<p>I applied RD to Penn at the end of December and have yet to be contacted for an alumni interview. According to the Penn site, interviews are offered to about 50% of applicants up through the end of February. Although I understand that interviews are not an integral part of the application, I definitely would like to have one. If I were to be on the bubble, a good interview could push me forward to an acceptance, you know? Under "Can I request an interview?" on the FAQ section on the Penn interview page, it says "Requests are unnecessary, but if you absolutely insist, you may let the local alumni chair know of your interest in having an interview using the address listed on the drop-down menu below." What are your thoughts on doing this? Do you think it would come off well-meaning or annoying to the interviewer considering they already have a list of names of applicants in the area?</p>
<p>Penn specifically says that it does no give a crap about interviews, hence, it only offers them to 50% of the applicant pool. I doubt that an interview, good or bad, is even considered, especially in “on the fringe cases” where only half of the people even had that opportunity for one in the first place. I think the interviewing process is merely done as a quality control/all amazing colleges do it thing, and like the website says, it is unnecessary to ask for one.</p>