<p>Call in an anonymous way, telling the admissions office that you want to alert them so that other students do not have to experience this interviewer. Make it clear that you are not calling on behalf of your child, but to help the university.</p>
<p>If they ask you about your child, without your prompting, then it would be okay to reveal, but you will have already made it clear that that was not your main intent.</p>
<p>rphmom,</p>
<p>This is a fact of life right now from everything I see: when youâre dealing with many, though I believe not all of, people connected with the âIviesâ youâre with individuals who believe (based on what they themselves see and/or perceive) that the world revolves around themselves.</p>
<p>And they will act accordingly. Iâm not surprised whatsoever by what youâve reported. From being a parent of two kids including one whoâs going through the college selection process right now I can fully empathize with your concerns. This is what Iâd be tempted to do:</p>
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<li><p>Perhaps look at a different school. Iâm sure your child must be quite gifted to be getting these interviews so Iâm guessing heâs got some great educational choices if they wish. However, if heâs got his heart set on this school and if you believe Godâs leading him there;</p></li>
<li><p>Determine whether this interviewer is fully representative of the administration and faculty there. My guess is that he isnât, although Iâd be surprised if there werenât more like him. If by chance you ascertain that this individual does indeed exemplify the majority of the faculty and staff of that university:</p></li>
<li><p>Keep your child lovingly grounded in wisdom. The love you have for your child is evident in your initial post starting this thread. Let your child know that, unfortunately, there are many people in the âIviesâ who believe, solely on the basis of their intellect and accomplishments, that they are superior to most of the rest of us on the planet. Let them know that with this territory (sadly) can frequently come arrogance and condescension, including a defensiveness toward any perceived challenge to their views. Let your child know that NO HUMAN BEING, regardless of his IQ, rank, training or stature, is superior to another, particularly in Godâs eyes. (Iâm speaking as an evangelical Christian here, with an eye toward our American âFounding fathersâ who drafted that wonderful document which said âall men are created equalâ.)</p></li>
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<p>And let them know that no matter how successful they get after graduation, to always treat people the way they themselves would want to be treated, loving their neighbor as themselves.</p>
<p>With that, I hope if your son goes to that school (or wherever he goes) that he has a blessed time and gains abundant knowledge AND wisdom. It seems obvious to me heâs gotten a great start in life with wonderful parents.</p>
<p>(Lest anyone think I hate Ivy league-ers, my late, wonderful cousin was a Cornell grad who became a pre-eminent photochemical engineer but was always a blessing to speak with, and I have had several enjoyable lunches with a co-worker, also a Cornell graduate, who I will always appreciate having worked with.)</p>
<p>DD had an interview with a alum who had been retired for many years and knew the school bitd. He also attended when it was all male. Seriously, did the school think this was an appropriate interviewer? They knew how old this person was and how disconnected. When D asked him about âshoppingâ (the correct term at that school, btw) for classes, he told her he thought there were a few stores close by. Yuck! We did nothing and DD was rejected. To this day, I think it was because of this interview.</p>
<p>OTamanduaâŠIt is interesting that the Ivy league people that you have knwn that did not fit the description that you mentioned in your post were from Cornell. It has been our experience that Cornell grads are the most humble of the Ivy league students.</p>
<p>rphmom: get the name of the admissions officer who covers your sonâs school from the guidance counselor and have your son call that officer; you will probably get a voicemail so he should leave enough specific info so that the officer will call you back. If what your son has reported to you is totally accurate, then I am sure the admissions officer would want to know; a second interview might be in order and now you have enough time for a second interview to be scheduled; your son might even get a phone interview with the admissions officer. At the end of the day, this interview may make no difference in the admissions decision with respect to your son - but his reporting of this situation promptly is the right thing to do, as it may well ensure that future applicants are spared the pain of interacting with such an unacceptable person. I think itâs best he makes the call since he had the experience directly.</p>
<p>he was deff trying to be different. it may not have been comfortable for you but new things never are. some alumni are âquirkyâ but I suppose he was testing your sonâs personality</p>
<p>I plowed through this whole thread and I donât think I saw one person propose an alternate viewpoint:</p>
<p>Maybe the OPâs kid is an a<strong>hole. Heaven forbid that any parent would think that their lovingly nurtured student comes across as an arrogant jerk. I suspect that an applicant that has a great interview with one school, probably has very good or at least decent interviews across the board. Everyone here is ready to go after the school LOL, yeah, great way to introduce yourself to the school by calling and **</strong>*ing about the interview.</p>
<p>There are two sides to every story.</p>
<p>If the actual interview conversation went as you posted (which is all we have to go on), it was totally out of line for the alumni to act that way. Perhaps they are new at this and/or have an odd sense of humor about how to conduct an interview. I would certainly make contact with the school and/or have the h.s. guidance counselor contact them. I will bet this isnât the only time this person will be reported if they consistently act that way. If several people independently make the same report, the college will know where the real fault lies. At the very least the college should offer the interviewer additional training on how to appropriately conduct an interview.</p>
