Dumbest Interview Question?

[Sigma]

I don't think I've seen a thread for this. (Sorry if it's repeating.)

I was wondering if anyone had been in an interview and was asked a question that made you wonder if your interviewer was the type of person you'd want to be in the same school with?

I was at Wake Forest and had a guy ask me a question about personal life / professional life priorities. I gave my answer, and then he said "OK, does that mean you'd choose: a) (some choice) , b) (some other choice) , or c (a 3rd choice)?".

He actually made me pick from a set of multiple choice answers. To this day, I still don't know what he got out of that.

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[Blue Scrub]

At one of my interviews, the guy asked me, "Do you think college kids have a binge drinking problem?" Not a dumb question, but Im not sure what that has to do with me applying to med school, unless he was insinuating that I was a binge drinker...which I was I guess , not that I told him that

 

[Newman8r]

At one of my interviews, the guy asked me, "Do you think college kids have a binge drinking problem?" Not a dumb question, but Im not sure what that has to do with me applying to med school, unless he was insinuating that I was a binge drinker...which I was I guess , not that I told him that

actually I think that's a really relevent question

 

[melimi]

this one wasn't directed at me (thank god), but someone i interviewed w/ at tufts was asked:

1. describe to me the color green
2. what is the meaning of life?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (WTFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF) (we're only fuc|<ing 22, *******, god that guy needs to die, whoever he is)

 

[CanuckRazorback]

I don't think I've seen a thread for this. (Sorry if it's repeating.)

I was wondering if anyone had been in an interview and was asked a question that made you wonder if your interviewer was the type of person you'd want to be in the same school with?

I was at Wake Forest and had a guy ask me a question about personal life / professional life priorities. I gave my answer, and then he said "OK, does that mean you'd choose: a) (some choice) , b) (some other choice) , or c (a 3rd choice)?".

He actually made me pick from a set of multiple choice answers. To this day, I still don't know what he got out of that.

Wake has the worse interviewers! I got that question too although I wasn't given a choice to pick from a set of multiple choices.

 

[sdnstud]

At my Albany interview:

My interviewer: One thing really bugs me. Everyone of you (interviewees) are in suits and looking your best today. But when we accept you, you show up in tshirt and jeans to class next fall.

Me: *speechless*

My interviewer: How do you usually dress?

Me: Um...well, I'm usually pretty preppy. I don't wear a tie everyday, but I do like wearing nice shirts and pants.

 

[moofdaddy]

Best interview question: What was my first pets name and why did I name him that?

I think they were just trying mess with my head.

 

[qqq]

1. give me your thoughts on the existence of mathematics before the creation of the universe

2. how do you feel about the fact that western nations are eager to assist one-time disaster tsuanmi victims because these countries view asians as more physically attractive than africans who have suffered numerous atrocities for decades

3. describge your thoughts on chemical equilibrium

all from the same interviewer. (waitlisted)

 

[futuredoc10]

1. Whats anesthesia? (Following my answer, he quickly replied with "Thats vague." )

2. Want a cookie? (I calmly answered "No thank you" and was asked question #3 almost immediately?

3. Want a cookie?

 

[rugirlie]

1. give me your thoughts on the existence of mathematics before the creation of the universe

2. how do you feel about the fact that western nations are eager to assist one-time disaster tsuanmi victims because these countries view asians as more physically attractive than africans who have suffered numerous atrocities for decades

3. describge your thoughts on chemical equilibrium

all from the same interviewer. (waitlisted)

Holy!! What school was this at, if you don't mind me asking!?

 

[doc05]

those are some awesome questions!! it's fun to be an interviewer...

 

[mercaptovizadeh]

Tell me about yourself...

 

[Tra La La]

Tell me about yourself...

Also one of the hardest interview questions, in my opinion.

 

[Psycho Doctor]

1. give me your thoughts on the existence of mathematics before the creation of the universe

2. how do you feel about the fact that western nations are eager to assist one-time disaster tsuanmi victims because these countries view asians as more physically attractive than africans who have suffered numerous atrocities for decades

3. describge your thoughts on chemical equilibrium

all from the same interviewer. (waitlisted)

yikes!! was your interviewer black (ref ques #2)? #1 and #3 totally sucked!! how the heck did you respond to those?

