<p>Mine went really well. We met in a coffee shop and he first just started out asking me for my stats and whatnot, what I was planning on majoring in (history). He seemed more impressed by AP scores than with the SAT scores (which was good because I made two fives on the two APs I took last year). He asked what I did outside of class and what sets me apart for Harvard, and I talked about creativity and its role in my life and how it helps solves problems. It turned out that he was involved in the Boy Scouts and in his sons’ troop, and he has gone to the camp in which I started a recycling program for my Eagle Project. After that, he asked me about what was on my mind lately, and I told him that The Sound and the Fury by Faulkner had been on my mind, and I related its themes to the Civil Rights movement and the revolutions happening now in the Middle East, and he agreed with the comparison. After that, we talked a lot about the college application and admission process. Since his eldest son is a sophomore in high school, we talked a lot about touring colleges and going onto sites (like this one) to kind of get a feel for what the college is all about. </p>
<p>I still have absolutely no idea if I am getting in, but I felt really good about the interview. :)</p>
<p>Saturnineman, you said you met in a coffee shop. What did you wear?! I’m meeting with my interviewer at Starbucks early morning this Sunday and I’m concerned that if I wear a suit I’ll be overdressed but at the same time I’m concerned about being underdressed.</p>
<p>A suit would be overdressed for Starbucks. Khakiis and a buttoned shirt would be enough, (you can always throw on a tie if you want a bit of formality, but it certainly isn’t necessary).</p>
<p>Mine went practically perfect. I walked out feeling on top of the world. We met at his house in the evening; I met his family and played with his dogs a bit. We talked about academics for a bit, but he was mostly interested in hearing about what type of person I am outside of the classroom and, surprisingly, outside of my extracurriculars as well. We talked about books, embarassing stories, and family vacations. I gave hime a copy of my resume at the start of the interview, so he had a good understanding of the activities I’ve been involved with; he didn’t take any notes, though. He actually didn’t ask for my scores until the very end of the interview. (That was kind of the icing on the cake… after the hour and a half long talk, he was blown away by my standardized scores and class rank.) All and all, I couldn’t have asked for a better interview or interviewer. He wrapped it up saying that he fully expected an email when I get in… let’s just hope he doesn’t say that to everyone! Best of luck to all who applied.</p>
<p>Mine was alright. I was my interviewer’s first interviewee for this semester, and he decided to “change how he did things” a bit. Whereas before he would generally ask question about ECs/ academics in a regimented order, for me he threw a lot of theoretical situations at me and asked about my intellectual stances. I’m glad it’s over. :)</p>
<p>Theoretical questions? I seem to recall from reading a Harvard interviewer handbook a few years back that they do not expect students to answer case questions unless they plan to pursue a career in management consulting.</p>
<p>I’m not sure how to feel about mine. My interviewer was very kind and told me from the start that she was out to help me. We had a good long 2.5 hour talk (which was much longer than both of us anticipated) so I think that was good. However, I think I might have gotten too comfortable with her as at the end I started telling her some more personal motivations of mine (which included the fear of death and why I wanted to go into bio medicine because of it). And I started immediately regretting talking about that fear as I thought it didn’t necessarily show the best side of me. I spent the rest of the interview trying to get the message across that “I wasn’t morbidly controlled by that fear; rather it was just a simple motivation/guide”. I think I might have been too repetitive in trying to get that message across; perhaps I was overcompensating for my regret. In the end, she told me there was nothing wrong with my motivations, etc. Still, I can’t help but feel that it was because she was a nice and easy going interviewer to begin with and I could have done much better.</p>
<p>Whats your guys opinion on how my interview went? Do you think that that was a big blunder?</p>
<p>I don’t think its a big deal. A lot of people want to go into medicine because of death or a death in their family or something. I think its good you explained yourself. It’s an interesting answer that will at least make you stand out.</p>
<p>I just had my interview as well. Went pretty well, but we’ll see come Dec 15! (Although he told me that Harvard would try to get all decisions out in the first few days of December… wonder what that means).</p>
<p>He did tell me that Harvard only accepts people after a face-to-face interview (so if you don’t get one, Harvard’s not interested), but perhaps that’s just for my region. </p>
<p>Now all that’s left to wait for is the decision!</p>
<p>Harvard claims that it attempts to interview everyone, and that the lack of an interview will not adversely affect one’s chances. However, in virtually all the results threads I’ve seen, all the accepted applicants here on CC reported that they were interviewed at least once. I have a feeling the interview is actually more important than it seems…</p>
<p>@virginia: I have no idea… hence why I think it’s specific to my region. What if there’s no alum in your area? Harvard can’t hold it against you!</p>
<p>@ VirginianRobin: Is it really based on the submission date? My application was submitted on Oct. 31 (literally a day before the deadline) and I was contacted by my interviewer yesterday.</p>
<p>For those of you that have gotten an interview? What regions are you guys from?? I’m from Colorado and I have pretty good stats and submitted my app on Oct. 15th but have not been contacted by Harvard for an interview yet, can you guys help explain?</p>
<p>@ Aleutia: I’m currently not in the U.S. (still trying to work out the logistics of my interview with the Harvard admissions office), but my residence is in southern California (south Orange County). Be patient - the deadline for interview reports is Nov. 15 (according to my interviewer), so you have until then to wait for one.</p>
<p>Hi! I had my Harvard interview today. It was in the interviewer’s house, which my mom found a little odd. She seemed really nice. I had sent her my resume beforehand, and gave her a research abstract and some creative stuff I had worked on to look at when I met. She didn’t really have a lot of specific questions, but kinda looked at my resume and asked me what I wanted to talk about. She then asked me Why Harvard, but kinda casually, and I explained it to her in general terms. She then asked me if I had any questions, and we talked about her time at Harvard and what I liked, etc . . That was good. At the end she asked me if I had anything else to say. I was trying to explain that I taught myself how to read and write a language I speak, but she misunderstood it I taught myself to speak that language, which was a little awkward. I hope she didn’t think I was lying/exaggerating. Any comments?
Anyways, I think I brought it around by talking about how much I love different languages. She did say I was a go-getter, and nice, so I guess that’s good. The interview lasted about 1 hour, like she said it would, and was actually more casual/conversational than the MIT one. She didn’t take notes, but had some sort of sheet from Harvard to fill out. Never underestimate the value of a good icebreaker in an interview.</p>