<p>Alright, it's crunch time for all the EDers of the world and like most of you, I've been scouring forums searching for some straw to grasp at that might hint acceptance....
I was dismayed to find that may of the applicants I read about on CC had lengthy interviews, stretching from a minimum of 45 minutes-2+ hours. (WOW). My heart sank because my interview (with a very recent nursing alumnus, she sounded about 20 or so) only lasted about 20 to 30 minutes. Is this too short?
We covered all of the basic questions and I did most of the speaking. She seemed pleasant and was impressed with my resume etc. etc. but it wasn't what I'd call "wonderful" or "tear-jerking." It was short and sweet.
Is this a bad indication? Should interviews last longer than 20 minutes? How long was YOUR ED interview?
Thanks,</p>
<p>I think the general consensus on this forum has been that interviews are more informational for the applicant than for the interviewer. My interview was about an hour. Many times interviewer’s experience plays a part. Don’t worry about the interview, it’s a very very minor portion of your entire application and it seems like you did well on it anyways. </p>
<p>I interview candidates for Cornell and the length of the interview means nothing. I try to keep it at 30 mins only because Cornell asks me to interview multiple people (I have to do three in a row soon), so even though I could probably talk to them for much longer, I keep it straight to the point.</p>
<p>With that said, I don’t believe an interview – or rather “informational meeting” is what we’re required to call it – can hurt your chances. It can only help. Don’t fret, good luck.</p>
<p>Hey! After having already done three interviews at this point for early action/decision (MIT, Chicago, and Penn) I can tell you that interview length barely matters. It largely depends on the interviewer yourself; my MIT interviewer was enormously awkward and would ask me questions and write them down the entire time, and after like 25 minutes we were done (only one of the reasons I decided not to apply for MIT). My UChicago interviewer was incredibly fun to talk to, young and very innovative, and we went off on a lot of tangents that really had nothing to do with school and more about life–– that one went for an hour and a half or something. My Penn interview was right in between. The interviewer was a middle-aged professional man, and he asked all he had to, asked me if I had any questions, added on a little advice afterwards and we were done. 40 minutes.</p>
<p>I really wouldn’t worry: if you feel like you had a good interview and expressed yourself in a way that was attractive to your interviewer, you’ll be fine. It’s really just a matter of luck if you get an interviewer that you click with and can talk to for hours! </p>
<p>I hope this eased any worries still on your mind </p>
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