Do you have any questions for me? - Interview

[21385]

Hi, can anyone help me with this question. What is a good question to ask?

Thanks a lot

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[GoSpursGo]

Something that is school-specific. Poke around their website, ask them to expand a little bit about something that makes their school unique. This will show you have genuine interest in attending their school specifically rather than just any med school. Asking something general like "How's the research here" or "What are some disadvantages about this school," while better than nothing, don't show the interviewer that you took the time to really find out anything about their school before applying.

 

[savant]

Hi, can anyone help me with this question. What is a good question to ask?

Thanks a lot

The goal is to show the interviewer that you know stuff about their school

1. Ask about things you heard in the presentation earlier that day
2. Ask about programs/general questions you make from looking at their website
3. Ask the 'general' questions: interviewer's experience, roadmap, alumni, research, etc
4. How many students to a cadaver?

 

[muggle911]

The goal is to show the interviewer that you know stuff about their school

1. Ask about things you heard in the presentation earlier that day
2. Ask about programs/general questions you make from looking at their website
3. Ask the 'general' questions: interviewer's experience, roadmap, alumni, research, etc
4. How many students to a cadaver?

I think your first 3 suggestions are great, but I wouldn't ask the interviewer how many students to a cadaver. You can find this out from the tour, and its not important anyway.

 

[sidalexis]

I would say if you genuinely have a question or concern then ask or express it. But don't just ask to be asking, especially when you have an afternoon interview and most questions will be answered during the information session or tour. I specifically had one interviewer say as much when I said that I didn't have any questions.

 

[Anotherface]

That's a great shirt/tie. Where did you buy it?


Don't feel obliged to ask a question. If you were given a good presentation and the students who took you on the tour did addressed your concerns, then let them know that the day was well planned and that all your questions have already been answered.

 

[Med Addict]

Interviewer: Do you have any questions for me?
Applicant: What question would impress you?

 

[Cebca]

If I don't have anything specific to ask about the school I always ask the interviewer about their specialty and why they chose it. People like talking about themselves, and you get a lot of interesting answers that often starts an interesting conversation, which makes you look good.

 

[noodle32]

1. If there was anything you could change about the school what would it be?
2. What made you choose to attend/work at X school?

I like asking these because you can repeat the questions with different interviewers and get different answers that can give you new insight or perspective on the school.

 

[Depakote]

If you've absolutely found out everything there is to know about the school, ask about living in the city...
Where are good places to find housing in the area?


You can ask about their perceptions...
What do you feel the strongest aspects of your program are? (you'll get different answers this question depending on who you ask so feel free to reuse it throughout the day)

 

[WashMe]

Do you think it would look good or bad if I were to bring in a notepad/piece of paper with specific questions I had come up with from perusing the school's website? You know, that way it is apparent that I have real questions that I want answered?

 

[GoSpursGo]

Do you think it would look good or bad if I were to bring in a notepad/piece of paper with specific questions I had come up with from perusing the school's website? You know, that way it is apparent that I have real questions that I want answered?

This question's been asked and answered several times before, and a consensus has never really been reached. I always felt that looked a little unprofessional, but others have reported that their interviewer actually was mildly impressed. I think you could get a range of reactions to it depending on your interviewer.

 

[Savannah]

It is hard to come up with a question to fit every situation, since interviewers are so varied (student, practicing physician, professor).

When I interviewed, I would always ask about the interviewer's career. Once I had a pedi cardiologist, and I am interested in that field, so I listened to him talk about his residency and fellowship, etc. For a researcher, you can ask about his/her research, and then ask how students can get involved in research. People love talking about themselves!

For student interviewers, you can be more specific and ask about day to day activities. Note taking services, lecturers, clinical experiences, etc.

 

[skiqueen]

Do you think it would look good or bad if I were to bring in a notepad/piece of paper with specific questions I had come up with from perusing the school's website? You know, that way it is apparent that I have real questions that I want answered?

I just feel like it would be a little odd and maybe make the interview seem less like a friendly conversation. I always try to keep a few questions in the back of my mind for the conclusion of the interview.

