@wrenwu @Laketahoe79 Well there’s no way that it could really hurt your application if you update them. I gave an update last week about an award I got for MUN. How I’d think about it is try to put yourself in the admissions officer’s shoes. If you had already read this kid’s application before and this new information was added, would your opinion of them change in any way? Kinda weird hypothetical situation but hope that helps!
No. My thoughts:
Yale will assume that most applicants will continue to receive honors and awards after the application has been submitted. You can certainly update them with significant updates, which in my mind is something that makes the regional/national papers outside of the free local weekly. But to update them because you receive a varsity letter or the Most Improved Player Award? No. They have more than enough information to make their decisions; blinding them with paper will not improve your chances, IMO.
So would being a National Merit Commended/Jefferson Scholarship Finalist be worth noting?
@habitualnerd I think that is noteworthy. However, we don’t know how far along they are in the admissions process, so its hard to know if it will make a difference this late. But, there is no harm in sending that info in
How do you send updates? Did you guys email them?
@littlechild you send updates through your portal.
@MaybeHarvard2022 Thank you!
I was wondering…Do Ivy’s in general (and other Ivy-like schools for that matter) inform the high school GC of their applicants final admission decision in advance/before or even after decision day applicant notification?
@Volunteerism they inform them a little while afterwards
My bad I misread that, colleges only tell GC if they were accepted
Sounds like if you don’t get an interview then you are out.
Has nobody gotten in without an interview in past years?
@ambkeegan where do you get that idea? i find it hard to believe that the interview would matter THAT much especially since it is entirely dependent on number of alumni in a certain area and their schedule etc… Maybe if you turned down an interview, that might hurt your chances, but if you were never offered one (like myself) then i don’t see how it could hurt or even ruin your chances.
@senioritisls ma dude, they literally say in the website that interviews are an optional thing that won’t affect ur chances. I heard from a few experts that they sometimes do interviews to find out if you’re actually who you say you are in the application.
Oh, and interviews are just for you if you have any questions about the university and ask about student’s experience. Interviewers will also ask a few things about you so they can write a letter about the interview.
@ambkeegan I don’t think this is true- in Early Action, someone in my country got an interview but was rejected instead of being deferred (though this doesn’t refute your statement, the rejection rate is slightly lower than the deferral rate in the Early round, so if they were a strong applicant, they’d be at least deferred).
I am unsure about Regular Decision for international students, though. Yale’s website says ‘receiving an interview is not an indication of the status of your application’, but very few, stat-strong applicants received interviews in Regular this year in my country. I worry Yale might follow the pattern Harvard has adopted for Limited Interview students.
Hi, I don’t know if my answer will help taking away some worries. I do know a current Yale student admitted without an interview. At least, this was what she told me. She lives in New Jersey.
An interview definitely does not equal admission just as no interview definitely does not equal rejection. Schools that do not require every student to interview will tell you that not getting one will not hurt your chances of getting in. Because they are so limited, I think it would be impossible to fill an entire class only with applicants who interviewed–much less only the ones with good interviews.
I think I misread some posts. I’ve had little sleep lately (not due to college stuff) My son did have a good interview with Harvard and was told the interview could only help his chances not hurt them. He also interviewed with Case Western on campus. He had signed up to interview with Vanderbilt but the alumni never responded. Then it was too late to schedule another interview
There are several posts about the lack of importance in not getting an interview at Yale (or any Ivy for that matter). Alumni interviews rarely, rarely make a difference. I wish they did—I interview for Harvard! And this is what we alumni interviewers are instructed. We sometimes fill in gaps in the written application. Sometimes. We mostly serve as a contact to answer questions about the university and our experiences there. We have little training and even less input into the committee’s decisions.
So if you (or your son/daughter) didn’t get an interview, don’t worry. Sit tight. One thing I can assure you is that your application will be thoroughly read, re-read, and analyzed. It is an impressively comprehensive process that relies little on us alumni.
Good luck to all!