 

[mercaptovizadeh]

Also one of the hardest interview questions, in my opinion.

I think it is a stupid question, because if you are honest and critical, then you are self-deprecatory and they think less of you, and if your are self- congratulatory, then they think you are arrogant. I suppose you could describe yourself in neutral-positive terms, like "I'm curious," or "___ interests me" or something like that, rather than "I'm great" or "I have such and such problems..."

My answer in no way reflects what I ACTUALLY think of myself, just what I think (and pretty much know) THEY want to hear. So yeah, it's a stupid and utterly uninformative question.

 

[Psycho Doctor]

Also one of the hardest interview questions, in my opinion.

i don't particularly like that question, but i don't think it's difficult, especially compared to some of the ones asked as exemplified on this thread

 

[mercaptovizadeh]

yikes!! was your interviewer black (ref ques #2)? #1 and #3 totally sucked!! how the heck did you respond to those?

Actually, I think those three questions are rather fascinating (#3 is not too much) - I think #2 is partly right, though I think it has less to do with appearances and more to do with the fact that lots of Westerners vacation/would like to vacation/use prostitutes, etc. in that part of the world, rather than in famine- and war- stricken African states.

Note, that if the disaster were to occur in Kenya or South Africa, I predict a comparable outpouring of aid would flow in; Angola and Chad, forget about it...

 

[Psycho Doctor]

Actually, I think those three questions are rather fascinating (#3 is not too much) - I think #2 is partly right, though I think it has less to do with appearances and more to do with the fact that lots of Westerners vacation/would like to vacation/use prostitutes, etc. in that part of the world, rather than in famine- and war- stricken African states.

Note, that if the disaster were to occur in Kenya or South Africa, I predict a comparable outpouring of aid would flow in; Angola and Chad, forget about it...

i think the questionas are fascinating but i would not want to have to answer them on the spot

and i agree with you about the African countries

 

[Tra La La]

i don't particularly like that question, but i don't think it's difficult, especially compared to some of the ones asked as exemplified on this thread

The reason I think that it is such as hard question is the following: Where in the world do I begin? How long should I talk? What do I talk about? About college? About my childhood and upbrining? About the qualities and experiences that will make me a good doctor? About my personal experiences?

Certianly, if you try to talk about all of this, you'll be talking forever.

 

[ellia08]

The reason I think that it is such as hard question is the following: Where in the world do I begin? How long should I talk? What do I talk about? About college? About my childhood and upbrining? About the qualities and experiences that will make me a good doctor? About my personal experiences?

Certianly, if you try to talk about all of this, you'll be talking forever.

Yup. I have had more than one interview where that was the only question asked. What can I say? I'm a talker. I find myself f-ahhhhhh-cinating.

Usually, I start at the beginning (birth), sometimes before too, and end at the end (right now) usually adding a brief wrap up of "and my future goals are..." although future projections are typically sprinkled throughout my soliloquy. And that is 45 dense minutes right there.

 

[Iwy Em Hotep]

1. Whats anesthesia? (Following my answer, he quickly replied with "Thats vague." )

2. Want a cookie? (I calmly answered "No thank you" and was asked question #3 almost immediately?

3. Want a cookie?

Was this at UW? The infamous cookie question...

I had an interviewer once write x^2 on a piece of paper and ask me for its derivative.

 

[QueenofCryptic]

Actually, I think those three questions are rather fascinating (#3 is not too much) - I think #2 is partly right, though I think it has less to do with appearances and more to do with the fact that lots of Westerners vacation/would like to vacation/use prostitutes, etc. in that part of the world, rather than in famine- and war- stricken African states.

Note, that if the disaster were to occur in Kenya or South Africa, I predict a comparable outpouring of aid would flow in; Angola and Chad, forget about it...

Interesting. The same thought passed my mind (about Southeast asia being attractive to westerners b/c of the tourism/prostitution industry, hence the generous aid). I do think a lot of it had to do with the magnitude of sudden devastation though. Certainly Africa has endured a lot more overall, but it seems to be a chronic thing, and unfortunately people are less affected by that.

