Hi all :)
I have an interview for Plymouth Unviersity on Friday, and a interview for Southampton in 2 weeks time. Just wondering if anyone had any tips or guidance (general or specific)? Also if anyone on here was also attending?
The Plymouth University will start with viewing a video on service users and carers, and a discussion around the video. I've heard that the video has recently been shown on television, but that's all the information their releasing.
At the Southampton interview I have to make a two minute presentation on a case study that I have been given, it involves famalies schools and children (which is the area I'm most passionate about) and I believe section 17 of the children act. I've done a small amount of practice and research on this with a (very) recently retired social worker, and I'm thinking of bringing in printed information as well as my speech as two minutes isn't that long - does anyone think that's a good/bad idea?
Also would it be a mistake to mention that I am particularly interested in the area of family schools and children in the individual interview?
Any help would be greatly appreciated, thank you :D
hey. I have sent you a friend request / message. good luck with the interviews.
Hi There!
I also have an interview for Southampton in 2 weeks so I guess I will see you there!!
Hey There!
I believe I have the same interview date at Southampton as you do for the Social Work MA course. I plan to bring stuff with me to the interview in addition to my presentation so I think it should be alright! See you there!
good luck for your interview tomorrow Kate!
Hi Kate,
I have an interview at Plymouth for the MA next Friday 12th March. How did yours go? I feel very nervous as I've already had an interview and failed to get into Bristol.
Any tips about the interview for plymouth, it'd be a great help!!
Thanks ;-)
That's good to know! I've had such a hard time getting all the information down to the two minute slot!
Good luck :) and looking forward to meeting you :)
Marmaduke:
Good luck :) you'll be fine, first tip would be not to be nervous (I know it's a lot easier said than done!) but everyone at my interview was really lovely and feeling exactly the same, and the panelists were really friendly and very easy to get to know. The best advice I received was to enjoy the experience for what it is, meet the other applicants and check out the uni (it's lovely!).
Firstly you watch like a five minute video and then have to discuss it within your groups ours were of 7 people, you discuss the situation you see from the service users point of view so I think they're asking you to think of discrimination they may feel, and the support etc. they would like.
The interview questions are all personal experience questions (no scary theory questions!), the old 'why do you want to be a social worker'/'what do you think you'd find most challenging', etc. they ask all applicants the same 6 questions for equal opportunities and they are all printed on a card which you and the interviewers have., the interviewers can;t ask any extra questions which I found quite useful because they can't tie you in knots ;)
I actually also applied to Bristol but didn't even make it to the interview stage, but I have received an unconditional from Plymouth so I reckon they're probably looking for different things - hope that makes you feel a bit better!
Hope this advice is OK, sorry for rambling on and good luck! :)
Kate,
Thanks so much for the advice! makes me feel much better about it!! i'll let you know how i get on!!
cheers!
hiya Kate!
Congrats on your offer at Plymouth!!! Is Plymouth your first choice?
Look forward to meeting you as well at Southampton! Hopefully everyone will be as lovely as they were at your Plymouth interview!
Marmaduke: yes please let me know how you get on :)
Tofubitz: Thank you :) I'm really chuffed! But it does feel slightly unreal!
Unfortunately Bristol was my first choice :( Southampton and Plymouth are sort of the same in my book, Southampton seems to be the one offering the better course...
Just to check I haven't gone completely wrong your answering the five questions on the back of the case study (what are your main responsibilities/what issues of discrimination etc.) in the two minute presentation right?
hey Kate!
No probs, it's always nice to hear that someone got into a course they wanted! So congrats again :)
yes, I am answering the five questions, or should I say attempting to...it's so hard to fit everything into 2 minutes!!!!!! It's really been a struggle haha. Can't believe the interview is in a few days! ahh! you should be set though as you'v been through one already, this will be my first!
:)
Mines two and a half minutes long, I'm hoping that's OK! I can't imagine anyone sitting there with a timer saying 'times up' if you go over!
However I'm also including about 4 sides of typed A4, with assessment tools, and possible service organizations so I'm hoping I don't get marked down for that!
Hello Kate,
I met you yesterday-I was in your group (lady with the brightly coloured shoes!). How did you feel about the day? I think the group presentation/interview was okay but unsure on how I did on the written test.
Hello, i was at the southampton interview on wednesday (in group c) and found out yesterday i got in how did you lot get on?
Hiya! I was at your interview (in group A though, not C) and found out yesterday that I got in as well :) Hope to see you on the course!
Yep got in too :)
Sunderland-Chick I was in group C as well :)
great stuff! my name is helen, i was sat on the very end with a gray top, on i spoke about question 4!i cant remember bright coloured shoes, sorry.
all very exciting! all about getting everything else sorted!
I was the one with the same name and surname initial ;-)
Hey!
