Interview Question: Why do you do Quizbowl? etc.

[Coldblueberry]

Looking for some ideas on how to present this as an activity.

I enjoy QB because of its competitive and cooperative aspects and..?

Cultural literacy->not only getting references but being able to talk to people about a wide variety of subjects or at least being able to ask slightly more intelligent questions about those subjects

Inspiration to consume content->QB inspired me to read many books "for QB" but also eventually not just for QB

Any other ideas?

[Good Goblin Housekeeping]

viewtopic.php?p=277607#p277607
this thread might be useful

[J. Young]

Quiz bowl could possibly provide incentives to learn information which could be useful in an educational setting. Also many people like winning and that can drive participation.

[Steeve Ho You Fat]

I'm not sure that we can help you explain why you're passionate about something, that has to come from inside you. It sounds like you've identified several good reasons, so the most important thing is to just be able to articulate them well - don't memorize something word for word, but have a plan where you know that if it comes up, you'll remember to mention how you enjoy it because it's introduced you to books you've read that have changed your view on something, and have a couple examples in your pocket.

[Stained Diviner]

You can find some people's answers here.

[Skepticism and Animal Feed]

What is the purpose of this interview?

Regardless of what your actual reasons for liking quizbowl are, you should tailor your response to this question based on who exactly is asking you and what you want from them.

[Susan]

Regardless of what your actual reasons for liking quizbowl are, you should tailor your response to this question based on who exactly is asking you and what you want from them.

Agreed--and while it's hard to know for sure without context, I'm guessing an interviewer is going to be more interested in hearing about what your involvement in quizbowl says about your abilities and aptitudes. When I discussed quizbowl in the context of job interviews, I tended to talk about transferable skills like synthesizing and presenting information, writing clearly and editing others' writing, working with teams to meet deadlines, organizing events and managing volunteers, etc. (tailoring my emphasis depending on what kind of job I was applying for).

[Steeve Ho You Fat]

When I was applying for colleges, I framed quizbowl as a thing that let me learn a lot and was evidence that I was excited about learning things. When I was doing job interviews, I focused on leadership and communication experience I gained from it. Both strategies obviously worked pretty well.

However, to reiterate, any experienced interviewer, especially a college admissions rep who has to listen to thousands of teenagers a year talk up activities that they just do to fill their resumes, will be able to tell if you're reciting talking points or if you're actually passionate about the activity you're doing. While we can certainly suggest topics, it won't help you to say things because we say you should. Corny as it sounds, you've got to be able to speak on something that's meaningful to you, even if it's a tangential aspect of the game that isn't immediately obvious or relevant.

[marianna]

You can find some people's answers here.

Yeah, basically all of these profiles can be seen as answers to the question "why do quizbowl?". Here's another relevant thread with more possible answers.

[Coldblueberry]

Just looking for some ideas to get me thinking

thanks for the help