit about and start to work on. Because even if you don't do an interview for any of your colleges for admission, you might be invited to interview for a scholarship. You might be invited to interview for a job on campus, or a job over the summer, or an internship. There are a lot of times when students will interview, even as teenagers and as college students.

  [0:05:50] BHA: That interview, when schools use them, either in a big way, or a small way, what does that interview reveal to the admissions team and what value does it add to a student's application and context about that student as an applicant?

  [0:06:04] AS: Yeah, more than anything, it gives a college a chance to know you a little bit more personally. I often felt that applications were so filled with facts. Of course, they have to be. It's everything from, what's your name, what's your email address, to what grades did you get in English in high school every year, all sorts of factual information, including what activities you're involved with. You rarely get the opportunity to answer why about any of those things. In an interview, a lot of times, that's the core of the conversation.

  Why are those the courses you chose? Why are these the things you might want to study in the future? Why are you so passionate about certain activities? The big one that every college asks you either in an interview, or often in your application in writing, why us? Why are you interested in this institution? I teach students to answer that as if they were asked, "Why you for us?" Because as a colleague said the other day, Harvard already knows what Harvard wrote on the Harvard website. If your answer to why Harvard or any college is just about how great they are, they already know. They want to know how great you are and could be in the context of their institution.

  [0:07:11] BHA: That makes a lot of sense. I talk to students a lot about places in their application where they have some agency about their story and how they tell it. An interview must be a top opportunity for them to do that.

  [0:07:23] AS: Absolutely.

  [0:07:26] BHA: You mentioned schools that have optional interviews. Should a student take that opportunity if it's an option?

  [0:07:33] AS: Yeah. For most students, I think, especially if they're taking some time to think ahead so that they're not just winging it or just checking a box. Sometimes, students would leave an interview and they'd be like, “Okay, I did it. I'm done.” It feels like they're checking the box as if it's something they had to do, as opposed to looking at it as an opportunity to actually make their application stronger and really make those connections. For most students, yes, I think they should do an optional interview if they have the opportunity. But because it is optional and you know that not every student is going to have that chance, it's not going to count against you if you don't take that opportunity. Or for some colleges, where they're doing them on an invitation-only basis, you shouldn't feel bad if you're not invited. Sometimes, they're alumni interviews, and they're really just basing that on where geographically they have alumni who can offer interviews. It's not a bad thing if you're not offered that chance.

  [0:08:22] BT: I think that gives us a great foundation of what the interview is, why the interview is, and the advantages of taking that opportunity for a student. Let's dive into the actual interview prep that you gave us a great overview of earlier. Are there common questions that tend to come up that students can practice in advance?

  [0:08:39] AS: Absolutely. That is something that is Googleable. Students can find lists of typical questions for interviews, even typical questions for college interviews all over the internet. I also have a list on my website, I'm happy to share that with you. I have a bunch of free resources on there. 
  There are questions that I tend to practice with students. Some of them are so basic, you'd be surprised. But if you ask a teenager, why do you want to go to college? Sometimes, they need to think about it for a minute. It's something that's worth thinking about in advance. I love to ask about your proudest accomplishment so far. Most students can answer that question, and they would be just fine doing that on the spot. After they've thought about it a little more, or after it's in their head and they sleep on it for a couple of days, when you ask them again a few days later, they're either more articulate about the same thing that they're really proud of, or they've maybe thought about something else that they'd rather discuss. I think any type of practice is always advantageous. There are some typical questions. You're always going to be asked about your academic experiences, your extracurriculars, and what your goals are for college.

  [0:09:43] BHA: We've all run into questions and interviews that either catch us off guard, or feel tricky to answer. Maybe it's an open-ended prompt like, "Tell me about yourself." Or something oddly specific like, "If you could be any animal, what animal would you pick and why?" How do you help students navigate those kinds of tricky questions?

  [0:10:02] BHA: Those are actually some of my least favorites. Tell me about yourself is not always even phrased as a question, but it feels too broad. That's one of those you're like, “Well, I'm 18. Maybe I could spend 18 years answering this question.” Instead, this is where the practice can be really helpful. I actually have students work through a process I call the "personal elevator pitch." It's exactly what it sounds like. It's a quick three or four bullet points that could give somebody a great overview of who you are, even if you were stuck in an elevator and only had 60 seconds to do it. It's not terribly often that they'll use the whole pitch and they definitely don't memorize it. You don't want to sound like a robot. But if you're asked a big question, or maybe you only meet somebody briefly, you could give them a quick synopsis of yourself in that way.

  A lot of times, they end up using the elevator pitch more as a mental checklist for the three or four things that they definitely want to share during their interview. Questions that feel too broad are easy to narrow by saying something like, “Well, here's three things I really want you to know.” Then, you can stop at the end of those three things and not feel like you don't have a stopping point, or you feel awkward because you could talk forever. It gives you some framework for your response, because the question didn't do a great job of framing that.

