I applied to Northwestern as early decision.
but I checked my email late and I missed the deadline for the interview sign ups…
are interviews a big factor in admissions??
Im crying
No, it won’t hurt you. Interviews are more about keeping alums involved and donating money to the college than any “real” evaluation of the applicant. Most colleges cannot provide alum interviews for all applicants therefore would be unfair to place much emphasis on the alumni report for applicants that are able to do an interview but others cannot do the interview since there are not enough local alums in applicants geographical area.
You can stop crying now. But maybe learned a lesson to check your emails/portals frequently once applications are submitted.
Good luck!
For Northwestern, interviews are in the considered category on Common Data Set. That is the same group as first gen and level of interest. Of course that doesn’t imply that they are equal. There can be a lot of variance within a group since there are only 3 groups that have impact.
For others reading this thread, don’t generalize importance across schools. For example, Georgetown puts interviews in the important category.
This is very school dependent. There are schools where the interview is an evaluative portion of the admissions process and is absolutely more than a dog and pony show.
Northwestern specifically is evaluative but also optional. So missing it isn’t as important as at the 7 Ivy’s where it is Evaluative and required.
Links tend to cause issues with responses posting - Google “The Complete List of Colleges That Require Interviews” for details.
The higher the tier, the more important. There’s a thread now about not responding to an interview contact. Not all are informational.
Have you considered responding now?
Here’s what NU says about their interviews: https://admissions.northwestern.edu/apply/admission-interviews.html
Which 7 Ivies are “requiring” interviews???
Yale website “An interview is not a required part of the application process”
Princeton website “Interviews aren’t required as part of the admission process”
Cornell website “Once you apply to Cornell, an alumnus or alumna in your area may contact you to schedule a time to talk. While this optional, informal conversation helps the admission committee get to know you better, its main purpose is to give you an opportunity to ask any questions you may have about Cornell. THIS MEETING DOES NOT SERVE AS AN ADMISSIONS INTERVIEW” (emphasis added)
Dartmouth website “Interviews Are Optional”
***I could go on but as I stated above the alumni interview for almost all colleges is more about the alumni staying connected to the college than it is about evaluating prospective student applicants.
Can’t generalize. Top colleges like an “eyes on” report. At best, it adds dimension to an applicant, more than just the submitted portions can.
So did OP "miss my interview, " as in the thread title? Or miss the deadline to request one?
I don’t think the interviews can be required. But just like SAT Subject tests or AP classes., if they are available and a person does not take advantage of them, that could be a red flag in the application. And if not available, then not having one will not be held against the applicant. A person with no financial hardship can be admitted without taking SAT subject tests, but it is not probable.
If you look up each school’s admissions, they do say “not required” but from 4 Ivy league schools that I just queried, I found “… you will not be at a disadvantage if an interview is not available in your area.” , “encourages you to take advantage” , “offered in-person or virtually” and " Interviews are also evaluative."
My advice to my kid was that is he was going spend time and mental energy to apply, write essays, pay for transcripts and tests, and ask for LOR for a reach school, he needed to do everything he could to give himself the best chance possible.
Doing an interview can show a higher level of interest, but if you are already applying ED, then that may not be the main issue. There could be other reasons why doing an interview may be favorable (or unfavorable) for you.