Interviewer asking about SDN?

Started by excited_alumni
BU Medical Sciences
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excited_alumni

excited_alumni

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7+ Year Member
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I was browsing the school threads and one of them on the interview feedback had the following question:

Do you go on studentdoctor.net? Do you think it corrupts the interview process?

I was just wondering your guys' thoughts on how you would respond to this
 
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gyngyn said:
Do tell.
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During an interview, one of the interviewers was explaining why their curriculum wasn't switched over to pass/fail during their recent curriculum redesign. I brought up AOA in that discussion somehow, and the other interviewer asked me where I heard of it.

I answered with SDN, and sort of explained what it was.

Not very exciting, eh? 😛
 
WedgeDawg said:
no one has answered my question
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Some interviewees gain an advantage in being able to prepare ahead of time for possible questions.

Some of these are school specific and more unique.

For example: If you knew there was a high likelihood of a question on the facets/problems/challenges of the Affordable Care Act, you'd be far more likely to review it in depth, rather than superficially, resulting in giving a more credible, well-informed answer that will impress. I f you knew difficult bioethical questions were near-guaranteed, you'd prepare, possibly even read a book on the issue.

Yes, I know. Everyone should be prepared for these questions at every interview. But they are not.
 
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Disadvantage/Advantage: Potential loss of anonymity for students/applicants? This could be obtained through looking at trends in how people communicate, details of their lives, etc. Also, lol, wondering about the friends on the inside that can get to an individual's ISP addy. Yes this is all kind of odd. The Internet has made the world a very strange place. 😉
 
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Catalystik said:
Some interviewees gain an advantage in being able to prepare ahead of time for possible questions.
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That's what I would call a failure to utilize easily (and universally) accessible resources.

I could see it being a problem if people posted specific MMI questions from specific schools (which is unethical and a breach of contract), but figuring out you're going to be asked questions like "why do you want to be a doctor" or "where do you see yourself in 15 years" or "tell me more about activity x" isn't going to drastically change anything for anyone.
 
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WedgeDawg said:
That's what I would call a failure to utilize easily (and universally) accessible resources.
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I agree, yet some seem unable to find them. Or don't take them to heart.
jl lin said:
There is no way to be prepared for all possible questions.
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Any prep is better than nothing at all. Avoiding the "deer in the headlights" look reflects better.
 
Catalystik said:
I agree, yet some seem unable to find them. Or don't take them to heart.
Any prep is better than nothing at all. Avoiding the "deer in the headlights" look reflects better.
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Sure.

But isn't this why there can be certain stress questions?
 
jl lin said:
Sure.

But isn't this why there can be certain stress questions?
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It's very easy to come up with "stressful" questions. You just keep pushing on a certain topic until it hurts and the applicant can't go any further. Stress is more about the environment and responses to interviewee answers than it is about the initial question. You can ask a very difficult question and make it very friendly and easy to talk through, but you can also ask a very easy question and make the interviewer think they're in hell.
 
I would have said "Oh, I've heard of that website. My undergrad called it the website that shall not be named" which is true.

I went to a premed thing with my husband, they referred to SDN that way and the entire pre-med audience cracked up while my husband looked VERY VERY confused!
 
Goro said:
Some of my best interview questions have come from SDN. Some from situations based upon postes here, others stolen blatantly from the Interview feedback section.

I've had to retire a few because interviewees have then posted some of mine in the IF section, so turnabout is fair play.
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Thank you. I've heard of interviewers being bitter over their questions getting leaked...after using the same set of questions for ten years. If you're worried about kids knowing what's on the test, change the questions.
 
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Goro said:
Some of my best interview questions have come from SDN. Some from situations based upon postes here, others stolen blatantly from the Interview feedback section.

I've had to retire a few because interviewees have then posted some of mine in the IF section, so turnabout is fair play.
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So people have met you in person? You exist?
 