I have an interview for the Ma at Plymouth in 2 weeks. Just wondering what to expect really, is there anything I could read to prepare a bit for the group interview/ guidance on the individual interview?
I really wasn't expecting to even get an interview as I'm still at uni and am worried the experience I have (mostly voluntary) will not give me enough to talk about.
Also, any suggestions what to wear...?!! I don't want to go too formal, but likewise I dont think jeans and a hoodie would go down too well!!
Thanks!!
Hi, I think I was at the interview day with you on 10th March at Southampton, I got accepted- but I was in group B, are you going to accept your place? I've accepted mine. Thought it might be nice to get to know some faces before we go?
Jess
Hey everyone and congrats to everyone who attended the Southampton day and got accepted! I have a conditional offer (I think stuff on my CRB needs clearing up) TBH I'm not sure if I'm going to accept it if it comes back unconditional - despite the fact that all the academics etc. were lovely and approachable I didn't like the way the interview day was handled one bit, they didn't seem to be interested in me as an individual or what I wanted to get from them, just what I could give them - if that makes any sense... the Plymouth interview day was really lovely and relaxing and they really encouraged group bonding so I may just be unfairly comparing it.
Helen - congratulations :D I really thought you made some absolutely brilliant points in the group discussion and that you are going to make a fantastic social worker!
I'm sorry I don't remember the brightly colored shoes or the same name and surname initals...which question did you answer?
AliceH - you sound exactly the same as me! hehe! What sort of voluntary experience do you have? All my experience is voluntary, and there were 3 people on my interview day who were in their third year of undergrad, unfortunately I don't know how they got on but they seemed like very strong candidates. I was worried about my 'pre course expereince' and spoke to a BASW rep, who's specifically involved with education and she said that she feels like any ort of work dealing with people is 'relevant expereince' especially if you're dealing with people in different emotional states. Bristol sent me a fantastic and very detailed description of what they thought made relevant experience if you want I can locate it I think...
Advice for the day is it was literally about you and how you feel your experience/personality is going to help you achieve the qualification and perform well as a social worker, also the things that you feel you may have difficulty with and find challenging. Our group discussion was completely led by us, after watching a very short video clip. We literally had to put ourselves in the shoes of the people in clip so I guess it was quite a lot about empathy, our group made the good point that we wouldn't want to take something as short as the clip and form judgements about it as it felt a bit like 'judging a book by it's cover'. My main advice is just try to enjoy the day for what is and meet everyone - they really encouraged bonding between the participants which was lovely. As for what to wear, I was worried too! I asked a social worker I now and she said to dress formally because part of being a social worker is knowing when to dress up (for court etc.) and when to dress down. I wore a suit skirt, a suit jacket just a regular top (nota blouse!) and court shoes and felt pretty much the same as everyone else! During our 'introductory talk' at Southampton the lady said that we should be aware of cleavage! As sservice users were on the panel too!! All the applicants adjusted their tops!
Hope that advice helps, all the best and let me know how you get on :)
Hi Alice,
Firstly experience is experience whether it be paid or not. There were a few people with voluntary experience at my interview yesterday.
The day is very nice and relaxed, you start of with an introduction to the course and the placement aspect. Everyone is really lovely and friendly and make you feel very at ease. The video clip is about 5-10 mins long then the group is split into smaller groups to discuss, which is good as it gives you more chance to shine. I just tried to remember to let others voice their views and opinions and respond in a constructive way even if you don't agree with what they are saying. You are asked to talk about the clip from the service users point of view, it is not about right and wrong but about being thoughtful and open minded. I enjoyed this excercise.
The interview is fine. They will ask you 6 questions which are all fine and fairly easy to answer, they are most reflective and asking you to think about your experience. WARNING about one though, it tripped me up," what does discrimination mean to social work?" or something along those lines! this completely threw me for some reason, i thinks it's because it's so broad... anyway i babbled on and didn't answer it very well but hopefully it hasnt ruined it for me!!! Prepare some examples to use from your experience and try to relate them to social work, the first question will be about why you want to be a social worker... but just go with the flow. i prepared loads of notes and didn't use them, i just went with it.
I wore a stripped casual dress thing with a casual blazer, tights and flat shoes. smart casual i'd say. whatever you feel comfortable in, well to certain extent anyway!!! not pj's obv!
anyway i hope this has helped, just enjoy it. i was buzzing after mine, this is my last chance to get onto a course this year so really hoping i've done enough.
best of luck
Sarah x
I was the 'mature' student called Helen who answered the question on Michael and Mary. I haven't accepted my place yet either-going to see what the course at Portsmouth is like first, although on paper Southampton's looked better.
Heya, I was in Group C for the interview at Southampton last wednesday, and was accepted yay! I have an interview in April for Bristol University but I'm unsure whether to go or not. I really liked Southampton Uni, I love Hampshire and the course is a lot cheaper! Will see though :-)
Hi all, Southampton did look like a really nice place, but I agree about the way the interview was handled so I am going to go to pompys and royal Holloway’s interview and see what I think about all of them! :-) I think everyone in Group C did well and would be interested to see if we all got in!
