Anyone have a bad interview, but get accepted???

[theunderdog]

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So I interviewed last week at my state school... and had a so-so/bad interview.

The questions were tough for the first 10 minutes, then I got killed on 40 minutes of health care questions... not to mention my interview got interrupted 3 times due to my interviewer having to make a call.

my health care questions were like: what percentage of the US GNP goes to healthcare? what about in europe? what's the difference and how can i fix the gap? hard questions like that...

my interview lasted about 1 hr 15 minutes.. i didn't lose my cool at all during the interview. i was very composed, but during the 40 minutes of healthcare, i didn't know squat. all i could do was shake my head.

my state school is my top choice. i already sent out thank you cards.

anyone have a bad interview like that, but then get accepted?

 

[Saluki]

So I interviewed last week at my state school... and had a so-so/bad interview.

The questions were tough for the first 10 minutes, then I got killed on 40 minutes of health care questions... not to mention my interview got interrupted 3 times due to my interviewer having to make a call.

my health care questions were like: what percentage of the US GNP goes to healthcare? what about in europe? what's the difference and how can i fix the gap? hard questions like that...

my interview lasted about 1 hr 15 minutes.. i didn't lose my cool at all during the interview. i was very composed, but during the 40 minutes of healthcare, i didn't know squat. all i could do was shake my head.

my state school is my top choice. i already sent out thank you cards.

anyone have a bad interview like that, but then get accepted?

I had an interview similar to that at Vanderbilt, but I haven't heard yet whether I got in. However, my advisor said not to worry too much about it because it's really hard to telll what will end up happening. If it makes you feel any better, I don't know the answers to those questions either.... Good luck!

 

[nimotsu]

I had an interview at UNC-CH do that do me (ask specific numbers), and I just said I don't know. He laughed at the end and told me that if nobody ever knows the answers to those questions.. and that maybe if they did, they had a little too much time on their hands. I wouldn't worry about it too much.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

i had a really cr@ppy interview last week, too, and am figuring i'm not going to get into that school. i just got reamed with policy questions, and i've got to wonder why that's the format for some schools. i want to be a clinician -- i want to see patients, examine them, diagnose them, treat them, etc. sure, i might have some involvement in the ama, but i'm not a policy wonk, nor do i want to do that. why is that so much the focus of interviews? i can't think that's a good way to determine who is going to be a good physician.

 

[CerealBox]

i had a couple interviews that i thought didn't go so well but got accepted to both schools.

at one interview, the interviewer started with saying something like "ok,, so i see you have good grades, test scores, etc, but lets talk about the real weaknesses with your application...." i was put on the defensive right away and I felt like i spent the whole 40 minutes appologizing or defending myself. and the interviewer kept cutting me off. i was bummed, but got accepted about a month later.

at the other school one of my interviewers had a very aggresive style. He asked me questions about my personal political views and family life and accused me of trying to wriggle out of answering his questions directly, and I ended up getting pretty snappy with him. i definitely thought i blew it. i even passed him in the hall later that day and he wouldn't make direct eye contact with me. but, i also got an acceptance from that school (i was super surprised).

so there's hope. but i think each school puts a different weight on the interviews.

 

[Punkinhead]

I had a real griller at the school in which I later got accepted. A girl I saw in the hall afterwards said being grilled may be a good thing, because it means they are actually interested in you. I think the most importnat thing is just to stay calm and seem cool under stress. Good luck!

 

[theunderdog]

hey, THANKS GUY FOR ALL THE RESPONSEs! i had lost all hope....

i figured that if the interviewer really disliked me, he would not have lectured me for 40 minutes about healthcare. he would have told me for like 10 minutes and then told me interview was over.

but i was also thinking the interviewer could have already made his mind about me and decided just to lecture me for fun for 40 minutes on healthcare....

i said "i have no clue" to all his healthcare questions. sometimes, i made wild guesses.

so this brings me to the next question.... if you had a bad interview, then what exactly happens at the ad com meeting when the interviewer is supposed to be your advocate???

 

[Messerschmitts]

Can you get accepted despite "bad" interview? I sure as hell hope so! My first interview at UCSD was great, but my second interview was a one-hour beat-down on why my responses suck. I even got one of the ethical questions "wrong". 🙁 Ugh, I felt like Han Solo after he got out of the torture chamber on Bespin. I believe his immortal words were, "I feel terrible".

