How to act in a college interview: tone and enthusiasm

RReaders in Stanford's admissions office noticed a pattern in interview reports: teenagers in interviews tend to be overly eager to please. The voice rises, the smile widens, and every answer ends in how much the student loves the college. Interviewers find it uncomfortable, and in the worst cases it reads as fake.

Students prepare for interviews by thinking about what to say, and far fewer think about how they will sound, which is where many otherwise strong applicants lose ground. The students who try hardest to please are often the ones who leave the weakest impression. The tone that works is narrower than most of them expect.