FTC FIRST Summer Conference: Gearing Up Mad Interview Skills

FTC Summer Webinars 2014FTC Summer Webinars 2014

Gearing Up Mad Interview Skills

• Team judging interviews can be a mystery for rookie teams -- and for many experienced teams and mentors as well!

• We will discuss 5 steps that can help you improve your team interview skills and preparation.

Host: Gigi Johnson, EdD, Exec. Director, Maremel InstituteJudge and Judge Advisor, Los Angeles FTC Region(Emcee in the Dragon Costume, LA Region and West Super-Regionals)

FTC Summer Webinars 2014

Learning to Interview: A Lifelong Skill

• Aspects match “real life” interviews, including Group Interviews

• Impressions are made in the first few minutes

• Understanding your story is vital


5 ElementsUnderstand Your Own Story and Strengths

Realize that Judges Want

to Be Your Fans

Make It Easy to Tell Your

Story

Understand the Judging

Day

Listen, Learn, and Review


#1: Understand Your Own Story and Strengths

• What makes you Different?• What is your Story?• How do you explain the

path of learning that you have been on?

• What can you give judges that they can REMEMBER about you that matches the criteria for the awards?


Planning: What Can Be Shared in 10-15 Minutes?

• Thinking about your stories AND the award descriptions – what matches? What judging criteria are available?

• Spreading the wealth among team members

• Balancing planning and being too scripted• Thinking ahead about key questions• Designing around proof: evidence-based

stories• Planning visuals, including what to bring

with you (including any tech elements, e.g., laptop)


#2: Judges Want To Be Your Fans• Judges want to support the

teams they interview in their room – they are ready to be your booster!

• They WANT you to tell them all the things that you have done and so they can represent you well to the rest of the judges

• With rookie teams, judges may step in and question more to find the rich story elements


Goals Differ

Judges’ Goals

• How to understand or coax a story in 10 minutes

• Understand team based on their own experiences and understanding of FTC

• Match teams to award descriptions

• Keep all the information straight!

Team’s Goals

• Building fans and telling a story that can be shared onward

• Being remembered in a busy, full day

• Getting “everything” across in 10-15 minutes


Your Head Game• Getting in the right head

space that morning• Energy – just the right

level; food and fuel• Body language – yours

alone, your to each other, the Judges’

• Eye contact


That Interview• Reading the room and judges – each judging

panel has different experiences and expectations

• Sharing the story across the team – not a “one-man band”

• Being ready to “pivot” and shift conversation – keeping team eye contact with each other to more easily change direction

• Closing the story -- things to keep in mind• “Is There Anything Else You Want to Share?” –

Story Nuggets (1-2 minute sub-stories that provide examples) at the ready for evidence that has not yet been shared


#3: Make It Easy to Tell Your Story• Judges see 6-8 teams in a row• Judges THEN meet with other judges

to pitch your team for awards• How can you make it easier?• Pre-plan repeatable, memorable

story elements and examples • PRACTICE with different people who

don’t know you – then have them write down what they think and remember


#4: Understand the Judging Day• Interviews start the

nomination process for awards

• After nominations, judges split up to confirm strengths of nominated teams

• Some judges review all of the Engineering Notebooks, while others make pit visits and/or watch the play on the field


Understand the Flow of the Day• Interviews: First Impressions

• Meetings of Judges: • Nomination Process; Convince Others

• Screen and Affirm• Notebook Review Period (screen and

celebrate) – subgroups• Pit Visits: Affirm Nominations, Seek

Alternatives

• Meetings: Review and Reflect• Different by Region and

Championship (1 vs 3+ days)


Role of the Engineering Notebook• There is a mystery behind the

Engineering Notebook – and what it DOESN’T do

• The Notebook is needed for many awards, and may be used to confirm details for awards

• A subcommittee screens and selects for Think – a subset of judges will have reviewed your Notebook


Role of Pit Visits

• Judges visit pits to confirm and expand nominations

• What is this judge aiming to do?Listen carefully to their questions and if you aren’t clear – ask. Are they interested in outreach? Technical/design?

• Be interested and helpful but be mindful of the judges’ need to visit many teams


#5: Listen, Learn, and Review

• Learning for next time – what did you think happened and what would help you learn?

• Self-review


Parting Suggestions• FTC Mentors can/should volunteer

as a Judge early in their own experiences to understand the backside of the process AND see the variety of other team experiences

• FLL Mentors can/should volunteer as an FTC Judge (and volunteer at competitions) as well


QUESTIONS AND THOUGHTS?What have been YOUR experiences?

FTC FIRST Summer Conference: Gearing Up Mad Interview Skills

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Transcript of FTC FIRST Summer Conference: Gearing Up Mad Interview Skills