<p>It IS possible that your son mistook humor for offense - I know, I know, itâs really difficult to accept the possibility that oneâs child(ren) is(are)not ALWAYS perfect. There have been many times that people ask me: âOh, you calling me a liarâ in a jokingly offended manner. Certainly, in a stressful situation, where we students expect utmost professionalism, it can be difficult to discern between what is a joke and what is not. You need to remember that your child responded to a perfectly reasonable question with: âIâve always liked math and science.â Not really giving the interviewer much to work with. </p>
<p>As far as the question on religion, you know, whatever. Maybe it wasnât the smartest question to ask, if it was, in fact, asked. But, at the very least, it is something that your child should consider if they are religiously devout. People take very personal sides when dealing with science and religion together. Your son needs to make sure he is applying to schools that mesh with his own personal religious beliefs. </p>
<p>My feeling is that your SON, NOT YOU, should be the one to contact his counselor if he feels that it is necessary. Your son has his experience, you only have hearsay. I would be mortified if my parents did my bidding for me.</p>
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<p>Thatâs very interesting as Iâve had the exact opposite experience. Harvard students IME tend to be the more humble and so secure in themselves they rarely even bring up the Ivy prestige factor. If anything, many actually make an effort to avoid revealing their college name as students/alums unless they are asked/prompted first as they feel unprompted namedropping(âDropping the âH-bombââ) is unseemly and a demonstration of oneâs insecurity/inadequacy. </p>
<p>If anything, the students who are more likely to make the biggest deal about Ivy prestige and worse, use it to assert their supposed âsuperiorityâ IME tend to be those attending the âlower Iviesâ like Cornell, Dartmouth, and to some extent Columbia. However, YMMV.</p>
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<p>If it was meant as a joke, that interviewer was not only unprofessionalâŠshe should also keep her day job. :(</p>
<p>Also, as someone who has met far too many students and heard horror stories of strident Profs/admins acting similarly and having a big chips on their shouldersâŠthe OPâs story is very plausible IME.</p>
<p>Definately report it, My daughter had a 5 hour interview from an older alumni for an Ivy League school, he asked a lot of really wierd and somewhat sexist questions but we chalked it up to an older man out of touch with todayâs socially acceptable topics and left it at that. Daughter is pretty confident and shrugged it off. She got into the school and the next year my son approached the man to interview him. Was told by the man that he had been taken off the list of interviewers because of complaints registered by other interviewees-he then forwarded a bunch of e-mails between himself and school regarding the issue (not really our business but he did) Bottom line, the school took the complaints of an interviewee seriously and respected the students right to not have to put up with such harrassment. They did not penalize the student for this and I think if a school did then I wouldnât want my child there anyway. By the way, this guy was an influential rich donor to this school who threatened and eventually withdrew monetary support because of the incident. So I give the school a lot of credit.</p>
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<p>Maybe the kid is a psychopathic, skin-head who spat on the floor and spouted hostilites at the interviewer. But thatâs not what was stated in the OP. Or maybe the interviewer was put off by the swastikas tattooed on the kidâs face. But that wasnât stated either. </p>
<p>Itâs easy to make make up our own facts or alternate versions of the story, but why should we? None of us were there. People here are just responding to the scenario as stated. Heaven forbid that anyone take a pausible, straightforward story at face value and offer help.</p>
<p>I am very willing to take the OPâs story at face value. It has the familiar ring of tales Iâve heard from other students who had many wonderful interviews in their admissions season, and only one that seemed very off track. Getting a degree from an Ivy, or any other institution, is not a lifelong stamp of approval. People grow and change, they develop quirks and problems and mental illness. The interviewer is not necessarily representative of the school and if he/she is really off base the school needs to know.</p>
<p>I think 5 hour interviews are, by definition, problematic!</p>
<p>Anyone who conducts a 5 hr interview as part of applying to a college must either have a lot of free time on their hands or isnât very good at interviewing. What could you possibly discuss for that long that would be of any value as a part of the application???</p>
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<p>ROFL, like anyone in real life ever uses the term âlower Ivies.â
Trying to make any gross generalization about all people who attend a given college is an exercise in futility.</p>
<p>I love you, Pizzagirl.</p>
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Hey, I use it all the time, along with other useful phrases like âthe little peopleâ and âthe common folkâ and âthe servant class.â</p>
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<p>Clearly you donât know many Dartmouth students and alums. Self importance is very uncool at D. That was my observation when I had friends there in the seventies, and it is my observation now that my son is there. </p>
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<p>:D</p>
<p>Tell Cornell to stop sending Ann Coulter to alumni interviews.</p>