I understand. It's just that my interview in February, though pleasant, gave me the impression that I was not really cared about. I got grilled on why I wanted to do medicine, and I don't feel like I left that good of an impression.
MOST IMPORTANTLY, I was interviewed by a med student and some random person that's not even in the UIC faculty. So it greatly concerns me that my interview feedback is based upon people not officially in the ad com. Not that I don't respect them, but they do not impart in me a feeling of confidence that my interview was taken seriously.
I may just be bitter.
I don't know what you expect from an interview day. What does being "cared about" entail? I interviewed in February and the day went just fine. To be honest, people's moods are greatly influenced by the weather in Chicago, so if everyone was a little low energy, it could just be the mid-winter blues. As a Chicagoan, I can tell you this is a very real phenomenon.
Everyone gets asked why they want to be a doctor. Have you done any interview prep with professors or hospital administration? You need to have a semi-rehearsed answer that provides information leading to the follow-up questions you WANT to answer. This is how to control the conversation from the beginning. If you feel like you are being grilled, then that means you have not thoroughly prepared for the "why medicine?" question. There are also endless resources on the web for interview prep.
Your interview with a "random" person is probably the least important issue (the most important being your preparedness). These can often be the easiest interviews, because you can talk about what YOU care about. These interviewers usually just want to know that you're a normal person who can talk to other people and formulate intelligent thoughts on the fly. Interviews aim to gauge how you respond to various questions and situations, and they test your resilience in a high pressure professional/semi-formal social setting. They require a great deal of confidence (fake it til you make it) and a little bit of humility. If you've got social grace, that's a plus. Your interviewers want to like you. But they can't if you're wrapped up in your own head with expectations and preconceived notions about your candidacy. You should shift your focus away from what you expect from the school and more towards how you can wow the school. It's not about what they can do for you (ie how they show they "care" or who you interview with), but rather what you can offer as an eager candidate.
Lastly, if you felt, by the end of your interview day, that you were not taken seriously, it's possible that you were projecting your own negativity on the situation. Unfortunately, it's also possible that this negativity came through in your behavior.
An interview opportunity is wasted on someone who goes into it with a negative mindset. It's such a precious, coveted spot, whether it's in october or march.
Good Luck.