  For the questions that feel too specific, I especially don't love the quirky ones, where you're not sure what the goal is. If you could be any animal, if you could be any color, all of those kinds of things. Part of me, maybe because I'm just a logical person, is like, "What are you getting out of that?" I think students can either, if they have an answer, go for it. If they really don't, or if it makes them feel a little uncomfortable, as long as they're polite about it, I think they can turn that around and say, "I've never thought of that before. I've never heard that question. How would you answer it?"

  I think in most cases, the interviewer should have a good answer for that question, and that will give the student a little bit of a template to use as they answer it themselves. Occasionally, I think the interviewer might also say, “You know what? That is wacky. Let's just keep moving forward with something else.”

  [0:11:58] BT: Do you have any examples of go-to questions that you like to practice with your students that you're working with?

  [0:12:03] BHA: Absolutely. My first question in my first mock interview with a student is always, "Can you tell me a little bit about your high school?" I also add, "Pretend I've never heard of it, so I get a good introduction." It is actually really broad, but the goal for me is to test the waters a little bit and see how chatty that student is going to be, with a topic that should be pretty easy for them. Most students have been in their high school for at least three years by that point, so it's something they should be able to talk at least a little bit about. Then it's my job to ask follow-up questions if needed to point them in a specific direction, but I do like to start pretty open-ended. I also like to ask about their proudest accomplishment, some of their favorites — their favorite class, their favorite teacher — but I always add, "And why?" Not just, what's your favorite class, and then you answer with one word. I want to know the why behind that.

  [0:12:53] BT: In addition to those off-the-wall or unexpected questions, it seems like there are a lot of questions that overlap with what a student might put in their application. Should a student use their essay or short answer responses to inform their interview answers? How can they use the interview to even expand on what an admissions office will read on paper?

  [0:13:11] BHA: Yeah. I think that's a great way of framing it, because depending on exactly when in the process this happens, they might be doing an interview before they finish their essay, or they might have their essay polished and ready to go before they do their interview. When it comes down to it, the student is the same person throughout this whole process. Of course, there's going to be some overlap. I think they should take the opportunity to share as much about themselves as they can, as much as they're comfortable sharing.

  If they know their essay is about a particular activity they're passionate about, or something, they don't need to spend a ton of time talking about that in other places. They'll probably get the same advice not to spend too much time on that in short answers and applications, because it's already covered. When it comes down to it, you want to be honest and you do want to be sharing about yourself. Absolutely. I also think that the preparation a student does to write their essays when they're doing that brainstorming and the preparation they do for interviews as they're doing that self-reflection, it's all going to be beneficial for this whole process.

  [0:14:12] BHA: Any good interview should feel like a conversation. How should students prepare to truly interact with the interviewer and not just respond?

  [0:14:21] AS: I think practice is the biggest thing here. Students don't have to necessarily work with a professional in order to prepare for interviews. They can work with their best friend, they can work with a parent, or a teacher, or a counselor. They can even do some of this by themselves. You can look up typical questions. You can practice. I always encourage students to practice out loud, because it helps with not only what you're really going to say, as opposed to just thinking about it.  But it can help you with timing and seeing if you're repeating yourself, if you're saying like, "Um, you know," a whole lot. You can work on those things as you practice.

  If it's a little bit awkward, do it while you're alone in the car, or even in the shower. Nobody else needs to hear you practicing, but practicing and especially out loud can be really helpful. Connecting with someone new can be tricky, especially somebody who you might not feel you have a lot in common with. The more a student is comfortable opening up, the more the interviewer is likely to relate to them, which is part of why I teach students to tell stories, as opposed to just sharing facts.

  Instead of saying, “I'm really perseverant.” You can tell a story, or give an example of a time when you persevered through something difficult, and by sharing things that feel a little bit more universal. You're sharing something very personal, but you're doing so in a way that somebody can say, “Oh, of course. I can relate to that.” It does start to feel more conversational. You start to feel like you're relating to the other person a little bit. I think the best thing that comes out of an interview for a student is that they've gained an advocate. This person who has gotten to know them a little bit, then becomes somebody who usually has a voice at the table, whether that's making an admission decision, offering a scholarship, hiring someone for a job, it doesn't matter.

  If it comes down to, "Hey, we've got a 100 students left on the table we have to make decisions for, we've got 10 spots left to admit students, who stands out?" Maybe at that point in the admission process, everybody who's left on the table still has really similar numbers. You start to wonder, who stands out in other ways? That's often the conversation. Becca can, hopefully, back that up. Maybe that's how it goes at Bucknell. It’s how it went in my admission experience. If somebody in the room can raise their hand and say, “I met this student. This is what I know about them. This is why they stand out, why they'd be a great fit here,” that can only be advantageous.

