11+ academic scholarship interview – how best to prepare

[BetterCallK1m]

Hello all,

I’d really welcome some advice from those who’ve been through this before 😊

DC has been invited to interview for an 11+ academic scholarship at Habs, and I’m slightly unsure how best to prepare them without tipping into over-coaching or making it all feel terribly high-stakes.

Academically DC is solid and genuinely enjoys learning (especially maths), but interviews are another matter entirely. I imagine it’s less about “right answers” and more about curiosity, confidence and how they think — but that’s easier said than done when you’re the parent trying to help!

If your child has been through a similar interview (particularly at Habs, but happy to hear more generally):

• What sorts of questions came up?
• How formal was it in reality?
• Did you do any prep beforehand that felt helpful rather than stressful?

I’m keen to keep things calm and positive, but also don’t want DC to walk in completely unprepared. Any wisdom (or reassurance!) gratefully received.

Thank you in advance.

They are bound to ask something about sports and which ones she enjoys. They want to know if she can function well in a team. If she isnt sporty try to find a way for her to include it in talking about other competetive events she does enjoy.

I hated sport. However we had competing houses with other events I did enjoy such as the drama and music festivals. I managed to quickly pass onto these from the sport and say that I felt proud when chosen to represent my house in both solo and group events.

My DD had an interview for an academic scholarship (which she got). Not at Habs though so I don’t know how relevant this is. I did not prepare her as I felt being over prepped was not advantageous and what you don’t want is for them to regurgitate learned answers. And also because I didn’t want to make it high stakes for her. All I did do was tell her that if I were the interviewer I would ask about what she did outside the curriculum to show she has an interest in learning, and point out to her that things she thinks of as stuff she does just for fun (eg writing a nature observation diary or reading books on code breaking) is actually to an adult about learning and academic skills and so it would be fine for her to bring in things like that. (This question was indeed asked.)

DD is shy and finds social situations with unknown adults tough. She enjoyed this interview because it was academic and included puzzles and mental arithmetic rather than “tell me about your favourite sports” or “what personal qualities would you contribute to school life”.

I would also expect to get asked about books and reading.

My DS got asked to debate with the interviewer - she put forward an argument and he had to put forward a counter argument. Not Habs though.

Do they tell you if you are being considered for an academic scholarship? I thought you just get invited to an interview and get told once a place is offered?

Depends on the school. We applied to two schools and one just offered scholarships on the basis on the entrance exams and interview, and the other invited the top 20 or so performers on the paper tests back for a special scholarship assessment day.

What did habs do?