The big interview: educators’ top tips on what to expect

How can children prepare for that all-important scholarship interview – and what are schools looking for? Fran Molloy asks three leading institutions.

Competition is rife for the many scholarships on offer at Victoria’s top independent schools, and many year 5 children have already begun preparing for the academic tests that mark the first step on the road to a scholarship.

When it comes to the in-person interview at the school to determine your child’s scholarship fate, however, there’s a fine line between being prepared and being rehearsed – and knowing what to expect can help.

At St Catherine’s school in Toorak, principal Michelle Carroll conducts scholarship interviews herself, and parents are encouraged to attend with their daughter.

“It is important I meet each girl and her family personally, and also, for them to meet me– education is a partnership between school and home,” says Carroll.

St Catherine’s offers a range of part and full-tuition scholarships for students in years 5-12, which include academic excellence, general excellence, VCE excellence, music and boarding scholarships.

Applicants are short-listed after completing a compulsory scholarship exam, typically held in February the year prior. St Catherine’s vets candidates for their junior scholarship for years 2-4 through written application rather than an exam, with students encouraged to show that they understand the school’s five core values: empathy, perseverance, integrity, curiosity and gratitude.

Carroll says that during the scholarship interview, she hopes to gain “an understanding of the student, her unique characteristics, personal capabilities and individual goals.”

Students should check over the scholarship eligibility criteria and have some responses prepared, she says. She suggests that jotting down some dot points can help girls make sure that what they want to say does not disappear in the interview due to nerves.

“Relax, take a deep breath, and be yourself. Think about who you are and what your personal values are. Consider what you hope to gain from attending St Catherine’s, and some of your achievements so far,” she says.