Question/Suggestions About Med School Interviews

[ThatQuestionGuy]

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Why don't they do it over the phone (or over webcam if they want to see body language/make sure you are who you are) and then, IF you are accepted, you can go to a series of information days for each school. This seems like it would save a lot of money/time for both the school and the applicants.

 

[azrael87]

They do the interview in person because they want to see how you function in direct in-person conversation. That is the best way to evaluate your mannerisms and personality. They want this because when you interact with people as a med student and eventually as a physician it will be in person.

The phone doesn't allow people to see body language. A monotone, boring voice can be contrasted by an expressive and friendly face. A friendly, happy voice can be betrayed by a condescending look or clenched fist. They need to see and hear all of you.

As for webcam, not everyone has one. Some people don't even have their own computer (need to use public comps for application stuff). In addition, a lot can go wrong in a web cam session. The connection could fail or the camera might not be working properly. Also, you can be very distracted in a webcam session. You may not even be wearing pants and the adcom would have no idea. Not exactly appropriate for a professional interview, and also not very representative of normal social situations.

In general, the best way to get to know someone is in person. That is why they do it. The tours and such happen because they figure while you're there you might as well get to see the whole place and see if it fits you. After having actually seen the school, the adcoms can get a better idea of your impression of it.

 

[bannie22]

I would feel uncomfortable if I did an interview over webcam, even less a phone call.

 

[ThatQuestionGuy]

They do the interview in person because they want to see how you function in direct in-person conversation. That is the best way to evaluate your mannerisms and personality. They want this because when you interact with people as a med student and eventually as a physician it will be in person.

The phone doesn't allow people to see body language. A monotone, boring voice can be contrasted by an expressive and friendly face. A friendly, happy voice can be betrayed by a condescending look or clenched fist. They need to see and hear all of you.

As for webcam, not everyone has one. Some people don't even have their own computer (need to use public comps for application stuff). In addition, a lot can go wrong in a web cam session. The connection could fail or the camera might not be working properly. Also, you can be very distracted in a webcam session. You may not even be wearing pants and the adcom would have no idea. Not exactly appropriate for a professional interview, and also not very representative of normal social situations.

In general, the best way to get to know someone is in person. That is why they do it. The tours and such happen because they figure while you're there you might as well get to see the whole place and see if it fits you. After having actually seen the school, the adcoms can get a better idea of your impression of it.

You could set up an arrangement with a video conferencing center/company, I think technology has evolved to make this method pretty reliable (honestly, you face the same difficulties with travel delays or whatever). I think the savings in time and cost for both parties will outweigh anything you gain by being there in person. I know some law schools do phone interviews and presumably they are also looking for good "fits", good personalities, commitment to the school so I don't see why this isn't an option for medical schools.

 

[ThatQuestionGuy]

They are not only trying to gauge whether you would be a good fit or whether to accept you, they are also trying to sell you on the school. The interview goes both ways: the interviewer "interviews" you, then you "interview" the school during the tour, info sessions, conversations with current students, etc. Personally, I wouldn't want to interview somewhere that I couldn't visit in person. Its just weird.

Right but they could "sell you" at the followup sessions after you're accepted. What's really the point of seeing the facilities etc if you arent sure if you're accepted yet? This to me is like Vanderbilt and other schools that give you an interview automatically if you get a secondary. They don't have to read essays of people that have no chance and you don't have to write essays for schools that aren't interested in you.

 

[azrael87]

You could set up an arrangement with a video conferencing center/company, I think technology has evolved to make this method pretty reliable (honestly, you face the same difficulties with travel delays or whatever). I think the savings in time and cost for both parties will outweigh anything you gain by being there in person. I know some law schools do phone interviews and presumably they are also looking for good "fits", good personalities, commitment to the school so I don't see why this isn't an option for medical schools.

I don't see how video conferencing could be in any way cheaper for the school. If you mean they wouldn't have to spend resources on tours, they'd still need to have those year round since most potential students do want to see the school. For the applicant, is it really cheap to make arrangements with a video conferencing center/company??? Remember, things that seem convenient to you aren't necessarily so for other people. It seems like a lot of trouble to go through in lieu of simply visiting the school and achieving a dual purpose.

As for travel delays, most people plan ahead for those. If flying, they do so early the day before interviews in order to allow for comfortable and quick travel from a hotel the next morning. Even if there are flight delays, a person should still have no problem making the interview seeing as how it's the next day. If driving, either plan to arrive the day before like with flying or give yourself an hour or 2 of leeway time to account for traffic. With good planning, there's very little to stop a person from getting to a school. Besides, location should be a criterion for your decision on which schools to apply to. If a place is too far for you to even want to visit, then you probably shouldn't be applying there at all.

Looking at the comparison to law school, lawyers aren't doctors and law school isn't med school. Med students have greater minimum physical requirements than lawyers, for one. Also, a med student is a doctor once he completes med school. A law student is nothing but a law graduate after completing law school. Until s/he passes the bar, they can't be a lawyer. As such, I assume med school needs to have a better feel for their applicants. About 95% of med students graduate, so they're system of choosing applicants must be pretty efficient.

And again, the point is that the social interaction one has as a med student and a physician is face to face. Thus, face to face would be the ideal and logical way to evaluate an applicant's ability to function socially.

Anyway, why wouldn't you want to see the school you're applying to before you decide to go there? Visiting potential schools is standard even for undergrad. Some do it just to see if they want to apply at all. You can't know for sure if you want to attend that school if you don't actually see what's there. Also, you can't answer interview questions like "Why this school?" very well if you haven't actually seen the school. It'd be like describing why you like a movie when you've only read a review of it.

There are plenty of applicants willing to take a trip out to their potential schools, so I wouldn't dwell on this idea too much. I seriously doubt things will change, especially not when they're done well (free food, student hosts, discount deals with hotels).