Asked for what other schools I applied to in interview

[longhorn09]

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So I went to a state school's interview last week. One of the interviewers asked me what other schools outside my state had I applied to, and I said: some in Cali, some in east coast, and some in mid-west, and she asked me: what are those schools? So I told her some.

And she asked me how many interviews and how many out of state interviews had I been to. And I told her the truth.

Now I am kinda regret and I am afraid that giving out that kind of information would put me into disadvantage. Am I worrying too much? I will not tell the truth if I am asked in my future interviews.

 

[KokoLoco]

I wonder how to answer this too. I was asked in an interview last month and stated the same general answer - a few state schools, mostly private, up and down the east coast. My interviewer didn't push for more details. He asked if I had any other interviews yet and I said, 'well, it's still really early'... not sure what the right way to answer it is.

 

[longhorn09]

I wonder how to answer this too. I was asked in an interview last month and stated the same general answer - a few state schools, mostly private, up and down the east coast. My interviewer didn't push for more details. He asked if I had any other interviews yet and I said, 'well, it's still really early'... not sure what the right way to answer it is.

Oh we go to the same college 👍

 

[flip26]

So I went to a state school's interview last week. One of the interviewers asked me what other schools outside my state had I applied to, and I said: some in Cali, some in east coast, and some in mid-west, and she asked me: what are those schools? So I told her some.

And she asked me how many interviews and how many out of state interviews had I been to. And I told her the truth.

Now I am kinda regret and I am afraid that giving out that kind of information would put me into disadvantage. Am I worrying too much? I will not tell the truth if I am asked in my future interviews.

You did just fine. You answered broadly, and the interviewer persisted for details, and you gave her some tidbits.

Don't worry about this. I don't think that there is any way this could hurt you, unless you are a super stud applicant and this interviewer concludes you were slumming at their school and would never really attend...

 

[KokoLoco]

Yes 🙂 Well, I did my undergrad at UT many years ago! Hook 'em!

 

[LizzyM]

😱

That sort of question makes me mad. Here's what I'd say:

Does it matter? give them this look😕 I am very interested in attending This School. That's why I'm here today (and the presentation earlier today confirmed that this is the school I can see myself attending for the next four years). I know that only a fraction of the applicants are lucky enough to get an offer of admission here and so until I have an offer from This School I'll be attending interviews at other schools. As much as I love This School, I can't put all my eggs in one basket.

 

[BlueElmo]

I would be honest. But this question also annoys me to no end.

 

[twostep376]

😱

That sort of question makes me mad. Here's what I'd say:

Does it matter? give them this look😕 I am very interested in attending This School. That's why I'm here today (and the presentation earlier today confirmed that this is the school I can see myself attending for the next four years). I know that only a fraction of the applicants are lucky enough to get an offer of admission here and so until I have an offer from This School I'll be attending interviews at other schools. As much as I love This School, I can't put all my eggs in one basket.

loves it.

 

[longhorn09]

😱

That sort of question makes me mad. Here's what I'd say:

Does it matter? give them this look😕 I am very interested in attending This School. That's why I'm here today (and the presentation earlier today confirmed that this is the school I can see myself attending for the next four years). I know that only a fraction of the applicants are lucky enough to get an offer of admission here and so until I have an offer from This School I'll be attending interviews at other schools. As much as I love This School, I can't put all my eggs in one basket.

👍Thanks, I should have answered this.

 

[brooklynblunder]

i just tell them about what i'm looking for in a school

im looking for x y z
and a place like Q has those things. I have interviewed at similar places like A, B, C but i like the way that Q does z so you can c why i'm so interested in your mom/school

 

[DrYoda]

👍👍👍

One of my faculty interviewers asked me the same question and then wrote down all of the schools I said I applied to, then he asked me where I got interviews.

I had an interviewer do this to me. It's such an f'n insecure question I was in a stunned state for the remainder of the interview.

 

[brooklynblunder]

well at Vandy, the first question they asked me was if it was the farthest south that i was applying

i can see that concern

 

[longhorn09]

well at Vandy, the first question they asked me was if it was the farthest south that i was applying

i can see that concern

Not the case for me since I'm from Texas

 

[sepho]

I've heard that interviewers ask this to gauge your seriousness in wanting to be a doctor. Applying to a few schools might mean to them that you're not that serious, while applying to many means that you are.

 

[armybound]

You didn't sound interested in coming here, anyway.

 

[aggie08]

😱

That sort of question makes me mad. Here's what I'd say:

Does it matter? give them this look😕 I am very interested in attending This School. That's why I'm here today (and the presentation earlier today confirmed that this is the school I can see myself attending for the next four years). I know that only a fraction of the applicants are lucky enough to get an offer of admission here and so until I have an offer from This School I'll be attending interviews at other schools. As much as I love This School, I can't put all my eggs in one basket.

