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Hey guys, now that my cycle is pretty much over, I just wanted to reflect on how it went and provide everyone some "advice" based off my experience. (N=1) Overall my cycle was pretty successful got 10 II's in total, attended 5 of them with 4 turning into acceptances (2 at MMI's and 2 trad), and 1 waitlist. I went through both MMI and traditional style interviews at UC's and OOS schools. So i wanted to provide a little bit of advice for my experiences with each. Sorry if some of this information is redundant.
Im going to say it again, this is just my own experiences and opinions. No need to create a hostile environment if you dont agree with something I say... 🙂 Just enjoy the tips!
MMI:
*Edit: For those wondering, my stats were not ridiculous by any means. A little over median for aceepted students.
Im going to say it again, this is just my own experiences and opinions. No need to create a hostile environment if you dont agree with something I say... 🙂 Just enjoy the tips!
MMI:
- When practicing for an MMI, always try and figure out what underlying principles the question is getting at (I.E pt autonomy, maleficence, etc) and be prepared to answer from that point of view
- Use the PRYO technique outlined on SDN, this ensures that your answers are logical, flow naturally and address every point they are looking for, IMO MMI's are more about your thought process than the actual correctness of your answer
- A little trick i did at one of the MMI's i went to was i pre-peeled a sticker off the sheet we were given and stuck it to the edge of my clipboard so when i walked in the room and introduced myself, I could easily hand the interviewer the sticker without looking like an idiot, fumbling around with my stickers.
- Always restate the question/prompt to your interviewer to ensure you are answering the appropriate question and let them correct your if you are wrong or misunderstood something
- Treat it like a closed-file interview and drop little nuggets of information (demographics, race, hobbies,activities, etc) and support your answers with the same material, often times most follow up questions i got would deal with one of the little bits of information I gave them
- For example, I would incorporate the fact that I am Hispanic, from X part of California, enjoyed cooking, volunteered at X hospital through Y program, etc and almost every interviewer would ask me a question about what i had said and the conversation quickly switched from serious and standardized to more about me and my interests. Only do this AFTER YOU HAVE ANSWERED THE QUESTION!! Dont try to rush through your answer to leave time for this, make sure you are answering succinctly and clearly.
- Dont be afraid to end a station early if your interviewer is sitting there staring at you, not asking follow ups etc. In my experience, I had 2 different stations at 2 different MMI's where the interviewer was "told" to act a certain way in which they did not ask follow ups or just sat there and stared at me. I noticed this in one of my interviewers right away because as I was answering, he just looked "bored" and nodded his head. Once i finished my answer, he asked if there was anything else, I wanted to test and see if he had any follow ups so I elaborated a bit more on one of my topics and then finished and he asked again, "Anything else?" and so i took that as ok this guy is not asking follow-ups and I just need to end while im ahead. So i said "No thank you, I believe I have said everything I needed to say." Shook his hand and walked out. As i walked out he said, "Good answers." so i took that as I made the correct decision. The other, the lady just sat there in silence after i would answer and said dont mind me, im just typing your response. The problem was she sat there the whole time and asked if there was anything else. Again i elaborated a bit more, tested to see if she was going to ask anything else again, and I said no and just sat there for 2.5 minutes in silence. Was accepted to both of these 🙂
- Always try to come up with unique solutions to problems no matter how outlandish they are. Some scenarios will ask you to propose solutions to common public health issues (physician shortage, pt compliance, cultural competency, etc) Just give ideas even if they are not completely feasible in a normal sense. Also draw on things you have seen being implemented in your experiences even if they are already in place. A school in NY does not know about the policies and programs that exist in CA. So talk about them!
- Always try and reinforce themes from your PS and personal statement. The idea is that you should have a "centralized theme" about your app. Minority healthcare, research, etc. Everything you say to your interviewer should have undertones of that theme. The point being that when it comes time to admissions decisions post II, (from what i was told at N=2 interviews) your file is assigned to a reader on the committee and they present you as an applicant along with your interviewer notes to the rest of the group. If your presenter and interviewer notes are echoing the same thing and you are able to convey the same ideas, that makes it much easier to see you as a whole package and see what you want and stand for. So really reinforce what you have on paper in every aspect.
- Keep things conversational and fun with your interviewer. Yes this is a serious setting but do not come off stoic or robotic. You got to show your personality and be able to hold a genuine conversation with somebody. I would try to make little jokes during my interviews, nothing super crazy just funny observations or things everyone can relate to and it has paid off every time.
- If your interviewer is talking about themselves alot, let them. Yes this interview should be about you, but if your interviewer starts talking about their life and things, let them talk and listen. I would always interject my experiences/or things that i could relate with but would always keep it on topic and wouldnt try to redirect the conversation. If you can connect with your interviewer well, they will fight for you and everything you say will be seen through rose colored glasses.
- Assume your interviewer has not read your app even if it is an open file II. Often times when responding to answer with an activity as my example, i would describe briefly what the activity was and most of the time, my interviewer would say "Oh yea, i read about that, can you elaborate more" or blah blah. Assume they havent read anything and let them stop you if they have. Then focus on the significance of the activity, drawing parallels to medicine if possible.
- Bring up unique activities/clubs. I would always bring up my cooking club as an example or often times interviewers would ask me about it out of interest so dont think everything needs to be medically relevant. at this point, they need to see that you are human and can relate to people!
- As far as research goes, i was hardly asked about mine and I had significant involvement in 2 labs with 1 pub. And only 1 interviewer asked me about it and the only things we talked about were why i chose to use cockroaches as my model organism. Nothing super in depth or intricate, and even if they were to ask, unless it was a stress test, they usually wont make you go SUPER in depth on your techniques etc. Again, I am N=1.
- KNOW YOUR APPLICATION. Yes this obvious but they will ding you on the inconsistencies. Know your theme, and again echo parts of what you have wrote in your answers so that it all stays consistent and clear. Let them know who you are!
- If you have an emotional aspect of your app/illness, death, etc practice talking about it. I was asked about my illness/medical problems at every interview and I used to get choked up talking about it, but get used to it and be confident when discussing it. Focus on the transformative nature and really self reflect rather than appearing as a pity party. That shows maturity and depth.
- This is probably the biggest one IMO, treat the interviewers like colleagues. Maintain a professional demeanor but don't come in with this mindset that they are "above you". In a few short years, you guys will be colleagues, going on rounds together etc. I did this and i felt that students/faculty really took notice because i was confident in what I had to say and could hold opinionated conversations about topics in healthcare or events in my life. One of my interviewers had a conversation with me about whether or not friendly competition was a good thing or about whether it is ok to lie to patients if their best interest is in mind. And approaching the conversation from a colleague to colleague perspective helped me remain calm. Even if interviewing with a current student, treat them like a fellow classmate. Dont start saying "Hell yea bro!" or lose professionality but joke with them, show them you can relate to them and that they would enjoy your presence on campus.
- And lastly, dont stress about Thank you cards/emails. I sent a thank you to only 1 school with an MMI and nothing to everyone else and was admitted still. So do not stress, i think letting the interview speak for itself and not bugging them post II is the best move. They know you want to go there, they know you are thankful etc so just let the cards fall where they may!
*Edit: For those wondering, my stats were not ridiculous by any means. A little over median for aceepted students.
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