Raw deal on interview?

Colleges & Universities A-Z Massachusetts Institute of Technology
1

<p>I've been reading threads for a while, and posting around for a little while less, but from everything I've seen, I think I might have had a less-than-stellar interview, possibly with a less-than-stellar interviewer.</p>

<p>Given what I've read from nearly everyone here, their interviews were conducted by people who were kind, sociable, understanding, and truly curious about what their interviewees had to offer. They asked probing questions, and made honest attempts to really get to know the person they were interviewing. Everyone who has been interviewed seems to have treated fairly, and been given ample leeway in where they had the interview and what they talked about. They were accommodated to feel comfortable, and really got to know their interviewers as well as their interviewers got to know them; there was an actual personal connection (at the very least attempted to be) forged.</p>

<p>I did not feel like I got that. Luck of the draw, I suppose, or maybe it was a front to see how I fared under pressure, or maybe it was really just a bad time for him for reason that are none of my business, but I cannot say I came away from my interview feeling as radiant as many of you have had the fortune to.</p>

<p>My interviewer demanded a one-page list of accomplishments off the bat, and sent me his specific time and place first reply, with no impetus or hint of "what's good for you?": Columbus Day, 8PM, his apartment. OK then, I guess. After my e-mailed list accidentally vanished off the face of the earth (another story), he called peeved the afternoon before wondering if the interview was even going to happen. That gets smoothed over after profuse apology and over-the-phone snubbing, and the next night I go in internally sweating bullets; I was never given any impetus to stop worrying. While the interview went alright, he seemed very distant, perhaps even laboring to remain stony-faced; I could barely tell when things were going well, and when they weren't. He seemed almost apathetic, as if I was burdening him with my presence, only perking up when telling me the tales of his own experiences at MIT. I tried to be as enthusiastic as I normally am about my accomplishments and hobbies, but I did not feel like I was getting any real interest back. The interview ended on a strange note as well; he seemed extremely skeptical of why I was applying Early Action, as if that was some kind of cardinal sin, and try as I might to explain things, he seemed locked in that my school was putting me up to it, or that my motivations were not "pure". </p>

<p>I can't really say I had a bad interview; I just have no idea what to think. Any input?</p>

2

<p>I would surmise he wasn’t taking the interview seriously. Maybe he has issues in his life right now which make the interview seem trivial or maybe he’s just always like that. </p>

<p>Of course, it could just be your perception of his personality. </p>

<p>Did he get something different out of you? Maybe he sees more value in seeing the potential student in an awkward position than making friends. Perhaps it was his way of establishing that you do truely want MIT. </p>

<p>I mean come on, if your willing to put up with an @!! like that then you must be self-motivated right. It’s what I like to call the crotchety old man routine. Usually it just ticks people off, but sometimes it can be very enlightening (occasionally, even when it ticks someone off).</p>

3

<p>Sounds to me like the interviewer is risking turning students off MIT. I wonder if the OP should contact the admissions office about him? I’m not sure I would actually recommend doing anything about it now, since that would be awkward for the OP, but on the other hand, who knows what the interviewer said to MIT about him? I think the OP is being very reasonable about the experience, chalking it up to the luck of the draw, but I do not think this interviewer is doing a service to applicants or to MIT. Hopefully, this was an anomaly, and he is normally much more hospitable and engaged.</p>

4

<p>I would find another MIT grad in your area and ask for a second interview. This is what a local girl did when the assigned interviewer was unenthusiastic and flat.</p>

5

<p>Finding a second interview on your own is fraught with difficulty. First off only an EC can submit an interview report and it isn’t always easy or appropriate to find a second interviewer, at least not talking with officialdom.</p>

<p>There are bad interviews and there are bad interviewers. MIT tries to screen as best they can, but there are 2.424 EC’s out there, and obviously quality control is tricky. MIT grades all of our interview reports in terms of how well we met our brief, and EC’s who don’t cut it are talked to, and possibly dropped. Also we were all new EC’s once, and I can assure you that my first interview as an EC was probably as terrifying for the me as for the candidate (who was lovely). Even ordinarily good interviewers can have bad interviews, and it cuts both ways. A candidate can have an off day, be coming off a cold, or just be feeling kind of blah, and have an interview that does not show themselves to their strengths.</p>

