Addressing Red Flags during the Interview???

[MedGrl@2022]

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I am preparing for my upcoming interviews and I got this book called "The Medical School Interview" by Dr. Jessica Freedman. She says that I should bring up "red flags" during my interview (even if my interviewer does not, so my interviewer can advocate for me if they come up while they are making a decision on my application). I think my red flags are my low MCAT score and 6 years between undergrad and medical school. I am also a re-applicant because I applied once in 2006 and was very unsuccessful (mainly because my MCAT was horrible) and became discouraged. I started working in research and really took the time to evaluate myself and grow and re-discover that becoming a physician was actually what I wanted to do. I work with a certain physician who tells me that my time off, being a re-applicant, and my low MCAT score is going to look very bad. If so, should I bring them up during my interview? How should I explain them? I don't want to make excuses. If anything, I would like to be seen as the come back kid. The girl who is determined, resilient and has spent the last few years working to get into medical school so she can become a community physician and serve others.

Here are my stats:
3.78 cGPA, 3.78 sGPA
27 MCAT (10BS, 8VR, 9PS)
URM, non-trad (6 years since undergrad)
5 years of research experience (only published abstracts and presented at national conferences, currently working on a journal publication but it is in the early stages)
Lots of health outreach experience

I did not re-take the MCAT because I did not feel that I had sufficient time to substantially improve. I took it in the end of April and I got swamped at work and with medical school applications, which I was advised to submit as early as possible. I used up all/most of my leave to study for the April MCAT. I independently studied from August 2012 to April 2013. It took a long time because I needed to relearn all the content as I graduated in 2007. I am hoping that my other accomplishments will make up for a low MCAT score. I did not want to risk retaking to get the same or a lower score, I was told that that would look worse. The high on my practice MCAT tests was a 31 (11BS, 9VR, 11PS) but they ranged from 26-31... :-/. (Verbal seemed all over the place for me. Even though there was an improvement my scores ranged from 6-9.)

I am VERY interested in the schools at which I will be having my upcoming interviews. One of them is currently my #1 choice. Any advice would greatly be appreciated!!!

Thank you once again for all your advice! 🙂

On another note, has anyone here paid for mock interviewing. MedEdits offers one hour via Skype for $500. That is crazy. Are their more affordable options? I graduated in 2007 so I am trying to set something up with my undergrad via Skype.

 

[mcloaf]

The physician you work with who thinks taking time off will be a red flag has no clue what he's talking about.


Being a reapplicant won't help you, but I think you have a compelling story about taking time to rebuild yourself as a better applicant. Most schools, I think, would find that to be a good thing. As for the MCAT, they wouldn't invite you for an interview if they didn't think you were qualified to go there so I see no reason to draw attention to it. If your interviewer feels they should know more about that aspect of your application they will ask you about it. Before that happens I think it's foolish to draw extra attention to it.

If you don't want to make excuses then show up to your interview confident and show them that you deserve to be there. Immediately bringing up your low MCAT score sends the opposite message. Be ready to explain it if you need to, but not before.




Others may disagree, but that was my approach and it served me fine. Oh, and I don't know anything about mock interview services so I can't help you there. Good luck.

 

[Jennyfishy]

If you read what i say, def. Take with a grain of salt. During my first interview, the current med students and admissions staff told us, "your interviewer will not know your mcat /gpa going into it. If they are red flags or you don't want them to know, don't bring it up".

I have a 28 mcat and a gpa drop due to my senior yr (3.82 down to 3.78) but they asked me why i would highlight my perceived deficiencies if i didnt need to.

Im still undecided on if this was good advice and if i shouldve explained it. Ill find out in a few days-weeks if it ended up mattering lol

 

[MedGrl@2022]

If you reatras what i say, def. Take with a grain of salt. During my first interview, the current med students and admissions staff told us, "your interviewer will not know your mcat /gpa going into it. If they are red flags or you don't want them to know, don't bring it up".

I have a 28 mcat and a gpa drop due to my senior yr (3.82 down to 3.78) but they asked me why i would highlight my perceived deficiencies if i didnt need to.

