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Questions and Answers: Getting Involved in Admissions Interviewing
by Tim Millikin
Class of 2005 Executive Committee President
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Think back to what you were doing nine years ago this fall - more than likely, you were working hard on college applications, visiting campuses and deciding the next four years of your life. As part of the application process, most of us had an interview with a Dartmouth alumnus/alumna. Mine consisted of an alumna excitedly recounting stories from her time at Hanover with very little discussion of me or my application. I wasn't sure what to make of the situation, but it gave me a first-hand perspective on the Dartmouth traditions I would experience and I fell in love with the College at that moment.
Because of that first glimpse of Dartmouth through an alum's eyes, I decided to become an admissions interviewer after graduation. Since 2005, I have interviewed close to a dozen applicants. I'm still waiting for my first acceptance, but it's been fun to meet the younger generation who are trying to figure out their futures and to share my Dartmouth experiences with them. The students I've interviewed have all been impressive - I definitely would not have been able to compete with them if I were applying today.
I recently sat down with Jeff Crowe '78, the District Enrollment Director (DED) for the Silicon Valley and Mid-Peninsula region, to talk about the alumni interview process. Jeff organizes around 175 alumni admissions interviews each year from Palo Alto to South San Francisco.
Here's what he had to say.
Face Times: Why do you think Dartmouth's policy of having alumni interview candidates is important for the applicant and for the College?
Jeff Crowe: Alumni interviews are valuable to both the College and to the applicant pool. Given the large growth in the number of applicants to the College in the last 10 years, the Admissions Office has an increasing challenge in deciding which applicants to accept.
Alumni interviews can serve as important additional input to admissions officers when they have multiple qualified candidates who have strong grades, test scores, activities and recommendations. Similarly, the interviews can also benefit the applicants, as alumni can help inform the applicants about the College and answer questions about the Dartmouth experience.
Again, there are so many applicants to the College today that there is no way that admissions officers could field all the questions coming from the candidates. So alumni can serve as an excellent information resource to applicants in their local communities.
FT: Why have you chosen alumni interviewing as a way to give your time to the College?
JC:: I particularly enjoy talking with talented high school seniors who are interested in Dartmouth. So many of the students have posted amazing accomplishments during high school that I find it inspiring just to sit down with them and listen to their life stories.
Plus, I like to talk about Dartmouth, especially to applicants who are still learning about the College and who get excited to discover all of Dartmouth's unique advantages.
FT: What makes a good alumni interviewer? What are some of the qualities you like to see?
JC: Good alumni interviewers will ask penetrating questions and dig hard to learn about the students and what makes them tick - what they are passionate about both inside and outside the classroom.
The admissions officers are looking for information from alumni interviews that they do not already have from the students' transcripts, essays and teacher recommendations. An effective interview will provide anecdotes about the student's interests, accomplishments and failures, along with the interviewer's perspectives on the candidate that helps to round out the full picture of the student for the benefit of the Admissions Office.
'05s who are interested in interviewing can contact their local Dartmouth alumni association club or the Admissions Office to find out the names of the district enrollment directors in their area. The time commitment is minimal: a handful of 45-minute interviews in November for early decision applicants and January for regular decision applicants.
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