Had my big Eller College admission interview today and here's some of what I remember. (Hey, it's been a whole seven hours - you can't expect me to remember EVERYTHING!)
Today was the final of three steps in the process - the first two happened weeks ago: a large group orientation session where they explained all the steps, and an individual advising appointment to give it that personal touch. Right away after the orientation I hopped on the computer and snagged an early advising appt that, I believe, gave me the "choice" mid-day interview time today.
In the value system of 20-somethings, having to be ANYWHERE before 11am is a form of punishment, so I'm sure my fellow classmates were ecstatic with their 11:35 time slot. I'd have been just as content with an earlier time. When you hit the ground running at 5am as we do at our house, six hours is way too much time to think!
I dutifully arrived around 20 minutes early and found the halls crowded with black-suited students! Looked a lot like a funeral! I'd opted for a demure forest green jacket and skirt set and found myself pert-near the only one who deviated from the "standard!" Of course there was the occasional glitter-spiked heel to break up the monotony, and a few dark grays and browns. But all in all, they cleaned up pretty nice.
My interview was with a nice young kid who just got his degree in Finance (probably a masters) and an older gentleman from the community. I didn't catch either of their names, but probably wouldn't post them here anyway. They were friendly and made me feel comfortable right way.
They started by asking me for my 60-second "elevator" spiel (shucks, I hadn't really prepared one and it probably showed!). They asked if there was anything on my resume that I wished to highlight, then they spent the next few moments apologizing for having to ask me the same "canned" questions they were told to ask everyone! I didn't mind, but maybe to them the questions seemed stilted for an older candidate.
The ones I remember best include:
- Describe a problem that you have encountered at work or in your personal life where you have had to think "out of the box" to come to a solution.
- Describe an issue currently in the news that interests you, and why.
- When working in a team that isn't working well together, how would you motivate your teammates to get back on track?
- Describe a difficult project you took on and how you accomplished it.
- Think of a time when you made a bad judgment call and describe what you learned from the experience.
And two ethics questions on the Interview Case they gave us to read at the orientation session involving the utility/legality of businesses using social networking sites (like Facebook) as part of their screening process.
I tried to answer truthfully and with enthusiasm. There were maybe 10 total questions plus some interesting discussion regarding the housing crisis (my choice of current news item). I was their last (of six) interview so we chatted a bit after the time's-up knock on the door. We conversed about tax returns and the lack of state regulation over mortgage brokers and how businesses have been operating on credit for so long. They also assured me I likely would do fine in the upper division accounting curriculum.
Working 28 years for the same department didn't give me much opportunity for meaningful interviews so I'm relieved it went so well. As each interview concluded, students were herded into a room where they took our photographs (no idea why!), and then we all traipsed into the large auditorium for the skills assessment test. Twenty somewhat easy accounting-type test questions on which we need to score 75% or higher. Pretty sure I did okay.
Decisions are to be emailed in about two weeks. I'll let you know!
10 months ago