My child will not be able to physically attend the campuses and will need to arrange Skype or whatever interviews. When is the best time to start requesting those?
Any suggestions for that type of interview?
You should be able to schedule them now (or soon). I would contact the schools and ask - each has different policy. Also, some people have had local interviews off campus - AOs do outreach in different parts of the country and sometimes can arrange an in-person interview. We visited all schools in person (all within a few hours drive), so can’t give you tips, but others should chime in with advice.
You could also do a local Alumni interview if there are any in your area
We did most of our Skype interviews in December. My daughter’s winter break didn’t completely overlap theirs and she was able to schedule quite a few of them while on her break. The interviews that weren’t during her break, were during school hours, so be aware that might happen and your child might have to miss some classes.
Just make sure you know how to use Skype before the interview! I ended up having to reschedule an interview because I didn’t know where to check incoming calls.
I assume the normal protocol is for the school to call the candidate, correct?
Yes @CaliPops
When u schedule the interview they will most likely as for ur skype id, and they will tell u to add theirs to ur contacts (sometimes they send their id just a day before or the day of the interview so don’t freak if they don’t send you theirs)…
My child had Skype interviews starting in September. Some schools called us while others instructed us to call them. We also had a local alum interview. We felt Skype interviews helped get over jitters for in person interviews. Good luck!!
My child is going in reverse order. Started with AOs, had a couple alumni interviews, and now closing out with Skype
Make sure you know how to use Skype! I missed an interview like that once. Oops.
Sage advice @stargirl3. My child claims to be proficient, but we’ll do a test run the before, just to be sure.
As a random side note, I like your icon.
I contacted a few and they wouldn’t schedule a time without having the application in. We are doing the SSAT application and waiting on teacher and school input still.
@CaliPops It’s a photo of a temporary tattoo given to me by Jerry Spinelli at a reading 
@makp715 that’s surprising to me. Based on my limited experience, I think the norm is to allow interviews once the candidate profile has been submitted and fees are paid. My impression is that grade submission and teacher recommendations are often the last things completed.
Requiring a complete application before allowing an interview to be scheduled sounds unusual to me. I recall that two schools on your DC’s list were Exeter and Mercersburg; our experience with those schools last year was that a complete application was not necessary before scheduling interviews. In fact my understanding is that many students use the interviews to gauge where they want to submit an application. Most do require some basic information (the format/procedure varies by school) before scheduling the interview, but I’m not familiar with any that require all application materials to be completed first.
I agree. My child only had to fill out the candidate profiles for each school. Applications are still being worked on, but we are finished with our interviews. You should be able to schedule Skype interviews without having the entire, if any, application completed. Of course, I’m not sure what school’s you are referring to-maybe their requirements are different.
On their website, Hotchkiss states you must have submitted your application before scheduling an interview, same for Exeter… Unless there is something I am missing? I think this is only for Skype interviews…
Also, Groton doen’t do Skype interviews, which I found unusual…
@Atria please check Hotchkiss again; says you only need to fill out an online admission inquiry form: ps://www.hotchkiss.org/apply/how-to-apply
@Atria And Exeter says it only requires a completed Applicant Information Form: http://www.exeter.edu/admissions/109_1368.aspx
DC applied to both Hotchkiss and Exeter last year and the applications weren’t finished until just about the January deadline but interviews were scheduled and completed several weeks before that; one was a Skype.