The Complete Guide to College Admissions Interview (Class of 2026)
As many of you have submitted your college applications for the 2021-2022 college admissions season, it’s important to update your calendar and check your inbox regularly for interview invitations.
You probably already know which schools on your list offer admissions interviews and whether the interview helps you demonstrate your interest in attending those colleges. To help you keep track of all the deadlines, interview formats, and requirements, we’ve compiled a list of popular schools where interviews are required or strongly recommended, as well as universities that value demonstrated interests as part of their admissions.
To Interview, or Not to Interview?
For 22 years, Insight Education is committed to helping high school students and families to navigate the college admissions process, and that includes understanding your concerns and providing a tailored strategy for you. Often, students will ask us if interviews are necessary. The answer depends on three factors:
(1) Does the college highly recommend admissions interviews?
(2) Does the admissions office include demonstrated interest as part of their evaluation?
(3) Your major and whether you’re applying test-optional
In most cases, we strongly recommend our students to interview with colleges if they have the chance. The reason goes beyond adding positive data in their college application; good interview skills will be useful (and essential) in their careers, too. Starting junior year, our students get a chance to schedule mock interview sessions with Insight counselors (for either their summer program application or practice for their admissions interview). In their senior year, Insight students will also have the opportunity to join workshops teaching interview techniques and etiquettes.
Need help to evaluate your college admissions strategies? Want to receive useful feedback from experienced college admissions counselors? Contact us today to schedule your personalized college planning session.
Start preparing for interviews early! The latest trend we are noticing is an accelerated timeline between when the application is received and when an admissions interview is scheduled. Don’t wait until the invitation is in your inbox to start your interview preparation. Even if the purpose of the interview is informational, you can still impress the alumni or admissions officer when you are well-prepared and feel confident! In addition, the interview gives you a chance to assess if the school will be the right fit for you or what resources will be available to you ahead of time!
Preparing for your college admissions interview? Check out How to Answer College Interview Questions (In the Way Your Interviewer Wants!)
2021-2022 College Admissions Season –
College Admissions Interview for Class of 2026
Here is a list of popular colleges that require or strongly recommend interviews. Each school’s name is a hyperlink to their admissions interview page. This is by no means a comprehensive list. Please contact us for more information.
Last Updated: November 16, 2021
Colleges that offer Interviews |
Interview Importance |
Demonstrated Interest |
Interview Purpose/Format
|
| Allegheny College | Recommended | Important | Informational/On-campus |
| American Academy of Art | Required | – | Evaluative |
| Bard College at Simon’s Rock | Required | Considered | Evaluative/In-person |
| Bates College | Optional | Important | Informational/Online |
| Berea College | Required | Considered | Evaluative/On-campus |
| Bowdoin College | Recommended | Not considered |
Evaluative Optional 2-min video Alumni interviews are available Sept 1 |
| Brown University | Recommend | Not considered | Evaluative/Video |
| Bryn Mawr College | Highly recommended (Required for homeschooled and early admissions) | Not considered |
Evaluative On-campus/Online Deadline: ED I (Nov. 15) |
| Carnegie Mellon University | No interview for 2021-2022 | Not considered |
No interviews for 2021-2022 |
| Christopher Newport University | Highly recommended (Required for scholarship and Honors Program) | Important |
Evaluative On-campus/Online Interviews are available from June 1 – March 1. |
| Claremont McKenna College | Highly recommended (Required for homeschooled | Considered |
Evaluative Optional video/Online Interviews are available from May through Mid-December. |
| Clark University | Highly recommended | Considered |
Evaluative On-campus/Online |
| Colgate University | Recommended | Not considered |
Informational/Online |
| College of the Atlantic | Recommended | Considered | Informational/Online |
| College of the Holy Cross | Highly recommended | Considered |
Informational Online/In-Person Interviews are available from June 1 – Dec 10 |
| Colorado College | Highly recommended | Considered |
Informational/Online Must fill out a preliminary application or submit the Common App before you can request an interview |
| Columbia University | Recommended | Not considered |
Evaluative/Online Deadline: ED (Nov 15) |
| Connecticut College | Optional | Considered |
Evaluative/Online |
| Cornell University | Recommended (Required for architecture program; Recommended for Dept of Art or Urban and Regional Studies) | Not considered |