  [0:16:38] BT: For students who are on the hunt for that advocate, like you're talking about, what should they be looking for in a coaching service, or in someone who can help mentor them through this interview process?

  [0:16:47] AS: Yeah. I think you can work with somebody who you're already comfortable with, or you can look to work with somebody new, like me. That's what my business does, is I tend to work with students who I probably don't know already. They may be working with an independent college consultant. They may be working with their high school counselor, or maybe their parents are helping them to find more assistance as they prepare for interviews. You can head to my website, or you can ask around and see who has experience with interviewing who could help you.

  [0:17:15] BHA: Let's talk about interview nerves for a moment. I myself have plenty of socially anxious moments, especially when I'm in the hot seat. How can students who feel stressed in these situations gain confidence for the big day?

  [0:17:32] AS: I think confidence is one of the things that's at the core of what I do, because preparation, at least for me, is one of the things that really helps me feel more confident and practiced. It's nothing new. It's really what I've been talking about all along. I think for a lot of students, going into something brand new can make them extra nervous. Getting that preparation, doing some practice interviews will at least make them feel comfortable in the sense that they know what they're getting into. They might still be a little bit nervous on that day, and that's okay. If you feel like it, you can even say, “Hey, I'm a little nervous, or this is my first interview.” You're interacting with real people. That's really at the bottom line.

  You may be meeting a student who's trained to do interviews as I was at Bucknell a million years ago. You may be meeting with an admission professional who is also an advocate and looking to get to know you. You might sometimes meet an alum, and usually, that would be closer to home. Some of these opportunities are going to be online as well. Maybe you're a little bit more comfortable in a Zoom room than you are meeting somebody in person. That's an option in a lot of places.

  [0:18:36] BT: Yeah. For the students who might be a little bit nervous being interviewed and having to answer questions on the spot, it sounds like that prep and going through that process can really help them build that confidence and build those skills that'll help them in the future. Speaking of the skills that you can gain through interview prep, even if you're not going in for an admissions interview, tell us a little bit more about the value of building those skills.

  [0:19:02] BHA: I think most teenagers will end up doing interviews. Certainly, most adults will. These are skills that aren't necessarily taught to everybody. They're not a part of the curriculum at most high schools, at least. College might have a career center that offers a mock interview once in a while. If this is something that sparks interest for you, I think it's worth doing as soon as possible, or something that it's at least worth thinking about sooner rather than later. Because you might be surprised by interview opportunities.

  I did a couple of admission interviews. Then, I also had opportunity to interview for a job on campus pretty much as soon as I got there. I interviewed for a couple of different leadership roles in my opportunities at Bucknell. Of course, I was doing lots of interviews when I was looking for a job in my senior year at Bucknell. There are a lot of times when young people will encounter interviews. Even if it's not something that comes up right away, it's definitely worth thinking about.

  Typically, though, it's mostly smaller colleges, selective colleges and/or private colleges. Any of the above who are offering interviews, but there are a variety of places who offer them in some capacity.

  [0:20:09] BHA: As we close out our episode, maybe you want to leave our audience, students, and parents with some tips about what resources are available for students to tap into as they prepare and get ready for maybe their first interview experience.

  [0:20:25] AS: Well, the first thing I will suggest is my own website, because I have some free resources. But there's a lot of resources out there on the web, and maybe some of the colleges you're looking at, you can look at their career center and see what they're offering. Some high schools have a career center and this may be one of the skills that they are also helping students with. You just have to ask those questions. More than anything, it's something to just think about. A lot of the preparation is practice and confidence. A lot of it is also just that self-reflection and thinking about what's most important about yourself that you really want to share.

  [0:20:58] BT: I think I speak for everyone listening, when I say that I have loved listening to all of your advice and guidance on the interview process, and we'll be sure, for our listeners, to leave a link to your website down in the show notes. Thanks for joining us.

  [0:21:09] AS: Thanks so much for having me. This has been really fun.

  [0:21:12] BHA: Thanks to everyone out there listening. If you're a fan of the podcast, please take a moment to rate, subscribe and share this episode with the students and families in your life.

  [0:21:20] BT: We'll be back with another episode in a few weeks. In the meantime, send your questions, comments, and episode ideas to podcast@bucknell.edu. We read every note you send.

  [0:21:29] BHA: Finally, you're invited to follow Bucknell on all of your favorite social media apps. Just look for @BucknellU on Instagram, Facebook, X, YouTube and TikTok. You can also follow our student run Instagram account, which is @IAmRayBucknell.

  [0:21:45] BT: Until next time, keep on working for your dreams and your dream school.

  [END]