How important are interviews , especially if a “reach” school says they are only “evaluative.”? Also, should we do these interviews in the summer, when my kids have time, or in the fall AFTER they have applied, so the admissions officer “remembers” them (and when a last impression may count more)? Schools we are looking at for interviews are COrnell (Hotel), Colgate, William & Mary, Duke and Wake Forest. Please advise.
When interviews are conducted varies based on school. William and Mary strongly recommends that if you choose to interview, you schedule one for over the summer. I did an interview there last summer. A visit to the respective school’s websites should provide you with the information you need. I see that Duke does interviews with alumni based when you submit the application. For most colleges interviews are optional. I think that they generally help the school get a better impression of a prospective student and vis versa.
Hope this helped!
I actually didn’t do any interviews for any schools (except for a trustee scholarship which was over Skype) - I applied to most of the ivies and most top tier schools. It didn’t affect my decision, I think. I’m sure making a good impression in the interview would help, though, but it certainly wasn’t a factor for me (except, maybe, for MIT)