20 school interview questions for parents — and how to answer them

What the interview is actually for

Schools are assessing whether the family and the school will work together: your expectations, your involvement, your attitude to discipline and homework, and whether you will be a partner or a problem. They are not testing your general knowledge.

Note the law: under the Right to Education Act, schools may not screen children through tests or interviews for admission at entry level, and capitation fees are prohibited. What is allowed is an interaction with parents. If a school is testing your four-year-old on the alphabet, that is worth knowing about the school.

Practical points that matter more than the answers: arrive early, take every document in a labelled folder, both parents attend if possible, dress ordinarily, and let your child be a child. A school that penalises a shy three-year-old is telling you something useful.

About your child (1-7)

1. Tell us about your child. — They want a real picture rather than a list of achievements. Give two or three specific traits with an example: 'she is cautious with new people and warms up in about a week; she will spend an hour building things.'

2. What are your child's strengths and weaknesses? — Answer both honestly. A parent who claims no weaknesses reads as either unrealistic or unwilling to hear feedback later. Pair each weakness with what you are doing about it.

3. How does your child spend the day? — They are checking routine, screen time and play. Describe the actual day, including the screen time; every family has some.

4. Is your child toilet trained? Does she eat by herself? — Practical readiness. Answer straight, including what she still needs help with.

5. How does your child behave with other children? — Sharing, waiting, conflict. Give an example rather than an adjective.

6. What does your child enjoy? — A chance to sound like a family rather than a CV. Blocks, cricket, dancing, cooking with you, whatever is true.

7. Does your child have any medical needs or allergies? — Full disclosure, in writing as well. Withholding this to improve admission chances is a risk to your own child.

About you as parents (8-14)

8. Why this school? — Have two specific reasons drawn from that school rather than generic praise: its approach to early years, the sport programme, the distance, something you saw on the visit.

9. What are your expectations from us? — Say something reasonable and two-way: a safe environment, communication about progress, and a partnership. Avoid marks-and-rank language at nursery level.

10. How will you support learning at home? — Reading together, a routine, availability for meetings. Do not promise three hours of drilling.

11. How do you discipline your child? — They are checking for physical punishment. Answer honestly with what you use — explanation, consequences, calm-down time.

12. Who will be the primary caregiver, and who will collect the child? — A logistics question with a safety purpose. Be exact, and give the names to be recorded.

13. How much time do you spend with your child? — Working parents: answer honestly and describe the arrangement, including grandparents or help. Schools deal with working families constantly.

14. What is your educational and professional background? — Standard, sometimes uncomfortable if one parent has less formal education. Answer plainly; it is context, not a qualification test.

The harder ones (15-20)

15. What if your child does not do well academically? — The answer that lands: we will look for why, work with the school, and adjust expectations to the child rather than the other way round.

16. Do you believe in comparing children? — Say what you actually do. If the honest answer is that you sometimes catch yourself doing it, saying so is more credible than a perfect answer.

17. How do you handle screen time? — Give real limits rather than 'none'. Schools have heard 'no screens at all' from every family in the queue.

18. Will you be involved in school activities? — Say what you can genuinely commit to. Over-promising and then not appearing is worse than being upfront about a demanding job.

19. How will you handle it if we tell you something difficult about your child? — This is often the real question of the whole interview. The good answer is that you would want to hear it early, and would work on it together.

20. Do you have any questions for us? — Always have two: class size and teacher-to-child ratio, and how the school communicates with parents. Asking about safety policies and staff verification is entirely reasonable and marks you as a careful parent rather than a difficult one.

Frequently asked questions

Q: Should I coach my child for the interaction? — No, and coached children are obvious. Familiarise them with the place, keep the day relaxed, and let them behave normally. A rehearsed three-year-old who freezes is a worse outcome than an ordinary shy one.

Q: What if my child cries or refuses to speak? — Extremely common, and good schools expect it. Stay calm and do not apologise repeatedly; how you handle your child in that moment is part of what is being observed.

Q: Is it acceptable to ask about fees and increases? — Yes. Ask for the full annual cost including all heads, and what increases have been in the last three years. Capitation or donation demands are illegal, and you may decline them.

Q: Do both parents need to attend? — Where possible, yes — many schools ask for it. If one parent cannot, say why plainly; single parents and families with a parent posted elsewhere are common and schools cannot discriminate on that basis.