<p>So, I and received an email stating that some woman's an alumni and she was notified that I requested an alumni interview. But, I never requested an interview; she wants me to respond with when I will be available to go...</p>
<p>does everyone get the ability to go to an interview?
how are the people who get chosen for an interview chosen?
how influential is the interview on the overall decision?
would it be bad not to go or reply to the email? Interviews are sort of intimidating for me......how do these interviews work anyways? is it mainly about yale or what?</p>
<p>Not to go or not to reply would be BAD! Getting offered an interview does not really mean anything (most people will be administered an interview and it means that there are enough alums in your area to offer sufficient interviews)... there is no selection process for getting an interview besides sufficient alum volunteers....</p>
<p>HOWEVER.... rejecting an interview would HURT (probably kill?) your chances for Yale and for similar caliber schools without a good reason for not accepting the interview. If you are offered an interview, it is EXPECTED that you will attend. Moreover, if you don't respond the interviewer will report back to Yale saying that they were unable to make contact with you for an interview and that will look bad as well.</p>
<p>Don't fret! Interviews are not too difficult; you can practice ahead of time with friends/family/in the should if you would like. If you want to attend Yale, you'll have to be able to deal with interviews and other similar social environments (that's just the real world). Hope that helps! Be sure to be formal/polite/enthusiastic in your communication!</p>
<p>I was never called for one, but got in EA... so I don't think it will negatively affect your chances too much if you decline. Officially, according to Yale, the interview is just a no worry kind of thing... unofficially... eh... </p>
<p>Actually, I dreaded the interview myself... guess I got lucky.</p>
<p>I'm generally not very good at interviews either, but it isn't so bad. They aren't out to get you; just answer their questions (somewhat) cogently and you'll do fine. The questions will be pretty general: "Tell me about your high school/family", "What do you like to do in your free time", "Why Yale", "What specifically do you think you will you add to Yale", and the like. The interviewer should present a case for you as well as he/she can even if the interview doesn't go as well as you planned. Good luck.</p>
<p>Also the interview I don't think counts too much as long as you don't make a complete fool of yourself.</p>
<p>I disagree with Bookaysa. If you choose not to go, that won't kill your chances. Just politely decline if that's what you choose to do. Don't ignore it -- that's just rude. If one of my assigned students declined, I would only mark so without predjudice.</p>
<p>OP read the thread about RD interview advice above</p>
<p>The alumni interviews aren't terribly important in the admissions process... they're not standardized, so they don't give the admissions committee any uniform data. </p>
<p>With that said, they can help you, and if you're serious about your application i think they're worth doing. Especially if you have good people skills.</p>
<p>Declining an interview does nothing to your chances. The admissions office won't know if you didn't go because you declined or because there weren't enought interviewers.</p>
<p>Read the stickied thread RD Applicants: Interview advice.</p>
<p>If a student is offered and does really well on an interview, is that communicated to the admissions committee and does that help tip the balance in their favor? Or is it the least "weighted" factor? One of my husband's friends has interviewed for Yale (not in our area) for several years and said that last year she interviewed an amazing candidate. This friend is quite successful and not easily impressed, by the way. She gave the student the highest possible rating and was shocked when the student was rejected. Just curious as to the decision-making process.</p>
<p>jeli25: the alum must know that the one hour mtg is a tiny window and that amazing kid just didn't have enough other items that eventually tipped the committee in his/her favor. I've met an "8" (on a 1-9 scale) in this year's SCEA round-- one of the best kids I've met in many years) -- but he's been deferred and I know he may well not be admitted. I'm OK with that.</p>
<p>Supereagle: you're mistaken.</p>
<p>Y doesn't hide the fact that our interview writeups are the slimmest portion to be considered. I don't doubt that -- after all, it's only a 1 hr encounter where the student has brushed up and is trying to project the best picture possible. My assumption is that whatever I write just goes to confirm what is in the rest of the students' files.</p>
<p>However, the interviews can (and are) useful in some unique circumstances. 1) the student makes a very poor impression -- bad or inappropriate social skills (PM Northstarmom and she'll tell you a doozey), rotten attitude (yep -- the hubris of some applicants is remarkable), or other red flags (a fellow alum reported the blatant racist views of one applicant -- who was rejected).</p>
<p>2) They can provide a glimmer of objectivity in a file that may be lacking depth. Last year, two applicants from a solid urban HS in my district applied and seemed to look good (based on metrics and personal statements). However, their teacher recs, while supportive and enthusiastic, were actually rather bland and formulaic -- they really didn't give any MEAT for the file readers to push them to an ADMIT decision, although they were leaning that way. Each student rec'd very positive notes from alumni interviewers who found them to be stellar applicants. These writeups pushed the committee over any hesitation and they went with their gut and offered admits to both.</p>
<p>Folks--Please post alumni interview stuff on the thread RD Applicants: Interview Advice. I want to keep all questions related to the interviews in one place for easy reference.</p>
<p>The interview DOES have an effect. However, jeli, a single alumni interviewer doesn't see the whole pool and therefore can't make a real determination about a student. Further, because the alumni interviewer does not have access to GPA/SAT/essays, etc., they don't even have a full picture of the candidate they interview.</p>