Best of luck to all applicants!
I just submitted my application.
@IndirectProofs Did you opt to interview? I interviewed a few weeks ago and really just so enjoyed my interviewer - he made me feel even more positive about the college and I really felt that it was a worthwhile thing to do if future applicants are considering it.
@RainbowBritey I didn’t request an interview, I’m not sure if you still can.
If so I will.
They closed interviews, oh well!
@IndirectProofs I am sure it isn’t a make or break kind of deal but for future applicants - it’s a great experience and can only really add to your application, right? I met with my interviewer in LA so I didn’t have to travel to Swarthmore to do it.
Anybody received the application portal yet?
@potatoflip I received it April 2
Does anyone know when decisions come out? I haven’t seen where it says.
@IndirectProofs they came out 5/14 last year
Wow that is a long time to wait. All I want is one acceptance from a school. So far, I have one waitlist.
I had mind some time ago, and it was the best interview I had.
@RainbowBritey I see you’re everywhere, haha!
@ARousseau we clearly both have very good taste in colleges 
@RainbowBritey Apparently too good of taste for my chances!
@ARousseau Responding to you about the Swarthmore interview here instead of on the Davis thread. I am so glad to hear your interview went well.
To answer your question, I seem to be interested in axiology, philosophy of economics, and philosophy of human nature that, in particular, deals with the psycho-metaphysical aspects of happiness, pain, self-deception, grief, and so forth.
I’d also like to share my interview experience, since it was quite memorable for me.
About two weeks before the online application deadline I got paired with an alumna that majored in philosophy at Swarthmore. I do not think they paired him specifically for me, since he lives 2hrs away from me. Luckily he was on a business trip in San Diego, where I am currently enrolled at CC.
A bit about the interviewer - aged 35 or so. He ended up going to MIT for his masters and Harvard for law before teaching at Stanford, now he is a CEO… So I was quite intimidating going into the interview knowing he was well accomplished. (If you are going to look your interviewer up on LinkedIn beforehand, do so cautiously.)
However, the interviewer was super humble and kind, really taking an interest in my intellectual interests. My interviewer agreed to meet at a coffee shop at 8pm and it ended around 9:30pm. It felt like 10 minutes, honestly.
We spent more time talking about philosophy and the world at large than about Swarthmore. Philosophy of mathematics/economics seemed to be his specialty. He said Harvard law school was a poor man’s philosophy class (maybe this goes to show how good Swarthmore’s philosophy program is.)
Hopefully he doesn’t come across this thread… because I would like to share this. At the end of the interview, we both stood up and while we were walking over to the entrance of the coffee shop to leave, my interviewer tripped and spilled his tea ALL over a women’s bag… He was embarrassed to his core and it was one of the most human things I’ve witnessed. With complete humility he tapped the shoulder of the women whose bag he just drenched letting her know the oopsie he’d just committed. I rushed over to ask the cashier for a towel and ended up staying another 60 seconds to help with the mess.
So it was a very memorable interview. I learned that regardless of the persons alma mater they are absolutely still human and prone to making mistakes - even very clumsy ones. Swarthmore definitely became one of my top choices for transfer after the interview.
@RainbowBritey I have a question: how did you apply to Swarthmore without taking the ACT/SAT?
@yiskers I really felt like Swarthmore took the time to pair me up with an interviewer I could relate with, as well.
I’m doing mathematical philosophy, so that’s interesting that your interviewer was interested in that! My interviewer also did whatever they could to make me feel comfortable, and that made me love the school even more. I’d say they’re my number one realistic goal, though I’m starting to worry about how many people they’ll take from California.
My interviewer and I talked about philosophy, too! We talked a lot about truth and if absolute truth exists. I really love this school for my major and for its community. He didn’t talk about Harvard since he went to Stanford for an MBA.
But yes, the interview process made me love this school so much. I totally understand where you’re coming from.
@ARousseau That’s awesome… I love how when mathematics gets metaphysical.
I asked my interviewer “Was math invented or discovered?”
He replied “I think it was discovered. It is just too beautiful.”
@yiskers Oh man, I could talk about that for ages. It’s so nice to be talking to someone even asking that question!
My answer is it’s both. It exists, but was waiting to be interpreted. We could use entirely different symbols for numbers than we do: those are man made. The patterns and behavior, however, are inherit to its existence.