Interviewer's Names?

[I-said-doctor]

If an interviewer introduces himself/herself by the their name (e.g. "Hi, I am John!") instead of their title (e.g. "Hi, I am Dr. Smith!"), do we call them by their name?
Hopefully I can get by without saying their name at all but it would still be nice to know the norm or what's more respectful.

Thanks!

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[kinzav]

You won't get in trouble for calling them Dr. Blank, you might if you call them Jon. You can try and read the mood or you could just play it safe.

 

[0dee]

Personally, if they introduced themselves as John/Jane, and they don't have a name tag stating if they're MD, PhD, DO, etc then I'll just call them sir/ma'am.

 

[yanks26dmb]

play it safe.

 

[Giovanotto]

If they introduce themselves as John, I will call them John.
Lol @ calling them sir.

 

[MightBeACylon439]

If they introduce themselves as John, I will call them John.
Lol @ calling them sir.

Rejected.

 

[Giovanotto]

Rejected.

I interview the day after tomorrow. I'll let you know if so.

 

[Bones 2020]

Rejected.

lol. not everyone is in the military

 

[MightBeACylon439]

lol. not everyone is in the military

Not everyone has a marker telling you they are or have been in the military either. Are you? You don't have the marker but that doesn't mean you aren't. The very fact that I do not know means I would call you sir or be formal in a formal setting. Guess what Mr. Schlitter, a Med school interview means you are interviewing to be a PROFESSIONAL...did I stutter...yes that is right a PROFESSIONAL in a highly respected and regarded field. Are you interviewing to be a personal trainer, maybe a waiter or a cook? Maybe a UPS driver. No, you are interviewing to be an 'F'ing physician.

My last commander was a professor at the local medical school, he is a reason I applied and got into medical school (different school and state even).

Be respectful, professional an courteous. The person not only is interviewing you to enter as a PROFESSIONAL in one of the worlds more respected professions but is evaluating you as a person in general. NOT ONLY THAT...but keep in mind I have been in the process of interviewing and know that many medical schools have an interview portion with some second years of the school. If I had interviewed you I would pick up so quickly on how much of an immature and simple minded individual you are that admittance for you would be nothing but quick laugh then a check in the "no" column for you.

Sadly, admissions would let either of you in with good enough stats. If so, I know you'd probably do fine academically but PROFESSIONALLY I feel bad for the both of you in the long run.

Did I type the words PROFESSION all caps the entire time? Wow, must have been a complete accident.

 

[Bones 2020]

Not everyone has a marker telling you they are or have been in the military either. Are you? You don't have the marker but that doesn't mean you aren't. The very fact that I do not know means I would call you sir or be formal in a formal setting. Guess what Mr. Schlitter, a Med school interview means you are interviewing to be a PROFESSIONAL...did I stutter...yes that is right a PROFESSIONAL in a highly respected and regarded field. Are you interviewing to be a personal trainer, maybe a waiter or a cook? Maybe a UPS driver. No, you are interviewing to be an 'F'ing physician.

My last commander was a professor at the local medical school, he is a reason I applied and got into medical school (different school and state even).

Be respectful, professional an courteous. The person not only is interviewing you to enter as a PROFESSIONAL in one of the worlds more respected professions but is evaluating you as a person in general. NOT ONLY THAT...but keep in mind I have been in the process of interviewing and know that many medical schools have an interview portion with some second years of the school. If I had interviewed you I would pick up so quickly on how much of an immature and simple minded individual you are that admittance for you would be nothing but quick laugh then a check in the "no" column for you.

Sadly, admissions would let either of you in with good enough stats. If so, I know you'd probably do fine academically but PROFESSIONALLY I feel bad for the both of you in the long run.

Did I type the words PROFESSION all caps the entire time? Wow, must have been a complete accident.

Wow, calm down there.

If I tell a stranger to call me John, and they decide to call me Sir or Jonathan, I might not be offended, but I might take it as them not listening to what I ask of them.

 

[TheoryOfEverything]

Not everyone has a marker telling you they are or have been in the military either. Are you? You don't have the marker but that doesn't mean you aren't. The very fact that I do not know means I would call you sir or be formal in a formal setting. Guess what Mr. Schlitter, a Med school interview means you are interviewing to be a PROFESSIONAL...did I stutter...yes that is right a PROFESSIONAL in a highly respected and regarded field. Are you interviewing to be a personal trainer, maybe a waiter or a cook? Maybe a UPS driver. No, you are interviewing to be an 'F'ing physician.

