LORs not read Pre-Interview?

[ChakDeyPhutteMD]

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This doesn't make much sense to me. If a school is granting interviews, that school should have read letters of recommendation beforehand and used those to decide. Duke and Vanderbilt for sure do not read recs before giving interviews. Does any other school do this?

If this is common practice, a) how can you say that LORs really play a huge factor in your admission and b) it seems to me that decisions to interview don't take into account a really important part of an application!

Duke says it's so that interviewers can be more objective when interviewing you...but can't LORs be withheld from the interviewers but included in the initial review process?

I have some shortcomings in my application as far as numbers go but the rest of my application is really strong and I've been counting on that (including LORs) to shadow my numbers. I'm not complaining b/c I'm happy with the places I've been admitted so far but I'm still calling into question the whole practice.

 

[LaMusicienne]

I can't speak for Duke, but Vanderbilt evaluates the applicant's interview, secondary, and letters at the same time. In other words, they give you the secondary after granting an interview. This is just how their admissions works. That said, they also interview a lot of people (about 1000) since realistically, you can't judge too much from just the primary.

Some other schools that are *supposed* to interview after reading secondaries/LORs granted automatic interviews (I'm thinking Pitt). People with spectacular numbers are invited 12 hours after they submitted the secondary. I don't have too much respect for this method, but whatever, I'm not on the committee.

 

[ChakDeyPhutteMD]

it kinda kills the whole "holistic review" review of an applicant schpiel that these admissions offices give...