How to Prepare for the Loran Interview

What a question, isn’t it? I (LP) remember googling precisely this as I was anxiously waiting for the day the Loran Award interviews were to be conducted. Many things set these interviews apart from any other kind for interview you might go through in your life. In this article, Sumaya and I are going to talk you through what makes the Loran interviews different from other interviews, what to expect, but most importantly, how can you prepare to be ready when the day comes to face the interview panel.

What are the Loran Award Interviews?
We previously wrote an article on the Loran Award detailing how goes the selection process and went in great details on what to expect during the interview day(s). Before you dive in this article, we invite you to take a look at it to get an understanding of the broader context of each interview!

So on one side, Loran interviews are like job interviews on steroids because you get not one, but FOUR interviews (even five at the finals). On the other side, however, the interviews are not technical at all. All in all, interviewers ask you questions about yourself and you are probably the most competent person to answer such questions.

LP’s aside: You might even find common interest with interviewers! I had two interviewers starting the conversation by mentioning that they too were runners (this sport took an important place in my application). This is a very nice twist that makes the conversation genuine and interesting for both!

What to Expect During the Interviews
In your interview day(s), you will encounter three types of interviews

One on One Interview
You will get two of these at the semi-finals. In these interviews, you meet two out of the four members of the panel. As we detail in the section “How to Prepare for the Loran Award Interviews,” the interviewers will ask you questions about your application and some other general questions about yourself.

Lunch Interview
This is unlike anything else and is very fun. You eat lunch with an interviewer and 2-3 other applicants. You usually get a lot of time to chat with the applicants during the day, but you can expect the conversation to be steered towards more involved topics than the casual chit-chat during the day. The interviewers are very successful people and have a lot to talk about in their respective field. This interview is an opportunity to get to know them and what they do, as well as exchange some of your own hopes for your future—both academically and personally. It is always interesting to hear how they became interviewers for the Loran Award! Our advice for this one is to be polite, and try to avoid dominating the conversation, but don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone and add your input when appropriate. Don’t be overly formal too; as always, be yourself. If you were invited to the regional interviews, this is plenty enough.

LP’s aside: Literally one week after the finals, I saw the face and name of someone who interviewed me in a provincial newspaper. It’s not a joke when we say they are experts! During my lunch interviews, I remember that we had a super interesting discussion about the intersection of sociology, neuroscience, computer science, and medicine, each of these topics being an interest of someone at the table. It really was a nice moment!

Sumaya’s aside: I remember that we had a nice amount of time before our Lunch interviewer came, so during that time I was able to chat with the other two semi-finalists that were to participate in the same interview. We talked about a whole range of things, and it definitely made the lunch interview more comfortable for all of us!

Panel Interview
There you are, this is the final boss. It will always be the last interview. There will only be one person whom you will not have met yet, so you can expect more questions from that person. You might be tired after the long day, but this is the last stretch! Enjoy it and stay cheerful, after all, it’s only fifteen minutes. It will seem daunting at first, but just remember to take things one question at a time and you’ll be alright.

LP’s aside: from my experience, they tended to ask the more general and high-level questions of your plans for the future during this interview. These can be tough questions, which make this interview a bit more challenging than the other. Moreover, it can be intimidating to sit in front of a panel of four people. Just know you got this! No one died during the interviews, so you should be fine.

Sumaya’s aside: This will be the most anticipated interview, but also the one that goes by the quickest. The questions might seem quite difficult, but remember that this is to see if the Loran is the best fit for you—not necessarily if you are qualified or not. If you ever feel like you rushed a question, don’t panic. Feel free to ask if you could add some additional comments. Last note, make sure to voice your appreciation for their participation in the selection process!

How to Prepare for the Loran Award Interviews?
The best way to prepare for anything you might encounter is to wonder about the purpose of the challenge you face. Say you are preparing for a math exam. How are you going to prepare? Surely, the worst possible strategy would be to study anything but math—avoiding the subject altogether. The second worst possible strategy would be to study math, but nothing you would be tested on. Instead, you want to focus precisely on what you will be tested on. In the case of the Loran interviews, you will be tested on your application.

The first time you meet an interviewer, the only thing they will know about you is what you wrote in your application. So, you should definitely read over your application before you go into the interview day so that it is fresh in your mind. Moreover, you should reflect on your application to be able to answer deeper questions. Why did you take part in the project? Why doing this initiative and not anything else? The application prompts are very short, now is the time to develop.

LP’s aside: For example, you could speak of some hobbies you have in relation to what you are doing. An interviewer asked me something along the lines of “aren’t you tired of doing all these things?” I answered that sometimes yes, I felt tired, but then I would pick up my guitar and play a bit to disconnect from other more mentally challenging stuff that I am doing.

As you read through your application, try to think of the type of questions that you could be asked. What elements of your texts prompt questions? What are the surprising parts, for someone who does not know you? You can also think of some more general questions that might be asked: what (or who) inspires you? What are your dreams? How do you handle frustration or working with someone who does not cooperate? What is your conception of leadership? How do you push your ideas forward?

It is also pertinent that you don’t simply memorize your application; the interviewers have already read it. We think it is a good idea to have it in mind to understand the context of the questions, but not so well as to blindly repeat what you already said.

Note that TDS is offering a mock interview to help you practice for the Loran Award interviews. You can fill out the application form [here] and we will get back to you.

Closing the Day
After all of your interviews, as well as getting the chance to talk to some other really interesting and driven students, it is now the time to go home and wait for the results. Don’t be in a hurry, they can take a few weeks to call everyone back (although they will call everyone roughly at the same time). We hope you had an amazing experience at the interviews! Let us know in the comments below if you found these tips helpful, or if you have other strategies to prepare for interviews. They might help someone else!