<p>If you really feel that you have had a raw deal,</p>

<p>If you really think you got a raw deal, you can let the admissions office know. They (for obvious reasons) take the EC program very seriously and are very eager to ensure that the EC’s are good ambassadors for the school. That being said, though, I have absolutely no authoritative idea as to how they would respond.</p>

6

<p>You see, that’s where I’m confused. Part of me is saying Elu is right, and that the whole things was a prolonged put-on to see how I fare under pressure. And yet, given that there were times when we seemed to be alright with each other, I think that’s it just a really bad interview. Of course, he can’t turn me off of MIT no matter what; I know how bad I want it, and nothing can change that.</p>

<p>Still, if I wanted to conduct that second interview, how would I go about finding a second alum? Call up MIT and ask the admissions office? And since I can’t really say it went terrible, would it be too presumptuous to do another? I just don’t know…</p>

<p>I think what I’ll do is talk to a friend of mine who applied last year and see what he thinks, and act from there. (The interviewer remembered him, my friend didn’t get in, and my friend specifically told me that the interviewer said his SAT grades “could’ve been higher” [2000’s], so “!!!” on all that.)</p>

7

<p>If I was in your position I might just call up MIT admissions. It won’t be presumptuous if your asking questions. </p>

<p>Like, “I don’t know if its even any of my business but the interviewer seemed like he wasn’t quite present or maybe something else is going on for him, I don’t know but I thought I’d find out about options…”. </p>

<p>Something along those lines, maybe. Of course you must remember, your significantly further along in the process than I am.</p>

8

<p>Well, after talking to:</p>

<p>-a MIT representative after an information session
-my also-interviewed friend
-my immediate family, and
-my guidance counselor,</p>

<p>I’ve decided to leave things as-is. My friend said that the interviewer was fair, and I trust in his word. And, while I cannot say much for personal connection, I don’t necessarily have to fall in love with my EC for the interview to be fair.</p>

<p>Still, I’m glad I looked into it as far as I did, and feel good that I had the right idea (call the EC officer, check with my friend first, etc.). Consider it a lesson learned, and one that can be learned from by others.</p>

9

<p>One cool thing I know is that ECers are rated each year on the quality of their reports. There are certain things they have to talk about, certain amounts of evidence they have to provide, etc. So if someone (i.e., your interviewer) consistently gives poor reports, MIT will know. Apparently it’s really hard to get the full 5-star review - my high school chem teacher (an MIT EC) has been trying for years!</p>

10

<p>Cool, I’m glad you looked into it, and I’m glad it seems ok.</p>

<p>It also seems MIT takes all admition information from SAT to interview with a grain of salt. Like they say, it is definately more art than science.</p>

11

<p>My interviewer was also like that. We talked about whether there were dorm rooms at MIT that did not face construction noise. The interview quickly degraded into a young lad in a trench coat and some borrowed shades grinding through integral equations as the MIT EC stared him down with a weathered and stony face of an veteran engineer. </p>

<p>No but seriously guys! You can’t expect everyone to be happy and cheerful. If everyone was happy and cheerful and warmly welcoming, the world wouldn’t have enough Neo’s and Morpheus’s.</p>

<p>EDIT: Also I know he was the real deal because once we got comfortable we were able to freely talking about “pwning n00bz.”</p>

12

<p>Oh,</p>

<p>Well if that isn’t enlightening I don’t know what is…</p>

<p>Enter ominous orchestral music,</p>

13

<p>I… think… I get where you’re coming from, diff.
Either way; story has a (sufficiently) happy ending.</p>

<p>But, one guarantee: this was not a man who gave the impression of a n00b-pwner. This man was all business.</p>

14

<p>GasperLewis: silly kid, guys who pwn-n00bz are all business.</p>

15

<p>Does that mean he was wearing… business socks?</p>

<p>/lame reference</p>