 

[theunderdog]

Can you get accepted despite "bad" interview? I sure as hell hope so! My first interview at UCSD was great, but my second interview was a one-hour beat-down on why my responses suck. I even got one of the ethical questions "wrong". 🙁 Ugh, I felt like Han Solo after he got out of the torture chamber on Bespin. I believe his immortal words were, "I feel terrible".

BUMP!

I need to keep this piece afloat!

 

[abcehmu]

I had an one where my interviewer asked me "why school x" and when I was through she point blank told me she didnt think there was any reason for her to believe I would go there if admitted. She also repeatedly implied that I was only pursuing a career in medicine because of parental pressures........worst interview I have had out of all my interviews at 10 schools. I was in the first group of accepted students......so, you never know. an admissions dean once told me that sometimes when they know you are a very well qualified applicant they mess with you.

 

[theunderdog]

I had an one where my interviewer asked me "why school x" and when I was through she point blank told me she didnt think there was any reason for her to believe I would go there if admitted. She also repeatedly implied that I was only pursuing a career in medicine because of parental pressures........worst interview I have had out of all my interviews at 10 schools. I was in the first group of accepted students......so, you never know. an admissions dean once told me that sometimes when they know you are a very well qualified applicant they mess with you.

my problem is that i have low mcat scores. my interviewer was really curious about my mcat scores. how i managed to score a 19 as a bright asian guy.

 

[argonana]

sometimes when they know you are a very well qualified applicant they mess with you.

Agreed. I was taken down a notch or two at the schools I've been accepted to. My other interviews have all been pleasant...I'm starting to think pleasant exchanges are a bad sign.

 

[bubbleyum]

my problem is that i have low mcat scores. my interviewer was really curious about my mcat scores. how i managed to score a 19 as a bright asian guy.

u got interviews with a 19??
wow. you must have done some remarkable clinical work.

 

[theunderdog]

u got interviews with a 19??
wow. you must have done some remarkable clinical work.

well, of course i didn't get a 19 when i applied. 19 was the first score i got. i ended up taking the mcat many times after that. with marked improvement.

and yes, i do have some remarkable clinical work. i'm already published, president/founder of my organization... among other things in my app.... not to mention i didn't graduate college yet.... modestly speaking of course.

 

[BooMed]

Wow, I can't believe how stressful some of these experiences sound, I'm so sorry guys! Like that one interviewer who said "nobody ever know the answers to these question," well geez, why ask then? I know it's just to see how you react under pressure, but if I was conducting an interview I'd rather spend the time learning about the person than asking impossible questions.

 

[es19]

to OP: at least you talked for 1 hr +
i went to interview at one of my safety schools...and basically the interviewer asked me two questions repeatedly
1. tell me about yourself (tell me more about yourself, more more!)
2. do u have any question? (another question? anther one?)
there were silence pauses all over, and i ended up getting out 15 min earlier than the set time.

and...as someone said before, there is no safety school...i think it's certainly my case now...

 

[LuisitoMD]

I had an interviewer role his eyes at me...
the interview went down hill form there. I didn't send thank you notes... I got accepted and a scholarship!! 😀

 

[theunderdog]

I had an interviewer role his eyes at me...
the interview went down hill form there. I didn't send thank you notes... I got accepted and a scholarship!! 😀

LOL... same thing..

by the way, i'm the OP.

interviewer not only raped me in health care questions, but was looking for very specific answers. he kept asking me "and then?" and "what else?"

he rolled his eyes at all my answers and disagreed with probably all of them. when i asked him how he would answer one of the questions he had asked me, he answered it the same way i had!!!!

have no idea how this interview performance correlates to acceptance/rejection.

 

[BooMed]

LOL... same thing..

by the way, i'm the OP.

interviewer not only raped me in health care questions, but was looking for very specific answers. he kept asking me "and then?" and "what else?"

he rolled his eyes at all my answers and disagreed with probably all of them. when i asked him how he would answer one of the questions he had asked me, he answered it the same way i had!!!!

have no idea how this interview performance correlates to acceptance/rejection.

