Interview: screw up question - how to salvage???

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nychila

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Hypothetically, if an interviewee screws up a question, ie. gives an answer that is absolute gibberish (either due to nervousness, lack of understanding on the topic, or other), what are some of the better ways or creative methods to fix the awkward situation and salvage the rest of the applicant's interview?
 
Hypothetically, if an interviewee screws up a question, ie. gives an answer that is absolute gibberish (either due to nervousness, lack of understanding on the topic, or other), what are some of the better ways or creative methods to fix the awkward situation and salvage the rest of the applicant's interview?

The only way is to be honest about it, and hope your interviewer is understanding. However, you have 30 minutes to make an impression, and you don't want a majority of that time to be your trying to rationalize a screw-up.

Just go in and be yourself. If you don't know something, say you don't know. Nervousness should hopefully diminish if you're not misrepresenting who you are, and you won't have any problems with lack of understanding if you don't try to act like you know something you don't.

Hell, at a large number of schools, statistically, the hardest part of the process is getting to the interview, not getting accepted afterward. Just be yourself.
 
The only way is to be honest about it, and hope your interviewer is understanding. However, you have 30 minutes to make an impression, and you don't want a majority of that time to be your trying to rationalize a screw-up.

Just go in and be yourself. If you don't know something, say you don't know. Nervousness should hopefully diminish if you're not misrepresenting who you are, and you won't have any problems with lack of understanding if you don't try to act like you know something you don't.

Hell, at a large number of schools, statistically, the hardest part of the process is getting to the interview, not getting accepted afterward. Just be yourself.

I'd say you have <5 minutes to make an impression.
 
Hypothetically, if an interviewee screws up a question, ie. gives an answer that is absolute gibberish (either due to nervousness, lack of understanding on the topic, or other), what are some of the better ways or creative methods to fix the awkward situation and salvage the rest of the applicant's interview?

First impressions are made within 5 minutes. After this time, the interviewer is either viewing you favorably or unfavorably. Hopefully they like you and can forgive errors you made later.


Sent from my iPod using SDN Mobile app. Please excuse the typos.
 
My thoughts are that there is no way to salvage a screw-up. Interviews are a game where you get ONE chance to make an impression.

My advice is don't screw it up, as there will be hundreds of candidates out there that they can choose that will perform better under pressure than you do.

Medical schools already have an impression of who you are from your application materials. Interviews serve to connect who you are in person to who you are on paper. They also indicate whether you are the type of person that the interviewer would want to be around for the next four years.

Mistakes are more or less forgivable if you make it to this point. Granted something like rambling is never a good interview technique, if you sincerely answer the questions without feeding your interviewer bull****, you should be in good shape. And work to channel your nervousness into excitable eagerness.
 
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