Evaluative/Online Request the interview through the student portal on application status page |
| Dartmouth College | Recommended | Considered |
Evaluative/Online Interview by invitation only after you’ve submitted your application |
| DePauw University | Highly recommended (Required for homeschooled) | Considered |
Evaluative On-campus/Online |
| Drew University | Highly recommended (Required for BA/MD program) | Considered |
Informational On-campus/Online |
| Duke University | Optional | Considered |
Evaluative/Online Interview by invitation after you’ve submitted your application |
| Elmira College | Highly recommended | Important |
Evaluative Call the Office of Admissions to schedule |
| Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering | Required for Candidates’ Week participants | Very important |
Evaluative/Online By invitation only (takes place Feb 25 – Mar 6, 2022) |
| Georgetown University | Required | Not considered |
Evaluative In-Person Students are in charge of contacting the alumni to set up interviews after the students have submitted the application |
| Gettysburg College | Highly recommended | Considered | Evaluative/Online |
| Grinnell College | Highly recommended | Considered |
Evaluative On-campus/Online/In-person |
| Grover City College | Highly recommended | Very important |
Evaluative On-campus/Online Deadline: |
| Hamilton College | Recommended | Considered |
Evaluative On-campus/Online Deadline: ED 1 (Nov 15) |
| Hamline University | Highly recommended | Considered | Evaluative |
| Harvard | Recommended | Not considered |
Evaluative/Online Interview by invitation after you’ve submitted your application |
| Harvey Mudd College | Highly recommended | Not considered |
Evaluative/Online Interviews are available starting May of your Junior year and should be completed before the application deadline |
| Haverford College | Recommended | Considered |
Evaluative/Online |
| Hillsdale College | Highly recommended (especially for those wishing to be considered for scholarship) | Very important | Evaluative |
| Hobart and William Smith Colleges | Highly recommended | Considered | Evaluative/Online |
| Iona College | Optional | Important | Evaluative |
| Johns Hopkins | No interviews for 2021-2022 | Not considered | No interviews for 2021-2022 |
| Juilliard School | Required as part of audition callback process | Important | Evaluative |
| Juniata College | Highly recommended | Not considered | Evaluative |
| Knox College | Highly recommended | Considered |
Evaluative Online/On-Campus/In-Person |
| Lake Forest College | Highly recommended (Required for those applying without test scores) | Considered |
Evaluative On-campus/Online |
| Meredith College | Required for homeschooled students | Important | Evaluative |
| Middlebury College | Optional | Considered |
Evaluative/Online Alumni interview by invitation after you’ve submitted your application. For ED I applicants, interviews typically happen in November (January for ED II and Regular Decision) |
| Mills College | Highly recommended | Not considered | Evaluative/Online |
| MIT | Highly recommended | Not considered |
Evaluative/Online Interview by invitation after you’ve submitted your application |
| Moravian College | Highly recommended | Important |
Evaluative Email the admissions office to schedule |
| Mount Holyoke College | Highly recommended (Required for Frances Perkins applicants) | Considered |
Evaluative Deadline: |
| Muhlenberg College | Highly recommend, especially for those wishing to be considered for merit scholarships (Required for academic partnership applicants) | Considered | Evaluative/Online |
| Northwestern University | Optional | Considered |
Evaluative/Online Alumni interviews are by invitation after you’ve submitted your application |
| Occidental College | Highly recommended | Considered |
Evaluative Schedule your interview before the application deadlines |
| Point Loma Nazarene University | Highly recommended | Considered |
Evaluative On-Campus/Online Schedule 1-month before the application deadline |
| Princeton University | Recommended | Not considered |
Evaluative/Online Alumni interviews are by invitation after you’ve submitted your application |
| Reed College | Optional | Considered |
Informational On-campus/Online Deadline: ED I (Dec 1) |
| Rice University | Recommended | Considered |
Evaluative/Online Deadline: ED (Nov 30) |
| Highly recommended (Required for ED applicants) | Very Important | Evaluative/Online | |
| Saint Johns College | Highly recommended (Required for homeschooled or international applicants without test scores) | Important |
Evaluative Online/In-Person |
| Saint Louis University | Recommended | Considered |
Evaluative/On-campus Contact the admissions office to schedule your on-campus interview |
| Saint Marys College | Recommended | Considered |
Evaluative/On-campus |
| Sewanee: The University of the South | Highly recommended | Considered | Evaluative |
| Simmons University | Highly recommended | Not considered | Evaluative |
| Southwestern University | Highly recommended (Required for those applying without test scores and special programs) | Considered |
Evaluative On-campus/In-person/Online |
| Stanford University | Optional (only offered in selected geographies) | Not considered |
