Bringing notes to interview?

Question

Do you bring notes with you to interviews? If so, how?

I was thinking of bullet-pointing the various stories that I would want to talk about in an interview, based on common questions. However, would this look bad from an interviewer's perspective?

ManhattanReview · Answer

Do not bring notes to an interview. It will make the interview incredibly awkward and not put you in your best possible light. Plus, I would have serious doubts of admitting a person to a world class program who would not remember and organize his/her thoughts and be able to articulate them.

I interviewed well over 2000 candidates while I was on admissions at Wharton and people did come with some strange ways of trying to make a point and none of them worked out very well. One guy I remember did have notes but they were written on his hand. There were also a lot of people who could not answer the question without continually referring to their resume. The worst offenders were the people who did not answer the questions I was asking but just articulated the information that they thought was most compelling about their candidacy.

The best interviews are those where you are natural and candid and your true personality, motivation and character emerges. This usually happens when the interview turns into a discussion between two adults and less of a question and answer session.

If you are not great at interviews, i would recommend investing in a few hours of coaching -- so that you can get use to speaking about yourself, your goals and your motivation in the right manner. I alway tell people that the interview is the true make or break point in this entire application process and one where you have to really perform.

Good luck.

Kimberly Plaga
Senior Admissions Consultant
Manhattan Review

Xabier · Answer

Great points, thanks! No notes it is.

Ward2012 · Answer

I would say this for any type of interview. I have interviewed many job candidates, and it's always awkward when the candidate brings out notes or even his or her resume to look at. I always think "shouldn't you know already what you've done in your life?"

ebonn101 · Answer

If it's not the most important quality an interviewer looks for in a candidate, confidence has got to be in the top 5. Going into an interview with notes gives the interviewer the opportunity to immediately form any one of several negative perceptions of you. He/she could think you're scared, unprepared, don't know your story or conversely have an overly manufactured and therefore fake story, etc. Interviews aren't speeches. They're meant to be conversational, and, therefore, notes are inappropriate and will only make you look bad.

krudget · Answer

I don't think bringing notes would be an automatic 'No', but I would certainly not do this. As stated, it almost makes it seem like you're giving a narrative of what you WANT to project rather than what you ARE. Sure there will be a few key bullet points you want to convey, but write them down and get them crammed in your head before the interview. Practise with friends, significant others, bosses, etc. Make it natural and organic rather than a parroted preconceived narrative. You are who you are; notes aren't going to change that.

supax · Answer

I bring a copy of my resume and have it open in front of me just in case they refer to something that is very specific or need clarity but i definitely try not to look at it unless absolutely necessary. Plus it works just in case the interviewer forgot your resume.

Admissionado · Answer

egad! notes! ick!

Bringing notes to interview?

Prep Toolkit

Top 5 GMAT Debrief Videos

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards