<p>Friends resigned Cornell interviewing because not one of “their” kids was ever taken, and another friend, a college VP, refused to do our kids’ Ivy interviews because “not one of my kids was ever taken.” Both gave all these candidates glowing reports.</p>
<p>Alumni interviews are now mostly marketing ploys, and they began as a way to make sure Harvard wasn’t inundated with Jews (see the excellent New Yorker article on the subject.)</p>
<p>This is an obvious quandary. The interviewer sounds like a self-absorbed jerk who didn’t feel like taking the time or making the effort to show up at a neutral location for the interview. One wonders why he bothers to do these interviews at all - he’s clearly too busy to do a proper job. My guess is that he’ll put the same minimal effort into the interview report that he put into the interview - it’ll be short and mostly about him - nothing damaging whatsoever for your daughter.</p>
<p>Since the interviews are not deciding factors and only a REALLY bad report makes a difference, I wouldn’t worry about it. However, for your own sanity, I would pass along the story to your GC and see what he/she thinks. </p>
<p>My H does interviews for an ivy and he only meets at the students’ school or at a local coffee shop. These kids are already nervous and uncomfortable - a neutral location helps calm them a bit. Additionally, the interviewer should never be alone with the student in a private home - highly inappropriate and a bad idea for both parties.</p>
<p>Parent B’s brother is a Trustee at the Ivy in question and talks often of his communications with his brother re: the Ivy. Parents C and D are in the social group of Parent B, as well as with Interviewer. They are all talking about who is applying, what are their qualifications and Parent B is receptive/interested in this info. Add to this that Parent D’s child was not admitted last year and was in head-to-head competition with DD many years ago at another school. </p>
<p>Does it get to the admission commitee? I don’t know. Do I feel DD’s privacy has been violated in a major way? yes. Is there anything I can do, or would choose to do about it? - probably not. It’s crazy and you are right, I’m going to quit thinking about it.</p>
<p>compass: I know I am being a Pollyanna, but I have seen wonderful results in that kids often end up at schools that really make them happy. It seems a mysterious process.</p>
<p>The people you describe are unprofessional. What a shame. However, I’m sure your D will prevail.</p>
<p>We all want our kids to have only the very best experiences. Life isn’t like that for any of us or our kids, though. OP, I feel your pain. Right now my son is being subjected to his roommate’s inconsiderate and demeaning dad who is camped out in the dorm room, even though he has a nice room at the school inn. I want to do something, but I can’t, and it wouldn’t help anyway. Thankfully, our kids learn from troubling and great experiences alike. They learn what we know and too often forget, “This too shall pass.”</p>
<p>No matter where your DD ends up, she will love and dislike things about it, but most importantly, she will adapt and figure out how to thrive. It will all work out and I’m not sure I would want my kid at a place where school and hometown politics are intertwined.</p>
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<p>If the school was Cornell, the interview should not have taken place in the interviewer’s home (or the student’s home, for that matter). Cornell alumni representatives are instructed to choose neutral public sites, such as a coffee shop or the student’s school. I don’t know what the policy is at the other Ivy League schools, but if they allow interviews in private homes, they’re nuts. The risk of one party claiming to have been sexually harassed by the other is too great.</p>
<p>Have not read the whole thread but these interviews don’t matter.</p>
<p>I agree with the suggestion to have D talk to her GC, preferably ASAP. I’d focus on the interview not being private, and the dressing-down of the Interviewer’s daughter, using your D as the hammer. That had to be uncomfortable. Having it at the home isn’t my ideal but I don’t think it’s bizarre, and the sock thing is a non-factor, in my opinion. But an interview should be private, and your D should not have been used to humiliate the interviewer’s daughter.</p>
<p>(I read someone’s post that your D should contact the interviewer’s D? NO NO NO. She should avoid any contact with the interviewer’s D at all cost. There is zero reason your D should have any involvement in this girl’s life, your D didn’t ask to be put in this position and she should stay as far OUT of it as she can).</p>
<p>I’d quit worrying about “passing around” her resume. If it’s factual, it’s factual. And its not unusual for an interviewer to ask to see it. If Interviewer has an ounce of professionalism, he will keep it private. But it doesn’t sound that way.</p>
<p>It would be interesting to know what the college will do about this interviewer after the GC calls - sounds like he may be a large benefactor, if he’s a Big Player and sits on the board of non-profits. The college may not want to offend him. But his behavior was totally inappropriate and the college should be made aware of it.</p>
<p>I’d let it go - it was an odd experience, but these alumni interviews don’t mean anything.</p>
<p>Marian, in my earlier post, I already said it is not ok for home interviews for Cornell. Just trying to say that as to the other schools, it does not look like interview is really a factor in decisions from public info.</p>
<p>Yes weird and unprofessional interview. I never saw the value in these interviews except as a marketing tool for unversities and a way to keep the alumni connected and donating as ‘part of the family’. A hodge podge of random untrained people and absolutely no way for schools to adjust for interview bias, preferences, or random bits of information in one setting with one person. Five interviewers could meet the same student in five settings and come away with five entirely different impressions. Or the same impression but write entirely different things. </p>
<p>I do think you are overreacting and ‘catastrophizing it’ (is that a verb?). But if I lived a long time in the community you describe (which to me, sounds completely whacked out), I might have had a similar reaction. </p>
<p>Socks? At first I was picturing this guy just in socks! I’m thinking ‘what the?..’ In our neck of the woods it’s considered strange to have your shoes on in the house.</p>
<p>For all the reasons stated, I am surprised that any college allows home interviews. (S1 had one, and I thought the set-up was a bit odd.) If this interview had occurred in a neutral location, I’d bet the interviewer would have behaved more professionally. </p>
<p>I concur that you should talk to your GC to handle appropriately. It’s hard for applicants and parents to register these kind of complaints, but schools should know that a minimum of courtesy and professionalism is expected, and interviews in private homes pose numerous risks.</p>
<h1>7, Anothermom2.</h1>
<p>Not to interview at all. Nothing to be gained, a lot be lost.