Im still undecided on if this was good advice and if i shouldve explained it. Ill find out in a few days-weeks if it ended up mattering lol

Please share with us. I wonder if it would just be better to emphasize the good things that I have been doing and hope that they will see that I have been working full-time and being six years after graduation are explanations for my low MCAT score. Otherwise, I have been productive with research and volunteering. (No publications but I have a lot of published abstracts and presentations at national conferences.) I hope to find an expert to do a mock interview with. Perhaps, I should just ask around.

 

[jlocker83]

As has been mentioned, the fact you took time off between undergrad and applying to med school is absolutely not a red flag. In fact, I'd venture to say this is a positive thing in 99 out of 100 cases.

 

[MedGrl@2022]

Random question, which may have been asked before. Sometimes, medical schools ask what other medical schools you have applied to. What is the best way to respond to this?

I have applied to MD and DO schools in the northeast. Being relatively close to my family is important to me. Would allopathic medical schools think negatively if you also applied to osteopathic medical schools or visa versa? Or would it just show your commitment to medicine?

Thank you once again for all your help.

 

[CarlosDanger]

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[MedGrl@2022]

Should I ask they question "is there anything that you think that would not make me a good fit here" or something? Or maybe, "This school is one of my top choices, what could I do to make myself a stronger candidate"? Those might not be the best questions, but I mean a question that might led the interviewer to ask questions about things in my application that he was worried about. Or only talk about the positives about my application and forget about the "red flags" completely.

Thanks once again for all your advice. I want to dazzle my interviewers at my next interview. 🙂

 

[mvenus929]

Random question, which may have been asked before. Sometimes, medical schools ask what other medical schools you have applied to. What is the best way to respond to this?

There's a whole other thread about this, but the bottom line is that schools know you're going to be applying to other schools, and they shouldn't care.

I work with a certain physician who tells me that my time off, being a re-applicant, and my low MCAT score is going to look very bad. If so, should I bring them up during my interview? How should I explain them?

That physician doesn't know what he(she) is talk about. Time off is absolute NOT a red flag--I'd say about half of the incoming class at my school took time off. One of the schools I applied to even advertised that they favored non-traditional applicants.

Your MCAT score isn't the greatest, but if you applied to schools where it's a decent score, you shouldn't have to worry.

As far as being a reapplicant--this was such a huge part of my identity when I applied to schools the second time that I emphasized it in my personal statement. Even schools where I wasn't considered a reapplicant--such as the school I'm currently attending--I brought it up and emphasized it. If you turn the story into one where you thought more about medicine and decided it was really for you after exploring other options, then you shouldn't have anything to worry about.

 

[Johansef]

I think you should definitely not bring up any "red flags" that you might have intentionally, but be ready to explain them if your interview asks. Try to highlight your strengths and make a positive impression on your interviewer and explain any weaknesses if necessary.

 

[Goro]

STRONGLY disagree. If there are red flags, let the interviewer bring them up. Unless you've got an II ata place that does closed file interviews, the interviewer has already read your file and can see your goals and motivation.


I am preparing for my upcoming interviews and I got this book called "The Medical School Interview" by Dr. Jessica Freedman. She says that I should bring up "red flags" during my interview (even if my interviewer does not, so my interviewer can advocate for me if they come up while they are making a decision on my application).


Just explain from the heart and don't make any excuses.

Your time between UG and application is NOT a weakness. It simply makes you a non-traditional student, which can be a strength, like, in terms of life wisdom and maturity. Good luck!

 

[aspiring20]

STRONGLY disagree. If there are red flags, let the interviewer bring them up. Unless you've got an II ata place that does closed file interviews, the interviewer has already read your file and can see your goals and motivation.


I am preparing for my upcoming interviews and I got this book called "The Medical School Interview" by Dr. Jessica Freedman. She says that I should bring up "red flags" during my interview (even if my interviewer does not, so my interviewer can advocate for me if they come up while they are making a decision on my application).


Just explain from the heart and don't make any excuses.

