how much should feedback from your interviewer weigh on your psyche?

[erotangos]

"I hope to see you next year."
"I will certainly advocate for you."
"I think you'd fit in very well here."

...even a friendly pat on the shoulder on your way out.

The waiting game in this process is torture. Especially if you're like me, and you realize now, at the tail end of the process, that your top choice school was one of your very first interviews. All you can do is replay your interview day experience over and over again, and it's absolutely ridiculous!

Of course, the question of whether or not your interviewer is on the committee, the relative date of your interview (even at non-rolling ivys), and your own tendencies in perceiving an experience all factor in.

What do you guys think about surviving this process? Is trying to guesstimate your "chances" post-interview even worth anything?

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[lrkoehle]

"I hope to see you next year."
"I will certainly advocate for you."
"I think you'd fit in very well here."

...even a friendly pat on the shoulder on your way out.

The waiting game in this process is torture. Especially if you're like me, and you realize now, at the tail end of the process, that your top choice school was one of your very first interviews. All you can do is replay your interview day experience over and over again, and it's absolutely ridiculous!

Of course, the question of whether or not your interviewer is on the committee, the relative date of your interview (even at non-rolling ivys), and your own tendencies in perceiving an experience all factor in.

What do you guys think about surviving this process? Is trying to guesstimate your "chances" post-interview even worth anything?

I don't think the "school specific discussions" forum is the right place for this thread, but I will answer you anyways.

I say interviewer feedback should matter ZERO. I was told I did "fantastic" at an interview, and was put on hold. I was told I did "fabulous" at another, and also put on hold. I was told I was "a great applicant" at another, and given an acceptance. I got very little feedback and felt like I did bad at one interview, and that was the school I got my first acceptance at. As you can see, it is my experience that interviewer feedback is meaningless. Also, the interview is not everything, so even if you really did do so-so, you can still get in if there are other things they like about your and your application. Still I understand it playing through your head as it is important, but I have to ask, what good does playing it through your head do you? You can't change anything at this point anyhow, so just try to move on (easier said than done I know). It sounds like the interview was a while ago, so there's a good chance you're not remembering everything now anyways.

 

[MaryLennox]

I also found out the hard way that it matters ZERO . . . my first interview, the interviewers all seemed to like me enough, and one in particular seemed to absolutely LOVE me. i walked out of there feeling like i could not have had a better interview. now 3 months later they are still 'continuing to review my application' (where most other people who interviewed that long ago got accepted pretty quickly.) on the other hand, the interview that i felt the worst about, was the school where i got my first acceptance AND i even got a handwritten card congratulating me- from the interviewer who i thought hated me!

you just never know. some people may gush about how great you are- but do it to every single applicant. someone else may be giving you a hard time, but you never know whether you might be really impressing them with your reaction.

 

[CalBear2009]

I think you can't look into it too much. Even if an interviewer in head over heels for you, it is the entire adcom that makes the decision. They are just one part of your decision.

 

[Infinitydrop]

I don't think i have had a single interviewer "gush" over me. Is this very common?

 

[kierkegaard]

Might just be me, but of the schools I've heard back from, I had one interview (my first) go only so-so, resulting in a waitlist and the other 4 go really well, which were all acceptances. I've only had interviewers "gush" over me (both telling me they will highly recommend me for acceptance) at one school so far, but haven't heard back yet so can't comment on that part. I think how you feel the interviews went overall would be better to judge by than reading into one-line parting comments

 

[flip26]

It is a waste of time trying to guess your chances post interview based on your perception of how the interviewer feels about you - for one thing, the interviewer may have nothing to do with the adcom decision. Plus most interviewers try to leave all applicants feeling "good" about the experience - no need to send anyone away feeling bad about the school.

Attend as many interviews as possible, be sharp, and do your best. That is all you can do in this awful process.

 

[Zona Pellucida]

Don't listen.

"Masterful interview! You are a perfect fit for our school!"

Waitlisted.