Interviews

The short answer is depends. Every university has its own way of deciding who it give offers to, whether that be through your personal statement, exams or in this case interviews. Interviews are often used for more competitive courses, so try to research online about the acceptance rates for the courses you’re interested in. However, this isn’t a given - and that was the mistake I made.

Only two of the five universities I applied to required me to attend an interview - and I discovered this after I applied so you can imagine how nerve-racking it was. University A was my insurance choice (safety school), while University B was my firm choice (first choice).

Uni A sent me an email informing me that I had an interview, and gave me requirements that I couldn’t meet. What I mean by requirements is what they want you to talk about your interview. In this case, they asked me to present a portfolio of projects I had done that were applicable to the course (vaguely it was film, tv and game production). But other than hobby films and coding I had done, I had nothing tangible to show them, especially since they also required me to explain how I had planned those projects. And so, I had to turn the interview down and have my offer rejected.

The moral here is to always email in advance about the possibility of an interview before you apply, and more specifically what you’ll be asked to do.

Tips:

• Check the university website for information on interviews

• Contact the university for specific requirements of those interviews if they can disclose that information

• Check the competitiveness of your course

• Don’t let the idea of an interview stop you from applying to a university as it can really secure your spot if your results aren’t met

A large part of preparing for your interview is just your correspondence with your interviewer, and this begins with choosing a date. Most universities have interview days where hundreds of students will attend, but because we’re international students there may be some flexibility. I would personally recommend choosing a non-interview day if that is negotiable, as it means your interviewer will be much more relaxed and engaged during the interview. Remember that if you can’t attend one in person Skype interviews are very common and are offered by almost every university. BUT if you can go in person GO IN PERSON! It is so much easier to show your engagement and excitement for a course in person than over the internet.

I arranged my interview to be on January 2nd with University B, and it was great to have that one-on-one attention with my interviewer who also happened to be one of the lecturers for my course. This meant correspondence with him was even more important. Email etiquette with your interviewer/uni is crucial to showing them how excited you are for the interview - but you also have to show your competence through formalities. The very first email you send is your first impression, so make it count! Here is a sample of my response to University B:

“Dear Mr ___,

Thank you so much for getting back to me so quickly! I appreciate the time and effort you put into reading my personal statement, and I wholeheartedly agree that this course would be a really good fit for me. When I discovered IM, I was over the moon that this was a course I could apply to. I have already received an interview request from _____, suggesting the 30th of January.

Unfortunately, the 30th of January would not be a suitable date as I will be back in Azerbaijan taking my mock exams! However, I will be in the UK for the Christmas period and will be available on the following dates in December: 19th, 21st, 22nd, 27th and 29th, and the 2nd of January. If these are not possible, I would be more than happy to Skype with you at your convenience.

Sincerely,

Emily Patterson”

Is my email perfect? Of course not, but it had all the key elements: formality, engagement and initiative in finding a better date.

Tips:

• Try to negotiate a date that suits you best

• Try to go in person

• Show your enthusiasm, competency and initiative through your correspondence

• Ask questions about the requirements for the interview

Every interview for every course will be different, but they should send you a list of things they want to see/hear from you. In my case, I was asked to pitch an idea for a video game and to explain how I would go about it. In hindsight, I should’ve asked what type of presentation it was, but I was prepared for both a more formal version and a more interactive version, so that should be something you should ask. They should also specify the length of interview, which in my case was 30 minutes, with my presentation being 10 to 15 minutes long.

There is no definite way of preparing for your interview, but I will explain how I did it. In my mind, to create a video game meant going through the genuine process of making one, so that meant researching the genre of games I wanted to emulate, and figure out what made them successful and where there pitfalls were. After this, it was researching the actual topic of my game, consulting primary and secondary sources. Then came my own idea for the mechanics and design of the game in terms of specifics - it’s about anticipating the kinds of questions they may ask and prepare them in advance.

