Olin / Interview
The Olin interview
Interview by invitation, and it carries significant weight in the decision. Here is how it works and how to prepare.
Interview by invitation
Required Candidates' Weekend (by invitation, ~275-300 invited); includes a 1-on-1 interview plus a group design challenge, held on campus over a weekend in Feb-Mar; virtual option for international applicants
How to prepare for Olin
- Candidates' Weekend is required to remain under consideration , if invited, attendance is not optional; treat the entire weekend, including informal dinners and evening time with student hosts, as part of the evaluation.
- The group design challenge on Saturday is explicitly evaluative: Olin wants to see how you collaborate, communicate, and contribute to a team , not just whether you have the right answer.
- In the individual interview, lead with genuine enthusiasm for Olin's project-based, self-directed model; vague interest in 'engineering' without specific connection to Olin's pedagogy will stand out as underprepared.
- If you are not invited to Candidates' Weekend, admission is closed , so make your application essays do the heaviest lifting by showing authentic alignment with Olin's collaborative, hands-on culture.
Practice before the real thing
Rehearse real admissions-interview questions and get an honest read on your answers, what an interviewer hears, where you sound generic, and what to sharpen. We coach you; we never script you.
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