Spoken like a true expert on the subject of admissions. 🙂

 

[flip26]

Spoken like a true expert on the subject of admissions. 🙂

Yeah, but...that is not a very realistic response she offered, no matter how much one would want to say it.

 

[LizzyM]

Yeah, but...that is not a very realistic response she offered, no matter how much one would want to say it.

Why not? The question is posed because some schools don't want to waste a thick envelope on someone who is unlikely to matriculate. If you really want to matriculate there, you need to speak up.

 

[dw2158]

Yeah, but...that is not a very realistic response she offered, no matter how much one would want to say it.

agreed. also, i think that response could come off as disingenuous. it might seem like you're trying a little too hard.

 

[Laryngophed]

agreed. also, i think that response could come off as disingenuous. it might seem like you're trying a little too hard.

I'd rather try too hard than not at all.

It seems perfectly acceptable to give at least the last line of LizzM's answer to the adcom. "I had to apply all over because one can't be too certain of an admission. It would be shortsighted on my part to expect an admission here, though it is my number one choice." FWIW, if I get asked by an interviewer at my number one, I'm saying "This is the school I want to go to. If I get an offer for acceptance, I'll withdraw my application everywhere else; but I'm not so arrogant as too expect it and had to play the odds."

ETA - To what LizzyM said about not wasting a thick envelope, I have heard a few stories of that happening. An admissions coordinator told my advisor that sometimes the adcom rejected people they didn't think would choose them anyway. It was purely because they thought it would be equivalent to being a blank in the chamber and that they didn't want to be a safety school for someone who didn't really want to attend anyway.

 

[flip26]

Why not? The question is posed because some schools don't want to waste a thick envelope on someone who is unlikely to matriculate. If you really want to matriculate there, you need to speak up.

I have no problem with that aspect of the reply you suggested.

Your opening salvo ("why does it matter?"), though, seems over the top and defensive if not unnecessarily confrontational.

Also, more than a few schools employ "stress question" techniques to see how you react to such an impertinent question. Giving a defensive answer, no matter how legit, may be viewed as a "fail" for this question.

 

[floridakmm]

I had the same type question at the first interview, except it was are you applying to your undergrad med school. I went oos for undergrad and was interviewing at state school. I answered correctly, yes i did, then said how I will come back to my state, if given the opportunity, over my undergrad no matter what. Also, I was given advice to never lie (that means by ommission). The inability to just answer the question and go around it is kinda sketchy. I want a straightforward doc, that is my personaly preference though

 

[longhorn09]

I've heard that interviewers ask this to gauge your seriousness in wanting to be a doctor. Applying to a few schools might mean to them that you're not that serious, while applying to many means that you are.

But serious about being a doc doesn't mean serious about going to a specific school...

 

[longhorn09]

You didn't sound interested in coming here, anyway.

1) why you know I'm talking about your school?
2) why you made the assumption that I am not interested in it anyway? I'm interested, as it's a good school that's like 20min away from my house.

 

[armybound]

1) why you know I'm talking about your school?
2) why you made the assumption that I am not interested in it anyway? I'm interested, as it's a good school that's like 20min away from my house.

all I'm saying is your "Baylor vs UTSW?" and the other places you applied to and interviewed at probably gave the interviewer the impression that you might be interested in going to a more prestigious school. these sorts of things pop into their minds every once in a while. I mean look at your grades/scores and where you've interviewed.. unless you have a very compelling reason why you want to go to UTH specifically, the interviewer can probably assume you won't be coming here.

not sure if it affects their recruitment, but it does come up.

 

[bigman225]

the more interviews i attend, the less interested i am in playing games with people. if they ask me i tell them. you'd think they would understand the process enough to realize you have to shotgun these days.

 

[armybound]

the more interviews i attend, the less interested i am in playing games with people. if they ask me i tell them. you'd think they would understand the process enough to realize you have to shotgun these days.

I was the same way. You especially have no games to play now that you have several interviews, since your chance of getting accepted somewhere is probably near 100%... which is more than likely what the interviewer was thinking about.

I'm not being a dick or anything, it's just honestly what goes through their mind sometimes. If you weren't coming off completely blown away and beating down UTH's door, they are probably going to assume you will end up somewhere else.

 

[longhorn09]

I was the same way. You especially have no games to play now that you have several interviews, since your chance of getting accepted somewhere is probably near 100%... which is more than likely what the interviewer was thinking about.

I'm not being a dick or anything, it's just honestly what goes through their mind sometimes. If you weren't coming off completely blown away and beating down UTH's door, they are probably going to assume you will end up somewhere else.

Now that my interview in UTH was over, what else can I do to show my interest? (I don't think I have expressed my interest enough during the interview; I just told them the reasons why I choose this school were that it is close to my house and because of the TMC).

