<p>Hi all,
So, I just (about an hour ago) emailed my EC about scheduling an interview. But just now, I logged into MyMIT to see that my EC has changed. Should I email the original one and tell him (he hasn't responded yet)? Or should I contact MIT and tell them that I already contacted my original EC? Thanks in advanced!</p>
<p>I imagine Mikalye (who’s an EC himself, and an EC coordinator for his region) will see this and respond, and his response is certainly more authoritative than mine. But my feeling is that you’re fine just scheduling an interview with the original EC, without worrying about the change in assignment – sometimes a change in assignment happens even after a student has had his/her interview, and it’s not a problem. As long as the original EC can accommodate you, it’s fine to have your interview with him or her.</p>
<p>Absolutely. I am a regional chair for the EC, and I send the admissions office a list of reassignments every week. What I would do, is that I would write to both your old an your new EC in the same mail, addressing both, explaining what has happened, indicating that you are happy to have an interview with either of them, and asking for guidance. </p>
<p>From my perspective behind the scenes, everything depends on WHY the EC was reassigned and that will be invisible to you. For example, I have one very experienced EC in my region this year whose employer has decided that they need to be on the road to the corners of the earth pretty much non-stop for the next three months. As a result, everyone previously assigned to that person needs to be reassigned, as he is just not around. I have another EC in my region whose child is applying to MIT this year. There is an obvious conflict of interest when this occurs, and so he has to sit this year out, and not interview anyone this year. Again, all of his prospective applicants have had to be reassigned. I have had candidates have be reassigned when the assignment computer chooses an EC who is geographically closest as the crow flies, if you ignore inconvenient mountains and bodies of water. The assigning computer grabs the closest EC, so if a candidate is applying from say the far tip of Long Island, they are more likely to be assigned to an EC in Providence Rhode Island rather than New York City, because Providence is closer (as the crow flies). I have had candidates reassigned because an EC has died. And of course, I have had candidates reassigned for a wide variety of more mundane reasons as wel.</p>
<p>The basic rule is that you do not know why the change was made, and whether it is even possible for your first EC to interview you, or even to respond to your e-mail. So write to both of them, let them tell you what to do, and cc <a href=“mailto:interview@mit.edu”>interview@mit.edu</a> so that the admissions office has a record that this was happening.</p>
<p>Sorry to “borrow” your thread, but I have an interview-related question:</p>
<p>Has my MIT interviewer seen the completed parts of my app or anything? Should I talk about the things on my app or would that just be repetitive?</p>
<p>Thanks! :D</p>
<p>No he or she hasn’t, and he/she does not want to. It is an old saying that people do not apply to universities, admissions folders apply to universities. MIT’s attempt to correct this is the interview. The interview should not cover anything that is already on the application. Your EC does not care about your grades, or your test scores, or any other part of the application that MIT already has. Rather it will be a chat about who you are as a person. Think about all of the stuff that people post to “chance me” threads. Expect to talk about none of that.</p>
<p>Four years ago, Kim Hunter wrote a series of blog posts on what to expect from the interview. They are well worth reading. The first of the four is here: [The</a> Interview…Part 1 | MIT Admissions](<a href=“http://mitadmissions.org/blogs/entry/the_interviewpart_1]The”>The Interview…Part 1 | MIT Admissions) and the others are fairly easily findable from the first.</p>
<p>Good luck with the interview. They are usually fun for both parties.</p>
<p>I had my interview yesterday and I am kinda concerned. Here is my dilemma. My EC showed up late dressed in shorts and a t-shirt. He seemed very robotic as if he really did not want to even be there. I saw that he had a list of about 20+ questions and some hand-written questions. At times he was hard to understand based on dialect/nationality. I feel really good about my comments and responses I provided him, but my concern is that it was primarily a one-way dialogue, and It was hard for me to really show my personality.</p>
<p>I would respond for 4-5 minutes on some questions and he was basically stone-faced with no interaction. It seemed like he was there to ask the questions and get his job done.</p>
<p>Is this typical behavior? I am applying EA and would very much like to have another interview with another EC with a personality if at all possible. I really have no idea what the reply from my EC from yesterday might be. Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks.</p>
<p>It’s not typical behavior, no, but the ECs are an all-volunteer group of alums who donate their time to do interviews. Sometimes you’ll catch somebody on a bad day, and sometimes you just won’t click with your assigned EC.</p>
<p>You can certainly contact the admissions office and ask for another interview, but my impression is that second interviews are not generally offered.</p>
<p>It is quite strange. I would definitely contact the admissions office on <a href=“mailto:interview@mit.edu”>interview@mit.edu</a> and indicate what happened, saying pretty much what you told us here. There are 2300+ alumni interviewers and while we work very hard to maintain quality control, in very rare occasions, situations arise where a particular interviewer might benefit from some additional training, particularly when they are just getting started. </p>
<p>As to a second interview, those are indeed rare, for obvious reasons. That being said, if the admissions office is aware that there were some issues with the interview, then they have a much clearer picture of how to interpret the interview report, and indeed what to do with it.</p>
<p>Hi, I am obsessed with MIT, and really think that I will be a great fit for the school. I already scheduled an interview with my EC, and hope I will be able to convey to him why I would be a great match.</p>
<p>My dilemma is that my EC requested that I send him a page of my accomplishments. I am worried that my accomplishments to date may not seem impressive enough, and that he might have a negative impression of me before he has a chance to meet me. It seems that this request contradicts some of what I have read on CC and on the MIT admissions site ([Interview</a> | MIT Admissions](<a href=“http://mitadmissions.org/apply/freshman/interview]Interview”>Interview | MIT Admissions)), including comments such as this: “Some students choose to bring an activities list or other materials to illustrate their interests more clearly. Please feel free do so if you wish. However, MIT only requires that you bring yourself.” Because of this, I assumed I could just bring myself, thinking that I will be able to prove my passion for things important to me, even if I don’t have an extensive list of awards, etc. Any advice about the fact that it seems that I am being required to send a list even if most other students are not being required to do the same thing?</p>
<p>Again, with 2300+ interviewers, your mileage may vary, but I would not fret too much just yet. I tend to ask my interviewees to flag strong interests in advance of the interview, so that if an applicant is really interested in the MIT competitive tiddlywinks team or the Balinese Gamelan ensemble (both of which absolutely exist at MIT by the way), I can do some more research about these prior to the event and be able to discuss them moderately intelligently. </p>
<p>For example, with the Gamelan ensemble, while I personally do not know much about it and could probably not identify the instruments in a line up, I do know exactly which other alumnus in my region I should call and talk to about it prior to the interview. Again of course, your mileage may vary.</p>
<p>
You’re certainly not being required to send a list. If you feel strongly that you don’t want to send a list, you can absolutely tell your EC that you’d rather not send it. </p>
<p>Personally, I’d encourage you not to overthink this – as Mikalye says, your EC likely just finds this a useful way to learn something about applicants and their interests before the interview.</p>
<p>
You’re certainly not being required to send a list. If you feel strongly that you don’t want to send a list, you can absolutely tell your EC that you’d rather not send it. </p>
<p>Personally, I’d encourage you not to overthink this – as Mikalye says, your EC likely just finds this a useful way to learn something about applicants and their interests before the interview.</p>