<p>I called Harvey Mudd for campus tour. They set this up, but asked a question if I my D was interested in a meeting/interview w/ an admission councellor (I am not sure of the exact words). At this point, the intent of her visit is to research different colleges to explore and figure out what she wants. Meeting w/ an admission councellor is a good of achieving this provided it is not evaluative in nature. Question: do you know what the primary purpose of these meetings/interviews is ? Are there two kinds: infomative vs evaluative ? Even if it is not evaluative, will it hurt her if she is not prepared ? I understand the be-yourself part, but I expect her to change from the beginning of this process-to-the-end after she has some ideas of what she wants. Advice appreciated.</p>
<p>Here is one parent's opinion. Hopefully, you'll get some others.</p>
<p>From what I recall second hand of S1's visit/interview (2 summers ago), it was both informative/evaluative. He knew next to nothing about the school before we flew out for the tour and indicated that it was a fun give and take, which seemed to be focused on getting to know him and sounding him out as to why he might want to go to a school like mudd. </p>
<p>Don't know that there is much preparation that could be done for one of these. Reading the princeton review pages on the school and paying attention during the tour should do it. (In his case, it was the first out-of-town tour and first interview for a pretty uninformed student, but it didn't blackball him.)</p>
<p>The interview is highly encouraged, so if Mudd isn't in your neck of the woods, it would likely be best to grab it when she is there.</p>
<p>Thanks, Stevedad. </p>
<p>She is thinking of majoring in Math, but is not fully settled on it. She will explore that in the summer and decide. Will having an interview w/o conviction of a decided major hurt her chances at a place like HMC ?</p>
<p>i didn't know that I was supposed to schedule an interview weeks before my visit, but fortunately someone cancelled the day I was on campus. So I had zero time to prepare for the "interview" since I found out I would have one an hour before it took place. It was really just a totally casual chat where they ask what you like. Not really much to prepare...</p>
<p>She is thinking of majoring in Math, but is not fully settled on it. She will explore that in the summer and decide. Will having an interview w/o conviction of a decided major hurt her chances at a place like HMC ?</p>
<p>I would be very surprised if that made any difference. Given the number of people who change their minds during the core classes and those who come in without absolute certainty as to which particular field they are most interested in, she won't be out of the ordinary. OTOH, if she hated STEM courses and wanted to major in international relations . . . . ;-)</p>
<p>Given the core requirements, having absolute knowledge of your major doesn't make much difference during the first year (save for the one elective second semester). Thus, unlike at many schools, a student isn't expected to have made a major decision prior to matriculation.</p>
<p>Thanks, stevedad. That is helpful.</p>
<p>When I visited campus last summer, I chose not to do an interview. Partly I was nervous, and partly I was out in CA on vacation, so the day and time of my visit was a little up in the air. Instead I arranged to meet with the head of the physics department (my intended major), and grilled him about the classes, research, ect. He was absolutely fantastic, and I learned a lot more about the school from him. I wound up interviewing in the fall when the tour came to Washington DC. The interviews are very casual, but if your D's nervous, you can check the website and see if the tour comes by your town in the fall.</p>
<p>I interviewed a few days ago. They like to claim it's not "make-or-break" for the application, but that's mostly to put you at ease. Any student will do fine as long as they can discuss what they do in school, after school, and for fun. I'd recommend doing it if you visit, because it'd look worse if they think you're avoiding it than if you do a mediocre job.</p>
<p>Also, don't worry about your major. They understand that people tend to change their minds.</p>