No matter the type of scholarship you’re vying for, getting an interview invite is a great step in the right direction. Decision makers are interested in awarding you, and they want to get to know more about you.
But gaining a scholarship interview can be daunting for any student. What questions will you be asked? How do you make a good first impression? How do you stand out over other similar candidates?
Unfortunately, scholarship interviews vary wildly from one to the next, so it could be difficult to determine which kind of interview you will face. You may be invited into a room with ten or more successful professionals. They could each have several questions for you. You could face a one-on-one interview similar to the ones in medical school. If you’re presenting a project to secure a grant, you may be asked to defend your work in front of a group of people.
Or you may not face any interviews at all. Many scholarships involve simply writing an essay and waiting to find out if you secured the scholarship or not.
In any case, scholarship interviews are a great deal of pressure, and you may not be given much information about what to expect. Yet even if you don’t know what the interview will be like, there are many ways you can still prepare yourself.
Scholarship Interview Tips
1 | Practice Common Scholarship Interview Questions
While you can’t know for certain exactly what questions you’ll be asked, there are some common themes to expect. Don’t wait until the interview to figure out how you’ll answer these questions. Prepare answers to common interview questions beforehand and practice answering them in front of the mirror, trusted friends or family, or in front of a camera so you can watch it back and evaluate your own performance.
For example, there’s a very good chance you’ll be asked some version of the “tell me about yourself” question. It’s an intimidating question to answer, especially if you’re not expecting it. Where do you begin? What do they want to know? How much do they want to know? Is there a right or wrong way to answer the question?
But the fact that the question is broad is actually a good thing. Providing a multi-layered answer with plenty the interviewer can follow up on allows you to steer the conversation and guide the flow of the interview.
Choose a few unique or interesting facts about yourself that you feel comfortable discussing. Start by speaking about where you grew up, who raised you, your interests and hobbies, what you plan to use the scholarship for, and so on. Don’t write a script for yourself, as this can easily trip you up if the question is phrased differently. Structure your answer around a few talking points, and be prepared to adapt your answer to the interviewer or the way the question was asked.
Other common interview questions/prompts include:
- What are your strengths and weaknesses?
- Describe a recent challenge and how you overcame it.
- Who inspires you?
- Describe a time you failed.
- What are your hobbies? What do you do for fun?
- Are you working on any projects?
- What’s the last book you enjoyed?
- What career do you want to pursue?
- Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
- Do you have any questions for me?
Prepare foundational answers for each of these common questions and practice answering them until the responses feel natural, as you’ll never know precisely what to expect from each interview.
2 | Mimic the Element of Surprise
Learn to expect the unexpected by surprising yourself with practice questions to mimic the circumstances of the real interview. Write different prompts on cue cards, shuffle them, and then surprise yourself, or ask a trusted friend or family member to surprise you.
You don’t know what you’ll be facing during the interview until you’re in it, so practice getting comfortable with being uncomfortable. The exact questions you’ll be asked will remain a mystery, but you can get used to thinking on your feet and adapting on the fly.
Keep yourself on your toes by practicing within the high-stakes and unpredictable nature of the interview environment.
3 | Record Yourself Answering Questions
It may not be pleasant to watch yourself on video, but it can help you learn from your mistakes and pinpoint any weaknesses you need to work on. Do you appear confident? Are you speaking clearly?
What do you notice when you watch yourself back? Take notes and aim to improve your weak areas.
Are you speaking too slowly or too quickly? Are you utilizing the appropriate amount of hand gestures, or are you moving around in a distracting way? Are there any ticks you notice in either your movement or the way you’re speaking?
You want your interviewer or interviewers to be paying attention to the content of your answers and not be distracted by anything else you’re doing.
Continue recording yourself and learning from your mistakes until you feel confident in your voice, body language, and the content of your answers.
4 | Practice Your Interview Body Language
Body language plays an incredibly important role in how we communicate with other people. You can say or not say quite a lot with your body language, so be sure to practice appropriate physical cues in addition to preparing quality answers.
Slouching, mumbling, keeping your hands in your pockets, crossing your arms, or looking at your watch or phone are all examples of poor body language.