 

[armybound]

if you're planning on sending up any kind of follow-up/thank you notes, you may wish to briefly expand on any interest you have, and/or send the admissions office something.

might want to do it relatively soon though, since they review interviewees on a weekly basis and you never know when they'll get to your file.

 

[JJMrK]

I've been asked this at all of my interviews so far.

 

[PinkIvy08]

Eh, I just view this as a "Why this school?" question. If they really press, I'll give them 1-2 other schools that share a similar mission or quality, but add on why this one stands out over the rest.

 

[BlueElmo]

I've been asked this at all of my interviews so far.

That's a bummer.

 

[bigman225]

Eh, I just view this as a "Why this school?" question. If they really press, I'll give them 1-2 other schools that share a similar mission or quality, but add on why this one stands out over the rest.

personally, i would just feel dishonest saying something like this. there is much parity in "top 20" med schools from what ive seen (which is admittedly little, we are ALL acting very blindly in this process IMO). its easier at a school like Duke that has a genuinely unique curriculum. i tried paying lip service to the 6-12 week academic projects EVERY school has my first few interviews and just got tired of it. now i tend to be honest even if its not what they want to hear--cost is something that sets Baylor apart from other top schools, for example--not some minute aspect of their curriculum. but i totally understand where you are coming from. the objective is to get into med school.

 

[PowerButton]

the more interviews i attend, the less interested i am in playing games with people. if they ask me i tell them. you'd think they would understand the process enough to realize you have to shotgun these days.

Completely agree 100%. That's what I did when I was asked this at one of my interviews. He wrote down each school that I said too. I don't know what implications this has, but really it's a stupid question.

 

[PinkIvy08]

personally, i would just feel dishonest saying something like this. there is much parity in "top 20" med schools from what ive seen (which is admittedly little, we are ALL acting very blindly in this process IMO). its easier at a school like Duke that has a genuinely unique curriculum. i tried paying lip service to the 6-12 week academic projects EVERY school has my first few interviews and just got tired of it. now i tend to be honest even if its not what they want to hear--cost is something that sets Baylor apart from other top schools, for example--not some minute aspect of their curriculum. but i totally understand where you are coming from. the objective is to get into med school.

I don't see how it's dishonest to highlight the aspect of this school that stands out to you and then give examples of a few other schools you applied to that also highlight the same aspect. For instance, my interviews have all been at schools that emphasize community service and producing primary care physicians. This fits in perfectly with my past and my future goals, therefore I highlight this in interviews using specific examples of programs they offer and are involved with. And then each has something specific to their program that I truly love, that makes them stand out in my mind (hence why I applied there). Nothing about what I am saying is dishonest.

But then again, I didn't apply to only "top 20" med schools...

 

[bigman225]

I don't see how it's dishonest to highlight the aspect of this school that stands out to you and then give examples of a few other schools you applied to that also highlight the same aspect. For instance, my interviews have all been at schools that emphasize community service and producing primary care physicians. This fits in perfectly with my past and my future goals, therefore I highlight this in interviews using specific examples of programs they offer and are involved with. And then each has something specific to their program that I truly love, that makes them stand out in my mind (hence why I applied there). Nothing about what I am saying is dishonest.

But then again, I didn't apply to only "top 20" med schools...

i do not blame you or stand in judgment of you. what you are doing is good strategy. i tend to trust information i receive from current students not associated with admissions during interview day most.

 

[LiveUninhibited]

I've heard that interviewers ask this to gauge your seriousness in wanting to be a doctor. Applying to a few schools might mean to them that you're not that serious, while applying to many means that you are.

Yeah, when asked this at interviews early this month they both seemed satisified with how many schools I applied to and did not demand I list all schools. But since they were more interested in what schools I have interviews at, there may be an element of seeing what kinds of schools want you, to glean from independent evaluations and maybe your likelihood of attending.

Why not? The question is posed because some schools don't want to waste a thick envelope on someone who is unlikely to matriculate. If you really want to matriculate there, you need to speak up.

Well, at the end of one interview I did tell him I was currently leaning towards attending their school over others, but would give the other schools a fair chance by attending those interviews. I think I came off as proud of the interview invites I do have. How would that I was leaning towards their school but was proud of the interviews I have be viewed?

I have no problem with that aspect of the reply you suggested.

Your opening salvo ("why does it matter?"), though, seems over the top and defensive if not unnecessarily confrontational.

Also, more than a few schools employ "stress question" techniques to see how you react to such an impertinent question. Giving a defensive answer, no matter how legit, may be viewed as a "fail" for this question.

I don't think she was actually suggesting we ask them why it matters. Clearly that would be a bad idea, even if it is a bad question.

 

[FluffyRabbit]

Interestingly enough, I haven't been asked this yet. Neither have I been asked what I think is the greatest issue in health care.

 

[neuronc]

I got asked once but it was my first interview so I said "This was my only one because I'm just getting started." There was no further probing after that, but a slight look of surprise...lol