Calling All Duke (Fuqua) 2011 Applicants

I think it's something like 60%, but I'm not sure whether that includes self-initiated interviews. I wonder how much weight Fuqua places on the interview because they're conducted en mass just two weeks or so before final decisions are released.

Well, I noticed that applicants from various regions received different guidelines in the invitation email. I received an email with link to choose from certain slots available in my location.
You guys should just wait and I'm sure you'll get the detailed guidelines soon. Good luck to everyone!

Hi friends,
Congrats to all those who got interview invites. I had my interview with an alum in New Delhi who interviewed me in his office. About scheduling in my case - I got the initial interview email from Stephen Misuraca whom I contacted and told about my location preference. Then I got a mail from Anne (Team Captain for my location) who assigned me the interviewer and gave his email id to me. The date of interview was suggested by my interviewer (after I emailed him) and I agreed for that. People at Duke Office of Admissions are very helpful and respond well to every query.
Hope this helps.
All the best for the interviews.

From Fuqua's online application:

All deadlines are 5:00 PM Eastern Time

I feel that you should leave this preference to the interviewer....

When I setup an interview for Booth, I gave my interviewer a range of dates that worked; She picked one from that. I don't think it's alright to ask the interviewer for dates.

Sure, as long as you meet Duke's deadline to complete interview. Make sure you give a range of dates, and that the interviewer has at least a week before the deadline to submit your review.

In fact, if it's for work reason, you can highlight that during your interview.

It should be fine, I did the same with my interviewer and suggested him that dates from 4th to 12th are the best possible ones. I told him that, since it is year end and that many of team mates are on leave, I am covering for them etc...so just put in a line about your work schedule and so on.

It should be fine. If it is not ok, he will come back to you. Just go ahead and mail.

Ya it is completely acceptable to propose dates in your first email. Also, dont wait for the email from your interviewer, just go ahead and email him...

I just submitted my application. It's the first one I finished. I'm super excited. Now I have to get back to finishing the other 4.

Good luck everybody! Maybe I'll see you down in NC next year.

W103,

I think we are on the same page to a certain extent. When I say pass/fail, I mean fit or no fit. I think they want to see two things: Purpose (Why MBA, Why Duke?) and Personality (Do you fit the culture?).

Well put on the "fit" ideaology. I'm somtimes shocked at the different schools that people apply. If you are a good fit at Duke or Northwestern, chances are you aren't a good fit at Wharton or Chicago. It will come across in your essays unless you are the master BS'er.

Ha ha, I must be an amateur BS'er since I'm waitlisted at Booth and have applied to Ross, Kellogg and Duke, where I fit better.

Maybe so, but two weeks (the time between the on-campus interviews and R1 decisions) isn't very long to reevaluate a large portion of Fuqua's applicant pool.
If fit and yield are as important as you suggest, maybe this supports what MBADawg was saying about it almost being a pass/fail type situation.

I really think the application waivers that Duke offers are interesting. Through this policy, Duke is able to reward those who attend a Fuqua recruiting event, possibly increasing attendance to those events, and ensuring that a portion of their applicants are better informed about what Duke has to offer. This, in turn, may result in increased applications from those who better fit in at Fuqua, which could result in better satisfaction from current students and alumni and a higher yield of admitted students enrolling at Fuqua. By waiving the application fee for applicants with a family member or family friend who is an alum, Duke presumably also attracts more applicants with more of a connection to the program and thus, perhaps, a higher liklihood of enrolling if they're admitted. Duke also may become a fall back option for applicants to other top tier b-schools, potentially boosting the average GPA and GMAT scores of its applicants/students. All of this, in turn, potentially improves the program's rankings, thus reinforcing these same trends. I'm not sure if any of this is true, but I suspect it was the strategy behind the Adcom's policy and I think it could work to the school's benefit. Does anyone know how long Duke has been offering reduced or waived application fees? Do any other programs offer similar (non-need based) waivers/reductions? - I think Goizuetta may have a similar policy, though I'm not certain.

I live in Durham, so I can give you the bird's eye view. We got mostly sleet and freezing rain rather than snow, so we've got a nice layer of ice all over. The roads were kind of sketchy this morning, but the forecast is for higher temps at the end of the week. I think you should be fine as far as driving. I'm not sure how this is affecting air travel into and out of RDU, though, and I can't speak for what Fuqua may or may not do about rescheduling.

Good luck!

You are in dire need of a statistics class - you can't draw a conclusion from your two experiences.

If you look back at others' interview experiences, what you will see is that almost all student interviewers (at least at Fuqua) "stick to the script" so to speak. So the advice for applicants is to look at the questions others are being asked and be prepared for those. I can tell you that I was interviewed by a male that was very by the book, so I don't think it's a true statement.

You will only get dinged if your hair is baby blue. Royal blue will get you extra points, especially during the week when Duke plays UNC.

This Year duke is very strict about the dates so far...EA interview and final decision came on exact dates mentioned on the website and same in the case with R1 interview invitations .. So my money is on 31st Jan.