How to prepare for mock interview?

[Ace Khalifa]

Hey all you lovely, wonderful people!

I have a mock interview tomorrow at my alma mater's career center. The career advisor will pretend to be an adcom from ECU.

I'd like to ask: how much should I prepare today for the mock interview? I wanted to look up all the commonly asked medical school interview questions, come up with answers for those, and then practice saying them out loud. I also wanted to research topics on medical ethics and other facets of healthcare such as ACA and physician compensation models. Do y'all think I should spend the entire day prepping? My mock interview is tomorrow in the morning.

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[Pacna]

They're going to treat it like a real interview for your benefit. You should return the courtesy.

 

[lmn]

You should be prepared like you would be for an actual interview, then you'll receive the best feedback on your actual answers and how you present yourself, not to mention it is the least you can do when the advisor is taking the time to do this favor for you.

 

[Ace Khalifa]

Awesome, thanks! Then it's time to spend 10+ hours prepping myself!

 

[Lamel]

Other than the typical questions and familiarizing yourself with your application, knowing at least the basics of ACA definitely helps.

 

[lmn]

Awesome, thanks! Then it's time to spend 10+ hours prepping myself!

I wouldn't go overboard with it, unfortunately you haven't been preparing consistently up to now, but just do your best going over some common questions and how you will answer them as well as your basic elevator pitch/explanation of yourself/story. Rehearse them a bit so you know what you want to say and generally how to go about it, but don't approach it like you are memorizing a script or something.

 

[Ace Khalifa]

I wouldn't go overboard with it, unfortunately you haven't been preparing consistently up to now, but just do your best going over some common questions and how you will answer them as well as your basic elevator pitch/explanation of yourself/story. Rehearse them a bit so you know what you want to say and generally how to go about it, but don't approach it like you are memorizing a script or something.

Thanks! I plan to do many more mock interviews next month before my first real interview on 8/28. And I'll be sure to prep consistently starting tomorrow after the mock.

 

[NYCdude]

Would you guys recommend wearing the whole getup as well? (Suit and tie)

 

[Vans42]

Would you guys recommend wearing the whole getup as well? (Suit and tie)

Definitely

 

[kairos18]

Treat it as if it's your actual interview. Wear your suit and proper shoes, prepare your answers, and conduct yourself as if this person was an adcom member. Mock interviews are the most useful when you treat them as formally as possible so you can get good feedback on your verbal communication (answer content, "ummm", "errrr", etc.) as well as nonverbal communication (fidgeting, mannerisms, etc.) Also practice sitting in your suit. I've heard that some guys will purposely sit on the backs of their jackets so that it doesn't look bulky while sitting down. Good luck!