Alumni Interview

Submitted by fortissimosca on

Side note: woohoo first post!  I've been lurker since '08, but finally decided that I should join the party.  Thank you all for entertaining me at work for the past 7 years.

I've been asked to conduct an alumni interview of a prospective student.  Has anyone done one?  Any suggestions on questions to ask besides what's in the manual?

I figured it was a good chance to make someone listen to me talk about U of M for an hour.  I'm out of state, so I don't get that opportunity very often.

TrueLT

February 18th, 2015 at 9:55 PM ^

Just look at this Board of Directors:

 

  • Mike Weinberg - CEO - Literature, Science & the Arts '15
  • Bradley Goldman - CFO - Ross School of Business '16
  • Dave Brandon - CMO - Literature, Science & the Arts '74
  • Jordan Haag - COO - Literature, Science & the Arts '16
  • Jorge Maldonado - CCO - Stamps School of Art & Design '15

Bluegriz

February 18th, 2015 at 11:15 PM ^

This interview is not your opportunity to make someone listen to you talk, as you put it. The applicants are not interviewing for something that you have the power to give them. You don't make the final admission decision, you don't define the criteria that is used to evaluate the applicants. You play one specific role in the process and the manual is very clear about the types of things to ask and why. As great as the suggestions might be, I don't think crowd sourcing questions from the mgoboard is what the people who designed the alumni interview program had in mind. I've done several of the interviews myself and I've read their manual. In my opinion, your job is to ask the applicants how you can help them better understand Michigan by answering whatever questions they may have while representing Michigan well. You also need to uncover any significant things about the applicant that they feel weren't adequately conveyed in their application. A kid's college choice is not something to play around with. The kids should be asking more questions than you.

fortissimosca

February 18th, 2015 at 11:42 PM ^

My apoligies.  In my haste to put my first post, I forgot to put the /s on the last part.

Thanks for the advice!  I agree, and I already really have a plan on how to handle it (I am a Michigan alum after all).  I have a tendancy to over-prepare where I find myself asking "what do I really want to ask this kid...but shouldn't?"  That's a mgoblog type of question if I've ever heard one.

 

MonkeyC

February 19th, 2015 at 12:59 AM ^

Honestly didn't even know Michigan did alumni interviews. I just moved to Minneapolis (where U of M means University of Minnesota...). Can anyone volunteer to do these interviews?

My 4 questions would probably be 1. Do you take vacations? 2. Have you ever been sick or may be sick in the future? 3. Do you ever take breaks on certain days of the year? 4. Would you consider yourself able to break up concrete forcefully?

m1817

February 19th, 2015 at 12:21 PM ^

I've been part of the Alumni Student Recruiting (ASR) program for over ten years.  As an ASR, I represent U-M at college fair and talk to students informally, but I do not interview students. 

The approach that I take is to provide information and to encourage student to apply. It is not to screen applicants - that's what the Office of Undergraduate Admissions is for.  

To put students at ease, I let them know that I am an alum, and not from the admissions office and that I am not part of the admissions decision process .  

From what I know of the HAIL program, it is intended to encourage students to apply and attend the CoE, not to create an additional obstacle that they have to overcome.  For your first few intereviews, it is probably a good idea to stick to the manual.

If in doubt, saying too little is better than saying too much.

EastCoast Esq.

February 19th, 2015 at 9:42 AM ^

I had a law school interview that began with the alum giving me an article about why law school was a terrible investment. I really liked it and very nearly went to that school. It was honest and blunt.

In keeping with that theme, I might challenge the kid about whether he/she is prepared to make the sacrifices necessary to be successful at Michigan. Yes, it's a great college town and they can have a lot of fun, but it's also an academically rigorous institution. If you don't go to college prepared to step up your game, you may fall behind.

Hopefully the kid is already sold on #TheMichiganDifference, so I would make sure that they are prepared for what it means to be a Wolverine. Which means excellence.

MGoBlue22

February 19th, 2015 at 11:13 AM ^

I've conducted various interviews of applicants of the law school I attended, but never undergrad.  I've always believed that the main goal of each interview was to determine what skills and attributes the applicant possessed that are unique and valuable, and which will likely be of great benefit to the school. My first few questions usually focus on the non-academic background of the applicant, in an attempt to understand where the applicant is coming from, and then I delve into what the applicant feels will be the greatest benefit from receiving a degree from this institution and what obstacles (other than admittance) the applicant feels will need to overcome in order to be successful at the school.