<p>Does anyone know if applying by October 15th will actually get you an advantage in the process?
And by that I mean, has anyone called the admissions office and asked?</p>
<p>I went to an admissions representative’s presentation and the woman told me that it really is just to help organize your application so that they can get your interview scheduled more quickly. If you wait till the last minute to submit you probably will not get an interview scheduled till late november. But seeing as how Harvard has no rolling admissions they only evaluate applications after the deadline.</p>
<p>However, it is commonly assumed that they review apps in the order in which they were received. So if your application comes before an eager, fresh reader it might garner more attention and favor than an app read in the thick of the officers’ deadline.</p>
<p>It is true that the appplicants will get more attention from a pair of fresh eyes :-). However, there is a proven benefit of going late in the competition when the judgement is largely subjective. The analogy would be figure skating. Skating last or near last normally bring an extra 0.1 point under the old 6.0 system.</p>
<p>One caveat about the interviews-- If Harvard is a top choice for you, try to schedule at least one other interview earlier, so you will have some idea of what to expect and feel a little more relaxed. (Not doing this was one mistake my DS made with his EA application.)</p>
<p>What did your interviewer say about your chances to Harvard?
- You fit in Harvard
- You will thrive in Harvard
- There are a lot of other schools you may fit in
- Harvard is very hard to get in</p>
<p>“What did your interviewer say about your chances to Harvard?”</p>
<p>Your interviewer has not the slightest idea about your chances. And it would be very poor form to tell the student anything along these lines.</p>