Interviewing for Colleges

Since the interviewing season is rapidly approaching, I've dedicated this week's post to the often feared admissions interview. The best advice I can offer for this process is to research the school so that you can provide in-depth answers as to why you'd be a good fit and also come up with questions to ask the interviewer. 

Before my SMC interview, I had done extensive research on the school through their website by contacting current students and various departments, browsing through their activities list, reading through the school's online publications and reading faculty profiles. I think that it's important to do this so that you're really able to go into detail about why you want to attend the college (I want to take a class with Professor X and get involved with X activity. I like X about this college because...), but more importantly, so you know whether you actually want to spend 4 years at such a school in the first place. 

Here are some things you can do to research Saint Michael's:

• Browse the student clubs
• Have a look at the department pages
• Check out the fantastic community service program (MOVE)
• Read some student blogs ;) 
• See what courses you can take 
• Questions? Hit up admissions - you can do so anonymously
• Play a sport? 
• Get on the athletics page
• Contact a coach
• Read the online student publication: The Defender

Visit the school before the interview if you can! You really get a feel for the campus, you can sit down and talk to some of the students to get (usually) uncensored commentary on housing, activities, what stinks, what's great, what the social scene is like, etc. If you're too shy, you'll still get to know what at least one of the students is like through the tour guide, who will be happy to have a chat with you after the tour if you stick around for a couple of minutes. During my SMC visit, I was even able to arrange chats with five of the professors and sit in on some classes! That was actually the deciding factor in my decision to enroll, because on the top of my must-have list for college was passionate and accessible faculty.  

Be prepared to answer these questions:

1. Why do you want to come to our college?

2. What courses are you taking?

3. What activities are you involved in? 

I think that the interview is really an opportunity for both you and the interviewer to figure out if you're a good fit for the school, so remember that it's not a one-way process: you're encouraged to ask questions as well. During my interviews, I had a couple sheets of paper with me to jog my memory: my resume, (very short) bullet point reasons for why I like the college and my questions for the interviewer. It's really not necessary to have all this with you, but it can help you remember things you want to touch on during the interview! 

"Things Every College Student Should Know"

While grabbing some dorm furniture at Bed, Bath and Beyond, I came across 1001 Things Every College Student Needs to Know. At first, I thought the guide would be cheesy - which, some of it is - but I really ended up enjoying the tips Harry H. Harrison Jr had to give college students. Here are some of my favorite "things" that "every college student needs to know":

238. You need to know about ratemyprofessors.com and pickaprof.com. See how other students from your school graded professors.

467. You need to know to make a note card for each major theme and idea your professor covers in class. Transfer notes from class lectures and your textbook onto each card.

640. You need to know that a typical night of college homework will look like this:
- Review French vocabulary
- Study seventy pages for International Relations midterm
- Read sixty pages of literature
- Study for humanities project
- Research for science project
- Study for science midterm

723. You need to know that everything changes over time. Including people. And relationships.

778. You need to know that the best cure for worrying in bed is getting up and studying. (It's also my cure for stress head aches and general academic panic.)

796. You need to know a lot of problems get better after you've had a good night's sleep.

178. You need to know that if a class is too full for you to get into, attend the first class anyway. The professor just might squeeze you in. (I did this to get into Media & American Politics with Professor David Mindich and it worked! Also, my fellow blogger Gabbi Hall is in this class with me.)

Why SMC? - Part II

So since you've all had a good look into my experience making the big college choice, I thought I'd present you with the perspectives of other students from SMC's Class of 2015 on their decision to join the community. 

Emily Hagerty / Modern Languages / D.C
One of the greatest reasons I chose Saint Michael's was because it advocates the "Good Samaritan" philosophy of Catholicism above all else. This is apparent in the endless community service projects that the M.O.V.E office coordinates, and the student body that puts the plan into action. Every aspect of the community of Saint Michael's is equally devoted to helping others. I also chose Saint Michael's because it was most accomodating with my learning disability in Math. Toni Messuri, the director of the Academic Support Services, was deeply understanding of my weaknesses. At the same time, She was very supportive of my strengths, ambitions, and goals in life. I am endlessly grateful for her unwavering support and confidence in my direction and abilities in life. I'm ecstatic to be a part of Saint Michael's Class of 2015. I am so blessed to be a part of this loving, welcoming, community. 

Ben Rosbrook / Exploratory / Syracuse, NY 
I first thought about applying to SMC when I was something like 5 years old. My dad's an SMC grad, and one summer when I was young he brought me and my family up to Burlington to visit some of his college friends that had stayed in the area after graduating. While we were there, my dad showed us SMC, and since, at the time, I thought my dad was the coolest person in the entire world and I wanted to do everything that he did, I said that I was going to study there when I became a "college kid".

About 12 years later, it's the spring of my senior year of high school, and admissions letters start rolling in. I had applied to SMC, but not as a first choice. At the time, I was leaning more towards a big university, with lots of programs and classes and people, because I thought that the more choices I had, the more likely I would be to find exactly what I wanted to do and study in college.


