SKYPE etiquette

dress your best, like you would do for a normal interview, including wearing pants and not shorts.

put up adequate lighting and keep a neutral background - a poster of madonna/angelina jolie/hugh jackman wont score kudos.

dont shout, make facial gestures or tics, smile a lot.

ask the interviewer to repeat the question if you cannot hear what he/she says.. better to hear things properly than ramble and then stare at confused faces..

Hey, thanks for the tips.

Does anybody know which of the top 20 schools conduct only skype interviews for people located in India?

Should the headsets be used for better hearing?

I knew someonewho dressed appropriately from the waist up during a skype interview. The interviewer, impressed, enquired whether he had the matching pants and dress shoes. Unfortunately, he wore gym shorts.

Make sure that the background is neutral and there isn't any external noise (loud TV in the next room, the lawnmower or barking dog outside, etc.). Inform your family and friends that you have an interview at that time, but lock your door just in case. And turn off your cell-phone!

Here what I come up with.....

1. Present yourself in professional attire. – Business casual/suit all preferable. Message is “dress for success”. If you are wearing just a jacket and no pants, it’s no good. Your mind needs to think that you are preparing for something important. Also, your grace (i.e. interviewer) could ask you to stand up.
2. Professional setup – Take your interview in a most professional environment. Clean up your desk; Turn your table facing a clear wall; Close your door so no one can interrupt you; Keep a notepad, pencil and a glass of water. Also, check the background light – neither too dark nor to bright.
3. Test your mic and webcam. Call your brother or sister or friends and have casual conversation. At the end of the conversation, ask if they were able to hear properly. If you are experiencing voice-breakup or the call is dropping, better check your internet connectivity. Also, ask your sibling or friend if they can see you properly without delays or frozen screen. If you are not able to fix any of the problems, let you interviewer know before the start of the interview.
4. Check the room temperature – adjust the thermostat accordingly; See you can’t do this in face-to-face interview. I found out that I was able to best perform when it is more chilling. It’s just me.
5. Before the interview, make sure you know who is going to initiate a call. If not, call the admission office and ask clearly.
6. Make yourself available 20 mins before the call; Some colleges do skype testing, which could disrupt your mental state.
7. Make sure no other program is running in your laptop or computer. Close browser/explorer/etc.
8. Prefer to get a call on phone; Even inform your interviewer that you could call them if possible. Some interviewer will allow it. If you are using Skype for voice call, make sure you speak slowly as it is known to have problem.
9. Pass proper pleasantries to your interviewers. Remember their names.
10. Once you get a turn to speak, first let them know about any ensuing system problem/voice drop.
11. Maintain proper eye contact and “SMILE”. Do not forget to smile.
12. Don’t come too close to webcam. Maintain proper distance.
13. Do not make any unusual facial expression. This happened with me. I said something wrong and grimaced. Be confident. Apologize if something went wrong.
14. If you are not able to listen to your interviewer, apologize and ask them to repeat. While apologizing, you can say that you are having problem with your internet. They will understand.
15. If you are unsure about the question, apologize again and clarify it.
16. Show your hand moments only if required.
17. If your legs are shaking, don’t worry. They can’t see you. But try to calm yourself down. And don’t shake your body.
18. While replying, still maintain eye contact. Don’t stare up or down. You can probably do in face interview. But in skype interview, it connotes wrong intention. The interviewer may think you are looking some prepared answers.
19. This goes without saying. The remaining format of the interview is the same. Be clear, confident. Answer with personalized examples. Ask any question if you have.
20. During your interview, sit straight. Your body language is still very visible to everyone else.
21. At the end, finish the interview with the closing arguments. Thanks them for their time and apologize for any inconvenience.
22. Take your time to shut off the webcam and mic before you talk to your family. If mic is on, they can still hear you.

Awesome pointers!


I think this is the most overlooked point. Get this cleared up a few days before the call.

We do a lot of these Skype interviews here at ESADE; I suggest using headphones (someone asked this), as often I can hear myself twice, once when I ask a question and once on the candidat's side. There will always be a time lag, and this is extremely distracting.

I have a question regarding a skype interview ?

In case the webcam option is not there, is it still possible to have an interview on skype (I know it tantamounts to a telephonic conversation) ?

Would schools entertain such interview ?

my interview with ceibs happened without a webcam. I had a webcam but due to slow internet speed, the webcam stopped working.

I dont think any school purposefully does interview without webcam.

I agree with Aviroop - but each school may have its own policy...

I laughed out loud for the example.

Hey the tip sure were awesome.....
Thanks a lot for the help...
Wish I could figure out what I did wrong during all my interviews
Hope the others reading this make it thru to their prospective schools

This be golden
What happened to him btw???
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He didn't receive an offer from that particular institution. From what I recall, the pants question adversely affected his confidence level during the interview. I'm not sure how big of an influence these issues had on the interviewer's decision, but it most likely hurt his chances.

I suppose that the lesson here is to do everything possible to ensure a successful interview. Half measures leave you vulnerable.

I had an interview on Skype recently. Luckily there were no drops in call/video quality etc.

It also helped that I used my iPhone earphones (since they have a mic in them), to do the call. I wore a white shirt with my suit so it could be concealed fairly well. Even if you don't/can't conceal them, it should not be a problem as they're not as distracting as a headset.

This tip won't apply to everyone but it sure helped me. Good luck

Instead of complicating the matter further, let me siplify the things.

Treat SKYPE interview same as face to face interviews, so dress properly.

Test connectivity, voice and video quality before you can act.

Test lighting

Ensure you are having the best posture

Can try some test voice and video quality check

Follow common mannerism

Thats all, it is not rocket science.

MAKE SURE YOUR CAMERA AND SCREEN ARE EYE CONTACT SO YOU CAN LOOK AT THE PERSON ON SCREEN AND AT THE CAMERA AT THE SAME TIME, SO IT MAINTAINS EYE CONTACT WITH THE INTERVIEWER AT ALL TIMES. MOST PPL ARE LOOKING DOWN, NOT MAKING EYE CONTACT BECAUSE THEIR LOOKING AT THE INTERVIEWER ON THE SCREEN.

OR JUST BOOK THE FLIGHT TO GO TO THE SCHOOL FOR THE INTERVIEW IF ITS NOT TOO FAR. (EX IF I WAS IN NEW YORK, ID FLY TO USC FOR MY INTERVIEW.)

Can you please share your wisdom on writing etiquette?

good points to know
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