Agreed.
The amount of gushing I hear about here and irl dies not equal the number of acceptances that follows. I wish AOs wouldn’t do it.
@doschicos @one1ofeach Agreed. No one should fake enthusiasm or go over the top, especially with kids. But I have zero problem with AO’s finding the best in a kid and sharing that with the parents. Parents are smart enough not to think that means an acceptance is in the bag. But I’ve heard of true gushing type language described here on CC that sounded inappropriate unless an acceptance really was in the bag (and it never is).
Honestly, I think the gushing is perceived by the parents and students. Our kids have interviewed at many schools and as parents we’ve interviewed many times. The AO’s have reiterated what the kid has said (I thought it was mainly to verify get the complete picture), there has been specific points raised. But gushing? Really. What did they say, hey your kid is so great we’ll be seeing them at revisit? Hey your kid is so great that we will make a spot on the team for them?
We had an AO clear their schedule once to take us to the STEM center. Seemed positive. (Kid got waitlisted) Another talk about some math stuff then connected us with the head of the math dept. Ok, also good. We met coaches and various staff members. But did that mean anything? We didn’t think so.
I think it’s the job of the AO to make small talk and niceties and say a nice thing or two after the interview to the parents. Happens all the time.
I don’t think it means a thing. They don’t know who else will apply. And they don’t know the scores, grades or much about everyone until they have the whole pile. Yes, you could be a strong candidate. But as for thinking you are in after an interview, I think that’s pretty cocky.
We had full on gushing during three parent interviews (two of which were ADs), and extremely positive comments from the remaining interviews, hence why my husband is (falsely) convinced our daughter will get into all of the schools to which she applied. We did leave every school feeling like she nailed the interview. But I take it for what it’s worth, the AO/AD enjoyed their chat with her and will hopefully give her a positive recommendation. It is truly just one part of her application.
We have a much more limited data set than normal but my husband correctly called my kids’ admittances.
If you ask yourself, “how many kids like mine do I know, or can I conceive of?” that may give you a good idea. Kids applying as boarders have a much more mixed/diverse pool of applicants. When my daughter applied 3 years ago she was probably the only girl, day student, with the grades and scores + the sports. Certainly there were kids with the grades, or kids with the sports, or kids with music, but because the sports world is small we pretty much knew there was no one like her applying. Again, day student. Makes a difference. It’s a more competitive pool but you also know who your competition is.
For us, there was no correlation between acceptances/rejections and a follow up communication re: financial aid.
The gushing may even be sincere. But admissions decisions are not made by a single individual.
@Happytimes2001 re gushing: Well, at one school, the AO started the interview with, “Your daughter is amazing!” It’s hard to perceive that as anything but being a bit on the “gushing” side, but perhaps it’s just part of that particular school’s ethos of valuing every person’s individuality. Or maybe it’s to gauge how the parents react (“Yes, she really is, in spite of her parents” 
), because that parent interview seemed mostly focussed on verifying that I was on board with the school’s values/pedagogical ideas.
My child and I both noticed that the AO actively took notes at certain times during our respective inverviews at that school.
By contrast, at another school that we both felt like would be a great fit, my daughter commented that she noticed that there were no real questions asked of her, no note taking, and the only time the AO seemed really engaged was when my daughter talked about baking vegan versions of holiday desserts. It could be that that particlular AO’s interview style is to focus on “being in the moment”, and the person there, and writing down reflections later; perhaps the AO is trying to see if the applicant has a personality that will fit. Or, maybe it’s just that the interview was on the last day of the interview season. The AO did comment about looking forward to not having to dress up for interviews after that week…
I have no idea, of course, of what really went on in my kid’s interviews; I only know what went on in the parent portion. My impression was that the schools wanted to make sure that the parents are on board with their system, and that they will be supportive of that school’s unique strengths.
@stalecookies Yep, have heard amazing, and lots of other adjectives. Wouldn’t put much store in it. I noticed that at one school the AO had two pages of notes on my kid. Does that mean the AO wanted to remember things or was it interest? I assumed that was the AO’s MO. And in fact a month later my kid got a postcard with LOTS of details. For us, didn’t mean that tipped anyone’s hand. I bet they sent everyone a postcard.
The AO’s see lots of amazing, talented, precious, athletic, scientific kids every day. My kid said another parent at one interview was asking my kid questions in the waiting room ( maybe trying to gauge the competition, lol). No, honestly, I don’t think it matters at all. But that is just based on our previous experience.
What BS kid isn’t amazing in some way? They all are superstars. Compared to what I was doing in 8th grade and it all worked out fine. Not to shatter dreams, I just think the only thing that matters are the results.
@Happytimes2001 LOL, I think I can count on one hand with fingers left over the # of times I’ve seen posts about BS applicants having an interview that sucked. I don’t think anyone’s posted about having an experience where the AO said, “I’m really not sure why you’re applying here. There is no way on earth we’d ever accept someone like you.”