On a side note, I really respect India for refusing aid. Also, I believe if this had happened in China or Russia, neither country would have received (or accepted) significant aid.

 

[mercaptovizadeh]

Interesting. The same thought passed my mind (about Southeast asia being attractive to westerners b/c of the tourism/prostitution industry, hence the generous aid). I do think a lot of it had to do with the magnitude of sudden devastation though. Certainly Africa has endured a lot more overall, but it seems to be a chronic thing, and unfortunately people are less affected by that.

On a side note, I really respect India for refusing aid. Also, I believe if this had happened in China or Russia, neither country would have received (or accepted) significant aid.

Of course, you are right! And it most certainly was political as well. Note that when the Beslan massacre occurred, the EU issued a statement asking Russia "How is this possible?"!! Rather than extend a helping hand, they issued criticism during a great tragedy. It seems that a lot of the aid going in is in the form of loans (though I could be wrong about this), which is not to say that the donations aren't the major point, but I find it interesting how these financial vultures always find opportunities to use their minions, the IMF and World Bank, to further enslave developing countries into paying off interests on loans and being political/economic slaves of the donors.

But that's another story! Back to interview questions, thanks elia, now I think I will know how to answer that question.

 

[criminallyinane]

this one wasn't directed at me (thank god), but someone i interviewed w/ at tufts was asked:

1. describe to me the color green
2. what is the meaning of life?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (WTFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF) (we're only fuc|<ing 22, *******, god that guy needs to die, whoever he is)

Someone I interviewed with at Tufts was asked, "Where's Croatia? Why don't you know where Croatia is?" by the same guy who asks about green/meaning of life. He's notorious for asking dumb stupid questions.

 

[gsc]

Dumbest interview questions:
"So, why do you want to be a doctor?"
"So, why do you want to come to this school?"

What were the essays for, anyway?

 

[ilona]

Someone I interviewed with at Tufts was asked, "Where's Croatia? Why don't you know where Croatia is?" by the same guy who asks about green/meaning of life. He's notorious for asking dumb stupid questions.

I really don't see how these questions are stupid. They just want to know if you are not a total science geek, who cannot think outside of what he/she learned from science books.

 

[thehopeful]

Guys guys guys, it's much much more simple than what you think,

The reason why there's so much outpouring for the asian tsunami thing was because it was ALL OVER and i mean ALL OVER the TV forever, when was the last time the african famine was on TV.

That's why there was so much outpouring.
Obviously I think we should help everyone and everybody but it's shocking how important TV is in informing people and changing opinions.

my .02 cents, love to hear what you guys opinion on what i said is.

 

[seasurfer]

What can you do with this pencil?

 

[qqq]

no, the guy was not black. he was white. i answered by talking about the sheer magnitude of the tragedy, commenting on the political landscape, and describing the media's role. i also pointed out that a lot of support does go to africa but it is not that publicized. finally i admitted that his assumption may play a small role, and that if it does, that is very unfortunate. my answer was very jumbled up and i think i rambled. and i was waitlisted !!

 

[TheRussian]

Dumbest question/most innapropriate question:

What do you think about gay marriage in MA?

After my reply he answered, "Yeah I agree with you. I have nothing against those people, let them do what they want."

 

[trinitrotoluene]

"If you had $1 million dollars that you had to spend on your alma mater, what would you buy?"

There is no way this will ever happen.

 

[rbfiji13]

These are just a few of the questions I was asked. Later I thought about my answers to these questions and wondered whether or not I am the type of person that interviewers laugh at behind closed doors. Feel free to respond with your opinions.

#1:
Q: What is your biggest weakness?
A: I am a messy person. I'm not dirty or filthy, just messy. I like to tell myself that there is a complex organization to it all, but that I am the only person that knows it.

