How to go into interviews confident, knowing there is so much competition?

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PreMedStudent55555

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I recently noticed that some school accepts 33% of students post-interview and even some schools accept 5% of students post-interview. These kinds of statistics are affecting my confidence going into these interviews knowing that there is so much stiff competition. I always thought that after the interview that things would get a little easier but that doesn't seem to be the case anymore sigh. Any advice on how to deal with this?
 
PreMedStudent55555 said:
I recently noticed that some school accepts 33% of students post-interview and even some schools accept 5% of students post-interview. These kinds of statistics are affecting my confidence going into these interviews knowing that there is so much stiff competition. Any advice on how to deal with this?
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If you are like me, your interview issues will likely stem from talking too much and/or being Too self confident to the point of arrogance. If so, focus on talking less and letting others share their stories.

No matter what, practice makes perfect.
 
gyngyn said:
Which medical school rejects 95% of its interviewees!?
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I forgot. I was just scrolling through MSAR but I remember seeing a school that did like 600 OOS interviews and matriculated like 30 OOS students. I don't remember the exact numbers or school but I just remembered that statistic and it's scary. So far, I think I'm just going to ignore the stats and just focus on being as prepared and confident as I can for interview date.
 
PreMedStudent55555 said:
I forgot. I was just scrolling through MSAR but I remember seeing a school that did like 600 OOS interviews and matriculated like 30 OOS students. I don't remember the exact numbers or school but I just remembered that statistic and it's scary. So far, I think I'm just going to ignore the stats and just focus on being as prepared and confident as I can for interview date.
Click to expand...
I can promise you that there is no school that rejects that many of its interviewees.
If anything close to that happened they would fire the screeners mid-cycle!
 
You’re not competing against the other interviewees for a seat. You’re competing against yourself. If they’ve invited you for an interview, you’ve passed the screens for grades, ECs, etc. and the adcom thinks you’ll be academically successful on paper. They’re hoping that you’re not only everything you claim to be, but that you also like the school enough to choose them too.

Med school interviews are more like a high stakes first date than anything else.
 
PreMedStudent55555 said:
I forgot. I was just scrolling through MSAR but I remember seeing a school that did like 600 OOS interviews and matriculated like 30 OOS students. I don't remember the exact numbers or school but I just remembered that statistic and it's scary. So far, I think I'm just going to ignore the stats and just focus on being as prepared and confident as I can for interview date.
Click to expand...

Also keep in mind, matriculants =/= total offers extended. The school may have offered 2-3x that, but accepted students withdrew/declined.
 
MemeLord said:
If you are like me, your interview issues will likely stem from talking too much and/or being Too self confident to the point of arrogance. If so, focus on talking less and letting others share their stories.

No matter what, practice makes perfect.
Click to expand...
And don't forget memelord: sometimes its best to allow other people to have the last word, even if you don't agree with them.
 
Visit your school career center, many interview skills can be learned. I am far from it, but I read that it might be good to study bioethics/medical ethics a bit before the interview.
 
I have had low self-confidence for a while. So I feel you. I feel like it helps to know that you've already made it this far, just by getting an interview. You have passed a big screen already. And it also helps just to look at your own accomplishments and stats to realize that you have done a lot already. So while you might not think you are competitive compared to others, you've already made it past points others have not. The adcoms think you are competitive, so there is no reason to think you are not!
 
u_raptor said:
I have had low self-confidence for a while. So I feel you. I feel like it helps to know that you've already made it this far, just by getting an interview. You have passed a big screen already. And it also helps just to look at your own accomplishments and stats to realize that you have done a lot already. So while you might not think you are competitive compared to others, you've already made it past points others have not. The adcoms think you are competitive, so there is no reason to think you are not!
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Thanks that helps! And you're right! If I made it this far. I can make it past the interview!!
 
PreMedStudent55555 said:
I recently noticed that some school accepts 33% of students post-interview and even some schools accept 5% of students post-interview. These kinds of statistics are affecting my confidence going into these interviews knowing that there is so much stiff competition. I always thought that after the interview that things would get a little easier but that doesn't seem to be the case anymore sigh. Any advice on how to deal with this?
Click to expand...

I think you might be misreading something. Most schools accept 2-5% of their applicant pool, not of the people they interview. That would be a less than 1% acceptance rate which no school has.
 
