First Interview

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Mariariot

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Hello all!
I recently received my first invite for an interview at Thomas Jefferson University. Because it is my first interview, I’m feeling nervous. The fact that it’s a group interview freaks me out a bit (I’ve never experienced a group interview). I’m seeking advice anyone has to offer on group interviews and questions often asked. Thank you!!
 
Congrats on your interview! I only had one interview that was done in a group setting. The professor asked each of us different questions so we wouldn't face the problem of having to be the sixth person to answer a question in a unique way. The questions were really generic -- "What would you do if you saw a classmate cheating?" "Describe the last time you were angry," etc. -- as opposed to the one-on-one interview I had where I was asked more personal questions. I wrote a blog post for the APTA describing my best interview tips here: 5 Tips To Help You Ace Your PT School Interviews
 
Mariariot said:
Hello all!
I recently received my first invite for an interview at Thomas Jefferson University. Because it is my first interview, I’m feeling nervous. The fact that it’s a group interview freaks me out a bit (I’ve never experienced a group interview). I’m seeking advice anyone has to offer on group interviews and questions often asked. Thank you!!
Click to expand...
May I ask what your stats are?
 
JMarcusDPT said:
Congrats on your interview! I only had one interview that was done in a group setting. The professor asked each of us different questions so we wouldn't face the problem of having to be the sixth person to answer a question in a unique way. The questions were really generic -- "What would you do if you saw a classmate cheating?" "Describe the last time you were angry," etc. -- as opposed to the one-on-one interview I had where I was asked more personal questions. I wrote a blog post for the APTA describing my best interview tips here: 5 Tips To Help You Ace Your PT School Interviews
Click to expand...
Correct me if I’m wrong but it sounds like there really isn’t too much you can do to prep for those generic questions haha. This was helpful though. I’ll take a look at the tips as well! Thank you so much 🙂
 
mjzsep30 said:
May I ask what your stats are?
Click to expand...
I’m a rehabilitation major, biology minor.
Cumulative gpa: 3.72
Pre req gpa: ~3.68
Observation hours:
Outpatient: 810 hours (two different clinics)
Inpatient: 114 hours
Jefferson doesn’t require the GRE

Aside from stats, I have a few extra curriculars. I’m treasurer of my campus ECO club, I’ve been figure skating for 12 years, 12 years experience on violin (7 of those years in orchestra), I’ve been volunteering at a local animal shelter for two years, volunteer at a local hospital for two years, and I have other paying work experience.

Have you submitted your application yet?
 
Mariariot said:
Correct me if I’m wrong but it sounds like there really isn’t too much you can do to prep for those generic questions haha. This was helpful though. I’ll take a look at the tips as well! Thank you so much 🙂
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Exactly! There's not a lot you can do to prepare if they ask those types of questions. But you can't be sure what they'll ask. So be prepared to answer more basic questions about yourself and your background, why you want to be a PT, why you want to go to the school, if you have any questions for them, etc.
 
Both of my interviews were group interviews and it was nice because if I needed more time to think, someone else could speak. We all answered the same question and if someone before you made a good point, we referenced them and then added on something extra. Pull from your observation hours. Before I went, I wrote down the statistics of the school and basic questions I wanted answered. They ended both interviews asking if we had questions for them, so be prepared with 2-3 incase someone else asks one. I asked ‘where would you like to see the program in 5 years’, ‘what is the thing the upperclassmen says is the hardest’, things like that. Look at A New Exercise: How to Succeed at the Interview for a DPT Program by Gaurav Khanal. I looked over it before my interviews and it helped so much! Was accepted into both schools.
 
Did you apply ED or regular decision? I’ll be submitting my application to TJU in the next couple of days and was just wondering how long after you submitted your application that you heard back about an interview.
 