At one of my interviews, they encouraged us to call the admission team rather than rely on the idiotic rumors of SDN. I am pretty sure my face showed my shock. Still, every rumor about the school has proven true.
 
Yeah, i went to a nontrad info session at the school here and one of the students on the panel was talking about good resources and mentioned SDN. The dean gave her an evil look. The student goes, "well there's a lot of crazy stuff to wade through on there, but there is useful info if you can sort through the crap."

I'd like to know which schools have anti-SDN bent so I can keep mum about my moderator activities.
 
Goro said:
At least three SDNers are my students, but they don't know who I am.
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TexasSurgeon said:
But you know who they are I'm guessing?

Is there anything you cannot do.
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Hmm let me guess...

Goro interviews applicant. Said applicant shortly thereafter posts something specific about the interview experience, and Goro recognizes it. Applicant then gets accepted to Goro's school, posts about it here, and matriculates. Seems like it would actually be pretty easy to learn certain SDNers' identities from an adcom's perspective.
 
gonnif said:
Yeah, alot. I run into students/applicants/premeds who have never heard of it. Or have been told by premed advisors (and admissions officers for that matter) to avoid it. As an aside to this, when I was active at premed advisor or admissions conferences, mentioning SDN causes many eyes to roll more often then not and produces other very negative comments. When I was hosting/facilitating a panel with postbacc/SMP directors/staff, I mentioned something about SDN and a huge groan went thru the advisor/admission crowd including some very real boos causing me reply with "I hope there are no pitchforks and torches out there."
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OHHH yeah I definitely remember my premed advisor shaking her head when I mentioned SDN and she told me to "get off that site." lol. Why so much hate?
Interesting, I guess I just have this (wrong) perception that everyone uses SDN because I know all my premed friends use it!
 
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Catalystik said:
SDNers even educate each other about stress questions, how to recognize them, and how to respond. When interviewees are able to field these gracefully, imagine the dismay of the curmudgeonly adcomm interviewer. His/her pure process was corrupted. Oops.
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I'm so glad that residency doesn't seem to involve any of this bs. "What your interviewers are dicks? Guess I'll go to one of the other 11 places I interviewed. Kthxbai."
 
Catalystik said:
I have less experience with residency interviews, but from the feedback I've gotten, it seems generally to be the case that interviewers are user-friendly.
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🙂 Of the ones I've been to so far and anecdotal reports from friends, most of them have practically fawned over interviewees.
 
Oranges2 said:
OHHH yeah I definitely remember my premed advisor shaking her head when I mentioned SDN and she told me to "get off that site." lol. Why so much hate?
Interesting, I guess I just have this (wrong) perception that everyone uses SDN because I know all my premed friends use it!
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Have you not seen the neurotic crazies who live here?
Personally I was a non science major and didn't touch the site before I got into medical school. Honestly if I had met more premeds or medical students before attending I probably would have changed my mind.
 
It's easier than that. They actually have posted what school they've been accepted to, either in the Pre-Osteo board or the school-specific thread. Once they do that, it's easy to pick them out. I haven't and won't say anything to them directly because I don't want to see a post like this: "Ohimygod; Goro is my professor!!!

EverStriving said:
Hmm let me guess...

Goro interviews applicant. Said applicant shortly thereafter posts something specific about the interview experience, and Goro recognizes it. Applicant then gets accepted to Goro's school, posts about it here, and matriculates. Seems like it would actually be pretty easy to learn certain SDNers' identities from an adcom's perspective.
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You saw this too, colleague? When I first joined SDN a lot of the posts in the pre-Allo forum concerning DOs were very anti-DO. Nowadays, it's almost 100% supportive. I think this is part of the evolution of Medicine.

The mindset that "you need a 4.0 and a 40 MCAT to get into any med school" still needs to be stomped on.


gonnif said:
Additionally, it has been a great promoter for DO, which a decade of so ago was still not on many people's radar. This in turn influences reasonable MD candidates to only consider DO and is considered to be driving factor in the enormous growth of the DO applicant pool.
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