<p>Are you allowed to ask about your chances at a college at the end of the interview? Also, if they select you for an interview, does that mean you might actually stand a decent chance at that college, and they want to know you more?</p>
<p><em>bump</em> Anyone?</p>
<p>You can ask anything at the interview. In most colleges, including MIT, interviewed candidates are more likely to get in.</p>
<p>You can ask anything you want at an interview. Some colleges, however, like Harvard tell alum interviewers not to answer the question. That's because the alum interviewers lack accurate info to answer the question. I doubt that even the admissions officers answer the question because until all applications are in, they don't know people's chances either. </p>
<p>Different colleges have different policies about interviewing. Some like Harvard interview all applicants if there's an interviewer available. Some like, I think, Stanford don't interview anyone. For interview info, check the admissions web pages of colleges that interest you.</p>
<p>The interviewer is not supposed to discuss your chances or ask for your SAT scores or grades. There is no way an interviewer can or should access your chances. The interviewer does not sit on the admissions committee. He or she is a local interviewer in most cases who has been assigned to interview you and convey to admission officers what your interests are, your level of interest in the school, your academic curiosity, how you present yourself.</p>
<p>"The interviewer is not supposed to discuss your chances or ask for your SAT scores or grades. "</p>
<p>The above depends up the college. Harvard interviewers are not supposed to discuss chances, but are supposed to get scores, grades, senior year classes and class rank.</p>
<p>I would be surprised if they were given class rank, grades ect. I cannot imagine that is correct.</p>
<p>What about UPenn interviews? I applied ED and I would like to ask about my chances, really anxious here lol.</p>
<p>"I would be surprised if they were given class rank, grades ect. I cannot imagine that is correct."</p>
<p>She IS a Harvard interviewer.</p>
<p>Doesn't Penn, like most ivies, invite everyone to an alumni interview? If that's what it is, the interviewer will have little idea what your chances are.</p>
<p>"The above depends up the college. Harvard interviewers are not supposed to discuss chances, but are supposed to get scores, grades, senior year classes and class rank. "</p>
<p>To clarify: Harvard interviews don't get that info from Harvard, but are supposed to ask the applicants for that information. Why? Perhaps because the Harvard interviewers have to rate the students in terms of their academics. In addition, getting info like the scores probably is a way for Harvard to make sure that they have recorded the correct official scores in the official folders. It's possible that the scores that students tell interviewers are scores that are more up to date than what's in the folders.</p>
<p>suze, it's roughly 50% of those applied who are offerred interviews at Penn. That said, getting an interview doesn't mean anything; not getting one doesn't mean anything either. Some areas don't have alumni, some alumni can only do a certain number of students etc. They in no way base who gets interviews on the application of the student.</p>
<p>the interviewer might indirectly indicate your chances... i.e., when you're going back out to your dad/mom/parents/etc. and the interviewer directly talks with whomever, "he did absolutely great in his first college interview" (statement may vary, depending on where the interview is, etc.). or if you feel you've got a good enough rapport with the interviewer, you could ask him. but otherwise, don't.</p>
<p>awb,
What you're describing also may be politeness. I always try to give each student whom I interview a compliment. If I meet their parents, I also say something nice about the student. It's not hard to do this truthfully as virtually all students who apply to places like Harvard have some impressive strengths. That's even true of students who are mediocre in the Ivy pool: Such students still tend to be the cream of the crop of students applying to colleges.</p>
<p>well true, but they may also make a comment as you're walking out of the interview room. and depending on how conversational the interview is, you can generally get an idea of their impression of you... maybe not as black-and-white as "I think you'll get in" or "In addition to [name of school], you should consider other schools to apply to," but you can certainly get a general impression.</p>
<p>As an alumni interviewer for a top LAC I have never told a student anything about their chances in specific terms, other than to say in general that admissions is very competitive (which is something they should know if they've done any research at all about the college). In the process of taking my D and S to interviews, the closest I've heard to any comments on chances has come from Admissions Officers, who on a few occasions said that they were a "strong candidate." As other posters have said, alumni interviewers don't really have the data or position to accurately assess "chances."</p>
<p>yeah you may have to get an interview from an alum in your area, but you you often get an interview from someone in admissions if you can get to the school itself</p>