I haven't kept up with this thread nearly enough, but I'm with Kutastha. This story sounds a little too fishy, and cookie's failure to provide more details as for defending it makes it even sketchier in my mind.
Why wouldn't more of us have heard of scenarioes such as this if it were a strict numbers proposition like some have suggested. Many other people would be shoo-ins and be getting immediate acceptances after the interview. But, the lack of anyone hearing about this makes me suspicious, beyond the fact that it doesn't cast a favorable light on the school. That it reflects poorly on the school is the only serviceable explanation for why cookie has refused to post, but in that situation I don't think it's appropriate to be telling people about it in such a gleeful sense that the system is messed up. There is a reason that the committee meets after the interview to decide in an objective, professional manner the final evaluation.