Group interviews may be easier since you may be given more time to think about your answer while other students are answering the question. Their answers may also help you to find an answer. If, for example, you have no idea what to answer, you can "steal" previous student's answer, but make sure you perephrase it well lol.
In a group interview, make sure you listen (or pretend like you are listening lol) to other students (look at them when they are taking, nod, maybe refer to their answers if appropriate when you are speaking). When you are answering your question, make eye contact with the entire group of people, not only to the person who asked you the question (does not matter if people in the group are not even looking at you). Do not interrupt anyone, be respectful, disagreeing/partially disagreeing is ok of course,. One of the purposes of a group interview is to see how you communicate with others.
 
JMarcusDPT said:
Exactly! There's not a lot you can do to prepare if they ask those types of questions. But you can't be sure what they'll ask. So be prepared to answer more basic questions about yourself and your background, why you want to be a PT, why you want to go to the school, if you have any questions for them, etc.
Click to expand...
For me, before interviews, I searched for interview questions for the specific school and found a pretty good list of the questions. I prepared my answers to those questions (just to know what to answer, put my thoughts together, I did not memorize them or anything like that). Some of the questions were indeed asked during my interviews. there were a few questions I had never heard of. But me preparing answers to that list of questions did help me to tune myself for the interviews.
 
Future_Ms_DPT said:
Did you apply ED or regular decision? I’ll be submitting my application to TJU in the next couple of days and was just wondering how long after you submitted your application that you heard back about an interview.
Click to expand...
I applied early decision. They got back to me within a week of submitting the application. I was surprised at how quick they were.
 
easb said:
Group interviews may be easier since you may be given more time to think about your answer while other students are answering the question. Their answers may also help you to find an answer. If, for example, you have no idea what to answer, you can "steal" previous student's answer, but make sure you perephrase it well lol.
In a group interview, make sure you listen (or pretend like you are listening lol) to other students (look at them when they are taking, nod, maybe refer to their answers if appropriate when you are speaking). When you are answering your question, make eye contact with the entire group of people, not only to the person who asked you the question (does not matter if people in the group are not even looking at you). Do not interrupt anyone, be respectful, disagreeing/partially disagreeing is ok of course,. One of the purposes of a group interview is to see how you communicate with others.
Click to expand...
Funny that you mention eye contact. I was just wondering whether I make eye contact with other students or not so that’s really good to know. Do interviewers usually go in a particular order when asking questions or do they pick anyone from the group to start answering?
 
I just received my interview invitation for Thomas Jefferson! I submitted my application this past Sunday, got an email this morning saying that my application was verified and TJU emailed me this afternoon offering me an interview. Boy are they quick! This will be my first interview, so I am very excited, but also very nervous.

Now to decide on a date and work on securing transportation and overnight accommodations :\
 
Mariariot said:
I applied early decision. They got back to me within a week of submitting the application. I was surprised at how quick they were.
Click to expand...

They got back to me within three days of submitting my application and less than 24 hours of it being verified. I was also very surprised.
 
Future_Ms_DPT said:
They got back to me within three days of submitting my application and less than 24 hours of it being verified. I was also very surprised.
Click to expand...
Congrats on your interview offer! Do you mind sharing your stats?
 
aspdpt said:
Congrats on your interview offer! Do you mind sharing your stats?
Click to expand...

Exercise Science major
cGPA: 3.62
pGPA: ~3.58
Observation hours: 150 total
100 - outpatient ortho
30 - subacute/SNF
10 - acute/hospital
10 - pediatrics

GRE not required.

And then as far as my extra-curriculars I am a varsity athlete, have held several leadership positions including one in MAPS (Minority Association of Pre-Med Students), and done a great deal of service. I actually wrote my essay on how my background in service has shaped me as a person today and will help me to become a great physical therapist.
 
Future_Ms_DPT said:
They got back to me within three days of submitting my application and less than 24 hours of it being verified. I was also very surprised.
Click to expand...
Congrats!! That’s so exciting! I’m freaking out about the interview. I’ve been looking up potential questions just to get gist of what to expect.
 
