<p>My interview went well, but it was pretty short- only about 40 minutes long.</p>
<p>@Hamster</p>
<p>Smile when you talk over the phone. You'll sound more pleasant. It's sort of a half-psychological thing.</p>
<p>so are all MIT interviews conducted in that question-and-answer way? eeks that makes me more nervous and intimidated. When my interview asks if I have any questions, what sort of questions should I ask?</p>
<p>What sort of questions do you have, which are not answered on the MIT website or through MyMIT, which a graduate and official representative of the school might be able to answer for you? Things which a human might be able to shed light on, where a written FAQ on a website might not.</p>
<p>my.mit.edu states that i should CONTACT the EC by the 20th. Does that mean i should HAVE the interview by then or just set up an appointment w/ him by the 20th?</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>-Dan Jang</p>
<p>you have to have your interview by Nov 1 if applying early, somewhat later for regular applicants</p>
<p>I just wanted to chirp in a more positive note here. I had my interview this Tuesday and it was a very enjoyable experience. It lasted around an hour forty-five minutes, it was not a question/answerish type experience at all the first question he asked was tell me a little bit about yourself, and it proceeded in a very conversation like manner after that point schoolwork or grades never really came up, nor standardized tests. There were questions like "What motivates you", "Why do you get out of bed in the morning", and "What are you most proud of" however my EC did a very good job of keeping it in more of a conversation format, than an interview format. At the risk of sounding cliched the conversation generally followed. Overall, it was an overwhelmingly positive experience and I cannot encourage you enough to have one. The more information you can present the stronger MIT can feel about making a decision. If I could give a few pieces of advice in regards to the interview, my most important suggestion would be:</p>
<p>Do not tell them what they want to hear, or what you think MIT wants to hear. They are intelligent people and are going to see this. When looking at applications MIT tries to see a lot more than a set of numbers, they are looking for a person. Just be yourself, do not talk about how you took AP Chinese Language and Culture because you 'think it will look really good on a college application' discuss why you do what you love, and what this is. MIT is looking for an applicant with genuine passion, not someone who is attempting to "rig" their application to portray themselves to be what they think MIT wants. Likewise this does not mean, attempt to portray yourself as 'being yourself' just REALLY be yourself (As cliched as it sounds).</p>