<p>So, I went into my Interview and had thought all about myself, prepared for what i THOUGHT she'd ask about, you know "If you could meet one person, living or dead, who?" "What do you think about [current event]?" and so on...</p>
<p>All she taked about was Princeton, and I have yet to visit, so that was a Bust. And, honestly, I had no really good answer to WHY I want to go there. I talked a bit about tradition, but it probably sounded like such Bull.
Then I just started pulling out names of economists who are professors and noteable alums, and she know NONE of them cause she's a science teacher.</p>
<p>I guess it wasn't a complete failure, but nothing like what I expected! Anyone else with me? Caught off guard? Like, she didn't even ask me about ECs....?!?</p>
<p>The reson that she pretty much just talked to you about Princeton is that the interview isn't really evaluative, its informational. If they really like you, I suppose it could boost your chances. If you come off as a potential serial killer, it could destroy you. But if you just weren't terribly impressive, I don't think it is going to be a deal-breaker.</p>
<p>I've had several and they've all been, as I anticipated, like what you described.</p>
<p>Are there any colleges I should know about that focus more on the "Meet someone living or dead" than the "Why Mississippi Valley State?" questions?</p>
<p>yea, all my friends so far have had more personal interviews that were more about THEM.</p>
<p>About not having a solid answer for why I wanna go, I don't think I have a solid answer to that question for anywhere I applied. I kinda just wanna get out of high school, and go somewhere. I mean I love Princeton it's a beautiful campus and blah blah blah, but I don't think that's what she was looking for.</p>
<p>The primary purposes of the alumni interview are:
1. Maintain/strengthen alumni ties with the school.
2. Increase likelihood that a student if admitted will attend.
3. Ensure student does not manifest behaviors that are completely unacceptable.</p>
<p>The chances that an interview in itself will change an admissions decision that otherwise would have been made are minuscule. Out of 20,000+ applications a year, I doubt you would need all your fingers and toes to count the times that the interview made a difference one way or the other in the admission decision. Do just a little preparation, act appropriately and the interview will almost certainly not hurt your chances of admission at any school. On the other hand, don’t stress too much because there is virtually nothing you can do at the interview that can help you significantly either.</p>
<p>">>I had no really good answer to WHY I want to go there.<<</p>
<p>Hmm. Then why are you applying?"</p>
<p>No offense, but I dislike the attitude of those giving snide remarks like "why are you applying." Look, everyone hears the buzz word that Princeton is a great school, and students accepted may find out ONCE they attend why that's true, more than before. I had no idea Princeton's math department is not just good, but INSANE (and to what extent). </p>
<p>Not everyone entering Princeton who will in the future study math, for instance, even knows he/she will. Once they get in, they may take a math course, love it, look into math more, and find HEY WHOA this place has an insane math department! Must be one reason people regard Princeton so well. Great, good for me, I'll take advantage of it. </p>
<p>In summary, while I think it's <em>ideal</em> if you have an answer like "Oh I love so and so person on your faculty and want to work with them to do so and so," it's really only realistic that a lot of applicants will want Princeton because it's just plainly a good school. In my view, it's kind of ridiculous not to be tolerant of this fact. As the OP stated, there is SOME reason coming to mind why Princeton's a good place. Beautiful campus, well regarded, etc. But I think that's enough to apply. A visit to the campus will clarify if there's anything utterly terrible about it. </p>
<p>Look, most people, even after visiting, will only figure out the ins and outs of a campus once they actually GET there and start figuring out their courses of study.</p>
<p>Not to worry.
I had a very certain sense visiting Princeton that interviews carry no weight. I think the interview process serves two functions- to keep alums wedded to the school, and to sell the school.
In my daughter's case, the interviewer passed on every opportunity to ask my daughter about her considerable strengths and focused on her weaknesses. She was a very strong ballet dancer who had danced in several Joffrey productions in Chicago and attended the School of American Ballet. The Julliard of the dance world. The ballet school actually uses the same dorm as Julliard students at Lincoln Center. Not of interest to the interviewer.
Instead, she homed in on potential academic weaknesses my daughter had as an unschooler. Did she take Calculus AB, or BC? My daughter had no idea what she meant. Nevermind. She was admitted anyway. This was an interviewer spending 40k in tuition for her two elementary school students, plus an undetermined amount for tutors, standard among this class in my neighborhood. Spit the bit at the thought that all this money spent was unnecessary.
