MIT: Master Interview Thread - Page 7

Mikalye · 12-08-2008, 12:30 PM

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Son's interview was waived due to distance (about 3 hours) What is son required to do at this point to notify MIT. Should he forward the e-mail to admissions? How does he make sure admissions knows the interview was waived by the EC?

ABSOLUTELY. Waived means something very special in MIT Admissions parlance and an EC has no right to waive an interview without the consent of the admissions office. Definitely contact the admissions office and let them know what happened. I would call them or e-mail Kim Hunter in the admissions office.

Mikalye · 12-08-2008, 12:51 PM

Quote:

How long usually it takes for the EC to submit his/her report?

This varies hugely based on the EC and what else is going on in their life at the time. I have submitted reports within a couple of days of the interview, or a couple of months, depending on the year and my circumstances. If you had the interview several weeks ago and there is no report received, you may contact the admissions office to let them know that the interview was conducted even though no report has been received. There is a special flag for that situation in the admissions process.

johnsmithcollege · 12-08-2008, 07:46 PM

Any advice or possible questions to think about before hand?

ana ivanovic!!! · 12-08-2008, 07:47 PM

what do you like about MIT?
what are your passions? prepare to talk about that in relation to ur ECs

static75 · 12-08-2008, 07:51 PM

remember to be yourself

have a good time!

Millerl1te · 12-08-2008, 08:22 PM

static75 speaks truth. that is all.

prime235 · 12-08-2008, 10:51 PM

Ok, so Matt McGann said the interview is important because EC's ask essentially what MIT wants to know about the student.

Could an experienced MIT alumni or past interviewee (is that a word?) list the questions that MIT wants to ask about the student? and popular questions asked by EC's in general?

Arch3r25 · 12-08-2008, 11:05 PM

"How do your classmates view you?"
"Do you consider yourself an entrepreneur?"

I remember those two from my interview. Can't remember the others.

molliebatmit · 12-08-2008, 11:08 PM

There's no list -- ECs are free to ask whatever they want to ask.

prime235 · 12-08-2008, 11:10 PM

what are you supposed to say when they tell you, what adjectives describe your personality?

I mean the first things that pop into my head are like passionate and dedicated. But I mean....isn't that everyone?

I'm stuck on this one. help?

molliebatmit · 12-08-2008, 11:17 PM

You're supposed to say what adjectives you think describe your personality. Really.

Seriously, there shouldn't be a lot of prep going into this interview. It should just be a conversation between you and your EC -- it's not a grill session, and it's not an opportunity for you to smile beatifically and offer canned responses to an anticipated list of questions.

prime235 · 12-08-2008, 11:26 PM

hmm, ic. yea, i guess.

crayola27 · 12-09-2008, 07:56 PM

Don't panic about prepping for the interview. I just had mine and it went smoothly without any prepping. You can't account for all the random questions that could be asked so just know what you like and talk about that. Treat it like a normal conversation, let your personality and interests come out and you'll be fine. Don't try to screen answers to impress them because then that isn't "you" anymore. I promise that the ECs aren't out to eat you for lunch.

hpy931 · 12-09-2008, 09:41 PM

Just curious, how would you guys define a "good interview"? What do you guys actually mean when you guys say "my interview went well" (or didn't go well)?

Mikalye · 12-09-2008, 10:44 PM

Defining a good interview as a candidate is very hard. I am sure that I have had candidates who thought that they did well at the interview, who definitely did not, and I can think of at least one interview where it probably went the other way (she did much better than she thought she had done).

As to questions....hmmmm... Arguably the most important page on the admissions website is the page where they talk about what will get you in: The Match between a candidate and MIT (MIT Admissions: The Match Between You And MIT)

That is pretty much what we look for at the interview. We ask questions designed to elucidate information about how well you match, and we follow those up, digging as deep as necessary to justify those characteristics, and in some cases testing those to destruction. It is not really something that you can prepare for very well.

Quote:

I mean the first things that pop into my head are like passionate and dedicated. But I mean....isn't that everyone?

No it's not everyone, and an EC can devote as much time to exploring these as he or she wishes. So I can find out if you are more or less dedicated than any other candidates I have seen, and what it is you mean by "dedicated". Dedicated to what? How? What evidence is there to support a claim of being dedicated? How does that dedication manifest itself? If you are dedicated to your school and dedicated to your family, how do you deal with conflicts between the two. Oh, and when I finish with "dedicated", then I can start on "passionate".

If this sounds like an interrogation, it is not. Keep in mind that I, like most EC's, work very, very, very hard at making the candidate relax. We do try to keep it light. If it is fun for both of us, we get better answers, and a better interview. Just go along, be yourself, and that is the best possible thing. I do meet very bright students who do not match very well with MIT, and if they do not match the school, then even if they were admitted, they would not ultimately be happy on campus. MIT is looking for students who will be comfortable in the MIT environment and will thrive there. We EC's help to look for that.

Hope this helps,