Application deadlines somehow crept up faster than I expected. The Smith app is due in a couple of weeks and the rest shortly afterward. I’m knocking out my essays now and have sent the drafts off to be reviewed by friends (thank you all!). I have a complete set of essays for Smith, 2/3 of a set for Broad, and I haven’t cracked open Owen or Marshall yet. I want to have a full set by the end of this holiday break.
My recommenders are also (slowly) finishing up their letters. The score right now is 3-8 (complete-incomplete). I’m hoping that they’ll all be done by the end of the Thanksgiving break, as one of my managers indicated that that is what she would be working during the break. Bless them, though I don’t think it will happen, but cross my fingers, hope to die, eat a big turkey drumstick thigh.
I scheduled a school visit for Owen and Marshall. Owen sent me a personalized itinerary which included an “evaluative interview” that caught me off guard. As if this coming weekend won’t be hectic enough with finishing the essays and other parts of the app, and gorging myself with food, I now have to prep for an interview. The visit is slated for next Wednesday and I haven’t booked my travel arrangements yet. The Marshall visit is scheduled for next Monday down at their OC campus. It’s a two hour info sesion that includes a brief on the program and a Q&A session with current students. At least that was the format of the last one I went to about two years ago.
The goal is to be done with everything by Xmas at the latest. I took the last two weeks of the year off and I want to be able to enjoy it. The end of the app process is coming close to an end and I can’t wait. Time to buckle down and power through.
I’m sure you already know this but every interaction you have with the school, especially on a visit, is in some form an interview. Students you meet, who take you around, staff you interact with… will have opportunities to provide feedback on you. Impressions are big!
Yup! That’s what an admission staff member from USC said too. Lets not forget that it goes both ways though. While the school is evaluating us, we’re evaluating the school. I think sometimes the students forget that. Without naming which school, I was less than impressed with a couple of the student ambassadors that participated in a student perspective panel. Texting and being too “real” during the session didn’t send across a very professional message.