My last commander was a professor at the local medical school, he is a reason I applied and got into medical school (different school and state even).

Be respectful, professional an courteous. The person not only is interviewing you to enter as a PROFESSIONAL in one of the worlds more respected professions but is evaluating you as a person in general. NOT ONLY THAT...but keep in mind I have been in the process of interviewing and know that many medical schools have an interview portion with some second years of the school. If I had interviewed you I would pick up so quickly on how much of an immature and simple minded individual you are that admittance for you would be nothing but quick laugh then a check in the "no" column for you.

Sadly, admissions would let either of you in with good enough stats. If so, I know you'd probably do fine academically but PROFESSIONALLY I feel bad for the both of you in the long run.

Did I type the words PROFESSION all caps the entire time? Wow, must have been a complete accident.

There's a video about med school interviews on youtube that is frequently suggested by SDN members. In the video, the lecturer specifically addresses the issue and states that if the interviewer introduces themself as John, you call them John, and he explains why this is important. He discusses this in the video below at the 14:30 mark. I personally would feel very uncomfortable referring to an interviewer by there first name, but I can understand an interviewee's decision to do so.

 

[lyana]

I grew up in a culture where it is absolutely inappropriate to call an older person by their first name. So personally I would still call them Sir or Dr.___

 

[costales]

Well, that's how you're supposed to address your resident/upper/attending in a hospital.

 

[DrEnderW]

Lol @ calling them sir.

It's a geographic/cultural thing. I call people in their 20s serving me Wendys sir.

 

[ortnakas]

If they explicitly have said, "Call me John/Jane," then do so.
If you're not sure, either because they didn't say or because they said they were "John/Jane Doe," go with "Dr./Mr./Mrs. Doe."

They'll probably introduce themselves with their title (professor of __, etc.), so you shouldn't even need the nametag. Dr. is a safe bet at a medical school; if that happens to be wrong, they'll correct you, but you're better off being too formal than not formal enough.

 

[Doctor Bob]

Not everyone has a marker telling you they are or have been in the military either. Are you? You don't have the marker but that doesn't mean you aren't. The very fact that I do not know means I would call you sir or be formal in a formal setting. Guess what Mr. Schlitter, a Med school interview means you are interviewing to be a PROFESSIONAL...did I stutter...yes that is right a PROFESSIONAL in a highly respected and regarded field. Are you interviewing to be a personal trainer, maybe a waiter or a cook? Maybe a UPS driver. No, you are interviewing to be an 'F'ing physician.

My last commander was a professor at the local medical school, he is a reason I applied and got into medical school (different school and state even).

Be respectful, professional an courteous. The person not only is interviewing you to enter as a PROFESSIONAL in one of the worlds more respected professions but is evaluating you as a person in general. NOT ONLY THAT...but keep in mind I have been in the process of interviewing and know that many medical schools have an interview portion with some second years of the school. If I had interviewed you I would pick up so quickly on how much of an immature and simple minded individual you are that admittance for you would be nothing but quick laugh then a check in the "no" column for you.

Sadly, admissions would let either of you in with good enough stats. If so, I know you'd probably do fine academically but PROFESSIONALLY I feel bad for the both of you in the long run.

Did I type the words PROFESSION all caps the entire time? Wow, must have been a complete accident.

From one AirForce guy to another... tone it down. You're making us look bad.

If an interviewer introduces themselves to you just by their first name, then call them by their first name. Unless you're a child prodigy applying to medschool in your early/mid teens, then you're both adults. And adults can refer to each other by their first names and still be respectful.

 

[MightBeACylon439]

From one AirForce guy to another... tone it down. You're making us look bad.

If an interviewer introduces themselves to you just by their first name, then call them by their first name. Unless you're a child prodigy applying to medschool in your early/mid teens, then you're both adults. And adults can refer to each other by their first names and still be respectful.

Fair enough. I am prior enlisted and did a lot of joint ops with the army so medical school and some of the students lack of discipline and appreciation for the opportunity they have been given is...frightening. @schlitter22 and @Giovanotto I overreacted to your posts and took it out on you online, my apologies. @Doctor Bob thanks for calling me out.

Medical school is a learning opportunity not just for the basic sciences.

 

[Bones 2020]

Fair enough. I am prior enlisted and did a lot of joint ops with the army so medical school and some of the students lack of discipline and appreciation for the opportunity they have been given is...frightening. @schlitter22 and @Giovanotto I overreacted to your posts and took it out on you online, my apologies. @Doctor Bob thanks for calling me out.

