I got this question on my interview: "Have you ever dealt with any major stress in your life, if yes how did you overcome?" I decided to be truthful, and say no. It felt weird, cos the interviewer then said: "You must have led a very sheltered life!" What do you guys think??
Interview Question
- Thread starter bee3615
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To me, that seems like a rude response on his part, but maybe that was his intention.
If I couldn't think of an answer off the top of my head, I would have maybe asked him to define "major stress" or give an example...
If I couldn't think of an answer off the top of my head, I would have maybe asked him to define "major stress" or give an example...
i know right...it was kind of weird. I tried to smoothe things over but he repeated the same thing!!!! i guess i need to make up some thing for my other interviews in case it comes up again!!!
Yeah I would go with rude dude, 
I would have said no, I feel like I have had many questions similar to this and I have said no. I perhaps clarify it a bit but still my answer is no. However most of the time they want a story so I find one and give them what they most desire.
I would have said no, I feel like I have had many questions similar to this and I have said no. I perhaps clarify it a bit but still my answer is no. However most of the time they want a story so I find one and give them what they most desire.I remember seeing a post somewhere a while back where sometimes the interviewer does try to get a reaction ie see how you would respond to the "sheltered comment"...it might have been one of these moments
what about studying for taking the DAT? Wasn't that stressful for you? I noe that's one of mine! haha
I wouldn't worry too much about it though it's just 1 question!
gl!what about studying for taking the DAT? Wasn't that stressful for you? I noe that's one of mine! haha
I wouldn't worry too much about it though it's just 1 question!
I did not find that stressful
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I agree with the interviewers response. You never challenge yourself and find it stressful? Never go out and adventures and find yourself in interesting, stressful situations? Never bite of more than you can chew.
I'm pretty sure everyone has experienced some sort of stress.
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I'm guessing they joined the bandwagon of Californiacation several years back.
Bad RHCP
i went to olive garden once expecting the "never ending pasta bowl" only to find it had been discontinued. talk about stress.
i dont think ur ever supposed to say no..i would have came up with some crazy situation on the spot if i couldnt think of a true story
still, his response was ackward.
what school was that at??
Well, what do you call a major stress? I've never been through a traumatic experience. No one close to me has ever died, I've never been to a funeral, I've never been the victim of a crime, I've never really had family problems, my family's never been in financial trouble.... What else counts as stress?
Honestly, the only stress I can think of is when I left home for college, but most people have a rough couple of months when they first start college, but it's usually not anything worth writing home about. I don't know if I would call that major stress.
I've also been dealing with an anxiety disorder, but I don't know if that would be something to tell an interviewer. Since I'm probably not going to be able to sit there and explain all the nuances of what I go through, I don't want them to think of stereotypical anxiety disorder symptoms and think that it all applies to me and then have them think I'm not fit to be a dentist. It's a lot more complex than the basic DSM IV criteria.
And even if I had been through something traumatic, chances are it'd be something personal that I wouldn't want to discuss with an interviewer.
I would've wanted to say something like, "Sheltered? No... No one close to me died when I was young, I was never a victim of a crime, or in a terrible life-threatening situation. I think this makes me fortunate, not sheltered... Sure college can be stressful, but I don't consider it a MAJOR stress in my life, any more than any of my classmates. So I would say I've been fortunate in life, not sheltered, and I want to pay it forward by going into the field of medicine and helping other people get through their major stresses..." BAM!
