Princeton specific questions for alumni interview.

[Anonymous]

DC has been contacted for a Princeton alumni interview. How best to prepare him for Princeton questions?

[Anonymous]

I have done lots of P'ton alumni interviews. He absolutely does not need to stress about this. The interview carries very little weight (probably, honestly, none). At best, it is a chance for him to talk about any aspects of himself not fully represented in his application so that the interviewer can highlight them, and hopefully to come away with a positive impression of Princeton. That' sit. I think they are all virtual this year.

He should be prepared to talk about himself, what he might want to study, what he likes to do in his spare time...all the normal stuff. It's nice if he can come up with a couple questions to ask the interviewer. Alums generally love to talk about themselves.

[Anonymous]

When my DD was preparing for her interview (for a different ivy) I suggested she walk in the room prepared with a few things: 2 to 3 reasons she specifically was interested in that school, 2 to 3 questions to ask the interviewer, and 2 to 3 aspects of her application/background that she thought were particularly interesting to talk about. As it turns out she needed NONE of that. She did up just having a really interesting conversation about books and ideas etc. etc. But I think it’s good to have those conversation points ready to go if the interview doesn’t flow as easily as some. My dad has been a Princeton alum interviewer for years and he’s just really looking to learn more about the kids and what they bring to the table. Good luck!

[Anonymous]

So you want to cheat and get the questions ahead of time? Nice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So you want to cheat and get the questions ahead of time? Nice.

So heading into an important job interview, you don't do some googling to learn about what the company typically asks in an interviews and what generally to expect? That just makes you a loser.

[Anonymous]

We had a whole thread about this last week.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have done lots of P'ton alumni interviews. He absolutely does not need to stress about this. The interview carries very little weight (probably, honestly, none). At best, it is a chance for him to talk about any aspects of himself not fully represented in his application so that the interviewer can highlight them, and hopefully to come away with a positive impression of Princeton. That' sit. I think they are all virtual this year.

He should be prepared to talk about himself, what he might want to study, what he likes to do in his spare time...all the normal stuff. It's nice if he can come up with a couple questions to ask the interviewer. Alums generally love to talk about themselves.

Thank you for the most honest, helpful, and most spot-on accurate response to this question that I have ever seen. The last time this question was raised, alumni interviewers and their spouses were actually suggesting that not only do these interviews matter -- if you were lucky enough to win an interview with them versus other "less skilled" alumni interviewers your chances of admissions would go up substantially because that's how good they are at interviewing. I guess that's an offshoot of your "Alums generally love to talk about themselves" observation.

Thanks again.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have done lots of P'ton alumni interviews. He absolutely does not need to stress about this. The interview carries very little weight (probably, honestly, none). At best, it is a chance for him to talk about any aspects of himself not fully represented in his application so that the interviewer can highlight them, and hopefully to come away with a positive impression of Princeton. That' sit. I think they are all virtual this year.

He should be prepared to talk about himself, what he might want to study, what he likes to do in his spare time...all the normal stuff. It's nice if he can come up with a couple questions to ask the interviewer. Alums generally love to talk about themselves.

Thank you for the most honest, helpful, and most spot-on accurate response to this question that I have ever seen. The last time this question was raised, alumni interviewers and their spouses were actually suggesting that not only do these interviews matter -- if you were lucky enough to win an interview with them versus other "less skilled" alumni interviewers your chances of admissions would go up substantially because that's how good they are at interviewing. I guess that's an offshoot of your "Alums generally love to talk about themselves" observation.

Thanks again.

DP. Like a PP mentioned there was a whole thread on this recently where a bunch of alums said exactly what this alum is saying that interviews hardly matter unless you do something outrageous like don’t show up. It is somewhat helpful to know. Actually, the most helpful post on these matters is from the poster above sharing suggestions to her DD

[Anonymous]

Advise your son to be authentic and not something he may not be

[Anonymous]

I'm an alum and used to do interviews. I also did NOT do an interview myself, back when I applied. The interviews carry no weight and should not be a source of stress.

Of all the (fantastic) kids I interviewed and recommended very highly, none got in. Meanwhile, I had no interview and did get in. It doesn't matter, truly.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm an alum and used to do interviews. I also did NOT do an interview myself, back when I applied. The interviews carry no weight and should not be a source of stress.

Of all the (fantastic) kids I interviewed and recommended very highly, none got in. Meanwhile, I had no interview and did get in. It doesn't matter, truly.

So, is it ok to decline then?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm an alum and used to do interviews. I also did NOT do an interview myself, back when I applied. The interviews carry no weight and should not be a source of stress.

Of all the (fantastic) kids I interviewed and recommended very highly, none got in. Meanwhile, I had no interview and did get in. It doesn't matter, truly.

So, is it ok to decline then?

The admissions office says that it is fine to decline. Please have DC send a reply declining rather than simply not replying to the interview offer. We are supposed to keep reaching out until we get a response. I don’t want to bug DC any more than you want me to keep bugging them.