Hi! I am planning on applying to Harvard in the fall and I am a little confused about the interview process… I have read a lot on their website but I’m still not 100% clear on the interviewing process. Will Harvard/ an alum contact me once my application has been submitted for an interview? Or should I start scheduling my interview now?? If anyone has any insight on this I would really appreciate it, thanks!
Harvard does interview some students by request on campus in the Fall, but most applicants will have a regional or local interview arranged after their application is processed.
Once you submit your application, the admissions office forwards your name, address and contact information to the alumni office. An alumni will then contact you for an interview.
Due to the large number of applications, not every student will be interviewed. See the special note for international students: https://college.harvard.edu/admissions/application-process/what-we-look/interviews
You will be contacted automatically for an interview. Doesn’t matter how early or late you submit your application. If there is an alumni available in your area, they will interview you.
They contact you automatically if there are alums in your area. I turned my app in on the last day (Jan 1) and still received an interview. (My interviewer emailed me Jan 30 and my interview was scheduled for Feb 11) My local branch had me fill out a pre-interview questionnaire that I brought in on the day of the interview as a conservation starter. We met at Starbucks and it was pretty chill.
Good job on your part for researching this early in the game. I feel like a lot of people underestimate the importance of the interview and I think it played a pretty important role in my admittance.
@bemore19 Congrats on your accept but the interview generally confirms other areas in your application. It fleshes out the applicant and can give clarity to fuzzy areas in the readers’ mind. However, for the vast majority of applicants, a raving good interview won’t help (cf. ~95% reject rate). For those strong applicants on the fence in Harvard’s eyes, they MIGHT be a nudge. Of course any red flags (bizzaro behavior, racism, immaturity, etc.) can be inimical to anyone’s chances.
@oxoxhawja3xoxo The interviews aren’t automatic. As others have said, many areas have a shortage of interviewers to applicants. While the goal is 100% coverage, it’s only an ideal. Harvard knows this and thus does not view the lack of an interview as a detriment to an otherwise superior applicant.
OP: This is the case for Harvard and its peers. However, MIT recommends an interview – implying not having one IS a detriment to one’s chances.