PreMedStudent55555 said:
I forgot. I was just scrolling through MSAR but I remember seeing a school that did like 600 OOS interviews and matriculated like 30 OOS students. I don't remember the exact numbers or school but I just remembered that statistic and it's scary. So far, I think I'm just going to ignore the stats and just focus on being as prepared and confident as I can for interview date.
Click to expand...
That's because state schools favor the home team. The taxpayers are supplementing those kids with lower tuition (well, maybe not at MSU or U ILL), and they want to know that you're going to stick around and practice Medicine after going to school on their dime.
Look, by getting an interview, you have passed a HIGH hurdle. the med school thinks that you're good enough on paper to be one of their students.

So have a little faith in yourself, OK?
 
Goro said:
That's because state schools favor the home team. The taxpayers are supplementing those kids with lower tuition (well, maybe not at MSU or U ILL), and they want to know that you're going to stick around and practice Medicine after going to school on their dime.
Look, by getting an interview, you have passed a HIGH hurdle. the med school thinks that you're good enough on paper to be one of their students.

So have a little faith in yourself, OK?
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I will! Thanks
 
Matthew9Thirtyfive said:
I think you might be misreading something. Most schools accept 2-5% of their applicant pool, not of the people they interview. That would be a less than 1% acceptance rate which no school has.
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The school I mentioned interviews 600 OOS and matriculated 30 OOS. Then again someone said schools accept more than they matriculate. I’m also just going to focus on being the best I can be and confident that if I made it this far then I can get past the interview!
 
PreMedStudent55555 said:
The school I mentioned interviews 600 OOS and matriculated 30 OOS. Then again someone said schools accept more than they matriculate. I’m also just going to focus on being the best I can be and confident that if I made it this far then I can get past the interview!
Click to expand...

Schools usually accept 2-3 times the number of seats they have. But you're also just looking at OOS numbers, which is not the same as saying they have a 5% acceptance rate.
 
Schools can choose to be very picky about the number of OOS applicants they make offers to and OOS applicants can turn down OOS offers to attend somewhere closer to home and/or less expensive.

Do not worry about the proportion of applicants or interviewed applicants who end up matriculating. You are missing some data (number of offers made by that school and number of offers held by each applicant) such that the proportions you can compute are pretty much meaningless.

Go into the interview with the idea that your application was good enough that someone (or a group) thought you would be a good candidate for an interview. Go in with the feeling that the interviewer has volunteered for this task, is intersted in getting to know you, and, in some cases, wants to sell you on their school.
 
LizzyM said:
Schools can choose to be very picky about the number of OOS applicants they make offers to and OOS applicants can turn down OOS offers to attend somewhere closer to home and/or less expensive.

Do not worry about the proportion of applicants or interviewed applicants who end up matriculating. You are missing some data (number of offers made by that school and number of offers held by each applicant) such that the proportions you can compute are pretty much meaningless.

Go into the interview with the idea that your application was good enough that someone (or a group) thought you would be a good candidate for an interview. Go in with the feeling that the interviewer has volunteered for this task, is intersted in getting to know you, and, in some cases, wants to sell you on their school.
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Thanks! This helps a lot and will do!
 
On the whole, it's harder to get an interview than get the acceptance after. As Lizzy said, if you get an interview, a school thought you have what it takes. The interview is less about the raw numbers and more about who you are and how you fit the personality and fit on the university. You may get asked about trouble areas or unique features of your application. Be prepared for that. Brush up on the school. When they ask if you have questions, be thoughtful. Don't ask things you can read on their website, but ask the second layer question - "I see that you guys just built a new sim center. How often do students use that or work with standardized patients during their pre-clinical years?"

But most of all, have fun, be yourself, and enjoy the chance to see the program and meet only applicants.
 
Often at my interviews, I would have a "Dj Khaled pep talk" to myself in my head. "You're smart! You're an interesting person! You got what it takes! You know your story now go prove it to them!" Stuff like that. Sometimes you gotta be your own hype person!" Lol
 
If a school wants to go to the effort of interviewing you, they see something in your app that makes them think you might be the kind of person who they want.
I always viewed interviews as mine to lose, it wasn’t an issue of competition. It was me against me.
 
Pagan FutureDoc said:
If a school wants to go to the effort of interviewing you, they see something in your app that makes them think you might be the kind of person who they want.
I always viewed interviews as mine to lose, it wasn’t an issue of competition. It was me against me.
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I have that mindset now. Someone said this earlier but pretty much it's like a first date. They like what they see so they just want to get to know me and make sure we're compatible. I hope that I can do this tho!
 
I took a performance class during undergrad and the professor used to always remind us that for any type of performance (theatre, public speaking, or even interviews) the audience wants to see you perform well! The interviewer is hoping you give them a reason to admit you
 
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