Blind Interview Strategy

[AdductorMagnus]

So I have an interview coming up that features two one on one interviews. They mentioned that both will be"blind" and that the interviewers won't have seen our application. I'm trying figure out the best way to approach these interviews.

I know that in general, interviews are supposed to be an opportunity for the school to see the human side of you, and spending much time reiterating your application is a poor interview strategy. But for blind interviews, where the interviewers know nothing about you, should I still go in with the same strategy? Or should I spend time going into more detail regarding my volunteer, research, and clinical experiences?

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[Moko]

So I have an interview coming up that features two one on one interviews. They mentioned that both will be"blind" and that the interviewers won't have seen our application. I'm trying figure out the best way to approach these interviews. I know that in general, interviews are supposed to be an opportunity for the school to see the human side of you, and spending much time reiterating your application is a poor interview strategy. But for blind interviews, where the interviewers know nothing about you, should I still go in with the same strategy? Or should I spend time going into more detail regarding my volunteer, research, and clinical experiences?

Hard to say since each interviewer has their own quirks and preferences. Since the interviewer will know very little about you, have a general idea of what you want the interviewer/adcom to know about you. Highlight these experiences and personal characteristics if the appropriate opportunity presents itself (i.e. make sure that you are actually answering their question and not the question that you want to be asked!). Having a good 'pitch' for the "tell me about yourself" question becomes more important as it allows you to exert some influence over the direction of the interview. If the interviewer wants more details, they will ask follow-up questions.

However, if the interviewer isn't going anywhere near the topics you want to highlight and isn't giving you the opportunity to do so, just go with the flow. This might be intentional. Show that you can engage in a normal conversation, and are a good listener, thoughtful, relatable, and personable. Just my thoughts

 

[calipremed5768]

They put a cloth around your eyes before you go in

 

[Catalystik]

for blind interviews, . . . . should I spend time going into more detail regarding my volunteer, research, and clinical experiences?

Suggestions:
-Don't mention your stats.
-Don't give the 15 minute version for your response. Two minutes is a maximum cutoff time (one is better). Let the interviewer guide the discussion or ask you to elaborate.
-Referring to your Activities is fine, but just answer the question that is asked, don't try to summarize the entire section, as each adcomm has their own priorities.
-Show some passion about something. Anything. Let your face light up.

 

[AdductorMagnus]

Hard to say since each interviewer has their own quirks and preferences. Since the interviewer will know very little about you, have a general idea of what you want the interviewer/adcom to know about you. Highlight these experiences and personal characteristics if the appropriate opportunity presents itself (i.e. make sure that you are actually answering their question and not the question that you want to be asked!). Having a good 'pitch' for the "tell me about yourself" question becomes more important as it allows you to exert some influence over the direction of the interview. If the interviewer wants more details, they will ask follow-up questions.

However, if the interviewer isn't going anywhere near the topics you want to highlight and isn't giving you the opportunity to do so, just go with the flow. This might be intentional. Show that you can engage in a normal conversation, and are a good listener, thoughtful, relatable, and personable. Just my thoughts

Suggestions:
-Don't mention your stats.
-Don't give the 15 minute version for your response. Two minutes is a maximum cutoff time (one is better). Let the interviewer guide the discussion or ask you to elaborate.
-Referring to your Activities is fine, but just answer the question that is asked, don't try to summarize the entire section, as each adcomm has their own priorities.
-Show some passion about something. Anything. Let your face light up.

Perfect, that’s all I needed to know! Thank you!

 

[Goro]

So I have an interview coming up that features two one on one interviews. They mentioned that both will be"blind" and that the interviewers won't have seen our application. I'm trying figure out the best way to approach these interviews.

I know that in general, interviews are supposed to be an opportunity for the school to see the human side of you, and spending much time reiterating your application is a poor interview strategy. But for blind interviews, where the interviewers know nothing about you, should I still go in with the same strategy? Or should I spend time going into more detail regarding my volunteer, research, and clinical experiences?

read this:

• Goro's Guide to Interviews
• 
  
• Goro's Guide to YOUR Interview Questions (2018 edition)

 

[aldol16]

You're going to want to tell your story. The job of a blind interviewer isn't to rehash your story and see if they can figure out all of your grades, MCAT, and ECs. The job of a blind interviewer is to put those ECs into context for the admissions committee. So if you just rattle off a list of ECs without putting anything into context or telling a compelling story, then that interviewer isn't going to remember you and you won't stand out. What you should do is figure out how your ECs fit into your story and tell that story. Leave out stuff that's irrelevant. For example, going on and on about how you did 2500 shadowing hours isn't going to make sense if your story is supposed to be about how you would be the ideal MD/PhD candidate.