This may include asking questions about your personal statement or essays so think about the kinds of follow up questions you might receive.

And that’s what I presented at my interview. For example, I didn’t just show him my game, I decided to take him through step by step how I fully realised my concept - and I believe it was very effective!

The final bit of advice I can give you is to make your presentation engaging! My whole presentation was done on pieces of paper where I glued images, wrote annotations and notes in a visually appealing way. This made it more interactive for my interviewer as he could look at them as I spoke and explained my process, showing him the time and effort I went into preparation. So whether you’re giving a formal power point presentation (although you should check whether they have a projector and what computer you’d use), or give an interactive TED Talk of sorts, practice practice practice! Ask your friends, family or teachers to listen to your ideas or to ask you questions so that you can be ask prepared as possible.

Tips:

• Make sure you fully understand what kind of interview you are having and what they want you to present

• Check how long your interview is and the style it’ll be in (formal vs interactive)

• Researching is great for preparation

• ANTICIPATE AND PREPARE FOR QUESTIONS ABOUT YOUR PERSONAL STATEMENT/ESSAYS

• Decide what medium you’ll present (i.e. power point vs orally)

• Practice!

• Ask your friends, family and teachers for help (present to them)

• BBC Article (2016): How to Pass the Oxford Interview

Sleep well, eat properly and bring a water bottle with you. I can’t emphasize how important these are. These are really important in being able to calm your nerves and have you energized and ready for the interview. I’d also suggest to get to the location early or at least prepare for any hiccups in transportation. I had to take a 2 and a half hour train up to my university, so that meant getting there early enough so that if it were cancelled we’d still get there in time. Having those 2 hours also meant that I could go over my notes and practice the presentation in my head. Unfortunately, something I wish I had done earlier was write note cards for myself so that I didn’t miss any points - so I highly recommend flashcards/note cards to take with you. Make sure that before you leave you have everything you need with you, water, gum, your notes, maybe a laptop (and charger!), and copies of you work in case they’d like to keep them.

Something else that was very comforting was having a support group. I had a close friend and my dad accompany me so that I wasn’t so caught up in my own nerves. Of course, they can’t go into the interview with you but they can take you there and it’s very helpful.

The two best ways to make a first impression is through your clothing and your body language. You do NOT have to wear a suit. A good tip is to look at the university's website and see what the students are wearing, and then make them slightly more formal - this way you look like you fit in but in a more refined way! In my case, it was perfectly acceptable to wear a formal shirt and black jeans. So think about how you want to present yourself. In a nutshell, dress appropriately but not too formally. In terms of body language, smile! Make eye contact ESPECIALLY during your presentation, shake hands, straighten your posture etc. Even if you’re trembling on the inside, being able to show your confidence can really help make your interviewer more likely to ask questions and be engaged. Hopefully, what you’re presenting is interesting and exciting to you, so show them that!

In my interview, I was so proud and excited to get feedback for my game, and so I had no problem getting over my nerves to present. And because I was excited - my interviewer was too! In fact, our interview was almost an hour long instead of just 30 minutes, which shows you the power of a smile and engagement.

Tips:

• Sleep, eat and drink plenty of water

• Set time ahead for transportation so that you will definitely get there on time in case there’s a problem, and so that you have time to go over your notes

• Have a support group

• Dress appropriately

• Have inviting and confident body language

• Be excited!

Regardless of how your interview went send a thank you email! I can’t stress how important this is, it can sometimes be the difference between you getting in or not. And be specific! E.g. “Thank you for giving me feedback on ___” “It was a pleasure to meet you and see the fantastic facilities etc.” (before most interviews there will have a tour of the uni so bring some questions in advance). On top of this, keep in touch when your results come out or if there’s anything relevant to your course you can email them about because having a good relationship with your interviewer could help you get in if you miss your IB score requirements. And again, because my interviewer is also currently one of the lecturers means that having a good relationship will benefit me when I go.

Tips:

• Send a thank you email and be sincere

• Keep in touch