Mariariot said:
Funny that you mention eye contact. I was just wondering whether I make eye contact with other students or not so that’s really good to know. Do interviewers usually go in a particular order when asking questions or do they pick anyone from the group to start answering?
Click to expand...
For me, we had 3 people in the group and they would randomly (?) pick who is the 1st, 2nd, 3rd to answer a question. So sometimes I was the 1st, sometimes the 3rd. They may also let the group members to decide who answers first (like whoever is ready first).
 
easb said:
For me, we had 3 people in the group and they would randomly (?) pick who is the 1st, 2nd, 3rd to answer a question. So sometimes I was the 1st, sometimes the 3rd. They may also let the group members to decide who answers first (like whoever is ready first).
Click to expand...
Do you attend Jefferson?
 
Mariariot said:
Hello all!
I recently received my first invite for an interview at Thomas Jefferson University. Because it is my first interview, I’m feeling nervous. The fact that it’s a group interview freaks me out a bit (I’ve never experienced a group interview). I’m seeking advice anyone has to offer on group interviews and questions often asked. Thank you!!
Click to expand...
That's so exciting! I received my own invitation for an interview at TJU a few weeks ago. So far, I've had one group interview and it was incredibly relaxed. It was nice to be able to bounce answers off of the other prospective students and have more of a conversational interview. There was no particular order we had to answer in, we just kind of chimed in whenever we felt ready which gave me the opportunity to think of how I wanted to answer the question when someone else went before I answered. We were mostly asked about how we react to and handle different situations that weren't necessarily PT-based. They gave us an opportunity at the end to ask the interviewer and current students interviewing us questions, which everyone in my group took advantage of. You got this!
 
vmish03 said:
That's so exciting! I received my own invitation for an interview at TJU a few weeks ago. So far, I've had one group interview and it was incredibly relaxed. It was nice to be able to bounce answers off of the other prospective students and have more of a conversational interview. There was no particular order we had to answer in, we just kind of chimed in whenever we felt ready which gave me the opportunity to think of how I wanted to answer the question when someone else went before I answered. We were mostly asked about how we react to and handle different situations that weren't necessarily PT-based. They gave us an opportunity at the end to ask the interviewer and current students interviewing us questions, which everyone in my group took advantage of. You got this!
Click to expand...
Thanks! That truly helps a lot. I’ve been pretty nervous the past couple of days. Did you interview at TJU already? I know they had interviews on September 12th.
 
Mariariot said:
Thanks! That truly helps a lot. I’ve been pretty nervous the past couple of days. Did you interview at TJU already? I know they had interviews on September 12th.
Click to expand...
I did not yet! The earliest date I could sign up for was October 3rd.
 
Mariariot said:
Thanks! I’ll keep you all updated and informed about it!
Click to expand...

Hope the interview went well! 🙂 Do you mind sharing an overview of how the day went, what the interview was like/types of questions asked, why you thought about the program/students/university? When will you be hearing back? Basically I want to know everything lol. I can also PM you.
 
Future_Ms_DPT said:
Hope the interview went well! 🙂 Do you mind sharing an overview of how the day went, what the interview was like/types of questions asked, why you thought about the program/students/university? When will you be hearing back? Basically I want to know everything lol. I can also PM you.
Click to expand...
Hey! So the interview went well. It wasn’t really what I expected though. I think I came in under the impression that it would be more laid back and conversational because it’s a group interview but it wasn’t. When I first came in, they gave us the agenda for the day and talked to us about their program. They broke us into groups of four, four people per group. Two groups were being interviewed while the other two groups sat in on a classroom.
During the interview, they asked us to simply introduce ourselves and then they went straight into behavioral questions only. I can remember four out of seven:
Name a time you faced a challenge and how you overcame it.
Tell us about a time someone gave you feedback and you didn’t like it.
Tell us about a time you had to adapt.
Tell us about a time you had conflict in a group and how you resolved it.

After the interview, my group sat in on a class and then they gave us all a tour of the campus for about an hour. We came back and we were able to ask questions. We were there for about 4 hours, 30 minutes. Make sure to bring a snack and water!

