Interview

<p>Anyone ever had an on-campus interview at WashU?</p>

<p>I'm heading up there in a couple of weeks on one of their travel grants, and I'm wondering what it's like!</p>

<p>I'm guessing it's almost entirely informative, right? As opposed to evaluative?<br>
Will they include the interviewer's report in my application file for review? </p>

<p>Lastly, what kind of questions do they ask? Just the generic "Tell us about yourself, what you do for fun, etc." ?</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

<p>The interview is very low key, conversation like. What my interviewer told me was that they use the interview as an extra letter of recommendation when you apply; so it's definitely not going to hinder your chances if you were to mess up. As for the questions, they were the basic "what classes did you like the most," "what would you do if you had an extra hour in the day." My interviewer only asked me a few questions and then we went of on a tangent and started talking about our childhoods and stuff, and yours probably will too since the are supposed to be a conversation, not a grilling session.</p>

<p>Have fun</p>

<p>Yeah, really relaxing. It was supposed to go for 20-30 minutes but mine ended up going almost an hour. Basically an open conversation.</p>

<p>D was interviewed by a terrific admissions officer, I think he was a vice chancellor! The admissions office is the most incredibly organized, efficient, accomodating and friendly college admissions office ever.
She said it was very low key, some of the questions that he asked her were,
" If I could meet any of your friends or teachers, what would they most likely tell me about you?"
She interviewed on a Tuesday, and on Thursday a nice Wash U postcard was in our mailbox with a personal handwritten note to her wishing her luck and success with her senior year and her cross country season!
That same week, the school called to schedule a site visit to her school and they couldn't say enough nice things about my daughter to our college counselor and how much they enjoyed meeting her.
You will really have a great experience.
Have fun and good luck</p>

<p>Make sure you arrive earlier than your appointment as he came out about 15 minutes before her scheduled appointment and was ready to go!
He also gave my D a really nice book for ME! It was a book for parents and how they can make the transition when their kids go to college!
He even spent a few minutes talking with me before taking her back about random things-a very congenial guy.
There was a boy who was also having an interview and he had the good ole navy blue sport coat, tie and khakis. My daughter wore a nice dress. I would highly encourage anyone to dress like you are interviewing for a job. I would not wear blue jeans or sloppy pants or flip flops. One really interesting thing that was mentioned during the information session is that they really prepare you for job interviews and job placement- they have mock interview, they will videotape you, and they even do "etiquette dinners" and will assist with proper table etiquette, table manners,etc. Since they are so intense about this, it makes sense to "dress up" for an admissions interview.</p>

<p>I wouldn't necessarily dress up.
A good portion of the interviews are given by students (juniors and seniors)- if it's a regular day they themselves won't be dressed up at all.</p>

<p>Wash U admissions interviews, whether they take place on campus or off campus, are intended to be informative and do not attempt to evaluate academic credentials. Rainmaker's post is accurate. An interview carries roughly the same weight as a teacher recommendation and the interview report does become a part of the admissions file.</p>

<p>As long as your dress violates no public decency laws I suspect it makes little difference.</p>