I can say with certainty that interviews do carry some weight. Examples: If a candidate looks perfect on paper yet interviews terribly, then he/she may not be accepted. By the same token, if a candidate is borderline on paper yet glows during an interview, it is likely to help his/her chances.
Interviews are called interviews for a reason. If they only serve to answer questions from applicants, they would be called Q&A or info sessions instead.
You state that you know this âwith certainty.â May I ask how? Did a Vanderbilt admissions employee tell you this? If not, I would encourage prospective students to keep the interview in perspective, as explained by a Vanderbilt admissions employee - who coordinates the program: Still Time to Request an Alumni Interview through CoRPs | The Vandy Admissions Blog | Vanderbilt University.
We have been told by mulptiple people IN VANDY ADMISSIONS, as well as by our GC in HS, that interviews hold extremely little weight in admissions. It is primarily for the student to get an opportunity to ask questions directly of an alum, and for the alum to gain a sense of the student. Yes, if there is some disastrous moment where the student displays qualities that are abhorrent or would not fit the school, Iâm sure it can help to be disqualifying. But, as the two AOs that have visited over the past four years have said- interviews have almost no bearing on admittance. They are overwhemingly positive from the intererviewers write up, and only work to help if what they say matches other portions of the application. As the one this past year said, âWeâd be pretty stupid to put any real weight into a thirty minute conversation with a stranger, when we have four years worth of work to make our decision.â
I agree. It seems if you are test optional you arenât in. I have 4.3 gpa with a ton of extras and didnât get in
i went test optional for RD⊠
Thank you for the response. Letâs all bear in mind that âlittle weightâ does not mean âzero weight.â I have been interviewing for my high school, college and graduate school for 20+ years. Every evaluation form requires the interviewer to provide a rating. If the rating is poor, the candidate usually ends up not being accepted.
There is a myriad of factors behind every candidateâs acceptance or rejection: hard stats, ECs, intellectual capacity, knowledge of the particular school, and oftentimes socioeconomic considerations. When a school tells you that they are need blind, the actual FA packages still depend heavily on the financial strength of that school in a particular year, which means that they can only be need blind in most cases.
While most schools tell you that they are test optional, stats still show that roughly 3/4 of top college admits (Columbia, Penn, etc.) did submit test scores. Bottom line: when you have a chance to demonstrate extra evidence of your academic strength, use it. The same rationale goes for interviews. While it is true that not having an interview will not hurt your chances, a nice interview (from scheduling to actual conversation to a nice thank-you letter or follow-up questions) will only help. If you (or your kid) are lucky enough to get an interview from your top school, you should embrace that opportunity, show up prepared, demonstrate your interest, be engaged, and ask meaningful questions.
The quality of interviewers also vary quite a bit. Some only do it once in a blue moon, while there are dedicated ones who do over 10 a year. Some interviewers finish a review within minutes, while I know someone who would spend over an hour writing up an endorsement. Trust me, the admissions folks know whose opinions to rely on - they also grade the evaluation reports, ranging from âuselessâ to âexcellent.â
Vandy is a wonderful school and I think it will only get better in the years to come. Once again, good luck to current applicants!
I am an OOS student (Ohio) and Vandy is one of my dreams schools. My stats are the followingâŠ
GPA - 3.7UW, 4.5W
Classes - 13 APâs (3âs, 4âs, 5âs), 11 honors, 3 electives.
Clubs - 9 clubs, most notably NHS and NEHS (public relations officer and vice president).
Sports - four-year Varisty cheerleader (captain one year as well), on both of my schoolâs cheer competitive teams, one year of Varsity swimming, allstar cheerleading for 8 years.
300+ volunteer hours, worked a coaching job for one year, was a student aide in my schoolâs special education room for four years, however, I went test-optional.
Also had national, state, and regional awards for photography and was recognized as the scholar-athlete of my conference (eight cities).
I felt I also had pretty strong essays but I feel like the test optional will hurt my changes
Can someone realistically chance me? I keep getting told so many things and I am not sure what to expect on the decision date. (I also had strong recommenders x3)
Did you apply regular or early?
When do you guys think Ed2 will be released ?
i applied RD, i heard in the past ED was more challenging because there was higher level of students in there (which could be false)
I think it was the 15th last year and the 12th in 2020 hopefully itâs next week. I saw someone say they thought it would be the 11th.
is march 29th the hard date for RD or is that flexible?
I Think its gonna be the 16th because they usually do it on a Wednesday
You make a lot of great points!
DD chose NOT to chase the ever-closing test dates & focus on getting her national certification in EMT (which she passed on her 1st pass). She applied RD TO. While I think it was a wise use of time â and absolutely the right thing to do for experience â I hope ADMISSIONS shares my sentiments.
Also, DD interviews extremely well but never heard from the Vandy guy she was told to connect with. Obviously no interview which was pretty disappointing!
Perhaps try and connect again? Some busy guys might have filters on their email servers. Did she try calling him? Good luck to your DD either way!
Candy only gave her name & email.
Do they usually send out an email the day of or a week before to let us know about the decision date for Ed?