Slouching or looking down at the floor gives people the impression you are timid and uncomfortable. Fiddling with your clothing, your hands, or another object will make your interviewers think you are nervous; plus, it will distract them from the content of your answers. Looking at a clock, your phone, or a smartwatch conveys to the people around you that you have other, better places to be.
Don’t leave your body language up to chance on the day of your scholarship interview. As you practice and prepare your answers ahead of time, evaluate your own body language and what it may be conveying to the people around you.
Do you appear confident? Are you standing or sitting with proper posture? Is your body language open and inviting? Are you utilizing enthusiastic hand gestures without distracting the people you’re speaking to?
5 | Review Your Application Details
You may not be able to predict the questions you’ll be asked, but there’s a good chance you’ll be asked to expand on or add clarity to an aspect of your initial scholarship application or essay.
Review your application details in the days leading up to your scholarship interview. Get to know it like the back of your hand. What areas might they ask you to expand on? How did you reach those answers to begin with? If you were to expand on your application answers, what else do you have to say?
6 | Prepare and Test Professional Clothing
The formalness of your outfit will depend on the type of interview you’re facing, but regardless, it’s important to dress professionally and look sharp.
Don’t think that slapping on any old hand-me-down suit or dress the morning of your interview is enough. It is imperative that you prepare and test your professional clothing in advance. An ill-fitting suit or pair of shoes will make you feel and appear uncomfortable. Interviews are challenging enough without wardrobe malfunctions.
Decide on your outfit early and get used to moving around in it—especially if you’re gearing up for an in-person interview. Practice your answers to common questions while in your interview outfit in front of a mirror or camera. How do you look? Does it bunch anywhere? Will sweat be an issue? Can you breathe comfortably?
Don’t wait until the day of your interview to find these things out! Choose your outfit early and get used to wearing it.
7 | ARRIVE EARLY!
Early is on time. We can’t stress this enough. Don’t only aim to arrive at your scholarship interview on time—aim to be notably early.
There are countless things that can go wrong on the day of your interview. You might get stuck in traffic, there could be an accident, your power might go out, it might start to rain, you might spill your coffee, etc. Beginning your interview with excuses as to why you were late, even if those excuses are very real, won’t give your interviewers a good first impression of you.
Do whatever you need to do to put yourself in a good, confident headspace and arrive well before your interview begins. Set multiple alarms just in case, and if you have trouble waking up early, consider asking a friend or family member to check on you to ensure you’re up.
If your interview is in-person, and you have the ability and time, practice getting to where you need to go in advance a day or two before. How long does it take to get there? Where will you park? How far away is the interview from where public transportation drops you off? What obstacles could get in your way on the day of your interview? Aim to do everything you can to ensure you’re as comfortable as possible come interview day.
Arriving early matters just as much for virtual interviews. Ensure your space is set up and ready and that all of your technology is charged and connected. Test everything in advance. Give yourself some space before the interview to calm your nerves with breathing exercises and warm up your vocals and face muscles.
8 | Warm Up Your Face and Vocals
Just like stretching your muscles before a big workout, it’s important to complete vocal and facial warm ups before the interview. Otherwise, you’ll appear stiff and disengaged, and you’re much more likely to trip over your words. Mumbling your way through the interview or tripping on your own words is not a good look.
There are loads of muscles in your face, and you need to engage each of them to appear as enthusiastic, engaged, and confident as possible. When your skin is dry, your face tightens up, which makes you appear dull and lifeless as opposed to animated and friendly. You want your interviewer(s) to believe you really want to be there.
Get the blood flowing by performing some face yoga. Make funny faces in the mirror. Wrinkle your face in your best impression of a raisin, then open it up wide as if you’ve just seen a ghost. Keep moving your face in this way to get rid of any stiffness. Think present and energized as opposed to apathetic and dull.
It’s just as important to warm up your voice as you don’t want your interviewer to ask you to repeat yourself. Practice tongue twisters like “the tip of the tongue, the teeth, and the lips,” “she sells seashells by the sea shore,” or “red leather, yellow leather.” While it may feel silly in the moment, speaking clearly and articulately communicates confidence. What’s sillier? Practicing some tongue twisters before your interview or losing the scholarship to someone else who took the time to properly prepare?
Leave nothing to chance and give yourself every possible advantage by warming up your face and vocal cords before your interview.
Learn more: Face and Vocal Exercises to Perform Before an Interview or Presentation.
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