<p>How heavily is it considered? I had one today, and I pretty much nailed it. The guy had the same interests as me, and we definitely clicked. He was impressed, and I think I definitely left an impression.</p>
<p>I know it is just one part of the application, but is there any indication of how it is weighed against other factors?</p>
<p>I know I failed my initial interview and they gave me a second over the phone before they let me in, so I'm guessing it's important enough that they can exclude you for a bad one.</p>
<p>That's the impression I have gotten from this board, that is it can hurt you more than it can help you.</p>
<p>merlin, did they ask about politics and stuff or just like normal, what are your interests, high school, classes, etc.?</p>
<p>Well, the guy that interviewed me was laid back and personable. He asked about my intended major, and I said I was interested in Pol. Science (Gov't) and law. He asked me why, and we talked about the Constitution, which inevitably led to politics. He was a real history buff (as am I), so it was basically an hour of talking about the war in Iraq and politics in general. He asked me about my EC's and I talked about the Interact Club and all the comm. service we did, which led to politics in the end.</p>
<p>I think it depends on the interviewer, but he never really looked at a list-he let the conversation go where it may, and it was actually an enjoyable experience. He touched on my school and the courses I took, and the like.</p>
<p>I never felt like he was pushing questions on me, so I think you have the freedom to stress what you wish. I mean, at one point we were talking about the Red Sox!</p>
<p>See, my interviewer was exactly the opposite. I'm pretty sure he doesn't know what my intended major is, but at least he knows I'm not a history buff.</p>
<p>PorSk, how did you know that you failed the first interview? How did you fail it? How did you master the second interview? Thanks a lot!</p>
<p>In the first interview, I didn't answer the questions well and my interviewer never pursued any of my interests, even when I prompted him to ask more questions about them. I was nervous and I had no chemistry with the interviewer. Bad combination.</p>
<p>The second interview just flowed naturally and I sounded intelligent. The adcom interviewing me actually managed to act interested and personal isntead of detached and businesslike. I didn't blank. She took my cues. Everything clicked.</p>
<p>I can't explain how I know the first went poorly and the second went well. I could tell, though. Just self-evaluation.</p>
<p>I didn't really prepare for either, and the second was a surprise, so I'm not so sure what advice to give exactly except that you shouldn't worry yourself too much. My example shows that you don't have to ace an interview the first time to get in (though I would still recommend trying your hardest ;)).</p>
<p>"In the first interview, I didn't answer the questions well and my interviewer never pursued any of my interests, even when I prompted him to ask more questions about them. "</p>
<p>FYI: Savvy people who are interviewed don't try to prompt interviewers to ask questions, the interviewees gracefully take control of the interview and talk in a way that highlights their strengths.</p>
<p>I realize that as a novice interviewee, you probably didn't know that, but this is usually how good interviews happen. Interviewers can't read minds. It's a good idea to think before one's interview about the points that one wants to make, and then during the interview, be assertive about making those points.</p>
<p>My guess is that you got a second interview because the interview report didn't match the extremely strong application that you'd submitted. Harvard probably wanted a second opinion, probably figuring that there was a chance that the interviewer was inept or that you had an unusual off day possibly due to its being your first college interview (since you were an EA candidate). </p>
<p>Most people, however, get only one chance to have a good interview, so you were very lucky. :)</p>
<p>I don't really mean prompt in the way you mean it. Rather, when I'd mention my summer job, or a subject I liked, or something I wanted to do, he never asked me about it. He just moved on to another question. Seemed completely scripted. In other words, I did not feel as if I was interacting with him; he was asking me questions and I was responding, but he never followed up on anything.</p>
<p>I'm not sure if that's typical at interviews. In my experience, it is not. I had two other interviews (MIT and phone). In those two, I felt as if I was having a conversation, not a question-and-answer session. And the MIT one came first.</p>
<p>However, I also agree that my bad interview was my own fault, but only because I didn't do a good job answering questions fully, not because I was trying to conduct the interview or something silly like that. In fact, I would say that it was exactly the opposite - I wasn't firm or confident enough in my answers.</p>
<p>For example, the Harvard interviewer asked me, "Tell me two extra curriculars you've been involved in." So I said something like, "I really enjoy X club and I co-founded and maintain a role in Y." Then he moved on to, "What would you contribute to Harvard?" I think he came back to ask me about Y much, much later in the interview, but I never got to talk X. That's what I mean by not taking prompts.</p>
<p>"I don't really mean prompt in the way you mean it. Rather, when I'd mention my summer job, or a subject I liked, or something I wanted to do, he never asked me about it."</p>
<p>No, that's exactly the way that I meant it. You needed to say something like, (in response to a question about what you did last summer), "I worked a job as a camp counselor and it was an interesting experience because I learned so much about how children behave. That experience was what made me decide to major in psychology. There was a boy at the camp who wouldn't participate in activities, but just sat there watching the other children play. I learned that his father had died over the summer, and I started looking for ways to draw him out...."</p>
<p>This is the way one answers questions, not by just saying, "I worked last summer," and then waiting for the interviewer to ask follow-up questions. That may be acceptable at some colleges such as, for instance, colleges that pride themselves on being listed in "Colleges that Change Lives." Such colleges view their mission as providing nurturing environments that help the shy, reticent and unconfident come into their own.</p>
