Importance & purpose of interview?

exstudent
Tue, 05 Feb 2013 17:04:04 +0000

My son received a call (from a Stanford alum) about an interview. We’re wondering what the purpose of the interview is, and how it affects the admission decision.

I get that the general stated reasons for such interviews are “you get to find out about the school, and we get to find out about you”. I’m looking for the layers below that: what are the attributes they want to assess? How important is the report from the interviewer in the final decision? Is it primarily for recruiting or admissions decision?

Thoughts based on recent experience with this would be helpful. (Or if you’re in Stanford Admissions and would like to provide some background!)

Thanks.