Wow... that is bad. But sort of funny too. I hope that you get in so later you can laugh about your terrible interview! 😛

 

[gary5]

You can think you have a bad interview and still get accepted. My advice is to schedule a mock interview with your premed advisor. If you blew the last interview, you must not blow the next...

 

[happydays]

These schools are down right crazy, that's what I think. When they don't really like you, they praise you and say how wonderful your application is. When they like you, they put on a show of "how much sweat can we get out of him/her."

My crappy school gave me the hardest time. They may think that b/c they have low scores, they need to pick out those whose first choice is their school. Who knows. Basically, every single hard question you can get and then some. I think I've even answered a question "wrong" because I was being too encompassing and philosophical about it. What da F?! I should have just given the text book answer.

 

[argonana]

These schools are down right crazy, that's what I think. When they don't really like you, they praise you and say how wonderful your application is. When they like you, they put on a show of "how much sweat can we get out of him/her."

I think I've found the same thing. The insincerity part bugs me--what's the point of praising someone's app if the school doesn't like it? I just don't get it.

 

[Overeducated]

Can you get accepted despite "bad" interview? I sure as hell hope so! My first interview at UCSD was great, but my second interview was a one-hour beat-down on why my responses suck. I even got one of the ethical questions "wrong". 🙁 Ugh, I felt like Han Solo after he got out of the torture chamber on Bespin. I believe his immortal words were, "I feel terrible".

I've heard lots of stories of nightmare interviews at UCSD. Is that their strategy... give you one relaxed interview and one confrontational beat-down? I'm still on their pre-interview hold list.

Anyway, on the subject of this thread... I've only had one genuinely bad interview so far and it resulted in a rejection.

 

[LuisitoMD]

I still don't get the interview/acceptance procedure...
I've had great interviews at lower ranking schools, where they say that there is no doubt I will get accepted, and then I get waitlisted... 😕

 

[.edu-MD]

.

 

[angietron3000]

Both of my acceptances came after what I thought were my *worst* interviews, so don't lose hope yet 🙂

 

[freesolo]

I still don't get the interview/acceptance procedure...
I've had great interviews at lower ranking schools, where they say that there is no doubt I will get accepted, and then I get waitlisted... 😕

Its just too random for me, ppl that feel like they had horrible interviews get in, and ppl that had good ones dont lol. And their deciding your futures over "lunch" so maybe if they get a good lunch their happier, and therefore willing to give acceptances out lol.

 

[pagemmapants]

Unless they decide to do this by a strict numerical formula, it's always going to be "a crapshoot" - either we have a system in which a lot of it is admittedly and markedly random like what we have now, or we have a system which doesn't take into account interpersonal skills, articulation, logical thought processes, extra-curriculars, etc.

Personally, I prefer the crapshoot.

 

[southpaux]

Its around 17% of the GDP.

 

[chaeymaey]

It's 14%. I just did a Health Psyc project on it. In Spain, it's 7%, but they're way healthier cuz of their Mediterranean diet.

 

[theunderdog]

well my interviewer told me in the US, it's 17%. my answer was 14-15%, but he said my statistics were out dated. in western europe (hence, spain) the number is around 8-9%.

 

[drmota]

Its around 17% of the GDP.

what, healthcare?
-mota

 

[lynn42]

I had a horrible interview at a school . . . and I still got in. He told me my MCATs were too low, and I needed to re-take them. It was really a bad interview. I thought for sure I wouldn't get in. Just because you don't have a good interview doesn't mean you won't get in. Furthermore, the school where I had the best interview waitlisted me???!!! Who knows. 🙄

 

[MollyMalone]

I am hoping against hope that the school where I had my worst interview will accept me. Keep the good stories coming!

 

[BooMed]

I had a horrible interview at a school . . . and I still got in. He told me my MCATs were too low, and I needed to re-take them.

Ha! Too bad for him.

Congratulations.

 

[drlalchick]

Can you get accepted despite "bad" interview? I sure as hell hope so! My first interview at UCSD was great, but my second interview was a one-hour beat-down on why my responses suck. I even got one of the ethical questions "wrong". 🙁 Ugh, I felt like Han Solo after he got out of the torture chamber on Bespin. I believe his immortal words were, "I feel terrible".

