How to Prepare for the Interview Portion of Pageants

In the world of pageantry, the interview portions can play an integral part of whether or not the contestant brings home the crown or is 1^st runner-up.

There are four basic types of interviews:

- One on one

- Panel Interviews

- Group interviews

- On stage Interviews

In the one on one interview the contestant rotates from one judge to the next on an individual basis. She usually spends 3-5 min per judge and can either be sitting directly in front of the judge or standing behind a podium.. If seated she should wait until she ask to be seated and then sit in an upright position with her ankles crossed. When standing behind a podium , she should always stay behind the podium not veering of to either side. She should keep her arms above the podium top and although she can lightly rest her hands or arms on the podium top, she should never lean on the podium.

With a panel interview , the same rules apply in either the standing or sitting position. A panel of judges usually consist of 3-5 judges who ask various questions, usually based upon an information sheet that they have been given to them by the director, Each director has their own way of how the panel of judges with the two most common ways are1) The designated head judge starts off the questing with each judge then following with their question until the contestant time is ended, These judges usually have the opportunity of asking two - three questions in the allowed time limit. 20 The judges may ask questions at random until the contestants time limit is ended .The Miss America, and Miss Universe are more well known for this type of interview as well as the top 5 utilizing the final on stage interview.

In the group style sitting, usually 3-5 contestants are brought in together and the judges again have their option of random questing or going down the line. .Many of the younger contestants feel more at ease with this type of questing as they do not feel as intimated and are less nervous. The Cinderella and The Cover Miss Pageant system are two of the more popular pageants that use this type of interview.