Please don't worry. The admissions people have your entire application folder and the breath of the application pool to look at, which your interviewer does not. Unfortunately those folks who really hit it off with their interviewers and went on for two and a half hours aren't helped, either.</p>
<p>"I had a very certain sense visiting Princeton that interviews carry no weight."
"Unfortunately those folks who really hit it off with their interviewers and went on for two and a half hours aren't helped, either." </p>
<p>Don't say this so pompously... especially since it is just from a hunch, or a "very certain sense," that actually has little to no concrete evidence. From all you know, interviews can be weighted a lot.. That's like me saying I visited P and then had a "very certain feeling" that interviews DO carry weight... Anyways, where would the root of this "feeling" come from just based on a visit? You saw how beautiful the campus was and just thought, hey, the interviews for this place must not mean ****..? Really, I'm curious...</p>
<p>As a fellow applicant to schools such as Princeton which offer alumni interviews, I thought I might add my opinion.</p>
<p>I think that interviews can be a very important way to help distinguish yourself from other candidates. Personal interaction between an applicant and an alumni can add a lot of depth and context that may not have shined through in your application. However, the alumni of a school cannot be guaranteed to be interviewing with the same conditions and standards, and this is why I believe that the interviews are more likely to affect those who are at the margin, and will not push either a great applicant into the reject pile, or a less qualified applicant into the accept pile.</p>
<p>As for the interview itself: it varies, but it can be an opportunity for you to demonstrate your ability to communicate. Personally, I had a great experience with my interviewer. It was well balanced between him giving me tidbits about Princeton that I may not have known before, and my helping him to get a better picture of whether or not I would be a good fit for Princeton. As a general rule, I think an interviewee should always maintain passive and polite control over the direction of the conversation. If your interviewer talks about how eating clubs are an integral part of Princeton, take that opportunity to share with them your desire to bond over food, or the ease in which you feel that you can socialize in such an environment.</p>
<p>I realize that the things that I said will not be new to many of you amazing applicants, but I hope that it can still be a reminder. Good luck, everyone!</p>
<p>Acceptd...
The "very certain sense" I had was due to an admissions officer actually laughing when somebody asked about the importance of the interview. This was in a very small group, so there wasn't much pressure to keep up appearances.
Another admissions officer (not at Princeton) told me that the alums always seemed to be the most enthusiastic about the kids who weren't competitive. I have no reason to believe that this would be the case at one elite school and not at another.</p>
<p>Ivygate covers in more colorful language the points I made in my prior post:</p>
<p>"Know that your alumni interview is meaningless. Did you really think Admissions cares about the opinion of some old guy who blathers about his roles in the campus comedy troupe and how much ass he got in college? Alumni interviews serve two purposes:
1. Weed out total psychos (so avoid brandishing lethal objects and keep that theory about being the second coming of Jesus to yourself)
2. Keep alumni enthusiastically involved (and paying their dues) in Alumni Clubs
In theory, an exceptionally glowing review could make a difference. In practice, alumni interviewers always give glowing reviews, because people who voluntarily spend their free time querying high school seniors about their hopes and dreams are also the ones who find stories about your high school debate team utterly fascinating. They think everyone and their three-legged dogs would benefit from a Cornell education. They're like The X-Files: They want to believe."</p>
<p>I wasn't sure where to post this, but what did you wear? I am a girl, for my previous interviews with other schools, we were meeting at a Starbucks, so I wore nice jeans, nice shoes, nice top, etc. It was casual, but elegant. But for my Princeton interview I'm meeting my interviewer at his office. Should I wear more business-y/formal attire? Normally, I absolutely hate wearing/dress pants / skirts.. could I pull off dark black jeans? Or is this not a good idea.</p>
<p>About what to wear....
I met my interviewer at a cafe, so I just had nice jeans and nice top, whatever, but if it's at an office I would definitely go with dress up, and I'd say black dress pants. Black jeans, I think, are too casual, especially if the interviewer work at, like, a law firm or something.</p>
<p>Oh, did she teach at a high school? Because if she did then she might be my teacher...lol. She was asking us what she should ask and all we told her was "Why do you want to go to Princeton?"..I am very sorry, if it is true.</p>