#2:
Q: If I were the devil, and I offered you a guaranteed spot in medical school if you would give up one thing, what would it be and why?
A: I would give up every one of my hobbies (list any two or three hobbies here) because I know that making such a tiny sacrifice would be small in comparison to the difference I could make as a doctor. (Actual thought: I have already sold my soul to the devil, given up all my hobbies, and live in total celibacy. What else is there to give?)

#3:
Q: Do you have any questions?
A: Insert predetermined question here.
Q: Do you have any more questions?
A: Insert backup predetermined question here.
Q: Is there anything else you would like to ask me?
A: (Blank Stare) I think you’ve answered all my questions.

I know, I'm a dum-as.
_________________

 

[Tra La La]

Boxers or briefs?

 

[scrappysurfer]

These are just a few of the questions I was asked. Later I thought about my answers to these questions and wondered whether or not I am the type of person that interviewers laugh at behind closed doors. Feel free to respond with your opinions.

#1:
Q: What is your biggest weakness?
A: I am a messy person. I'm not dirty or filthy, just messy. I like to tell myself that there is a complex organization to it all, but that I am the only person that knows it.

#2:
Q: If I were the devil, and I offered you a guaranteed spot in medical school if you would give up one thing, what would it be and why?
A: I would give up every one of my hobbies (list any two or three hobbies here) because I know that making such a tiny sacrifice would be small in comparison to the difference I could make as a doctor. (Actual thought: I have already sold my soul to the devil, given up all my hobbies, and live in total celibacy. What else is there to give?)

#3:
Q: Do you have any questions?
A: Insert predetermined question here.
Q: Do you have any more questions?
A: Insert backup predetermined question here.
Q: Is there anything else you would like to ask me?
A: (Blank Stare) I think you’ve answered all my questions.

I know, I'm a dum-as.
_________________

I hate question #3, yet they persist in asking it at the end of every hour over the course of an 8hour interview:
A: (internal monolog) well, the past several hours of lectures on curriculum/housing/finaid have MORE than answered all questions. how about: can I eat again yet?

my lamest set of blatantly inappropriate questions:
Q: So, with you being female, how do the orthopods respond to your interest in orthopedics?
A: Umm, with offers for letters of recommendation. They like to teach me surgical techniques in the lab. There actually hasn't ever been any discussion of my status as female.
Q: So are you an athlete? (Note: Now the most frequent lame pickup line I hear is: "so you look like you work out, what do you do?" Not only is the answer to this question ALL OVER my application, swimming/triathlon leave indeliable marks on a female's physique that make the answer immediately apparent as soon as I walk in the door.)
Now ortho is male domminated and athlete dominated, but somehow this seemed a little out of line.

 

[funshine]

(Actual thought: I have already sold my soul to the devil, given up all my hobbies, and live in total celibacy. What else is there to give?)

_________________

HAHAHA, i can relate.


I never have pre-determined questions...i just say "Oh, I don't have any questions at this time," smile, and hope I don't look too stupid. You'd think I'd learn after the first interview...

 

[trinitrotoluene]

Do you have any questions?

If you draw an MD/DO, you can ask "Why do you like <<your specility>>?" or "Tell me about you specility."

I also like the question, "Why have you been at XYZ Med School for 10+ years?"

"What types of student like attending XYZ? What types of students perform well here?"

Finally, "Describe the school's formal support structure. Is this a 'loving & nurturing' type of school, or do you let students loose to their own devices?"

 

[trinitrotoluene]

Boxers or briefs?

I certainly hope no one did ask you that question.

That's sexual harrassment, and I don't have to take it.

I'd be tempted to demand automatic admission, too.

Blast, I can't emot with icons!!!

 

[dewzen]

some great posts.

How about that doctor in Oregon that messed up that euthanasia? First time a doctor screwed up by having the patient survive.

 

[45408]

The reason I think that it is such as hard question is the following: Where in the world do I begin? How long should I talk? What do I talk about? About college? About my childhood and upbrining? About the qualities and experiences that will make me a good doctor? About my personal experiences?