 

[DoctorDeMan]

It is hard to come up with a question to fit every situation, since interviewers are so varied (student, practicing physician, professor).

When I interviewed, I would always ask about the interviewer's career. Once I had a pedi cardiologist, and I am interested in that field, so I listened to him talk about his residency and fellowship, etc. For a researcher, you can ask about his/her research, and then ask how students can get involved in research. People love talking about themselves!

For student interviewers, you can be more specific and ask about day to day activities. Note taking services, lecturers, clinical experiences, etc.

This is a great way to connect with the interviewer. People love to talk about themselves, plus you may come across some things that you two have in common which makes you more memorable if highlighted.

You may want to preface this with "The tour/presentation/etc answered all of the questions I had, but I am curious about ____"

 

[go lakers]

For faculty interviewers, I like asking them to tell me more about themselves, what brought them to University X, and what do they think of the student body here?

(people love talking about themselves.)

 

[mbe36]

"May I ask you why you chose this school?"

 

[cpants]

Asking about the interviewer's career and his educational history is great. Counterintuitively, the more someone talks about himself, the more he feels like he got to know you well. Another excellent one is "As someone who has been through this journey, do you have any advice for me?" On one of my interviews I asked "Am I gonna get in?". We both laughed.

 

[chad5871]

Asking about the interviewer's career and his educational history is great. Counterintuitively, the more someone talks about himself, the more he feels like he got to know you well. Another excellent one is "As someone who has been through this journey, do you have any advice for me?" On one of my interviews I asked "Am I gonna get in?". We both laughed.

Did you?

 

[CCLCMer]

Hi, can anyone help me with this question. What is a good question to ask?

Thanks a lot

Ask whatever you want to know. No one is looking for you to ask certain questions and if you don't ask them, you'll get rejected! A lot of applicants at my school want to know things like what there is to do around Cleveland, how are things going with the match, what do we think about the portfolios, best and worst parts of the program, how to find a researcher to work with, why did we pick this program, etc. Sometimes people ask questions that are a little weirder, like how many students date each other in a class of 32 people, but it's still cool. Bring up whatever concerns you want, but be professional and appropriate.

 

[cpants]

Did you?

Yup.

 

[redsquareblack]

Hi, can anyone help me with this question. What is a good question to ask?

Thanks a lot

One of my absolute favorite questions is this: "As a member of the faculty, if someone asked you about (school), what would be the most important thing you'd want him or her to know about it?"

 

[speedyk]

"May I ask you why you chose this school?"

I like this one too.

 

[sevenmints]

i definitely always ask them if they think the students are happy here. Some will bs you and say everything is fine and dandy, and some will tell you the absolute truth, and sometimes the answers make you think: WOAH wtf... maybe i don't wanna go here now...

 

[dienekes88]

"On a scale of 0 to eleventy-billion, how would you rate your school's level of awesomeness? Why?"

"If you were applying to medical school, why would you choose this school?" (different from "why did you choose the school," 'cause faculty benefits are kinda different from student benefits)

 

[clinicallabguy]

Before my first interview, I wrote down a lot of questions that I had from researching the school's website. I wanted to show the interviewer that I had studied up on the school. And after my interviews, I found out that most of the physicians didn't know as much as the medical students about the curriculum or special programs, unless they were administrative faculty (which I never had an interview with). So, all of my "insightful" questions didn't beget much discussion. So, I decided not to prepare questions for the sake of having them on subsequent interviews. I think that it worked better.

If I didn't have a question about the school I usually asked them what brought them to the school's medical center, or how they chose their specialty. When you stop worrying about seeming interested, your sincere interest will show much better.

 

[saintelsewhere]

My dad does a lot of hiring for his company, and he always tells me that the best questions an applicant can ask are:
What do YOU think is the best part of this company?
What to YOU think could be improved?
He always says he'd rather hire someone who has interviewed him as well, because it shows him that they know themselves well enough to know what they want in a company and not just grab at whatever job they can get. Also, it conveys confidence in oneself that you are, in fact, the best candidate for this position, and that no, this won't be too much for you to handle.

