I am junior in high school; I will be applying to Duke this fall and I wanted to get a better idea of the interview process.
I know interviews are not required, but do they enhance your overall application, and typically what kinds of questions are asked during the interview
Interviews are more of just another way to learn about the school. I believe I saw somewhere that Duke has a big number-grading system for applicants and that the interview made up part of 1 point, out of a total of 36.
I’d say take any chance you get to make a great impression. They want to like you and make sure that you’re crazy about Duke. Alums love Duke and they want to make sure you’re a fit.
My son was accepted and never got a Duke interview…he was shocked to be accepted since we are in an area where others got interviews.
I think being authentic is very important on interviews! The other interviews my son went on were very relaxed and conversational. No on the spot difficult questions.
The alumni interviews are more a way to keep the alumni engaged than they are an admissions tool. I’ve heard of some of these where the alumni interviewer talked the whole time. As a top 10 school, Duke receives far more qualified applications than they can accept. Most alumnis will assume, correctly, that the applicant is more than qualified to attend and will probably be focused on providing information. If the alumnis themselves are evaluated, it would most likely be on their “yield” compared to other alumni interviewers. That is, they want whoever they interview to enroll at Duke if accepted, instead of UPenn or Brown or one of their other choices.
Same. I got interviews from many other schools, even online ones, except Duke. I thought I wasn’t going to get in since I live in NC. I guess as long as everything else in your application shows your dedication and personality the interview itself isn’t always a major factor. From the interviews I’ve been to, usually they ask you to highlight things/qualities about you that maybe didn’t show up, like your interests, background, etc. It’s also a really great opportunity for you to ask questions and learn more about the school from alumni. If you do get an interview I strongly recommend doing it.