conversational interview? or, Q&A-type interview?

[sevenup]

Are plastic surgery residency interviews usually conversational, get-to-know-you type interviews (like medical school interviews)? Or, do they usually just run down a list of standard questions (e.g. "Tell me about yourself," "what is your greatest strength/weakness?")? How long do they last usually?

 

[225557]

The interview style will vary hugely depending on the school. Some of the bigger names will ask sets of standardized questions such as "What is your biggest weakness?, What do you think you can bring to this program", etc... However, some of the places were really laid back and friendly and just wanted to get to know me. They would focus on more of what do you do for fun, what are you looking for in a program, where do you see yourself in 10 years, academic or private practice...
The interviews lasted from 15-30 minutes usually with the rare 10 minute interview. One place held 2 10-minute interviews with 6+hours of sitting around between interviews.