Evaluative/Online Alumni interviews are by invitation after you’ve submitted your application |
| St. Lawrence University | Highly recommended | Considered |
Evaluative On-campus/Online |
| Stevens Institute of Technology | Highly recommended (especially for applicants in the accelerated pre-medicine program) | Considered |
Evaluative Online/On-campus Interview must be completed by student’s application deadline |
| Swarthmore College | Optional | Not considered |
Evaluative/Online Students can request an alumni interview at the start of Fall of their senior year |
| Trinity College | Recommended | Important |
Evaluative Online/In-Person Students can make interview request as early as February of their Junior year |
| Tufts University | Optional | Considered |
Evaluative/Online Deadline to request: |
| Union College | Recommended | Considered |
Evaluative/Online Deadline: |
| University of California (UCs) | Only available for some Regents and Honors Programs | Not considered |
Evaluative Invitation only available for some Regents and Honors Programs applicants |
| University of Michigan (Engineering) | Optional (only for Engineering applicants) | Not considered |
Informational/Online Alumni interview by invitation after you’ve submitted your application. Do NOT contact the admissions office. |
| University of Pennsylvania (UPenn) | Recommended | Not considered |
Evaluative/Online Alumni interviews are by invitation after you’ve submitted your application |
| University of Rochester | Highly recommended for merit scholarships consideration | Considered |
Evaluative In-person/Online Deadline: |
| University of Southern California (USC) | For selected scholarships applicants | Not considered |
Evaluative By invitation only for selected students applied by Dec 1 for the Trustee/Presidential/Deans Scholarships |
| Vassar College | Optional | Not considered |
Informational Deadline to request: |
| Wake Forest University | Recommended | Considered |
Evaluative Online/Video Deadline to request an interview is Nov 17 and the deadline to submit a 2-3 min video is Jan 5. |
| Washington and Lee University | Highly recommended | Considered |
Evaluative/Online Available from May 1 (of junior year) to January 31 (of senior year) |
| Washington University in St. Louis (Wustl) | Optional | Considered | Informational/Online |
| Wesleyan University | Recommended | Not considered |
Evaluative/Online Available starting Sept 7 to Feb 28, 2022. |
| Yale College | Recommended | Not considered |
Evaluative/Online Alumni interviews are by invitation after you’ve submitted your application |
| Yeshiva University | Required | Considered | Evaluative/Online |
Terminology explained:
- Interview Importance is ranked from Required, Highly Recommended, Recommended, to Optional. If you see a school that highly recommends admissions interviews and also considers demonstrated interest, you should sign up and prepare for the college admissions interview when the school extends an invitation.
- Demonstrated Interest starts to play a role in some college admissions evaluation processes. In this table, demonstrated interest is ranked from Very Important, Important, Considered, to Not Considered. To learn more about demonstrated interest and what you can do to show it, check out our article on ” All You Need to Know about Demonstrated Interest.”
- Typically, the college admissions interviews serve two Purposes: evaluative or informational. An evaluative interview helps college admissions officers decide if you will be a good fit for their school, whereas an informative interview is typically conducted by current students or alumni and aims to provide you with more information on their schools. Despite the purpose, you should always be prepared with concise answers and great questions before entering an interview. Wondering what an informational interview is? Check out our article on “The Art of Informational Interviews.”
- Interview Format used to be mostly in-person, either on campus or in a nearby coffee shop. However, the pandemic has accelerated the adaption of online interviews or video portfolios.
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What Are Insight Students & Parents saying?
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I liked the structured method by which Zach approached the whole admission process. First, there was research into colleges to make a list, then a rigorous back and forth on the essays and finally meticulous approval on the final application. My son learned a lot from Zach and we are hoping he will apply these […]
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Priya was absolutely amazing to work with! We are thrilled that our son got into his top choice for college at LMU for the undergraduate business program. We couldn’t have done this without Priya and Insight’s expert guidance and support.
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Thank you so much for helping me formulate my thoughts into words and help me write my essays. I got into Ut Austin for biology – still waiting for the Honors decision. I also got into Drexel undergrad – still waiting for the BSMD decision.
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