Preparing For The IIMC Interview

Andrew Amsan (IIMC, Kottayam | 2013-2014) work as a sports writer with The Sunday Guardian. He loves music and food.

First of all congratulations on clearing the written test. Now the next step would be to prepare for the interview. I have a few tips which should come in handy during your interview.

Read the day’s newspaper: Give special emphasis on the lead story. Do some research on the lead story. Try to formulate opinions based on facts  by referring other newspapers and the internet of course.

Current affairs: Keep yourself up to date with all the latest happenings. Keep an eye on news that is trending. An easy way to do that is to visit news.google.com. You’ll find all trending news items here. If you’re already doing it then you are on the right track.

Sound genuinely interested and not desperate: What I mean here is to act normal and not over exaggerate.

Here is an example which will help you understand what I mean:

A)  Sir I’ve  always wanted to be a journalist. Whenever I see Barkha Dutt reporting, I imagine myself in her place. I want to bring great changes to the society by becoming a journalist. I want to empower the oppressed.

B)  I am intrigued by the process. I love to keep myself update with the current affairs. My area of interest is International affairs. I want to pursue this interest at a higher level by becoming a journalist.

Hope you’ve got my point.

Keep calm: It’s an interview not an interrogation. Be clear in what you want to say. You can always disagree with something an interviewee says, provided you have solid enough reason.

Fake victory sign:  This is something I saw on nat geo , hence the credit goes to them. While you are waiting for your turn to come, just take a moment for yourself and go somewhere no one can watch you, ideally the washroom and raise your hands as if you’ve won a race or scored a goal.

This fake victory expression reduces stress and helps you perform better.

Finally:  All the best, hope to see you in one of the centers of IIMC. And even if you don’t get through, remember, great journalists have come up without any formal training.