Does order of interviews matter?

[kjmtthws]

---

Members don't see this ad.

As I am beginning to organize my interview schedule, a question came up in my mind..

Does it matter when you interview?; and by that I mean is is better to interview early so that I get a fresh interviewer who is not burned out by the whole process, or would it be better to interview late so that I am fresh on the minds of the committee just before they set their rank list?

I am sure that the difference is only neglible, but just curious if anybody else has thought of this

 

[Momentum70]

I was given the advice of having my first couple of interviews at programs that were lower on my list. The first interview is gonna be a little more nerve racking and they should get easier and you better at them as they go on. For this reason best to "work out the kinks" and a program that is initially lower on your rank list.

 

[anomalii]

I guess it depends on your style. I tend to get nervous and my first time at many types of encounters are not usually the most smooth. When applying for medical school, interviewing at schools that I was not as interested in seemed to help. It is obviously the best kind of practice you can get. You get to know how your clothes feel, learn to get used to a foreign environment, work out travel kinks, have pre-formulated answers to common questions, etc. Then you can reflect back and improve on it for sites higher on your list! Plus, having some initial experiences makes it much easier to remember your weaknesses.

 

[aficionada]

I received the same advice. Also, I was told to put the rest of the schools that you're not quite as interested later in the interview season. That way if you're feeling burnt out from all the interviews you wont still have some of your more important programs left. Plus you can cancel them if you just don't feel like it's necessary to interview anymore.

 

[hideout]

I also heard the advice that you should try to do a couple of "warm-up" interviews and I definitely felt this was helpful for me in terms of coming away from the interviews that mattered most to me feeling confident. Those first couple interviews are more difficult for so many reasons and you're going to get asked many of the same questions again and again so you can refine your answers by the time you get to the programs you're really invested in. Also you get better at having casual conversations with residents and faculty at the pre-interview get togethers - I was much better at avoiding awkward silences after attending 2 or 3 of these events.