Unless the student really wants to know more about the overall environment, climate, number of nerds, boy/girl ratio, food, sports, quality of dorms, etc. But everything is so subjective. </p>
<p>Just what is the interviewer supposed to say, “Don’t worry, you’ll be perfect at XXXX school,” or say, “I don’t think you’ll fit in at ZZZZ school.” ?</p>
<p>“Marian, in my earlier post, I already said it is not ok for home interviews for Cornell. Just trying to say that as to the other schools, it does not look like interview is really a factor in decisions from public info.”</p>
<p>Harvard allows interviews in alum’s homes. Harvard interviews also can tip students into and out of admission. Saying this as a Harvard alum who has conducted interviews, chaired the regional alum interviewing committee, and has received follow-up phone calls and e-mails from admissions after submitting some of my interview reports.</p>
<p>As I’ve said previously, the situation that the OP described was inappropriate in that the D should not have been present at the interview, and the interviewer should not have shown the resume to his D. THis is something that either the student or the student’s GC should let admissions know about before decisions come out. The student’s parents should not, however, be the ones to inform admissions because admissions at places like Ivies are looking for students with the maturity to handle their own questions and concerns about their applications, not students who have to lean on helicopter parents.</p>
<p>Based on my experiences, I do not think that an Ivy would hold against a student a problem due to an interviewer’s being unprofessional or otherwise inappropriate. More than likely, the college would make efforts to have the student interviewed by someone else. Of course, students’ complaints about interviewers are likely to be taken more seriously if given before the student receives their admission decision.</p>
<p>DD had one of these in-home interviews for Yale–the only one of many that did not take place in a public setting. We both thought that it was uncomfortable going into that setting, meeting with an older man alone… though from noise from another room she gathered that someone else was in the house sometime during the interview. I waited outside in my car; because of the setting and the gender of the interviewer, it was the only interview for which I even considered accompanying her. The interview was at night. Unfortunately, they were joined, not by a daughter, but by his pet cat, to which she is very allergic, but she did not want to make the situation more awkward by complaining about the cat. So she spent the entire time trying not to sneeze or scratch her developing hives as the cat rubbed against her leg!!! Though she would have reacted to the cat dander even if the cat had not joined them. We just laughed about it afterwards. Fortunately Yale was not among her top choices, and the interview reinforced that. </p>
<p>In our area, shoes would be worn in the home for an interview…and the rest of the OP’s story would be complaint worthy, but after the acceptance arrives, since it sounds as if the interviewer planned to recommend her.</p>
<p>So I guess that Yale allows in-home interviews, but this can make interviewing more stressful for reasons already stated–it can be a very awkward set-up and does not seem typical.</p>
<p>I agree with NSM. A complaint after being rejected would be seen as sour grapes.</p>
<p>As for avoiding interviews, Harvard goes to great lengths to connect applicants to interviewers. While interviews will not be the most important factor, it may tip the balance for or against an applicant. Avoiding an interview without some reasonable cause such as distance may seem odd to the adcom. </p>
<p>My S’s two interviews were not grilling sessions. His interviewers looked at his resume and decided to ask him about his hobby; they also provided him with some tips about housing and courseload, etc… nothing terribly new but I expect they wanted to connect the applicant with the dossier, see how he behaved in person. Neither tried to “sell” their school.</p>
<p>Follow Northstarmom’s advice. She’s the insider, I’d trust her judgement on how it would be perceived.</p>
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<p>I hadn’t thought of that angle. </p>
<p>Have your D call admissions or have D talk to her GC and have the GC call/email admissions.</p>
<p>I think one should check with the admission office of the college concerned before declining an interview. MIT makes it clear that the acceptance rate of students without interview is less than 4%
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<p>Having conducted alum interviews for H for 12+ years, I’ve a few thoughts. I always interview in my home - the only exception being boarding school students. For those, I’ve travelled to the schools, even though it’s often quite a pain. I dont’ wear shoes at home (heavily Japanese influenced house) and every single one of my interviewees has offered to remove their own shoes. Back in the days when I had a dog, I’d always bring this up when arranging the interview, asking if there were any allergies. The dog was never present in the room but I’m well aware dander can linger and set somebody off. I would never have anyone else present at the interview and so have been thrown when the applicant arrives accompanied by a parent or, one case, a very aggressive GC. My whole approach was to ensure the candidate was as relaxed and comfortable as possible. TBH I gave up interviewing for H when my own D was a candidate and had a nightmare interview - and then another because she was called for a second one. And as for the suggestion that interviews be avoided, I was under the impression that it was required for H unless the candidate was applying from a country where there were no alum interviewers. And even in those situations, interviewers often travel to the country - H asks us if we travel regularly on business to certain countries where they need interviewers…</p>
<p>For those of you who have conducted interviews: would you spend 1 to 2 hours with an applicant if you were going to give a negative review of the applicant?</p>