Admission Interviews

Harvey Mudd interviews are completely optional. Our interviews provide students with an opportunity to learn more about Harvey Mudd and to share more about themselves with the admission committee. All interviews are conducted online will connect you with someone associated with the College and give you an opportunity to get some of your questions answered. Please note, prospective students are only allowed to register for one interview, either an online interview OR an alumni interview.

Please use the link below to schedule an interview:

When should I Interview?

Interviews are offered to current or rising seniors (starting in May of your junior year) and should be completed prior to the application deadline. You should be prepared to talk about yourself, what you are looking for in a college environment/experience, and why you are interested in Harvey Mudd College. We encourage students to spend time learning about HMC before the interview in order to get the most out of the interview.

What should I Expect from an Interview?

We are interested in learning about your ideas and experiences and providing answers to your questions about how Mudd might fit your ideas for college. In order to reduce anxiety about the interview and to give students the chance to think about their answers in advance, we use a standard set of questions. While the interviewer may not ask all of the questions below or may ask them in a slightly different format, the themes will be consistent. An interviewer may ask a follow-up question to get a deeper appreciation of the context or substance of your answer.

Our Interview Questions

About your College Search:

  1. How is your college search going? Are there any common themes? Any “non-negotiables”?
  2. What is your favorite thing about your high school; would you change anything?
  3. What are you most looking forward to about college?

About your Academic and Non-academic Interests:

  1. Knowing that you may change your mind, what do you want to study and how did you find that interest?
  2. Are there courses you have enjoyed especially or are looking forward to?
  3. What classes do you like outside of STEM?
  4. Please share something you’ve taught yourself that you’re proud of. Doesn’t have to be school-related.
  5. Beyond your coursework, how do you spend your time? Doesn’t have to be school-related.

About your Experiences:

  1. Tell me about a peer you admire.
  2. Tell me about your last great day. It doesn’t have to be an eventful day, just one you really enjoyed.

To help You:

  1. Is there anything else you wanted to talk about that I didn’t ask? This is where you will be able to ask all manner of questions about the Mudd experience.

With Whom will I be Interviewing?

Admission counselors, senior interns and Harvey Mudd alums all contribute to interviews.

What should I Wear? Should I Bring a Resume?

You are welcome to dress in a way that makes you feel the most comfortable. There is no need for you to dress up unless it would help you to feel more prepared. It is also not necessary for you to provide a resume to your interviewer. It will not be included in your application.

Other Interview Options for International Applicants

Harvey Mudd College will accept interviews submitted electronically from companies InitialView or Vericant. InitialView and Vericant interviews are conducted by native English speakers and last an average of 15-20 minutes. A one-time fee is required, which allows the student to send the interview to as many schools as they would like. An interview with these companies would be a more generic interview than would be one conducted on campus, but have the benefit of being recorded and used for applications to various institutions.

Please keep in mind that while we accept these interviews for your application as if they are our own, the interviewers trained and provided by InitialView or Vericant are not associated with Harvey Mudd College. Do not expect your interviewer to be able to answer your questions about the College.

For students who qualify, submit requests for fee waivers for InitialView or Vericant to admission@hmc.edu.

Like with our own interviews, InitialView and Vericant interviews should be completed prior to the application deadline.