Well, okay, I kind of had that experience back when I was a student applying as a day schooler. As a kid, I handled it as best I could, but when someone is determined to state their assumptions about you rather than actually interviewing you, there’s not much you can do.
I ended up going to a much better school. 
With nice people.
From what my daughter told me, her interview at her first choice school was her very worst. She was there for an overnight admissions weekend, and she felt her interview was very rushed. It also was her first interview so she was not as ready as she was for later interviews. On that front, I am nervous about her chances, but we have had lots of subsequent, positive interactions with the school that have led me to believe she probably will get in, but I definitely am nervous about M10. And perhaps even more than nerves over where she will or will not be accepted are my nerves over the decisions we then will have to make! (We are not yet sure we are going to agree to boarding school at all, and like her local day school very much)
Our kid is currently attending the school where she had her worst interview
AOs may sincerely love kids when they interview them but at the time of the interview they often do not know grades, scores, or recommendations. Those things matter too. An AO shouldn’t gush because he/she doesn’t have the complete picture. Or they should just say how much they enjoyed speaking to the kid.
There are a lot of CC stories, maybe mostly from kids, about AOs who basically “said I was in.” I suspect that’s more wishful misinterpretation.
I have had several friends who were told their kid should check out XYZ school. They recognized the hint that kid was not right for the school they were at and looked up the suggestions.
No AO has the authority to make a unilateral admissions decision, no matter how much they love the kid.
@stalecookies Well, one of my kids had an interview where the interviewer didn’t understand one of my kids big things and then ended the interview with “Time’s Up” That was bad. But we both had the same feeling about the school. Another interview lasted almost two hours. I got worried my kid had left. Kid decided not to apply. Maybe many people still apply to schools they don’t like. Sadly, the AO can be the face of the school for most parents/interviewees. I think kids and parents need to weigh the interview pro-or con.
@CaliMex Having been through the process twice, I think some AOs are actually interviewing kids with connections to trustees and big donors. They have a big say in who gets accepted. Unilateral, hmm, have to think about it. But I do think kids with parents on the board of trustees are in. And if the AO says this kid is really great is someone going to say No? Unlikely. But I’m open-minded and willing to change my mind. I just think common sense says the AO has more pull than a Junior Admissions person who is brought in to accommodate the busy season. Could also depend on the school.
And, I also think the interview is super important. They are testing fit.
Not quite what was asked, but DS2’s first interview was at a school that I thought he’d have no chance at admission. It was on the first day that the school offered interviews and my reasoning was that, given he’d never interviewed for anything before, I thought it might be a good practice run for interviews at the more likely admits. He graduated from that school last year.
@Happytimes2001 My point is that a gushing AO may quite genuinely be impressed with your kid and may advocate strongly on their behalf during committee meetings. That doesn’t mean your kid will necessarily get in.
I do agree with your points about “fit” and about the less-than-level playing field when it comes to admission. Of course being full-pay, potential donors, connected to trustees, etc will all help. Even need-blind does not mean “wealth-and-connections-unaware”.
@CaliMex Got it. And agree.
I have to think one of the best parts of being an AO is getting to meet a lot of engaged and engaging terrific kids. The person in that job is hoping to see each kid at their best, so when they say the kid is amazing, they have both succeeded in the time they’ve had together and the kid probably was amazing. As noted, there are different interview styles but in the end, the interview was probably fine.
It’s also the AO’s job to sell the school. They not only want you to get whatever their thing is, they want you to like it! They realize that at the very least, you’ve given up the better part of the day to be there and that in many cases, you’ve traveled as well. A little "gushing " is hardly too much in the way of a thank you for the effort as well as a way to make you comfortable enough to ask what’s really on your mind. Personally, I found the whole process a bit intimidating and an AO who "reassured " me by complimenting my kid put me at ease. Call me shallow. Or at least easily manipulated.
But in the end, my sense is that while the interview may help suss out the kid who doesn’t want to go to BS at all, it’s not the reason a kid gets admitted. It just adds a little personality to the file.
As for us, we got two acceptances we guessed we might (but one with a merit award we didn’t expect) and a rejection at a school DS didn’t click with but where his stats were very competitive. So I wouldn’t have been surprised with any outcome there. That one, though, was the one I realized in retrospect would have been a terrible fit for him yet one which might have tempted me (DS less so) with “prestige”. Lesson learned!
Ok if indeed AO feedback is no indicator as most folks tend to state, then what could be? are there any data points which increase one’s confidence level. Ignore the obvious (Legacy, big donor, powerful sponsor, etc.).
I guess if you are a star athlete for a esoteric sport that may help especially if the coach wants you and says so?
what about other data points besides Legacy or impact recruits that increase probabilities? e.g Do endorsements from academic teachers count?