I had an interview semi-recently that went (in my opinion) extremely well. At the end of my interview (with a faculty member), the interviewer spent several minutes going over their notes and bringing up qualities of mine that would make me a great doctor, and ultimately repeated multiple times that they hoped I would consider their school because they thought I would thrive there. Honestly, it felt great to leave an interview feeling so self-assured and confident in myself and my abilities. Does my interviewer's praise and multiple attempts to sell the school to me mean anything in terms of an admissions decision? I feel like I've heard of people who get similar words of encouragement but end up with WL's or R's. Should I take this all with a grain of salt until I hear back from admissions?
Interviewer giving praise & selling the school - take this with a grain of salt?
- Thread starter dulapeep
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Yes, huge grain of salt. It might be total BS designed to simply leave you feeling good about the school and the interview. At best, it is totally sincere, but is only one person's opinion as you go to a full committee for a vote and are compared to everyone else being considered.
Bottom line -- it's better than the alternative, but has ZERO predictive value regarding your outcome. Everything you've seen and heard about this with other people is true.
Bottom line -- it's better than the alternative, but has ZERO predictive value regarding your outcome. Everything you've seen and heard about this with other people is true.
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No, this has happened to me at least four or five times this cycle and the decisions were mostly waitlists and even a couple rejections. The only two that I did get into were pretty neutral (just “it was good to meet you”)
I’ve gotten:
“You are a great candidate and I expect to see you around next year”
“Come down your X city. We would be lucky to have you around campus”
“We can talk more about X research if you decide to come here. (It was an area of interest expressed on my application)”
I hate to be that guy, but interviewers are taught to be polite and sometimes it can be awkward to end an interview without flattery of some sort
I’ve gotten:
“You are a great candidate and I expect to see you around next year”
“Come down your X city. We would be lucky to have you around campus”
“We can talk more about X research if you decide to come here. (It was an area of interest expressed on my application)”
I hate to be that guy, but interviewers are taught to be polite and sometimes it can be awkward to end an interview without flattery of some sort
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It'll depend on whether the interviewer sits on the Adcom or not, in my opinion. Generally, being an interviewer is voluntary and what they write up in the assessment that's handed to the committee is all they will ever say about interviewing you. If the interviewer actually votes on the committee, then they can really advocate for your admissions during the meeting.
For ex. I prematched at my #1 after the assistant dean of admissions overheard me remark to my group of fellow interviewers that the doctor who interviewed me was a GI and that I felt like I just received a colonoscopy. The dean shouted out to the entire office, "That's the kind of students we need here at X school!"
For ex. I prematched at my #1 after the assistant dean of admissions overheard me remark to my group of fellow interviewers that the doctor who interviewed me was a GI and that I felt like I just received a colonoscopy. The dean shouted out to the entire office, "That's the kind of students we need here at X school!"
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this is what I think, except maybe a little bit more. I think in general, and interviewer that seems impressed by you is more likely to give you a positive review, which is more likely to grant you admission. However, the interviewer is, at the end of the day, not the one making that decision. Hence why an interviewer being absolutely stunned with you (even if not pretending) might still not be enough to get you in.
Will do, and I'll even add a lime for good measure!
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It’s their job in case you do get accepted. They want you to feel good about the school.
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To follow up, the interviewer may have loved you, but the rest of the Adcom may not have felt the same way.
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Or the interviewer loved you, suspects the rest of the adcom will love you, but also knows that applicants like you are more likely than not to choose an alternative and would hate to see that happen because the school would be a good fit for you.
