UK Boarding school interviews?

How do we prepare for the UK private school interviews?

The school interview is key to the private school admissions process, and research and preparation are essential. Read on for top tips for success from Melle Education experts.

While state schools are prohibited from interviewing any but potential sixth form or boarding students, the interview is a crucial part – some might say the most important part – of almost every private school admissions process. With the current tutoring epidemic ensuring that young Henry and Henrietta will pass the written exams with flying colours, it』s down to the interview to sort the highly tutored from the highly teachable. As a parent, you probably feel considerably more responsible for your child』s ability to shake hands, smile and look adults in the eye than their ability to decipher algebra or conjugate Latin verbs. And, while a school may breezily describe the interview as 『just a chance to get to know the child better』, this hardly quells fears about sending young Daniel or Daniella into the lion』s den. But relax, an anxious child will never be at their best and it』s ultimately all about finding the perfect fit.

The London prep or senior day school interview is perhaps the most straightforward. Over-subscribed at every point, the selective urban independent tends to concentrate on the academic. The majority usually only meet the child after a written exam (generally used as a first edit), and the interview itself will probably contain a significant component of mathematics, comprehension or reasoning. The aim here is to probe intellectual strengths and weaknesses in order to select from the central bulk of candidates or to pick scholarship material. Members of the North London Independent Girls』 School Consortium will in future set only a one hour cognitive ability test, with greater influence on the interview. 『We will aim to find children who can think for themselves when they encounter academic obstacles,』 said one senior school head.

Even the most academic schools, however, are not necessarily just looking for those guaranteed to deliver a stream of A*s. Some use interviews as an opportunity to create as balanced a community as possible:

『I didn』t want all extroverts or all eggheads,』 said one ex-junior school head. 『Most children who sat our exam scored between 40 and 65 per cent in the written paper, so I was looking for an individual spark. At the age of 7, particularly, the interview is a crucial counterbalance to the exam. Those born between September and December always scored higher marks in the written paper. At interview we would go back to the list and bring in some younger children.』

Private school interviews: what are they looking for?

Personality, of course, will always be the most variable aspect of any interview and all interviewers have a personal bias. They may hate boastful children, or those who say their favourite leisure activity is computer games; they may prefer Arsenal fans to Tottenham supporters; but some schools do make a strenuous attempt to counteract the sense of one adult sitting in judgement on one child. City of London School, for example, sees candidates individually before sending them off to a lesson where they can be observed by another teacher as they work in a group. At Rugby, every child is interviewed by at least two people.

The best interviewers can and do overcome the limitations both of the written examination and of the child. 『Children, even very shy ones, like to talk about themselves, their friends, their families and their pets. I get them to describe what they did on Sunday, or I turn my back and ask them to describe something in the room. Sometimes I even get a child to sing or dance. I am looking for sparkly eyes and interest. If a child just sits there like a pudding, you usually don』t take them.』 Some schools get over the 『what to talk about』 dilemma by asking children to bring along a favourite object. Rugby sensibly provides a questionnaire about hobbies and interests to fill in in advance, which not only provides a talking point, but also allows parents to feel they』ve done what they can. If, however, the child pitches up with a copy of Proust or boasts a collection of Roman ceramics, parents shouldn』t be surprised if the interviewer is somewhat sceptical.

Boarding school interviews: what are they looking for?

Most boarding schools feel that the interview can identify serious pastoral concerns. 『We sometimes discover that a child really doesn』t want to come to boarding school,』 said the registrar of Rugby. 『The interview is also very helpful in establishing the academic level the prep school is working at. We ask children to bring in their exercise books. Some London prep schools are so geared up at that point that all the child is doing is practice papers. Country prep schools tend to be more relaxed.』

Although most heads are honest in their report about a child - after all, their reputation depends on it - the interview can also benefit them. 『Occasionally, a prep-school head knows perfectly well that a child is not suited to our school, but the parents just won』t listen. Coming from us it doesn』t sour the relationship with the school.』

Boarding schools, of course, tend to have another layer to their selection process and interview when they match boys and girls to an appropriate house. Here the parent, even more than the child, can be in the spotlight. Dr Andrew Gailey, now Eton vice provost but formerly housemaster of Manor House, Prince William』s house at Eton, always tries to strike a balance of the sporty and industrious, the musical and the generally decent in his annual selection of 10 boys but, for him, the parental part of the equation plays an even greater role. 『The boy is going to change, but you have shared management of the child』s adolescence with the parents and you have to have some common bond for that to work.』

That』s a common theme for those interviews where parents appear — notably in London pre-preps. Most of the time the school is really interviewing you, and it』s you who need the preparation while your child can happily be him or herself. A balance between steady, respectful (schools are ever keen to avoid the parent from hell) and interesting (but nor do they like dull ones) is best.

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