Understand more about interview preparation.
Over the past decade, both applications and excellent pupils applying have increased. Selective private schools increasingly rely on interviews and pre-tests to assess whether your child will thrive at the school and benefit from the educational experience they offer.
In most cases, the interviewer will have access to your child’s exam score, the reference letter from your child’s current Head as well as their latest academic reports.
Interviews will typically last 15 - 20 minutes and your child should be prepared for open-ended questions, mental maths, various stimulus material (a poem, an advert, an article, an image etc).
We asked a group of leading senior school Heads how they would describe successful candidates and they gave us the following three key responses:
- ‘Natural’
- ‘Interested’; and
- ‘Able to develop their responses fully.’
It is essential that your child can talk enthusiastically about their hobbies, academic interests and current affairs.
In group activities your child will need to contribute, but not dominate!
Our top tip: read, read, read!
Preparation Methods To Adopt Straight Away
Talk To Your Child
We find that confident, prepared children do well in interviews. In order to help your child’s confidence, we recommend spending a little time every day talking with your child about their interests. A good senior school interview should feel like a conversation and gently encouraging your child to explain their opinions and justify their explanations will make the interview process much easier for them.
Some children may find noticeable preparation stressful so we recommend talking with them while they are engaged with another activity such as the school commute or during their meal-times. This will help them build key communication skills that will benefit them far beyond their senior school interview.
Your child should also be encouraged to take new information on-board and consider how it affects their opinion. The interviewer will be looking for a child who will be able to learn in the school environment and benefit from joining the school.
Techniques to Use to Shine at Interview
How To Debate/Explain Your Opinion
This is the method we recommend explaining to your child as a technique to use in the interview to ensure they answer with clarity and confidence.
P - Pause and Breathe
A - Analyse the Question
R - Reason your response (in your head)
E - Explain!
Be prepared to justify your opinion, and also be asked the 3W questions that matter in interview (Who, When, & Why).
The Best Way to Tell Your Story
Communication is key. Sometimes your child will be asked a negative question like ‘What is your least favourite subject?’.
The best way to answer a question like this is to start with a positive, then answer the question honestly, and conclude with another positive. A good mnemonic to remember this is the PNP hamburger.
All stories are built up from the ground. Telling stories before bedtime and getting your child to contribute is an excellent way to create the skills which will later make your child an engaging conversationalist.
Other Preparation
It is vital your child keeps reading. This should be wide and extend beyond your child’s school-assigned reading. It should be age-appropriate; schools do not expect your child to have read the Complete Works of Shakespeare but making sure that they have read some classic children’s books is a good start.
Keep your child up to date with current affairs. We recommend supervised reading of the news e.g. The Week Junior and engaging them in discussions that you might have with others about the news. Be prepared to explain what is happening and encourage your child to draw their own conclusions.
Live Lessons on Atom
Your child can access a series of live lessons to further support their interview preparation. Simply search "Interview Prep Course" in the lesson library to watch these.
Accurate at time of publishing.