Medical school is a learning opportunity not just for the basic sciences.

You may be the first person I have ever seen apologize on the internet haha. Kudos

 

[Tommyguns89]

You won't get in trouble for calling them Dr. Blank, you might if you call them Jon. You can try and read the mood or you could just play it safe.

I actually remember watching a video about med school interviews posted on these forums and the guy giving the presentation(pretty sure he himself conducted interviews) made a point to say that you follow the interviewer's lead on this. If he introduces himself as John, you call him John.

Edit: Now I feel dumb, it was posted above

 

[kinzav]

I actually remember watching a video about med school interviews posted on these forums and the guy giving the presentation(pretty sure he himself conducted interviews) made a point to say that you follow the interviewer's lead on this. If he introduces himself as John, you call him John.

Edit: Now I feel dumb, it was posted above

I mean, in the end, it's all subjective. The way that guy approaches it, makes it seem like it's some sort of exercise you're trying to win. I think that's a terrible way to approach the interview, and I think that what he's selling in that lecture is kind of dumb. He has a bunch of good pointers, but your interview shouldn't be a competition. It should be a comfortable discussion about your strengths and weaknesses as an applicant. There are instances where they want to test you a little, and being confident and coherent is important, but I just don't endorse the idea that interview day is a time to "win" your spot in their incoming class. I view it more as an opportunity for the admissions committee to see your affect and demeanor, and if your shrouding it with all these fancy techniques, you may be doing the school a disservice as well as yourself (in evaluating whether you are a good fit for the school you're applying to or not).

If you want to call the professor by the name that he gives you, great, you are taking steps to follow his instruction, showing you are attentive, conveying a sense of comfort with the situation that he/she may be looking for. If you want to call them Dr. Blank, great, you show humility, an ingrained sense of professionalism, a desire to convey that you appreciate his status as a faculty member at a medical school (a great achievement) and feel he/she deserves no less than being spoken to as a superior at this point in your, and his, careers.

Either way, positives and negatives for both, to say one way is the absolute correct would be naive. The best advice I can offer for the interviews is be yourself, and let the schools decide whether you are a fit for them or not. Take the stress out of trying to be an ideal candidate and be the candidate that you actually are, which will probably be close to what they are looking for already since they invited you for an interview.

 

[Oh_Gee]

Not everyone has a marker telling you they are or have been in the military either. Are you? You don't have the marker but that doesn't mean you aren't. The very fact that I do not know means I would call you sir or be formal in a formal setting. Guess what Mr. Schlitter, a Med school interview means you are interviewing to be a PROFESSIONAL...did I stutter...yes that is right a PROFESSIONAL in a highly respected and regarded field. Are you interviewing to be a personal trainer, maybe a waiter or a cook? Maybe a UPS driver. No, you are interviewing to be an 'F'ing physician.

My last commander was a professor at the local medical school, he is a reason I applied and got into medical school (different school and state even).

Be respectful, professional an courteous. The person not only is interviewing you to enter as a PROFESSIONAL in one of the worlds more respected professions but is evaluating you as a person in general. NOT ONLY THAT...but keep in mind I have been in the process of interviewing and know that many medical schools have an interview portion with some second years of the school. If I had interviewed you I would pick up so quickly on how much of an immature and simple minded individual you are that admittance for you would be nothing but quick laugh then a check in the "no" column for you.

Sadly, admissions would let either of you in with good enough stats. If so, I know you'd probably do fine academically but PROFESSIONALLY I feel bad for the both of you in the long run.

Did I type the words PROFESSION all caps the entire time? Wow, must have been a complete accident.

What do we address the medical students as?

 

[MightBeACylon439]

What do we address the medical students as?

Female=Ma'am, male=sir.

 

[Gandyy]

It's a geographic/cultural thing. I call people in their 20s serving me Wendys sir.

Good man. I call everyone sir or mam whenever I'm feeling like its time to be extra civilized.

 

[cryhavoc]

If a name plaque said Dr. John Smith, I'd call him Dr. Smith. If I saw no name plaque and he introduced himself as John, I'd call him nothing. I can get through a conversation without mentioning names easily. It isn't like you have to say, "Nice to meet you, John," or "Thank you for your time, John."

You would just say, "Nice to meet you, " or "Thank you for your time."

I think it would work, use overall formal language but don't say names unless you are sure.