Interview examination

It’s always good to know what kind of questions might be asked in an interview examination. Please prepare yourself to be able to answer the questions below at least, although there may be other questions might be asked.

• “What was the most important thing you dedicated yourself to during your high school life?”
• “What did you learn from that experience?”
• “What challenges did you face, and how did you overcome them?”
• “Why do you want to apply to this university?”
• “Why did you choose this university over others?”
• “Why are you interested in this faculty and department?”
• “What are the differences between this university’s faculty and department compared to others?”
• “What do you want to study at this university, and what career plan do you have after graduation?”
• “What recent news has caught your attention?”

Before taking an interview—ideally, when deciding on the faculty and department you will choose—there is one crucial point to check thoroughly : the admissions policy of the faculty or department. 

An admissions policies can be found in the guidelines regarding the acceptance of students, describing the profile of students that the university (or faculty/department) seeks. Admissions policies exist at both the university level and the faculty/department level. 

In comprehensive selection processes, whether a prospective student matches the profile sought by the university is one of the key criteria for acceptance. During interviews, faculty members serving as interviewers assess candidates from the perspective of whether they align with the admissions policy of the university, faculty, or department. 

No matter how well a candidate answers interview questions, if they do not match the admissions policy, they will not pass the interview. Therefore, instead of merely checking the admissions policy to pass the interview, you should review the admissions policy when selecting a university to ensure that the university’s expectations align with the student profile you aspire to. 

In most cases, interviews are conducted by two faculty members from the department. The interview duration typically ranges from 15 to 30 minutes at most. 

As mentioned earlier, preparing answers to expected questions in advance is essential. However, keep in mind that interviews also assess your communication skills. Simply memorizing answers and reciting them mechanically will not be effective. 

It’s better to keep your responses concise and to the point while addressing the interviewer’s questions. If further elaboration is requested, provide additional explanations at that time. This approach works well because interview time is limited, and interviewers must assess candidates within that timeframe. 

Ensure that you respond promptly and attentively to the interviewer’s questions. Overly formal language may come across as superficial or unnatural. Instead, strive to answer clearly and confidently in your own words. 

Check news related to your desired academic field on a regular basis. For example, you can collect newspaper articles related to your field of study or summarize information from online news sources.

The professors conducting the interview are experts in their respective fields. To assess whether you are genuinely interested in the field and actively gathering information, interviewers may ask about recent news in that field. If you claim that you are interested in the field but you are lack of information of relevant news, your response may lack credibility.

You don’t need to discuss highly specialized topics, but by regularly keeping up with information in your field, you will be able to express your own thoughts to some extent during the interview.