Your time between UG and application is NOT a weakness. It simply makes you a non-traditional student, which can be a strength, like, in terms of life wisdom and maturity. Good luck!

hey goro, sorry for jacking this thread...but what if your primary activity during gap years (say 2-3 years) is a full-time job not related to medicine? of course, there are other minor activities as well, but i never really wanted to find a full-time clinical job after graduation.

 

[Jennyfishy]

Please share with us. I wonder if it would just be better to emphasize the good things that I have been doing and hope that they will see that I have been working full-time and being six years after graduation are explanations for my low MCAT score. Otherwise, I have been productive with research and volunteering. (No publications but I have a lot of published abstracts and presentations at national conferences.) I hope to find an expert to do a mock interview with. Perhaps, I should just ask around.

As others have said, definitely address it if it's brought up during an interview, but highlight your strengths + what you learned from those perceived deficiencies instead of making excuses. If you think it would be a make or break in your situation, it may be worthwhile to explain it if the context would avoid any "raised eyebrows" during a final review (especially post-interview). However, if it's a random C/bad grade in an otherwise stellar transcript, it's not necessarily pertinent. After all, if you made it to the point of the interview, they've already seen everything 😛

Like I said in my case, my interviewers didn't know what my MCAT/GPA was going into the interview, but had the rest of my file in front of them and liked what they saw so it may not apply to your situation. Definitely bring up new things that would strengthen your app, like say if you had a bad quarter, you could acknowledge it and talk about what you did to raise your grades after, etc.

 

[mvenus929]

hey goro, sorry for jacking this thread...but what if your primary activity during gap years (say 2-3 years) is a full-time job not related to medicine? of course, there are other minor activities as well, but i never really wanted to find a full-time clinical job after graduation.

That's fine, as long as you can still describe why you want to do medical school. Without even trying, I can think of two people in my class who spent the two years prior to medical school working in a non-medical field. Another 2 if you count coming in as a second career.

 

[pietachok]

I agree with Goro. Don't bring up the red flags unless they're brought up by the interviewer. Many interviewers do not know anything about your file, so the feedback they give to the adcom is not intended to address your weaknesses. Beyond that, many interviewers fill out a form and do not sit on the adcom and are not present at the meeting where the decision is made on your application, so they aren't there to stand up for you as she suggests -- her advice is applicable to a very specific scenario that does not occur at many programs. Additionally, there may not really be a place on their feedback form to discuss whatever you mention about your red flags since they aren't supposed to be evaluating your GPA/MCAT in the interview.

Imagine if you went to your new dr and he/she walked in the room and opened with "I know I went to a mediocre medical school and failed step 1 on my first attempt, but I'm a really good doctor, because . . . ". You are likewise in the interview to sell yourself to your interviewers as their future doctor, colleague, student, etc. Are you going to use a % of the precious time you have with them to raise doubts instead of letting them find out the things they want to know about you?

 

[Sardinia]

How are people going to know what a strong person I've become if they don't know all about the red flags I've overcome in my life.

 

[MedGrl@2022]

How are people going to know what a strong person I've become if they don't know all about the red flags I've overcome in my life.

I don't know if this was intended to be a joke, but you did pose an interesting question. If for instance, the interviewer asks " Tell me about a challenging time in your life." There are a couple answers that I can think to answer this. One answer includes the MCAT. I do not think I encountered other academic issues in either my undergraduate or graduate level courses otherwise.

I was working full-time but honestly, I don't know if there is anyway that I could make up for or really explain scoring low on the MCAT. I know that there are amazing people who study for only a few months, with full-time jobs, a family, and they score 36+. I studied at least 2-3 hours everyday and more on weekends from August to April and only scored a 27. If I had more time to study I think I could have done better, as I managed to score a maximum of 30-31 on my practice AAMC exams, but who really knows.

Therefore, do I not even bring it up unless my interviewer definitely asks and use another overcoming challenging/adversity story?

Thank you once again for all your help and insights. I am real excited for my upcoming interviews both are my top choice schools and one of them is currently #1.