Are departments biast and just choose people they want in the doctoral program without an interview?

Question

I am applying for my doctoral degree. I had to go through an interviewing process in front of a committee. However, I feel that no matter how well I presented myself, one person looked at the walls, and the other person kept staring at his watch. The next day, I asked 2 other doctoral applicants if they got into the doctoral program. Both were never interviewed but said they just got in there because they knew people in the department. I do not think that this is fair to let some candidates in without the formal process. Is it true that the applicant screening is about favoritisim? Please let me know your experiences if you got rejected or not.

Answer 1

I know what you mean. Sometimes, if someone knows one of the professors on the committee or was "highly recommended" by one of the professor's collegue, they are 10 time's more likely to be accepted into that program. It is really unfortunate and I am sorry to hear that you have gone through that...Keep your head up and stay focused--Pray and God will provide!

Answer 2

Oftentimes, candidates called in for interviews are borderline candidates. Applicants admitted without interviews are top candidates, and thus were not offered (nor did they need) the opportunity to convince the committee that they should be admitted.

Sometimes, applicants who are well-known to more than one or two of the faculty have their interviews waived, because, frankly, they've been interviewing for years (or for however long they've been studying with the faculty in question).

For example, many years ago, I was admitted to my PhD program without an interview. I had done my Master's elsewhere, but I was one of that program's top three candidates, and I was awarded a fellowship. Three of my new colleagues in that PhD program had done their Master's degrees in that department already. 2 were admitted without interview, and one was admitted to the program after a very successful interview. There were 5 or 6 more students in that Master's program who either interviewed and were not admitted, or were not even invited to interview. They pursued their PhDs elsewhere, or decided not to pursue further study.

So in answer to your question, the admissions process is NOT about "favoritism." It is about screening borderline candidates, and about admitting candidates whose abilities and whose dedication has been demonstrated to the committee's satisfaction (either by previous study with the faculty, or by greatly impressing the committee in the interview).

I cannot, however, excuse the behavior of those committee members who did not appear to be attentive in your interview. Perhaps they were already strongly convinced that you were not a viable candidate, perhaps their fields were different from yours and they did not care whether you were admitted because you would not be working with them, or perhaps they were simply rude. In any case, their behavior was bad, and I hope their colleagues took them to task afterwards.