<p>My son has decided to apply ED. Brown is the only school he loved enough to make that kind of commitment. (And yes, we’re concerned, but are helping him find other schools that he will be happy to attend, because he’s not likely to get in.) His scores and GPA are all within range for Brown, but his GC says he really needs to find schools where the interview matters a lot. Is Brown one of these?</p>
<p>He’s a very quirky, interesting kid, but doesn’t have a lot of shiny awards to make him stand out. He interviews very well, however, so if there’s hope for him, that’s it!</p>
<p>The interview cannot compensate for weaknesses in an application or invalidate strong points in an application. In the rare instances where an applicant is rude or other-worldly charismatic, the interview report might make the Committee take another look.</p>
<p>This sort of has to be the case because the interviewers are volunteers who have individualized, not standardized criteria for assessment. The interviewing program is run by the Alumni Association, not the Admissions Office, although the reports of course do go to the Admissions Office.</p>
<p>I would be interested to learn about schools where the interview matters a lot, as suggested by the cited guidance counselor.</p>
<p>Massmomm, every school annually completes something called the Common Data Set. Many schools have this on their website (google “common data set” and school name, or look for the school’s institutional research webpage). If you look at the admission tab, there is a chart where schools rate how important various factors are to admission. The interview is one of those factors. </p>
<p>You don’t need shiny awards to be accepted to selective schools. There are many other ways to attract the attention of admissions officers. What’s important about the interview is not that a kid “interviews well,” but that they have something interesting to talk about. You might want to read the thread about interview FAQs at the top of this forum for more info about the interview process.</p>
<p>agree fully with F&R: my alma mater sees the interview report as just another set of eyes and ears on the student and an opp for the student to convey anything outside of what was already submitted. I basically tell interviewees that unless they plan on stabbing me across the cafe table during the course of our interview, they have nothing to be worried about.</p>
<p>Thanks, all. I’m familiar with the Common Data Sets. This is our second time through the process, although it is our first time being so engaged with it., as our daughter did the whole thing herself. We just paid for it!</p>
<p>I have read what colleges say about the weight of the interviews, but had the impression that some schools consider it more strongly than others, in a way that can’t necessarily be measured. Wellesley, for example, (where my D is a student) puts a lot of weight on what the interviewer reports about the candidate. A good interviewer can add another dimension to the applicant (for example, quickness of thought or a sense of humor that doesn’t always translate to paper.) I think this is what our GC meant.</p>
<p>I think there are schools where the interview can have an impact and most of those indicate that the interview is “evaluative” on the CDS. Unfortunately, Brown is not one of those schools. The schools where it matters tend to be LACs where the student body is a smaller group and there’s more focus on the personalities and character of the people who fill their classes.</p>
<p>It sounds like your GC feels that your son’s personality is a winning factor that can’t be easily translated to paper. Good for him! That’s a real positive. </p>