It is that time of year when students contact with a combination of excitement and fear. They have been invited to interview with one of their dream schools. While they are thrilled for the chance to have an interview, they are also terrified because they don’t want to screw it up.
This is double true for my more introverted students. Strong eye contact, high energy responses, overt enthusiasm, these are not the forte of most introverts. No, we prefer low pressure, deeper conversations with no pressure to immediately fill in a moment of silence. Here are some of the biggest obstacles for introverts during college interviews and how to overcome them.
Spotlight Questions
The whole point of the interview is to focus the spotlight on yourself, but introverts typically squirm at being the center of attention. Boasting about accomplishments feels cringy, and talking endless about yourself feels rude. To lessen the anxiety, prepare a list of key accomplishments and practice talking about your positive qualities and successes. Treat them objectively because facts don’t have to be tied up to feelings.
Off the Cuff Answers
Introverts typically prefer to consider answers and go in depth with their responses. Interviews tend to favor quick answers that can be summed up into notes jotted down for reports. To overcome this, you should plan your answers and practice the 2-3 minute response that leaves room for follow-up questions. Anticipating the types of questions that typically are asked during college interviews can go a long way to helping you prepare.
Fear of Being Judged
Introverts spend a lot of time observing people. One thing we introverts notice is the tendency to judge and comment the actions, words, and appearance of others. Consequently, it is logical to assume that people we meet will be judging us. Remember that the people who will conduct the interviews are NOT looking for you to fail. These people are donating their time and energy because they are enthusiastic about their school and are interested in persuading you that their school is the best. Lean into this if you feel uncomfortable talking too much about yourself. Prepare interesting questions to ask. Sometimes interviewers spend the majority of the time talking about their own experiences at the the college.
Energy Drain
The nature of introverts is that they are energized by quiet time alone and drained by social interactions. There is no way around this. Even though it may be tiring, the college interview is necessary to demonstrate interest and an opportunity to learn about the place where you (hopefully) will spend the next 4 years of your life. After you are prepped, give yourself come time and space to recharge. If your interview is online, remember that you need to project more energy to get across your interest in the school. So keep looking into your camera, use gestures and facial expressions to show interest and engagements, and use your voice to express enthusiasm.
If you feel like you might need more guidance with forming responses, practicing answering questions, and presenting yourself, book a call with me to discuss how I can help you.
Learn more about Interviewing for introverts on the page linked below.
