completely botched interview question

[mrwonderful0]

recently had an interview at a MD school and faced with the typical “give me a pro and con of US healthcare” question. I said something along the lines of “pro of US healthcare is that there’s a lot of different insurance options for individuals so people from different backgrounds and situations can get insurance that matches their needs?”. Looking back at this I realized how bad of an answer this was and I had a billion other things I could’ve said. Basically tanked myself there.

how much can one bad answer during an interview affect my chances of acceptance?

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[Dragonite7]

Impossible to say. That depends on the specifics of your application, the school, the interviewer, and your full response. Stop worrying and focus on what you can do in the future. I know that can be hard in the moment.

 

[LunaOri]

Relax! It wasn’t that bad an answer. In case you get the same question at another interview, think about what you think would be a better answer.

 

[AJS59]

recently had an interview at a MD school and faced with the typical “give me a pro and con of US healthcare” question. I said something along the lines of “pro of US healthcare is that there’s a lot of different insurance options for individuals so people from different backgrounds and situations can get insurance that matches their needs?”. Looking back at this I realized how bad of an answer this was and I had a billion other things I could’ve said. Basically tanked myself there.

how much can one bad answer during an interview affect my chances of acceptance?

This isn't the same thing as saying some racist or sexist, admitting to academic dishonesty or a crime, or saying something out right unethical. You'll be fine.

 

[pedneuro6894]

If it makes you feel any better, I had an MMI last week (my first one). We had 2 whole minutes to read the prompt, take notes, and think of an answer, but after the 2 min, they remove the prompt from the screen. Well, 2 min is a long freaking time to sit there in silence, and I’m not a note taker. I got caught in a zone-out thought bubble, and when it was time to answer, I COMPLETELY forgot the question. I literally told the guy “I can’t remember the prompt” LMAO. I did recover like 10 seconds later and ended up answering it, but no coming back from that.

Point is, I promise that everyone who has interviewed has had a moment where they think afterward “what was I doing?!”. Every interview I’ve had, I’ve thought of my answers after and could find mistakes all over the place. I have acceptances to schools I thought I s**t the bed on, and I got WL to the school I thought I had my best interview by far. Stay patient and try not to focus on it too much! You never know what will happen.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Why was that a bad answer?

For others, enroll in Becoming a Student Doctor to give your answers to interview questions more depth than your peers.

 

[osprey099]

That's a dumb interview question

 

[Goro]

recently had an interview at a MD school and faced with the typical “give me a pro and con of US healthcare” question. I said something along the lines of “pro of US healthcare is that there’s a lot of different insurance options for individuals so people from different backgrounds and situations can get insurance that matches their needs?”. Looking back at this I realized how bad of an answer this was and I had a billion other things I could’ve said. Basically tanked myself there.

how much can one bad answer during an interview affect my chances of acceptance?

Impossible to answer.

That interview is over; focus on the next one. Ruminating will do you no good at all.

 

[IlDestriero]

I’m sure they’ve heard far worse. You acknowledged that people have different needs and priorities, understood options exist, etc. I wouldn’t say that was a terrible answer. Certainly not something worthy of a blackball. I’