<p>I believe limner was right on the “showing interest” question. I interviewed when I was visiting, and the way my (also extremely casual) interviewer explained it was that if you do an interview, it’s pretty much just informational. However, if you can’t afford to fly to MN for an interview or visit or whatever, it doesn’t count against you as “lack of demonstrated interest.” Of course you have to demonstrate interest in writing your apps.</p>