What should you expect in a private school interview? A guided conversation, not a test. Typically twenty to thirty minutes for your child, following a predictable arc: get-to-know-you questions, then school experience, then interests, then their own questions about the school, while parents typically have their own conversation of about twenty minutes. Plan on about an hour for the interview portion. Nothing in the design is meant to catch anyone off guard, and knowing the shape in advance removes most of the fear. This page walks the whole visit, start to finish.
What is a private school interview?
What the interview is, and isn’t. It is a conversation with a person whose professional job is drawing children out, held so the school can meet the actual kid behind the file. It is not an exam, an audition, or a personality contest. Your child will not be asked to solve anything, defend anything, or perform anything; they will be asked, in several different ways, to be themselves out loud. There are no trick questions: interviewers often say so in the first minute.
What happens during a private school interview visit?
The visit, in order. Arrival about fifteen minutes early, not more; waiting breeds nerves. Often a tour with a current student first: take it, it’s the best warm-up in the building. Then the interview itself, following the four-part arc above, with a good interviewer previewing the format up front and adding the sentence that settles most kids completely: you already know every answer, because the questions are only about who you are.
At what age does a child interview alone?
Ages and formats. From the middle school interview on, your child typically goes in alone. A feature, not a hazard; kids routinely do better without a parent’s reactions to read. For the younger grades, the visit is shaped differently from school to school, often more observation and play than sit-down conversation, but the intent behind it holds at every age. Formats vary too: on-campus is the norm, Zoom is common for boarding and distant applicants, and some schools fold the “interview” into a shadow day or student visit: each covered in its own article below.
What do private school interviewers look for?
What’s actually being evaluated. Genuine curiosity. Something true. A kid coming alive about anything at all. Interviewers are listening for fit and authenticity, not vocabulary, not polish, not a firm handshake. Performed enthusiasm all sounds the same after a hundred interviews; the real thing, at any volume, is what survives in memory and what makes it into the notes.
What is the parent interview like?
Your portion. The parent conversation runs about twenty minutes, typically right after your child’s. What lands well is simpler than families expect: parents who clearly know their child, how they learn, what lights them up, and who are aiming at the right school rather than the most prestigious one. The same standard the room applies to your kid: fit, not performance. And when your child comes out, resist the pounce; “I’m sure you did a great job” is enough, and the debrief belongs to them to start.