From 1/7 to 1/4

While a Wharton interview invite is heartening and I am certainly excited and optimistic about possibly attending the school, a quick glance at some stats and conversations with current students revealed some hard (even harsh) facts.

• The Indian applicant pool is as competitive as it can get. Wharton being perceived as Indian/techie friendly encourages many Indians to apply but there are only so many spots.
• Wharton interviews more applicants (as opposed to some other top schools), so getting an interview invite even though a positive sign, still leaves quite a margin to be covered to get an admit.
• There is this theory (or rumor) on BW that Wharton extends interview invites even to candidates who are considered what is called as 'Dead Meat." That is Wharton has almost decided against this candidate but still wants to interview them. In other words, even a super star interview wouldnt do much to get this applicant in at Wharton. I dont quite get why this could be true and what the point is but something I came across on BW. I would imagine Wharton sees potential in an applicant's file to offer an interview invitation.
• After submitting the application there is a 1/6 or 1/7 chance that an applicant will get in. After receiving an interview invite, those odds improve to about 1/4.

So only 1 out of every 4 interviewed candidates will hear the good news from Wharton on March 16th. Now, none of these are things I didnt already know before applying to Wharton but like they say, it takes time to sink in.