I've found this true in jobs and internships for which I've applied, and I would assume (but can't be 100% certain) that med schools would see things similarly.

 

[atomi]

Hi, can anyone help me with this question. What is a good question to ask?

Thanks a lot

I usually don't answer that. They interviewed me, not the other way around. I got really annoyed at this one school. All I heard all day was "do you have any questions?" "what questions do you have?" "Let me answer your questions" Come on, if I'm interviewing at the school, I've already done my homework about everything, and the only thing I'm going to learn from the interview is the atmosphere of the school that cannot be expressed verbally or written.

In short, I think the whole questions thing is silly.

 

[cpants]

Yep good post. This is why I said that one should ask what the interviewer things are the strong and weak points of the school compared with other schools or if they are interested in something like research vs. community healthcare in a rural area or international opportunities etc. they could ask more about the interviewers experience or opinion with such sorta factors.

This could backfire though, when you are like: I'm very interested in anesthesiology or neurosurgery, and the interviewer says, well we really focus on primary care here, we've never matched anyone to neurosurg. It would kinda make you seem like a poor fit for the school.

 

[LizzyM]

Many schools know that the applicants that they admit will have choices. Part of the interview day is deciding whether you will be a good fit at that school but another part is determining if you are really interested in the school and to sell you on the school if it seems that you would be a high priority admission.

To that end, interviewers like to see that you've taken the time to find out about the school (shows interest), that your interests mirror the school's strengths (good fit), and that any question you might have about the school is answered (with the hope that when you have to choose, you will choose us).

Ideally, a question should show that you already know something about the school, that the school fits with your interests, and that there is something you have yet to learn about the school that meshes with your interests and what you already know (from publications, web sites, early presentations).

What is a strength and /or weakness of the school is a throw away question but one that does tell you a lot about your interviewer's perception of the school. Asking questions about why your interviewer chose that school is a useless question unless you are being interviewed by a current student. I wouldn't "mark down" someone who asks it but why is it relevant to your fit with the school or why you should choose the school? (Practicing physicians and basic science faculty have reasons for working in a particular medical school that are totally irrelevant to why a medical student might choose the same school). A better question to get someone talking might be to ask, "What are your thoughts about the [insert something the school is proud of or that it hypes in its recruitment materials]?

Pulling out a sheet of paper, particularly if it has a laundry list of questions on it is usually dismaying to an interviewer.

 

[student1799]

My dad does a lot of hiring for his company, and he always tells me that the best questions an applicant can ask are:
What do YOU think is the best part of this company?
What to YOU think could be improved?
He always says he'd rather hire someone who has interviewed him as well, because it shows him that they know themselves well enough to know what they want in a company and not just grab at whatever job they can get. Also, it conveys confidence in oneself that you are, in fact, the best candidate for this position, and that no, this won't be too much for you to handle.

I've found this true in jobs and internships for which I've applied, and I would assume (but can't be 100% certain) that med schools would see things similarly.

Careful. I worked in the business world for 20 years (I'm an older nontrad), and I totally agree that "interviewing your interviewer" is appropriate in that context, but I'm getting the sense that the culture in med schools is different. I get the feeling that most med school interviewers expect to be treated more deferentially, and might consider it too assertive if the applicant took too much of a role in the interview (other than responding to questions).

I've interviewed at 4 schools so far, with a total of 6 different people. At my very first interview, I behaved similarly to the way I would on a job interview, and I don't think the interviewer liked it that much. (It probably didn't help that I'm female, while he was male and seemed fairly old-fashioned.) After that, I toned down my approach quite a bit, and I seemed to hit it off quite well with my interviewers.

So, while I'd certainly advise you to appear calm, relaxed and self-possessed, I wouldn't try to project TOO much self-confidence. It might backfire on you.

 

[rcd]

I looked up my POI and discovered he had accepted an appointment at another school and will leave this spring.

I almost asked him, "Why are you leaving XXX?" But didn't have the balls.