Only interviewing some students?

[braindump]

Is it possible/common for a program to interview some students and accept others without interview? I recently received a "recommended for admission" email that made it sound like I was pretty much in (w/o interview): congratulations, information on the visiting weekend (which they explicitly state I am "not being interviewed, we have already made our decision" and I only have a week to RSVP), the works. But I was under the impression that this department interviewed all applicants; I remember seeing something about it on the website a while ago (can't find it now) and many of the posts in the Results Search mention an interview. 

 

I was just curious if this was a common thing, because I found it kind of odd/surprising/but-I'm-definitely-not-complaining. Or is it possible that they'll sneak in an interview before the graduate school finalizes the admission?

[tbqh]

yeah i have been accepted to 4 schools w/o interviews.

[grad_wannabe]

My professor mentioned that yes, this is a thing (especially if you'd already visited the campus and/or corresponded with your PI). "You may not even get called for an interview. Sometimes that happens, when they're sure of someone."

 

Take it as a compliment! CONGRATS!

[braindump]

Wow, really?  That's pretty crazy, because I didn't even think I stood a chance at this school! What's odd though is that I haven't corresponded with any PIs at all. I guess I'll stay on my toes for an informal interview or correspondence from a PI. Thanks!! 

[TakeruK]

I also want to say that in my field, it's common to only interview some applicants. Interviews cost a lot of time, and if you are say, making 30 offers, then you probably don't have to interview the top 15 candidates or so. Sure the one that you think is 5th best might really only be 13th best, but why does that matter when you are admitting 30? Interviews sometimes are only necessary for people on the fence or if they are worried about one aspect for some reason.

[NOWAYNOHOW]

It is very common for only some students to be interviewed. I have been told in some cases, only international applicants are interviewed. I have also heard sometimes interviews are scheduled to clarify fit, etc. Congrats on your acceptance!

[shadowclaw]

This is an interesting post, because my POI at one of my programs mentioned to me that they invite some applicants get invited to come down to the school. He didn't use the word interview, and he definitely stressed that it was a big maybe about being invited. So I've been wondering if it's an actual interview weekend or some kind of weekend for students that they really want to convince to attend. I guess I'll find out.

[braindump]

This is an interesting post, because my POI at one of my programs mentioned to me that they invite some applicants get invited to come down to the school. He didn't use the word interview, and he definitely stressed that it was a big maybe about being invited. So I've been wondering if it's an actual interview weekend or some kind of weekend for students that they really want to convince to attend. I guess I'll find out.

 

This sounds kind of like an interview to me. Or at least a judge of fit. Is it paid for or out of applicant pocket? I just can't imagine why you'd want to invite students to convince them if you haven't even admitted them yet. 

 

Thanks for all the input guys! I guess the situation makes sense. I'm just glad not to have to deal with interviews (at least for this school)!

[BeatrizBear]

One of the schools in my department told me that they don't interview. Another school told me that they only interview international students. So I guess interviews depend on the school. Some do phone interviews and some ask you to come visit in person, in which case the school has to pay the student for their travel expenses. All this can take a lot of time so I guess some schools don't want to do it.