Most colleges have an interview step and Yale is no different. Interviews happen after you apply but before you are accepted. For many students, college interviews will be their first real interview. It can be a scary process for some students, especially for a highly selective school like Yale. Yale helps students prepare for this interview with a short video and even a podcast that breaks down some tips for interviewees. They are great resources, but we thought we should also share our top tips to nail the Yale interview.
But first, what is the Yale interview?
After you apply to Yale, you might get an email from a former student or a senior at Yale asking to set up an interview. The majority of interviews will be conducted by alums, but some are done by a small group of current seniors. If you don’t get one of these emails, don’t panic. You can still get in without an interview. Their interviewers are limited so they prioritize applicants that whom they need more information on. Under no circumstances should you reach out to ask for an interview. They write all over their website, “don’t contact us. We’ll contact you.” But every year, people try. Trust us, it won’t make you look good. That being said, if you get an opportunity to interview, you should 100% do it (however it is not required.) Make sure you check the email connected to your Common App account so you don’t miss this email if you are offered one.
Tip 1: Keep it casual.
Yale wants this to feel like a conversation. It’s hard to be comfortable in an interview sometimes but you should try your best to relax. Try to remember this is just supposed to be a conversation where the interviewer can get to know you better and you can get to know the school better. It’s been a couple of years, but Yale used to publish a guide for interviewers. While these can be a little outdated, they can be a great tool to situate yourself if you feel super nervous. Understanding the flow and goals can help you relax and prepare. Trust us, you will feel more at ease if you know what the process will be like.
If you are someone who isn’t great at conversation, Practice. Yale uses alums. These are not professional interviewers, meaning they don’t have more skills than the average person. Practice talking to people about your goals and your life. Being great at conversation is a skill. There are tricks like active listening and never doing one-word answers (seriously, it kills a conversation fast) but being a great conversationalist isn’t easy. Do your best. Be confident and charming, but more importantly be yourself.
Tip 2: Know what they are looking for.
Yale is always looking for students who can demonstrate intellectual curiosity, Openness to ideas, and a Concern for others. Think about how you conduct yourself in the world and if there is any overlap with these ideals. We think there will be. You can talk about your academic passions and how you pursued them outside of your classes. You can talk about times you tried something new or changed your mind about something. You can talk about helpfulness. Maybe you volunteer, maybe you protest, maybe you love helping your family. These are great things to bring up and most likely the interviewer will ask questions that might lead you to these types of stories.
Tip 3: Look over some sample questions.
Now, Yale doesn’t give a list of questions to interviewers, but they have some samples in their materials. These might not be the exact questions your interviewer will ask, but they might be similar to what the interviewer will ask you. These include questions like
Reflect either on something that doesn’t come as naturally to you.
Tell me about an influential person in your life.
What has made you stick with an interest for years?
What do you do for fun?
What do you hope to gain from your undergraduate experience?
If any of these feel hard to answer, reflect on them or even practice what you would say to a question like this before your interview. You shouldn’t script yourself out, but you should feel comfortable with these types of questions.
Tip 4: Know the school, love the school.
This is a general tip for all college interviews, but it is an important one. At pretty much every college interview the question will come up, “Why do you want to go here?” or “Why do you like this school?” You should have a great answer that combines academics and specifics about the school. On top of this, the school should seem like your first choice.
For example, this is not how you should answer this question, “Well Yale is a great school. I EDed to Harvard, but Yale is also really high on my like because I really want to go to the Ivy League.” This is a mess for a lot of reasons. 1) You let it slip that Yale wasn’t your no. 1 choice. This is not good. Schools only want to offer admissions to people they think will absolutely come to their school and you have just shown your hand that you won’t. (Just to be safe, don’t mention other schools you applied to at all.) 2) There are no specifics about Yale or what you would want to do there.
A better answer would be, “I want to come to Yale because they have an amazing Econometrics and quantitative economics major and I am fascinated by the field.” The best answer would be something like, “I hope to study Econometrics and quantitative economics at Yale. I have been extremely interested in Professor Berry’s work in dynamic models. I also play the cello and would be excited to go out for the Berkeley College Orchestra.” This answer works because it shows you have taken your time to research the school and its opportunities and it makes you look like a serious candidate. It also lets the interviewer know some of your interests. That is what we are going for.
Tip 5: Prepare some questions for them.
This might be the first time you have spoken to someone who has gone to Yale. Ask them about their experience. Asking questions will not only show you are interested in the school but also make it feel more like a conversation. However, not all questions are good. Here are some bad questions.
-How are the parties?
- Do they have [insert easily googled program here]?
-If your interviewer isn’t a recent grad, “what’s campus like right now?”
Instead, try questions more like:
-What was your favorite thing about your time at Yale?
- What was the most interesting class you took? Which one did you wish you took?
-Did you or someone you know do research as an undergraduate? If so, what was that experience like?
Try to ask them questions that they can answer. Asking about a super-specific program or opportunity probably won’t help you unless they have said something that hints that they know something about it. Some alums will also not be recent grads. Centering on their experience will allow them to answer even if they haven’t been on campus for 11 years. Stumping your interviewer isn’t a kiss of death, but it might make the conversation a bit awkward. If you ask super specific questions, be ready for them not to be prepared or not give you a great answer.
Tip 6: Thank your interviewer (quickly).
It’s not required to send a thank you email, but it’s nice, and all of our students do it. These people aren’t paid for this work. They are doing it just out of a love for their alma mater. If you can send it later in the day or the next morning, it might also influence their report. Even if they do their report right after the call and the thank you is out of the scope of the assessment, it’s really nice.
We hope these tips will help demystify the college interview process. Yale is highly selective and while not everyone is offered an interview, if they offer you one, you should put your best foot forward. Preparing your interview doesn’t have to be a full-time job, but it’s something you should think about. Make sure you are ready before it happens. And if you follow these tips, you should be more than prepped!
Need help getting ready for interviews? We can do that! Reach out here.