First of all, if you have been invited to the interview phase of the Chevening Scholarships, congratulations! The selection process is highly competitive: moving on to the next stage is a great achievement and should be celebrated. But and now? How to prepare for this moment? In this post I will share a brief account of my interview and also some tips on how you can prepare and increase your chances of studying in the UK with the Chevening Scholarship.
my interview
My interview took place in Curitiba, at a Cultura Inglesa school. I was interviewed by Chevening Officer do Brasil (Eduardo Mack), a British diplomat and a Chevening alumna. The interview lasted approximately 45 minutes and focused on the essay topics.
The first thing I was asked was for me to introduce myself, to talk a little about myself. During these 45 minutes, the interviewers asked several questions based on what I answered – that is, they wanted to know more about certain examples I gave or about some information that I highlighted. The three interviewers were very kind, polite and put me at ease from the start.
How to make your preparation
Get organized for the interview
When I got the news that I'd been asked to do the Chevening interview, the first step in my preparation was to research general tips on how to succeed in an interview. Also, I did a lot of research on body language, something I had never studied before. So, my first tip is: watch videos and read these rich contents that are freely available on the internet to improve your performance in the interview.
Watch videos from the Chevening channel
Did you know that Chevening has a YouTube channel with several videos about preparing for the interview? O Chevening Secretariat It helps a lot in preparation. The videos will give you an idea of what interviewers expect from you. Furthermore, Eduardo Mack, Chevening Officer from Brazil, contributed to one of these videos!
Practice!
In the interview you will basically reinforce what you said in your essays. So why is it important to practice? For several reasons: so that you can mentally organize what needs to be said in the interview (what makes you different from the others?), to train the structure of your answers (remember that written answers are different from “spoken” answers) and to be able to explain your examples clearly. The questions are also more specific than those in the essays, so preparation really is key.
In addition, I believe that most people, like me, are not used to speaking English in Brazil. So it is important to practice the answers out loud to “unlock” English. Scholarship holder Renan talks about the importance of knowing how to convey, in the interview, his story, achievements and goals:
“Studying the application itself is a key point. You need to be able to explain very skillfully and properly about your own career, the networking you have built throughout your life, professional and academic achievements, have a consistent justification for the chosen universities, the next steps after finishing your master's degree and how your training will help or impact Brazilian society. These questions need to be logical, clear and concise in a way that you can convey them very naturally” – Renan de Souza, Chevening Scholar (International Relations, Goldsmiths University of London).
Simulate the interview
Do you have friends who speak English or an English teacher willing to help you? Then activate your network of contacts and ask them to help you with a simulation of the interview. Give them a list of questions and answer them as if you were actually in the Chevening interview. Ask for the honest opinion of the “interviewer” of this simulation and do a self-assessment: this is when you will realize what still needs to improve.
Check out this mock interview, made by some Chevening fellows.
on the day of the interview
How to deal with nervousness
Nothing more natural than being afraid that nervousness will get in the way of the interview. Scholar André gives tips on how to overcome this obstacle:
“As a student of psychology and neuroscience, I now understand why the brain “locks up” in times of high tension. Therefore, during the interview in English, my tips are: 1) visualize the expected result, imagine that you have already achieved it; 2) practice with someone or on your own; 3) watch others, look for videos; and 4) tell yourself you can do it and try to stay calm, take a deep breath” – André Hedlund, Chevening Scholar (Psychology of Education – University of Bristol)
I used a breathing technique before the interview that helped me (a lot!) to stay calm.
Arrive at the interview location early
The interview will likely be in a place you've never been before. Thus, it is very important that you organize yourself to arrive at the place in advance, to avoid any mishap. I did my interview at Cultura Inglesa, in Curitiba. I got there 1 hour early and used that waiting time to do a mental review of what I wanted to convey and also do some breathing exercises to calm myself down. And best of all: the school had several paintings from London, UK flags, people speaking English around me. It was great for setting me up!
If you have any problems and arrive at the interview “at the last minute”, you can lose concentration, focus and get nervous, compromising your performance and reducing your chances of success.
Do not lie!
It is very important that you reinforce your own experiences and skills in the interview, without lying – under no circumstances! See what happened in the interview with fellow Renan:
“I mentioned in my application that I was studying Arabic and could already speak the basics. Coincidentally, one of my interviewers was the UK Chargé d'Affaires in Iraq and he asked me two questions in Arabic and I answered them. He was very impressed how someone from Brazil could speak Arabic. What I mean is: use your strengths strategically to your advantage. I have always had a facility with languages and I wanted to emphasize this in my application for Chevening” – Renan de Souza, Chevening Scholar (International Relations, Goldsmiths University of London)
I hope these tips are useful to you. Good luck and sucess!
