I pretty much agree with everything else you said in the post, and I have found your posts to be very helpful in general. It was just the December thing. Like you said, if it was just your continuing strong desire to attend LOCI, they know and expect that, and I don’t think sending that December 20th, January 3rd or January 15th is going to make too much of a difference. If the applicant is reporting some new amazing accomplishment on December 17th, then wouldn’t the applicant have been better off reporting that before the REA decisions came out? In terms of new results, I think different things can have different levels of significance depending on the applicant (were they a soft reject or in a subcategory, and the applicant has no way to know that) - but I agree, winning a school level or district level or probably even state level award isn’t going to impress at this stage - whether academic, athletic or artistic (performing or visual).
That is interesting that you say it is more likely academics that gave them some pause. I just assumed most people who applied REA were 4.0 UW GPA, 10+ AP classes, mid 1500 or higher SAT scores. If those academics give them pause that is kind of scary in and of itself.
So, I guess I agree that if you have nothing significant to add in your LOCI, the earlier the better. If you are waiting for results from something significant (national/international level award, publication), then wait for that. If it doesn’t come through you have lost time, but if it does you have something meaningful to add to your letter.
At the end of the day, like you said, it is an uphill battle. Good luck to all
I simplified my reply because anything an applicant can do to feel better about a very challenging process is useful in its own right. Be hopeful, but also clear-eyed, and keep a broad set of college options across a range of selectivity in play.
If you are a plausible candidate for Harvard, you will almost certainly attend an institution that you will find a rewarding experience, even if it’s not Harvard. In fact, an alternative might turn out to be a better fit.
Mine had her interview today. Went pretty well looks like. From what she gathered by talking to her interviewer is, Harvard doesn’t offer interview to everyone. One of her friends has applied as well, he didn’t get one. Not sure if it’s true. Any suggestions?
Some countries which are not listed on the Harvard list will not get interviews as they have stated on the website, as there are no alumni interviewers in those locations, but one supposes applicants from those countries will still be in the running.
From whatever I’ve read, I believe those interviewed are not short-listed candidates at all. Its just a matter of applicants: alumni interviewer ratio.
I’ve seen a youtube video of a senior Princeton alumni interviewer who admitted that of the kids he thought were a perfect fit for Princeton, very few got in - which implies that for Ivys, alumni interview reports cannot sway acceptance.
Traditionally, Harvard’s goal is to have an admissions interview for every domestic applicant, typically by alumni. With the surge in application volume, this is not always possible anymore. The situation for foreign applicants differs by country. Lack of an interview is unlikely to sway a case one way or another for the simple reason that having an interview is unlikely to sway a case one way or another.
Because of the proliferation of applications in recent years, admissions will assign an Interview Profile Number (IPN) if requested to do so by the alumni schools committee chair in high-volume locations. If requested, the applicants within the area of that alumni association will be assigned a number ranging from 1 (interview ASAP) to 4 (no additional information needed.) Note that being assigned a 4 could mean an applicant is already out of the running, but it also could mean an applicant is so strong that an alumni interview is superfluous and can be skipped if the school’s chair feels interviewers are in short supply.
Historically, the least discriminating component of a Harvard applicant’s case is the alumni rating. Harvard alumni generally really like applicants. Alumni, for example, are over ten times more likely to give an applicant a personal rating of 1 (which is the highest) than the applicant’s own school counselor. A further example: admissions gives fewer than 5% of applicants an overall rating of 1 or 2. In contrast, Harvard alumni give more than 50% of applicants they interview an overall rating of 1 or 2. For this and other reasons, Harvard alumni interviews are a heavily, but not totally, discounted component of a typical applicant’s case. In general, they are a confirming factor for a decisions largely already formed in admissions (and of course, most Harvard admissions decisions are to reject or waitlist candidates, meaning that applicants with enthusiastic alumni interview reports are also usually rejected or waitlisted.) In the rarest cases, an interview might cause the AO to give the application a second look.
So: no reason to stress about the interview, factors are largely out of an applicant’s hands by this point.
applicant from OC, CA here. i applied on 12/16, got confirmation that I would get an interview from the harvard club of socal on 12/17 and my interviewer reached out on 1/6 so I wouldn’t worry too much, seems like it takes a while even if I applied well before the deadline!
oh yeah that makes sense. I just thought it would be by the time u applied bc of how fast the harvard club reached out (almost less than 12 hours after I submitted my app)
I don’t know how much it mattered, but when my kid saw their file, the notes from both admissions officers were, “Looks good. Waiting for feedback from the interviewer.” So clearly, they put some value on what the interviewer had to say.
Procedurally, it is strongly preferred to have the interview done before the full committee sessions. Unless the comments in the file were more specific, it could be just that…or it could be that, indeed, something was missing about the case that they hoped to glean from the interview…or my guess from what you have shared about your child, it could be that they loved your child and wanted to assemble as much anecdotal support as they could get to mount a successful case in the full committee (which they did!)
There is seldom any way to know for sure in individual cases short of direct comments in the file. Generally, however, it is as I have described: the alumni interviews are the least consequential component of most cases. Alumni love about half of the applicants we interview. Harvard, in contrast, ends up loving far fewer (3.4% last year.)
I’m a bit worried because I haven’t received an interview request. I applied on January 1st, like many of my friends, and out of all of us who applied I’m the only one who hasn’t been given an interview request.
I’m generally worried because I haven’t been requested for an interview from all my schools I applied for regular decisions, 8 of which have interviews.
I know it’s out of my hands but it’s still worrisome.
I’m just worried because I know many people who have received interview requests from Harvard, UPenn, Northwestern, etc, and we all applied around the same time.
I’m generally a stronger candidate so it might mean that they like me enough, but it could also mean I’m out of the running already.