I also had a really bad interview. I don't think the dean actually looked at me during the entire interview. She seemed like she couldn't care less, and when I left I thought she absolutely hated me or thought that I wasn't worth her time. Imagine my surprise when I got in! So I guess the interview really isn't the best judge

 

[LucidSplash]

Well, I didn't get in... but my interview was in February last year and I got waitlisted. My interview spent the majority of the hour telling me he thought I ought to get an MPH or masters in public policy based on my assertion in an answer to a question that I thought there ought to be more focus (in general) on how to provide healthcare to all Americans.

Considering my interview was so late (late application last year) I considered it a minor victory because I don't think there was really anyone at that point that was accepted. Possibly wishful thinking but I like to keep my dreams 🙂

 

[MDClown08]

I had a very similar experience at Hopkins. I was convinced that I would be recieving a low waitlist (read: rejection) or if there was some sort of miracle, high waitlist. I ended up getting straight up accepted, so you never know. Best wishes.

 

[dbhvt]

It's 14%. I just did a Health Psyc project on it. In Spain, it's 7%, but they're way healthier cuz of their Mediterranean diet.

I don't know if that's true. I don't have numbers off the top of my head, but I think Spain has a much bigger problem with liver disease than we do. I think we have a tendency to estimate other cultures general health based on how they do with our biggest health problems. Ie, lets imagine Spain has a much lower incidence of heart disease. So we say, ahh that Mediterranean diet, they're so much healthier out there. Truth is, you know what they eat in Spain? Piles and piles of pork. And they drink more too. I would guess that they don't spend less of their GDP on health care because they are healthier. I would guess they're just better at managing inefficiencies in the delivery system. But I really don't have anything to back me up on it, and this is WAY of the thread topic.

 

[Saluki]

I don't know if that's true. I don't have numbers off the top of my head, but I think Spain has a much bigger problem with liver disease than we do. I think we have a tendency to estimate other cultures general health based on how they do with our biggest health problems. Ie, lets imagine Spain has a much lower incidence of heart disease. So we say, ahh that Mediterranean diet, they're so much healthier out there. Truth is, you know what they eat in Spain? Piles and piles of pork. And they drink more too. I would guess that they don't spend less of their GDP on health care because they are healthier. I would guess they're just better at managing inefficiencies in the delivery system. But I really don't have anything to back me up on it, and this is WAY of the thread topic.

Our problem isn't WHAT we eat; it's HOW MUCH

 

[chaeymaey]

They drink Sangria, made with red wine and fruit = rich in riboflavins and antioxidants = low cardiovascular disease and longer life expectancy.

 

[caffeine37]

They drink Sangria, made with red wine and fruit = rich in riboflavins and antioxidants = low cardiovascular disease and longer life expectancy.

<-- this is our problem

i just wanted to use that icon

i love off topic threads

 

[BooMed]

They also get a lot more exercise (they walk more), eat more fresh fruits/vegetables, don't eat weird diet/fake crap and live a more relaxed lifestyle in general (fiestas every afternoon!). They aren't as hot as the italians though, I'd rather be an italian. 😍

 

[happydays]

These schools are down right crazy, that's what I think. When they don't really like you, they praise you and say how wonderful your application is. When they like you, they put on a show of "how much sweat can we get out of him/her."

My crappy school gave me the hardest time. They may think that b/c they have low scores, they need to pick out those whose first choice is their school. Who knows. Basically, every single hard question you can get and then some. I think I've even answered a question "wrong" because I was being too encompassing and philosophical about it. What da F?! I should have just given the text book answer.

By the way, I did get accepted at the school where I bombed the interview. Silly, isn't it?! hahaha!

 

[BlinkyCat]

By the way, I did get accepted at the school where I bombed the interview. Silly, isn't it?! hahaha!

What are your definitions of "bombing"? I think "bombing" an interview involves alot of "I don't know" and " I have nothing intelligent to add". Ugh! (both of which i did !!) 🙁

 

[happydays]

What are your definitions of "bombing"? I think "bombing" an interview involves alot of "I don't know" and " I have nothing intelligent to add". Ugh! (both of which i did !!) 🙁

I didn't say "I don't know" to any of the questions. I thought I was not very concise with my answers. There were periods of silence, mumbling, and brain-farts. My student interviewer looked at the clock every 5 minutes, which threw me off even more. My faculty interviewer pretty much just said "yes, ok" after my every response. I thought this was my "miracle" acceptance.