Good luck everyone for your next interviews, may be we could set up a Facebook group or something. (very different from my 1st degree, when I knew no one until I met my flat mates on my 1st day).
Congrats to everyone for getting in! I was in group A but haven't heard anything from anyone in my group :( Does anyone know when we have to reply to Southampton by? I didn't see a "deadline" date on the decision letter ...
Well i have spoken with Ucas and they say i have until all the universitys have made a decision about me.
I phoned my Drs and they want £100 for my Hep B !!! Once i am deffo going to southampton i am going to try and see if they will pay for it.
Hey Kate,
Thanks so much for your help! During uni I have been trained as a mentor for 15 yr old high school students and visted them on a weekly basis with the intention of motivating them, giving them some structure to revision/work etc to help raise their grades. I spent a year being involved in a music project for severley mentally and physically disabled students aiming to give them some agency to make their own music through movement (it was picked up by a sensor and made into sound- I think I enjoy it more than the kids!), I helped run a lunchtime club at a secondary school with large numbers of students who had English as a second or third language and it aimed to improve their speech and grammar through games and other activities and this year I've helped out at a weekend club for children with autism and their families. Last summer I spent 3 weeks working in a special needs orphanage in Belarus which I'm returning to do again in July and this year I've worked as a support worker for uni. I guess they must not mind my lack of paid experience because this was all in my personaly statement so they would have known before I was offered an interview. I'll still worry though!
Thanks for the dress code! I think I'll go and treat myself to some new smart clothes, then even if I don't get in, I'll have those to be happy about!!
Hey Sarah
Thanks for the help! I'll definitely be brushing up on discrimination before I go now!
Plymouth is my last hope to get in too, but then I only applied to 2 places! If I don't get in (and I'm still not holding out a lot of hope for that... a pessimist is never disapointed!) I'm just going to work for a year, get some more experience then apply again. Hopefully that would make me a stronger candidate then and I'd have more of a chance of getting in as well as having a bit of money behind me.Coming straight from uni I think finances are going to be a bit tight!!
Thanks again, I'm quite looking forward to it now!
Alice
Just a quick question. How long did it take for Plymouth to give you a decision? I had my interview last Friday and i'm worrying myself silly waiting for an answer!!
I think my interview was ok but need to know!
Thanks
Sarah
I know how easy it is to sress :) first thing I would say is have you checked Ucas' track? I didnt know what it was at first (I thought it was spam) so didnt check it for days after! But the decision comes through on there first.
I think it took about 4 working days to come through on there, and then another week to come through in writing. At my interview they said it would take 10-14 days, so I wouldn't worry just yet :) Good luck! I've decided to make Plymouth my first choice so keeping everything crossed for the health and police checks :)
sunderland-chick: Well i have spoken with Ucas and they say i have until all the universitys have made a decision about me. I phoned my Drs and they want £100 for my Hep B !!! Once i am deffo going to southampton i am going to try and see if they will pay for it.
i told my dr i was going on holiday to Turkey - total lie - and then they did the hep a & b for free.
Hey
Just a quick question, I'm struggling to find anything to say on the: what does discrimination mean to the social worker question, does anyone have any advice or a recommendation of something I could read...?
thanks :)
Don't worry about this one too much. Basically i think if you understand the meaning of discrimation and the impact it has on social work clients i.e. segregation, isolation, lack of opportunity and independence... so on, then you will be fine. Social worker's are trying to combat discrimation.
i hope this helps and doesn't confuse u further!
i found out yesterday i got a place on the course! Best of luck for Friday.
Hi Everyone,
I had my interview for Southampton in December last year and now after my CRB check has come back ok, I have just had my place confirmed-very excited now! Congratulations to everyone who got an offer, I think it would be a great idea to start a group on facebook or just message each other occasionally. It would be really good to meet others who will be starting in September beforehand.
Byrony x
Hi All,
I am new to the website and was wondering who has accepted an offer from Southampton? I had my interview last Novemberand had my place confirmed yesterday-my CRB check came back ok so I am now very excited about it all! It would be great to get to know others who are also going to be starting this September.
Hey Sarah,
Had my interview at Plymouth on Tues. The group bit went really well but I thought I really messed up the individual bit as I got really nervous, but just checked track and I have a conditional place (probably conditional on me actually passing my first degree!) I am a little excited now :D
Thanks for everyone's help with the questions etc. Look forward to meeting some of you in September.
X
Hi Alice!
Well done on the offer, i guess i'll be seeing u in September, the 20th to be exact! yikes how scary!!! just got the bursary to apply for now but the paperwork isn't on line until May.
Take care