Can anyone let me know what kinds of questions you were asked when interviewing at Wake Forest? Thank you!
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I was asked the following questions
- How would other people describe you vs. How would you describe yourself
- What's a misconception people have about you ( We discussed the courses I have taken and my ec's)
- What's the most fulfilling school project you've done
- What are your career goals / Potential Major
- Why Wake
Our daughter was asked “tell me something about yourself that would illustrate what kind of person you are.”
Half their students never get an interview. The interview is probably meaningless. They make a decision pretty early with the transcript and test scores. The fact that WF and other schools have gone “test optional” is a means for them to get around reporting scores for the students they have to/want to take (athletes, children/grandchildren of donors, dumb children of Hollywood celebs, etc). If you aren’t a donor, athlete or URM, you’d better supply your test scores. The interview is probably more for appearances.
well I can’t speak for “all schools” but wake forest actually holds a strong weight on interviews. The interview is weighted “Important” on their common data set and they also don’t even begin to evaluate a freshman’s early decision application to wake UNTIL an interview is completed. An interview is “expected to be completed before [they] begin application evaluation” (for ed applicants)
https://prod.wp.cdn.aws.wfu.edu/sites/202/2019/04/CDS_2018-2019.pdf
https://admissions.wfu.edu/visit/interviews/faqs/
The interview, at least in S’ experience, is more of a conversation for them to learn about your kid well beyond the application. in 2017, S was asked about current events, several points on his resume, behavioral questions, etc. He thought it was actually fun and not stressful at all once it started.
Wake has one of the most comprehensive applications. They value writing / communication, character, and accomplishments both within and outside the classroom.
The interview is just a piece of the puzzle but a great opportunity for your kid to express themselves.
My daughter had a Skype interview. It was more of a conversation about her high school, town, etc. They also discussed a book that my daughter just read in school that the interviewer also read. The interview lasted about 30 minutes.
My daughter got into Wake without submitting test scores and no interview. She applied last minute for ED 2 so it was too late. She is none of those things mentioned above (Hollywood kid, URM etc). Her application was great, she had good grades and interesting ECs and academic interests. That is all.
However, she said that all of her friends submitted scores and had interviews and were shocked she got in. Sometimes you get lucky. If you have high scores send them, and try to interview.
@citymama9 Interesting! I do wonder if Wake is a little different from some test optional schools like the elite LACs and U of Chicago. In those cases, the app from an upper middle class without scores does seem to be a disadvantage. Those schools have the TO rule so that they can take kids they want to take without having to defend their scores. At Wake, it seems that some kids do get in without scores even though they are the type of kids they would expect to get pretty good scores. Does anyone know the percentage of kids who don’t submit? And @citymama9, did you D submit her scores in other apps and get accepted to those schools?
@Homerdog To answer your questions: Yes she got into many schools where she submitted SAT scores. She did get a couple of waitlists too.Her scores were good, but not amazing, in the mid 1300s.
As I mentioned, her response to the essays were absolutely great, and I’m a harsh critic. She also showed that she has intellectual interests which I think really set her apart. There are so many super smart kids, but perhaps they had differnt interests.
She told me that friends there had very high SAT scores, much higher than hers. Also, she took a challenging courseload and did well across the board except for Geometry. She is more of a humanities kid, but did surprisingly well in AP physics and her other maths and sciences… I also think the recs were excellent.
Finally, she had a talent that maybe interested them. and she went to a “famous” high school. I think that is why she got in. I don’t think being upper middle class hurt her at all. If you have other things they want they don’t need the scores, imo. I think they saw her as interesting. That being said, we were all shocked, because she didn’t interview. I thought it was a waste of an ED2 application, but there was no talking her out of it.
It sounds like I’m bragging, but I’m just trying to tell her story, and I hope it helps.