Criminal Masterminds

Money-Money-Money... Mon-ey!

My Hamline interview was yesterday.

I got up at five, curled my hair, donned my suit, and left by six. The roads were really slick:

But the sunrise was beautiful:

We spent most of the morning wandering between information sessions (Have you filed your FAFSA? What activities would you like to consider? Study abroad, anybody? Internships?) and stealing donuts from the breakfast bar. I was really worried about impressing my inquisitors, mainly because of the sum of money involved. This was my one shot at a full ride... by eleven o'clock, I had worked myself into a complete frenzy. I curled up on a stair step to scribble out nonsense speeches about team leadership and pancakes. Luckily for me, Amanda O. showed up around that same time. She asked me about my interpretation of the essay question, and I remembered that I hadn't brought a copy for myself. Thus, I ended up more productively rewriting my essay on spider man notebook paper.

The interview itself went over really well. I forgot my spider man notebook in the lobby, but that was okay, because my little review had me ready with answers off the top of my head. Instead of fumbling for papers, I greased myself off with face-to-face answers. My interviewers were really nice: one student (sorry Rianna! I don't remember his name... he was a Biology major though?), and two professors (um... an Education Professor and, from the English department and Women's Studies, Veena Deo. She was so cool!). By the time I started speaking I was fine - just like at speech meets, etc. and the whole thing was more like lunch with old friends than an actual interview. They asked me what my favorite book was (That's so hard to choose! I think I'll have to say Victor Hugo's The Hunchback of Notre Dame... his commentary on social justice is so profound...), and, playing off of that question, whether or not I spoke French (je ne parle pas Francais, but I would like to. I took two years of Spanish, but haven't had the scheduling space to continue... Yes, I agree, it is so important to learn other languages in a world that is shrinking so quickly! Also, I found that the more Spanish I studied, the more English grammar I understood...). They asked me about my activities, how I balanced my obscene schedule, what I would contribute to the campus (THANK YOU RIANNA!!!!), and how I had been impacted by social connection (the only question that had anything to do with my essay... very slick). The whole experience was a lot of fun. I'm glad I went. It just gave me one more new view of Hamline as a whole.

-Sara

P.S. Sorry I didn't find you Rianna! The whole day was so crazy and so busy! We didn't leave until 2:00, and even then it was to make it home on time for the WM Cast Party. Thanks again, though, you're tips were really helpful. I kept reviewing what you said in my head! Love you dearly.

posted by Sara Ann @ 8:02 PM