An interview invite by the director vs a professor interested in my research....?

[Jessie012]

Hello guys...

I just got an interview invite, but I am not sure if I can call it an invite.

I am an international student and have to do this through Skype.. Anyway, I got two invites so far, and for one of them I got an official letter with dean and directors' signature on it saying I was invited for an interview. A professor will be interviewing me, but a quick check on her research interests tells me we have very different research interests. And since I got a 'letter,' I thought she was interviewing me to recruit me to a program, not specifically to her lab.

For the second school, however, I didn't get an official letter or anything, but just a very informal email from a professor at this school saying he wanted to skype me regarding my research interests. Another check on his research and no, his research topics weren't what I stated in my SOP. So I am wondering whether he contacted me to recruit me to the program, or to his lab ( i don't think he has a grad student in his lab).

I mean, I will still talk about my own research interest. But just curious to find out how people usually receive an interview invite. From a director or from a professor who's simply interested in your research, or a professor in an admission committee.?

Thanks!. 

Edited January 22, 2016 by Jessie012

[emmm]

I think you should not try to read too much into it. In my program, even when people are interviewing on campus, while they TRY to have at least one interviewer be a person the student expressed an interest in working with, it's not always possible to arrange. And since students rotate through labs the first year, many end up in labs they weren't even considering initially. If you are being interviewed at all, it's a good sign, no matter who's doing the actual interviewing! Congratulations and good luck :-)

[Claireisme]

I think you can just try to focus on preparing how to express your current or previous research experience because the professor who will interview you could be one of the committee and takes charge of just international students. I got a Skype interview invitation from Rice and the situation is quite the same with you. 

Good luck~