Stanford Class of 2028 Official Thread

This seems a little different because the interviewer was telling the applicant that they were wrong that the program existed… not sure if that assumption might affect an interview score.

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She also said she"wished she hadn’t gone to Stanford," that seems very inappropriate to mention to a potential candidate who does want to go there. And what if it’s a student Stanford is hoping will commit? That doesn’t bode well for them. Interviewers are not there to project their ill feelings about the institution. I don’t think AO’s would be pleased to know an interviewer didn’t even want to attend and only did because their parents made them.

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The protocol encourages interviewers to introduce Stanford and answer questions that an applicant may have. It definitely doesn’t encourage interviewers to reflect negatively on the university, though it’s entirely possible some alum could have an experience that wasn’t entirely positive. Having interviwrd many applicants, it’s often a rewarding experience for both parties.

no, no interview so far. I think it’s pretty much clear now that I am done.

i haven’t gotten a stanford interview either but i just got a yale one today, so i think there’s still hope for us! maybe we were auto-admits :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

As stated by others, being invited for interview (unless it’s a specific scholarship interview) has no relationship with how much the university wants you, but in Stanford’s case it’s about where you live and whether there are sufficient alumni interviewers in your area.

Having said that, it does have a bearing for those who turn down their interview request, even though it’s an “optional interview”. Just like many schools say they are “test optional”, everyone knows that AOs prefer seeing strong scores to no scores.

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My son didn’t get the interview. But his friends in the same school got one. So the alumni availability theory doesn’t hold.

My S22 didn’t get an interview, but many of his friends in the school got interviews. My son was accepted and one of his classmates (who was interviewed) was accepted and many didn’t. So, there is much hope :slight_smile:

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Do colleges still send “Likely Letters” ?

Instead of asking the same question across multiple threads, why didn’t you just start a new thread with this question?

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Good idea.
This is my first rodeo.

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My son received a Stanford interview request over the weekend - the season definitely hasn’t wrapped up yet.

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no interview yet as a canadian when 2 of my friends have - yep I am cooked

As far as I know, several Ivy schools are transparent about whom they grant interviews. They make it clear they interview people on the bubble. Meaning they don’t waste time interviewing people they are already confident they want to admit or those they are confident they don’t. So perhaps at Stanford getting in without an interview just means they already had to you in the yes pile, and getting a Stanford interview suggest candidates are on the bubble?

Stanford is very clear that getting or not getting an interview has nothing to do with your application or chances of admissions. It is totally based on alumni availability.

Alumni interviewers are volunteers often with full time jobs and other commitments. Sometimes they simply do not have time to interview every single applicant in their region. The fact that you have not been contacted for an interview is completely meaningless.

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I can totally understand why so many of you might be stressed - this is a stressful process outside of your control! - but I’d urge you to believe Stanford’s actual words on this subject (which weirdly haven’t been linked in this thread yet?), at Interview : Stanford University -

How are interviews assigned?
Stanford extends interview invitations according to alumni availability in your high school area, not based on the strength of an application.
Your application will not be at a disadvantage if you are not offered an interview.
Applicants may not request an interview.

I promise you that behind the scenes at all of these schools, the process is not perfectly streamlined, and sometimes people just get assigned to interview based on who happens to have availability, or an interviewer got sick or busy, or a million other things.

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My DS24 got contacted a couple of days back and had an interview scheduled the next day. Seemed rushed. Maybe interviews are still going on.

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That seems like a good sign. I’ve always heard positive results with the rushed ones/last minute. Hope it’s good news for you!

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Thank you! That is good to know.

I believe an honest interview goes a long way towards informed choices, otherwise these interactions might start looking like marketing brochures. Perhaps Stanford was not the right choice for the interviewer due to their own circumstances. But it really does feel like a downer when an interviewer conveys negativity. What surprises me is why do such alums even sign up to help if they really didn’t like the school? I wouldn’t read too much into it.