Overall, I enjoyed it. I met amazing people of whom I interviewed with, met current students who answered any questions we had, and the staff were great. The campus is big, at least to me (I attend a small undergrad uni). Because I’m early admission, I should expect to hear back by September 25th. Students applying through regular admission were told to expect to hear from them between 2-3 weeks which is pretty fast. I hope this helped! 🙂
 
Mariariot said:
Hey! So the interview went well. It wasn’t really what I expected though. I think I came in under the impression that it would be more laid back and conversational because it’s a group interview but it wasn’t. When I first came in, they gave us the agenda for the day and talked to us about their program. They broke us into groups of four, four people per group. Two groups were being interviewed while the other two groups sat in on a classroom.
During the interview, they asked us to simply introduce ourselves and then they went straight into behavioral questions only. I can remember four out of seven:
Name a time you faced a challenge and how you overcame it.
Tell us about a time someone gave you feedback and you didn’t like it.
Tell us about a time you had to adapt.
Tell us about a time you had conflict in a group and how you resolved it.

After the interview, my group sat in on a class and then they gave us all a tour of the campus for about an hour. We came back and we were able to ask questions. We were there for about 4 hours, 30 minutes. Make sure to bring a snack and water!

Overall, I enjoyed it. I met amazing people of whom I interviewed with, met current students who answered any questions we had, and the staff were great. The campus is big, at least to me (I attend a small undergrad uni). Because I’m early admission, I should expect to hear back by September 25th. Students applying through regular admission were told to expect to hear from them between 2-3 weeks which is pretty fast. I hope this helped! 🙂
Click to expand...

That was super helpful, thank you! I hope come the 25th you hear good news 🙂 Was there a certain order that everyone answered the questions in or did everyone answer when they were ready in no particular order?
 
Future_Ms_DPT said:
That was super helpful, thank you! I hope come the 25th you hear good news 🙂 Was there a certain order that everyone answered the questions in or did everyone answer when they were ready in no particular order?
Click to expand...
Thanks! It means a lot. The order of which people were asked questions was entirely random. You just have to be ready to answer the question, whether you’re first or last. Be prepared to answer one or two questions first. If you’re not first to answer, this gives you time to think about your response. What helped me to prepare was thinking back to events/experiences that really impacted me (good and bad). Days before the interview, I picked about five or six stories about challenges I faced and times I have succeeded throughout my life and I simply elaborated on them when asked a question.
 
Mariariot said:
Thanks! It means a lot. The order of which people were asked questions was entirely random. You just have to be ready to answer the question, whether you’re first or last. Be prepared to answer one or two questions first. If you’re not first to answer, this gives you time to think about your response. What helped me to prepare was thinking back to events/experiences that really impacted me (good and bad). Days before the interview, I picked about five or six stories about challenges I faced and times I have succeeded throughout my life and I simply elaborated on them when asked a question.
Click to expand...
Any word yet regarding an admissions decision?
 
Hi all who have been accepted/offered interview at TJU! Did they send you an "application received" email? Or was the first thing you heard from them an update on interview?

Thanks!
 
hem226 said:
Hi all who have been accepted/offered interview at TJU! Did they send you an "application received" email? Or was the first thing you heard from them an update on interview?

Thanks!
Click to expand...
Hi! I received an email stating that my application was sent to the admissions committee and under review. This was the first email I received from TJU after submitting my app. After a week, I received an invitation for an interview.
 
Mariariot said:
Thank you!! 🙂 good luck on your upcoming interview. If you have anymore questions, feel free to ask!
Click to expand...
Thank you! The day was very similar to what you mentioned so I appreciate all of the information that you shared beforehand. I personally thought the day was very relaxed. We were all asked the same question and allowed to do so in any order so it was nice to have time to think while the other applicants were answering. We also often bounced answers off of one another which helped a lot. All in all I enjoyed today and we were done a little before 4pm which was nice!
 
Future_Ms_DPT said:
Thank you! The day was very similar to what you mentioned so I appreciate all of the information that you shared beforehand. I personally thought the day was very relaxed. We were all asked the same question and allowed to do so in any order so it was nice to have time to think while the other applicants were answering. We also often bounced answers off of one another which helped a lot. All in all I enjoyed today and we were done a little before 4pm which was nice!
Click to expand...
I’m glad it went well for you! 🙂 did they say when to expect to hear back?
 
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