Certianly, if you try to talk about all of this, you'll be talking forever.

at a mock interview, a med student told me that you should talk about what's relevant - and tell them about things you're doing now (like research and clinical experience)

 

[dbutz02]

I had an interviewer ask me if I was getting a degree, which I'm not, and ask if I could be even be accepted into Medical school without it. This went on for honestly 15 mins of me explaining his schools policies to him and him questioning them. I couldn't believe that he didn't know this policy. It was difficult to stay calm and respectful while trying to get the concept through his thick skull...I shouldn't say that but it was frustrating.

He also asked me a lengthy question about how I would handle an ER situation while I was doing my rotations and what I would do with the individual that came with them...
I don't even remember what I rambled off but apparently I did something right because I was accepted a week later.
I should send him a copy of their admissions handbook along with a thank you note, any why not a copy of my acceptance letter.

 

[WWJD]

<snip>

2. Want a cookie? (I calmly answered "No thank you" and was asked question #3 almost immediately?

3. Want a cookie?

Hey, I liked the cookies. You should have taken the one that looks like a windmill (j/k).

 

[cece]

One of my interviewers only wanted to talk about baseball and a specific program at his school that he had helped start (which I was not eligible for). He would interrupt me if I tried to turn the conversation around to my application. By the end of the interview I was completely fed up with trying to talk about anything even remotely relevant to medicine, my application, the school, etc. As we were walking back to the admissions office, he asked me some silly question about my undergraduate school, I answered, and about 30 seconds later he asked the exact same question. I raised an eyebrow and said "uh, probably still _____." Too bad I had kind of wanted to go to that school... he was a prick.

Incidentally, have any of you all had interviewers who just didn't want to be there? What did you do about it? I thought about asking for another interview at this place, but didn't.

 

[rpkall]

I had one where the guy wrote down keywords from the first 10 seconds of my responses to his very discrete (interrogation-style) questions. Everything I said from x + 10s onward seemed to be completely missed, as if my words were dissipating before they had traveled the full distance across his oversized desk and into his ears. I apparently was not authorized to have the attention of his brain for more than 10 seconds a pop.

Wonkiness.

I suppose I should consider myself lucky that I at least got to play Jeopardy with my own application, and not baseball...

On the upside, for the previous poster: I have heard that if there are very few holes in your application, the interviewers focus their time on determining if you have the interpersonal skills to connect with people and carry on an intelligent conversation--sometimes it doesn't matter about what. Maybe it's a good sign that you didn't have to *explain yourself*. I had to do quite a bit of that. lol

 

[scrappysurfer]

Q: I see that you are an athlete. Have you ever used performance enhancing drugs?

A: (confused) Huh? No. Why?

This was followed by a description of his accidental discovery of the effects of Sudafed on his weightlifting.

Now I hear mostly about two categories of performace enhancing drugs: 1) steroids and 2) epo. Steroids might not be so useful for the endurance athlete (me) who seeks to weigh less when running up hills...not only does epo costs about twice what I make in a year it had this nasty habit of killing cyclists in the early 90s...this would also be unlikely.

I guess he just wanted me to know how much he could bench. At the very least he kept me on my toes and was friendly.

 

[LauraMac]

i was asked, "what makes you laugh?" it's not that odd of a question, but i don't see the point of it.

and my personal all-time most hated question... what other schools have you applied to? where else have you gotten interview invites? acceptances? rejections?

 

[Jody Sadler]

My interview started off with him asking me about my family. The interview lasted about an hour. The family part of the interview was about 35 minutes. Thought it was a little strange since my family was not interviewing. That was the first interview. The second interviewer asked me what was the last book that I read. I responded with all of the Dan Brown novel's, i.e. Davinci code, angels and demons... and we talked at length about that, as he was in the middle of Angels and Demons. Then he asked a wierd one...How fast can you read a textbook. Caught me off guard a little so I picked up a text book from his desk and flipped through a couple of pages and said about 25-30 an hour if I wanted to comprehend it instead of speed read.

overall my interviews have been very positive and reassuring.

 

[criminallyinane]

I really don't see how these questions are stupid. They just want to know if you are not a total science geek, who cannot think outside of what he/she learned from science books.

I think there's a difference between having critical thinking skills outside of science, and memorizing geography. Additionally, I don't think defining the color green really helps anyone, do you?