Interview Questions

Back when we lived in Wiang Kaen, there was a teenager who was particularly motivated to learn English. Lai was a Hmong girl who lived about 12 kilometers up the valley from us.

Us with Lai while she was at university

Lai's motivation was this: she wanted to apply for a scholarship for which only a handful of people from across Thailand would be selected. The scholarship would allow her to attend a special high school in Central Thailand, that was under the patronage of the Princess, for her senior year. It would also include university studies in India or Thailand.

As part of the application process for the scholarship, Lai had to do an interview in English. She asked for help preparing for this, so I tried to think up kinds of questions they might ask. I don't remember what was on the list, but it was probably things like, "What hobbies do you have?" and "What are your strengths and weaknesses?" I had her write out the answers in English, then I helped her correct any language issues. When she came back from the interview, she was all excited. She was the only applicant that did the interview entirely in English. She said that all the questions they asked were on the list that I made up for her, except for one. That question was, "What would you do if you got pregnant while living in India?" Now why didn't I think of that?

Lai won her scholarship, and while she was studying her senior year in high school, she was one of six students who appeared on national television with the princess. In the end she opted to do her university studies in Thailand, because she could find a better program for what she wanted to study than in India.

I praise God for the wisdom He gives us to be able to help people like this. As we read in James 1:5 (ESV), "If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him."