@meaa7130 Also, good luck on your interview! You’ll do great. 
@azwu331 - thank you! How do you know the timing/numbers/process?
The person who interviewed me said that she “coordinates lots of interviews all across the Midwestern region,” and she let me choose between an in-person interview, which would mean an inconvenient hour-long commute on my part, or a phone interview. Also, at one point she told me that she “oversees every applicant from the Midwest.” Take from that what you will.
@fretfulmother Last year, Princeton released decisions on Monday, December 15, 2014. Two years ago, Princeton released decisions on Monday, December 16, 2013. A year before that, Princeton released decisions on Monday, December 17, 2012. So it’s just an educated guess; however, all signs point to a release on Monday the 14th this year unless something drastically changes.
@azwu331 Thanks! And you’re so knowledgeable. If Princeton defers you, it’ll be a big mistake on their part.
@azwu331 - Thank you! And how do you know about which weekend they decide which steps and so on? That is very helpful!
@ALibertarian That’s quite interesting! I live in the Midwest though, but I didn’t have her as my interviewer. Perhaps she’s just in charge of a certain region?
My interviewer didn’t give me an option though, so I hope that that doesn’t say something about the state of my application. I’m just hoping that she decided to conduct a phone interview simply because she was busy and not because my application was already tossed out.
Good luck to you!
@meaa7130 Thanks a lot! You seem really talented as well, so it’d be Princeton’s loss if they deferred you.
By the way, is your interview face-to-face, or is it a phone interview?
@fretfulmother I found out that information while looking through the old threads. Last year, there was an applicant with the username alfawarlord who had connections with an admissions officer. Most of my information comes from his old posts.
@azwu331 Yeah, my interview is face-to-face, at a local coffeeshop. And the person who I’m interviewing with (is that correct grammar? who knows.) has similar interests. He’s involved in engineering, and his concentration is the same as the type of engineering that I was involved with in my internship last summer, but not the same as my major I applied for. In his defense, I’m not sure there is anyone close by who majored in what I hope to major in. He seems like a really cool person, so I’m looking forward to my interview! I am quite nervous though. :-SS
@meaa7130 I was also quite nervous when I had my first interview as well. It isn’t that bad though. Once you realize that your interviewer is a person who is there to know more about you and not a robot that is programmed to find and locate every one of your mistakes, it really gets a lot better. Plus, the interview doesn’t really have much weight in the application process.
Hi! I haven’t gotten an interview email yet, and I’m getting a little nervous just because I’m from New Jersey, so I would assume they’d have people in my area. Should I just wait it out and hope for the best, or is there someone I should email?
@azwu331 I hope you’re right. Those questions that you wrote/compiled earlier in this thread are super helpful now. Thank you so much for those!
@arcane25 Perhaps you could send a quick reminder to Princeton? Do remember that although New Jersey has a lot of alumni networks, the state also has a lot of applicants! If you don’t receive an interview by November 30th, however, I would recommend that you send the admissions office a quick email to remind them that you exist.
@meaa7130 You’re welcome! When are you having your interview?
Wow, I just realized that I’m spending way more time on CC than I planned…
I guess I’ll just sit around here until 5:00 PM EST. It seems like everyone is active on this thread now… 
@azwu331 Tuesday! The deadline is Friday the 4th so I’m glad there’ll be a few days between my interview and the deadline for my interviewer to have enough time to write up whatever he needs to regarding the interview.
I hope my application hasn’t already been thrown out, but then the interview would be pointless. I hope it doesn’t get discarded between now and whenever my interviewer submits his report. Everything is so vague and I hate not knowing, but I guess in a couple of weeks all will be made clear. Yikes. I really want to know the decision but at the same time I don’t…
@meaa7130 I don’t think your application has been thrown out already, but it’s really hard to tell what happens in the admissions office… some very qualified applicants get thrown out early on. I just wish that the interview can definitively give some information about the application status or something; it’s really hard to wait! I know that @Ambitious19 (a ridiculously qualified applicant) got her interview very late last year but was deferred SCEA and ultimately rejected, so I feel like this whole thing is also a game of luck.
I’ve heard that the Common App essay has the biggest weight in determining whether or not you survive the preliminary round (this is some information I got from last year’s thread). Because the readers who read first are hired to weed out as many people as possible to make the job of the committee a lot easier, they often use this essay to throw students out. That’s why some students who have lackluster or cliché Common App essays but good supplements find themselves on the deferral list; the latter essay plays a bigger role in committee, while the former plays a bigger role during the preliminary round. In a way, that’s quite frightening; a piece of writing might be the factor that decides the fate of the next four years.
But I guess there’s really nothing that can be done about the application right now. You do, however, have the opportunity to knock this interview out of the park. And based on what I’ve seen, you’ll do great.
Good luck!
@meaa7130 There’s 16 days until decisions; that’s only half a month! That’s so nerve-wracking! Hopefully 16 days is ample time for me to fall in love with other schools so that my deferral won’t hurt as much.
Also, I hope 16 days is enough to finish some college essays for other schools. I’ve found that the best way to gain interest in another school is by writing about why that school is awesome in a 500-word essay.