Anyway, the letter from SMC was the first one I got. I wasn't really nervous about getting in, but it was still a nice feeling; and it was the nicest acceptance letter I got! It was in a purple envelope with a gold seal, and although it's not REALLY important, I thought it was more personal than the other acceptances I got. Some time later, when I had gotten all my letters, I decided on SMC. I had gotten into some of the bigger universities that I had applied to, but I found myself really drawn to SMC for the location, tight community, engaging professors, and the ability to ski for really freaking cheap. Since then, I've continued to learn more about all the stuff that happens at SMC, and I've realized that it's not all about the big schools, and I'm excited to take advantage of some of the amazing opportunities SMC has to offer!

Jessyl Zavala Muñiz / Undeclared / San Juan, Puerto Rico               


Hey beautiful people! My name is Jessy and I'm from the little island of Puerto Rico. Yeah...it's pretty far from Vermont  (1.855 miles to be exact) and really different. In PR, people are really loud and hyper and in Vermont, most people seem chill. In the PR, the main hang out is the beach whereas in VT, it's skiing. 70° in PR is cold and in VT 70° is hot. Not to mention the language different - well,you get the point. But you know what? Saint Michael's convinced me to leave everything I know behind and take a chance to try something completely different.  

I had a list of 5 schools that I applied to in order of preference. SMC was number 5, not because it was the worst one, but because I knew very little about the school. When my second semester of my high school senior year hit, I learned the hidden ugly truth of some colleges and visited others. By late April, I was so convinced that I was going to a school in Indiana that I even gave in the deposit! But there was one school that I had left catching dust on the shelves: Saint Michael's College. I was about to make my final decision, but my mom told me to give SMC a chance. So I did.
   
Honestly, giving SMC a visit has been the best decision I have ever made in my academic life. Not only did I fall in love with Vermont from the plane view, but when I arrived, the people were super courteous and nice. I couldn't stop admiring Vermont's beauty on my way to campus. When I got there, for some reason it felt homey. I felt comfortable. I spent 4 days and 3 nights on campus. I sat in on classes, ate at Alliot, hung out with other students - pretty much what a normal student's life would be like. And that's where I felt the difference. I was like a normal student; I wasn't an outsider. I felt comfortable being from Boricua. At the other colleges, it felt OK, but it didn't feel right.


Yes, SMC has an amazing curriculum, and the fact that it's a liberal arts curriculum makes it even more interesting for me, because you get to learn about everything! Yes, The campus is beautiful as well, and the library is amazing! Yes, The people are always willing to help you and the professors are always willing to hear you. But what makes Saint Michael's special is that it makes you want to wonder, question, mingle, learn and actually get out there without being scared of being alone. What makes SMC is the fact that despite the wide and obvious differences from where I come from and college town, I feel like I'll never have to leave my island behind. Because I can be who I am, happily and comfortably, and I know that the community at Saint Michael's will support me. It's the fact that everybody has their arms open to receive you, help you and support you. Above all, the fact that no other college could make me feel the same way.

Why SMC?

Hello ! My name is Tarah Srethwatanakul (hence the title of this blog) and this is my very first post as a blogger for Saint Michael’s College ! You can click here to find out more about me or dive straight into the story of why I decided to join the community of Knights at SMC !


Part I. Europe or America ?

Being from Switzerland and Thailand, my decision to enroll at Saint Mike’s has always attracted two questions ; many of the students, faculty and even admissions staff ask me "How did you find us?" and the most frequent response I face from my friends is "Why are you leaving Europe?".

Since the beginning of the college search, I was very determined to find a vibrant and supportive learning environment – my top requirements were : engaging professors, a high level of student-professor interaction, a diverse array of student-initiated activities and - since moods are highly contagious – a happy student body. I also realised that I longed to participate in many (if not only) seminar-style classes, which led me to nix Europe off my list of possibilities (with a great deal of sadness, of course). The reason for this is because European universities are generally characterised by large lectures, and quite honestly – and perhaps selfishly ;) – I wasn’t prepared to share my professor with three hundred other students.

After reviewing the requirements of my "dream college", my college counselor suggested that I add Saint Mike’s to my growing list of considered universities. Her advice compounded with my subsequent research on SMC (which revealed that it made the Princeton Review's list of happiest students and best student lifestyle) convinced me to fly out for a quick campus visit in October – a visit that essentially became the deciding factor in my choice of college.

Part II. The Campus Visit

Since I was staying for a few days, I really had the time to get a full Saint Mike’s experience by sitting in on various classes (Cognitive Psychology, Media Law & Ethics, Honors Freshman Seminar: The Examined Life, Literature for Children and Adolescents), chatting with professors and students, touring the campus and of course, enjoying the Skinny Pancake's wonderful crêpes! During the visit, I was particularly impressed by the professors’ generosity in dedicating such large amounts of time to chat with students and also by their honesty, as I never felt like they were simply selling the school but actually putting my best interests first.

In the end, my decision to attend SMC was very sudden as although I had a significant interest in the college, I knew that I hadn’t intended on attending a university outside of a metropolis or one affiliated with a religion. It was in fact my experience sitting in on Professor Griffith's "Media Law & Ethics" class that made me decide to apply early decision to SMC, since I knew from that moment that I wanted to study Media, Journalism and Digital Arts under her tutelage - and I'm very lucky, as I recently found out that I'm actually enrolled in her Media Revolutions class this fall!