How Often are Interviews Conducted?

[viggosloof28]

Hey all!

 

I know this is likely to be considered a dumb question, but I really have no idea on this: how often do History programs invite applicants out for an interview?

 

It sounds like it happens fairly often in other fields, but I don't know anybody who applied from my MA current last year that was called out on interviews.  Are these usually conducted over the phone or via Skype, versus in-person?  Or is it not typical at all for our field?

 

Finally, if I don't receive any invitations to interview from my programs, what does that mean for my chances?  If I've spoken on the phone with POIs at the schools I'm applying to, will that count in my favor even if they're not members of the adcomm?

 

As always, any and all input is appreciated.  Apologies and thanks from this lost, confused historian!

[lafayette]

As far as I know, interviews for history PhD programs are not all that common. To my knowledge, none of the schools I am applying to conduct interviews. Yale does, and there was some discussion of that last year (but I see you're not applying there), and yes, not receiving an invitation to interview was an implicit rejection. You can check out the "results" sections too and see if anyone mentioned interviews for your schools in the past. I would not worry though about not hearing anything yet. If other years are a good bet, nothing is going to happen much for about a month.

Edited December 31, 2012 by lafayette

[New England Nat]

They are not common, but they are not unheard of. There are a few places that do it (NYU, Penn are ones that come to mind), but many many many others that do not. Some places get a lot of visiting students, but visiting is not required.

At princeton we see a lot of visiting students but my understanding is that visiting or not does not really give one an upper hand in the application pool. Mostly the purpose is for the applicant to feel like they are applying to the right places. I know I went to visit/interview at a school I was intending to apply to and the place gave off so many red flags I didn't even apply in the end.

[viggosloof28]

Thanks for the feedback!  This is more or less what I was thinking...

 

Some of the POIs I wrote to mentioned that admitted students would be invited to come for a campus visit, but nobody mentioned an applicant interview process (and I didn't see it on any of the grad admissions webpages for the schools I'm applying to)...so presumably, the people that wanted to correspond/speak with me have already done so!

 

I'll just have to keep my fingers crossed for some positive responses in the next couple of months...good luck to everyone applying!

[New England Nat]

Most places will invite perspective students to visit. Once you are admitted the situation will reverse and the departments will be courting you. Most places (in fact nearly all good programs) will pay for you to visit them.

[kdavid]

Once you are admitted the situation will reverse and the departments will be courting you. Most places (in fact nearly all good programs) will pay for you to visit them.

 

If you're invited to an interview and do not attend, are you essentially out of the running for a position?

 

I ask because I'll be doing all of my applying (this year!) from China. With an MA program, full-time job, and a family, traveling back and forth from China to the US is both logistically and economically unfeasible.

 

Of course, if visiting a school was the only thing holding me back from a guaranteed position in one of my top-choices I could make it happen.

[TMP]

No worries. You explain your situation and they'll figure out a way.

[New England Nat]

What TMP said. Schools that run interviews do know that they have international applications, as well as americans who are overseas.

[viggosloof28]

I think in those situations, lots of times they'll set up Skype interviews.  That's what I've heard, anyway!