Possible Interview Conflict

[rainbowworrier]

My top two programs invited me for interviews this week.

School A invited me on Tuesday, asking to reply to the email if I was interested in partaking in the interview process, and to say "We are planning to schedule an interview within the month of March. In view of this, we would like for you to keep the last two Fridays of March open as it might fall on any of those days. We will be contacting you at the beginning of next week to give you the actual date." I replied, very politely, and indicated that I would appreciate knowing as soon as possible which Friday it will be, as I will need to book a flight and rent a car.

On Friday, School B invited me to interview as well, with a firm date of Friday, April 1, and a tentative itinerary of events for the day. It was made very clear that this is the only day for an on campus interview, and that the only other option would be a phone interview. I would prefer to visit in person, obviously, in order to get a feel for the department, professors, current grad students, etc.

In regards to school A, the last two Fridays of March are the 18th (School A is on Spring Break that week) and the 25th (smack in the middle of a major national conference related to the field). What are the chances that they meant to include April 1 as one of the "last two Fridays of March", since the rest of the week is in March?

I cannot stress how much I really want to be able to attend both interview visits in person, and how much I don't want to offend either program by making them think I'd rather visit a different school other than theirs should they fall on the same day.

Any thoughts on how to handle it if school A did in fact mean April 1 as one of the last 2 Fridays of March?

[graspinghandsandfeet]

I doubt that they would consider April 1st as the last Friday in February. If you are really worried about it, why don't you just email the admissions office to clarify?

[rainbowworrier]

You meant March, right?

[rainbowworrier]

It appears that they will both be scheduled for April 1st. I'm trying to not freak out...

[graspinghandsandfeet]

Yes, I did mean March, sorry! And it looks like they consider April 1st to be the last Friday of March, wtf?

Email them and let them know about your conflict. They are aware that you probably applied to more than one program. Maybe stress that you are very interested in their program when you email them to them about your problem. Maybe they can even schedule you for a different day?

It appears that they will both be scheduled for April 1st. I'm trying to not freak out...

[rainbowworrier]

All good ideas. I called the prof in charge of PhD admissions for the program, and left voice mail (gag I know). I said something about a conflict and being very interested in both programs and being confused since April 1 is not one of the last two Fridays in March. Hopefully she calls back tomorrow.