<p>Harvard views itself as a place that gives freedom and other opportunities so that assertive, confident leaders become even better leaders, so passivity does not impress the interviewers nor the adcoms.</p>
<p>" I think he came back to ask me about Y much, much later in the interview, but I never got to talk X. That's what I mean by not taking prompts."</p>
<p>You needed to have taken control of the inteview by not just giving him some bait and waiting for his follow-up, but by taking his bait and running with it.</p>
<p>Porsk, you are right that in a perfect world, an interviewer would be experienced and savvy enough to take the bait. However, many interviewers, including people who interview for a living, don't do that. Consequently, it's wise to go into any interview knowing what points that you want to make and then doing what it takes to gracefully find ways of making those points no matter what the interviewer asks.</p>
<p>I am guessing the reason that you got that second interview is that you have an outstanding app and the adcoms were extremely interested in you. Probably, too, the interview report was puzzling in that it seemed to reflect a much more passive, less independent and creative person than did your recommendations.</p>
<p>When adcoms didn't learn enough from the original interview report, they decided to have someone else interview you. If, though, they hadn't been that interested (and this could have happened if you had had well meaning teachers who didn't know how to write excellent recommendations with specifics), the adcoms wouldn't have given you a second chance.</p>
<p>Thanks for that advice. I'll keep it in mind for any job interviews or whatnot.</p>
<p>I still don't think the interview was conducted in a way that would have uncovered anything useful about me unless I'd been unusually sharp. Have you ever conducted an interview with an applicant who looked, talked, and acted like s/he just wanted to get it over with? Maybe I'm just paranoid, but I get the impression that he'd decided I wasn't a fit for Harvard from near the beginning of the interview when I told him I was planning on going into engineering. I think I'm partially justified in believing that because he told me I would probably prefer it at MIT instead of Harvard. I guess I never managed to convince him that I wasn't just another tech dweeb, and I blame myself for failing to expand on my other interests and activities. For the MIT interview that was no objection, and during the adcom phone interview I managed to establish my interests in other areas from the start.</p>
<p>Of course, it's equally possible that I'm reading too far into this and that I need to just give up. ;)</p>
<p>Hmm, I still think natural chemistry is a big thing, though. I know I just didn't click with my first Harvard interviewer and I'm not so sure about the second one, though I felt better, and I have a feeling that contributed heavily to why I was deferred. But yesterday I had an interview for Princeton and she loved me (she even called me one of the best she's interviewed in years at points!) because we shared a lot of interests: astronomy, foreign language and cultures, Judaica, etc.</p>
<p>PorSK--You're in, hence you're definitely reading too much into it :p</p>
<p>Well, it appears that the interview was the one thing keeping me from getting in, so it was pretty important, Guitar. I shouldn't dwell on it though.</p>
<p>And definitely, the interests of the interviewer come into play. I noticed my MIT interview went really smoothly because my interviewer and I got to discuss engineering-specific delights.</p>
<p>By the way, if your "fallback" option ends up being Princeton, that alone will be mighty impressive. I bet you get in. I'm surprised you didn't get into Harvard.</p>
<p>I agree that chemistry is pretty important. I had done a few interviews for jobs and colleges before my H interview, so I wasn't an interview virgin. I have had a couple really fantastic interviews in which I have gotten to talk about what I love and what I'm interested in and who I am. I've also had interviews where the interviewer doesn't seem all that interested in what makes me tick or in finding out. My Harvard interviewer was a pretty stiff kind of guy, while I'm a pretty happy and laid back (not bubbly--god!) gal. He's a nice guy, and we got along fine, but we certainly didn't click as well as I did with my Chicago interviewer, who seemed genuinely intrigued by what I said. I have a couple friends who interviewed for Tufts recently by a man who actually cut them off whenever they attemped to elaborate on answers. These are nice, polite, and quiet girls, so it's not as if they were going on about nothing. </p>
<p>I get along well with adults. I like talking with my father's friends, and I've worked in a grown up capacity with adults since I was ten. Nevertheless, there are always some adults who seem imperturbable, cold, or bored. I'm not saying my H interview was like this, by the way; the man who finally interviewed me was serious, yes, but he was obviously very intelligent and we talked about a number of good topics.</p>
<p>Guitar, you can't go to Princeton! You need to go wherever I go, and I'm not applying there!</p>
<p>" Have you ever conducted an interview with an applicant who looked, talked, and acted like s/he just wanted to get it over with?"</p>
<p>Yes. Presumably, those were applicants with no interest whose parents made them apply.</p>
<p>I do believe you in describing your interview as perfunctuary. Some interviewers are more talented/interested than others. Still, since that may be one's only shot at an interview, it's good to have some techniques in hand to take control of the interview so you can emphasize the important things that you have to offer.</p>
<p>Well, Harvard is still my top choice but I need backup options just in case! hehe. Where are you applying, anyway?</p>
<p>I agree completely, northstarmom, and I just wish I wasn't so nervous. Maybe I would have taken a more active role in the interview if I had been more confident during the interview.</p>
<p>Thanks for explaining everything to me. It's always interesting to get the perspective of the interviewer so that I can understand where I went wrong and what's going on in the other person's head. I also want to thank you for taking precious time out of your day for actually conducting interviews. I really enjoyed the MIT and adcom interviews and don't consider my first Harvard interview a typical experience, so I'm just thankful that there are people like you who are willing to take the time for these interviews. :)</p>
<p>Me? You've asked me before, dude, but here's the list (generally west -> east):</p>
<p>Chicago
Notre Dame
Michigan
JHU
Penn
Columbia
Harvard</p>