 What's up, Nick Chae? Back with another video. Today we're talking about the college interview process. I know I've had a few people ask me to make a few videos about some tips and tricks to have a really stellar interview and have the best shot at getting into that dream university you have. So first off, the interview process isn't necessarily offered at every school. If they are, it's based on your region. So I was in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, meaning that representatives from the specific alumni group were contacted to reach out and schedule interviews with prospective students. If you aren't in an area where interviews are being offered, it's not the end of the world and so this video probably won't apply to you, but it is a beneficial part of your application, but it's not an end-all-be-all. You have to have an interview process. If you don't, it's not a big deal. Don't worry about it. But if you do, here are some tips to help you have a great interview. So the interview process is really simple. It's very laid-back. They just want to get to know you better off the paper and who you are as a person. It's not about your grades. It's not about your resumes. It's not about your scores. It's about who you are and whether you're likable as a person or not. I mean that's literally what it is because as great as you know your SAT or ACT or GPA is, a university is looking to accept well-rounded, kind and nice people. And if an officer can tell from your interview that you know you have all these great characteristics and your great qualities, they'll write a really great report on you and that's gonna look way better on your report than someone who had a bad interview, who wasn't you know prepared, doesn't know how to you know communicate effectively and come off as a charismatic person, then you're gonna have the upper hand. So I'm giving you guys my little tips and tricks, my secrets to kill this interview. So first off is be calm, cool and collected. What I mean by that is you know don't, first off don't be late. Whatever your time is that you set with your interviewer, whether it's like at a Starbucks or a local coffee shop, always arrive five to ten minutes early. If you think it's appropriate you can ask to cover their coffee. I never had to do that but a lot of times they'll order their own, you order your own and you just sit down and have it chat. You want to make sure that you're very calm, that you're not stumbling and fumbling around with your words or that you're not nervous or anything like that because that's kind of like the worst tell-tale sign of someone who's not prepared for an interview which can kind of sound harsh especially if you're not great at public speaking but it can be improved with practice. So if you're kind of nervous and you're not a great people person, practice with your parents, practice with your friends, ask them to ask you like basic interview questions, you know everyone's been through that whether it's like a job interview. It's a little different with the college interview process but same concepts can apply. Talk slowly, make sure your words are pronunciated very clearly. Don't use superfluous words that are trying to make you sound smarter than you actually are. Don't try to be a person that you aren't in your application. Be that same genuine person that you wrote about in your essays because some schools will give their interviewers access to those essays and some may read it beforehand or not. I always like to have one or two stories prepared that I've kind of practiced to tell whether it be about a specific moment you had or a cool adventure that you took or something memorable throughout high school I think really important to have one or two of those stories lined up that you can kill every single time. Another huge tip is bring printed copies of your resumes or any articles or publications that you've been featured in that's gonna look a lot more professional if you show up with a color printed copy and you'd be like bam I'm ready for this I'm about to kill this interview and it's gonna look very impressive that you were prepared. Another thing, be well dressed for the occasion. You don't want to come in in t-shirt and jeans that looks super unprofessional. You don't want to come in with a suit and tie either. I recommend something like just a button-up, some khaki, some nice pair of shoes or dress for girls because there's nothing worse than a candidate who's not very well groomed and doesn't know how to dress for an interview because the people you're interviewing with have been alumni from their specific university. They're successful in their position and they've been to that university so they know what that school is looking for. During your interview you want to make sure you take advantage of that opportunity to talk with someone who has not only been through the four years there but has graduated and now has a job with a degree from that university. So ask them questions about their time at you know whatever school it is, ask them about the clubs that they were involved in and you know what they're doing now how their education in college helped impact their current careers, how it helped them be successful and whether or not you think you'll be a good fit for that school depending on what you've heard from these alumni. Alumni love talking about their college experiences so some people have plenty of stories to tell. For them it's just a fun opportunity to stay connected with their alma mater and you know get to know the incoming applicants and write a reflection to the admissions counselors saying hey Nick was a great guy we had an awesome interview he's a calm cool and collected student he's you know been very successful and it's just gonna be another boost to your application aside from your scores aside from your extracurriculars that admissions counselors won't have the opportunity to see without the interview it's not like they're gonna take the time to Skype call every single person that's applying to get to know them better that's the whole point of this interview process. Don't stress too much about the interview it's not the end of the world make sure you're prepared show up early and just have a good time take really take advantage of this opportunity to get to know the school better and ask yourself is this really a university that I see myself for the next four years. Alright those are just a few of my tips hope this helps I'm doing kind of a big high school college series over the next few days while I have time to film so make sure you guys like comment subscribe if you have any other suggestions or things you want to hear about leaving down below I'll see you all next time.