Short Interview

Applying to College
1

<p>So... I just had an interview with an alumnus over the phone. In her emails, she said that the interview would last for about 45 minutes to an hour. It lasted only a bit over 20 minutes.</p>

<p>Should I be worried? Would it have been better if I had asked her more questions?</p>

<p>I think it might have been because I was nervous and talked faster than I usually do. However, I think I had said all I wanted to say (not much less than the other interviews I had that lasted an hour), she didn't have any more questions, nor did I, and she said she had all the information she needed.</p>

2

<p>Sometimes the point is got to quickly and that’f fine. Some people are more talkative than others, both the interviewer and the interviewee. In person likely leads to more chat. Alumni are usually very busy people. I don’t know why you should be worried.</p>

3

<p>Yeah, I agree that interviewing in person definitely leads to more chat. Anyways, it’s already over so I probably shouldn’t worry since it wouldnt change anything. He seemed very busy, and I think he travels a bit so… it would seem reasonable that he wanted to get it done quickly. Thanks.</p>

4

<p>That’s not a good sign.</p>

5

<p>No, it’s not a bad sign if you said all you needed to say. Since interviews are more of opportunities to get to know the school personally, they don’t have a significant impact on your admissions decision. That’s what I learned from the Brown interview. You can’t do anything about the short interview, so don’t worry. </p>

6

<p>At a lot of the top-tier universities, the alumni interview carries very little weight.</p>

<p>Over the years, I’ve known lots of students who interviewed with HYPM alumni. Their interviews lasted from 15 minutes to 3.5 hours long. There didn’t appear to be any correlation between the final admissions decision and the duration of the interview. There were lots of students rejected with short interviews…and lots of students rejected with long interviews. Only a handful secured acceptances…and the duration of their interviews was all over the place. As you know, top-tier colleges have very low acceptance rates.</p>

7

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<p>It depends on the school. I know of at least two schools that place more importance on the interview than on standardized test scores and a host of other factors that are considered in the admissions process.</p>

8

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<p>I’d be really interested to know what schools they are. And if that policy is stated anywhere in print. Seems unlikely to me…but I’ve been wrong before.</p>

<p>My son applied to 15 schools. Interviewed at about 12 of them (a few of the publics didn’t interview) Never had an interview last an hour. Didn’t apply to any ivies…but NESCAC, large uni’s, teeny LACS, alumni, admissions staff, coffee shops, telephone…the gamut. At the school he ended up attending, (it’s in the >15% admissions range) during the info session the head of Admissions told us that in her 15 (I think?) years in admissions there was one instance where an interview had a negative impact on the applicants decision. You’re fine. </p>

9

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<p>Bates College</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.bates.edu/research/files/2010/03/cds.1314.bates_.pdf”>http://www.bates.edu/research/files/2010/03/cds.1314.bates_.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Connecticut College</p>

<p><a href=“https://www.conncoll.edu/media/website-media/about/aboutconndocs/ConnecticutCollege-CDS-2012-2013.pdf”>https://www.conncoll.edu/media/website-media/about/aboutconndocs/ConnecticutCollege-CDS-2012-2013.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Hamilton College</p>

<p><a href=“https://www.hamilton.edu/documents/CDS_2013-2014.pdf”>https://www.hamilton.edu/documents/CDS_2013-2014.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>See section C7 of the respective Common Data Sets. At Hamilton, the interview is given the same importance as standardized test scores, the application essay, and letters of recommendation, and more importance than talent/ability, first generation status, legacy status and URM status.</p>