RCSI Interviews and Decisions

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C

co06

So I've read around that a few people on here have their RCSI interviews scheduled for the near future. Let's use this space for conversation about the interview, frequently asked questions, and perhaps in the future, for decisions when they come out.

I'm interviewing in NYC on March 23rd in the AM.

So post away!
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I have mine on the 25th in the afternoon. I'm not quite certain as what they will ask us about though :confused:
 
I'm using this space to discuss how jealous I am of both of you. :D
 
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Mr. McDuck said:
I'm using this space to discuss how jealous I am of both of you. :D
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I am sure that more RCSI interviews are coming. I mean, like how many people are on the Ireland/UK board anyway??

Once again, does anyone know when Trinity might be responding??
Someone from Finland has his or her interview in April/May.
Do you think that the ABP applicants will hear from them sooner??!!! :confused:
 
The questions I've heard about are:

1) Why medicine?
2) Why Ireland?

I hate generic questions like that....

However, some of the other questions I heard they ask is:

1) How are you spending the rest of your weekend in NYC?
2) How do you intend to finance your education at RCSI?
3) If you have submitted a research supplement, they sometimes ask to elaborate on that.
4) If you are a non-science major, which I am, they ask why you chose that undergraduate degree.
5) Tell us about your undergraduate institution and what you liked and did not like about it.
 
co06 said:
The questions I've heard about are:

1) Why medicine?
2) Why Ireland?

I hate generic questions like that....

However, some of the other questions I heard they ask is:

1) How are you spending the rest of your weekend in NYC?
2) How do you intend to finance your education at RCSI?
3) If you have submitted a research supplement, they sometimes ask to elaborate on that.
4) If you are a non-science major, which I am, they ask why you chose that undergraduate degree.
5) Tell us about your undergraduate institution and what you liked and did not like about it.
Click to expand...

That is the ONE question you really dont want to stumble on. They will ask you if you are aware of the current tuition price and when they mention the price, DONT FLINCH :laugh:

Seriously though the interview was so relaxed for me and it went SMOOTH. The reason being, I was able to connect with one of two interviewers, the other one was busy writing down notes as I talked (now he is my physics professor lol). If you are interviewing for the premed program (like I did), you will mostly get Dr. Winser and Mr. Curtis. Dr Winser is the really jolly one (seriously he is so funny during lectures and tutorials:D )

Anywho just dont act like a social recluse and you will get in....I hope :):luck:

Good luck everyone
 
I have an interview in NYC on the 24th.

I heard from one person that hey got totally grilled on questions, but somebody else told me that their interview was a piece of cake and they talked about their high school sports programs. One theory behind the discrepancy in the two interviews was the candidate that got grilled did not have great MCAT scores nor a great gpa; this may have made the interviewers feel like they should really test this person to make sure they were a good candidate. Just a thought, but I think it makes good sense!
 
Hey there,

I have an interview for rcsi in nyc on march 23rd in the am as well. See some of you there! This is definitely where I want to go :)

-k
 
Hi everyone,
I have an rcsi interview (nyc) on the 25th, in the afternoon. Hope to meet you guys if you're still in the city!
 
wow do most of us have the interview on the 25th? mine's in the morning
 
I have mine on 2:30 on the Friday, March 23.
 
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co06 said:
kellyda, what time is your interview on friday?
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10:00 AM. yours co06?

So how many spots are we competing for? I've also been asked by the docs I work for how many people are interviewing. Any guesses?
 
I'd guess that they would have as many potential students as they have spots available. Also, three days of interviewing with reasonable hours of interviewing, bathroom breaks, lunch, etc. and 45 minute interview sessions would roughly translate into about 25 slots which is the class size, I believe.
 
More likely they have more students than spots. Say there are 25 spots and 100 applications. Well, the school will probably interview 40-50 people for those 25 spots. Don't forget, they also have a second round of interviews, which probably means they don't expect to fill the class with the first round of interviews (obviously, if they have 25 stellar candidates, they'd probably just cancel the second round).

Good luck to you guys, but not too much luck, because I'm in the second round. ;)
 
My interview is at 9a.m. so I guess I'm the first one to go. I highly doubt that they would do an interview at 8a.m. At least I would hope not.

There are going to be four people there:

Professor Alan Johnson, Director, Graduate Entry
Professor Cathal Kelly, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine
Dr. Kenneth Winser, Vice Dean
Dr. Terry McWade

My friend who is a first year at RCSI said that she was interviewed by 2 people, Alan Johnson and Kenneth Winser. If you are applying for the Graduate Entry (4-year) Programme then I assume that Alan Johnson would be there.

I think I am going to go get breakfast at the Sheraton at around 7:45 if anyone who as an early interview wants to join.
 
is anyone else just freaking out at the fact that the interview is THIS COMING WEEKEND?!? OMG!! I'm so filled with excitement and nervousness I could explode lol....
 
MagicalTrevor said:
I'd guess that they would have as many potential students as they have spots available. Also, three days of interviewing with reasonable hours of interviewing, bathroom breaks, lunch, etc. and 45 minute interview sessions would roughly translate into about 25 slots which is the class size, I believe.
Click to expand...

Class sizes are not 25 students. In premed its 130ish and in the 5 year its 200 smthing or rather
 
Its GEP that takes 25 non-EU students. That does NOT mean that they take 25 from the USA and Candada. Don't forget they interview in Hong Kong, Malaysia, the Middle East etc. So the 25 seats are going to be split between all those applicants.

Anyone have any idea how many US/Canadian GEPs get in?
 
And also, my example was hypothetical numbers only. They were just numbers I picked out of thin air to make a point.
 
Mr. McDuck said:
More likely they have more students than spots. Say there are 25 spots and 100 applications. Well, the school will probably interview 40-50 people for those 25 spots. Don't forget, they also have a second round of interviews, which probably means they don't expect to fill the class with the first round of interviews (obviously, if they have 25 stellar candidates, they'd probably just cancel the second round).

Good luck to you guys, but not too much luck, because I'm in the second round. ;)
Click to expand...

wait a sec. when did you find out that you were in the second round?
 
Okay I'm calling tomorrow, lol!
 
co06 said:
My interview is at 9a.m. so I guess I'm the first one to go. I highly doubt that they would do an interview at 8a.m. At least I would hope not.

There are going to be four people there:

Professor Alan Johnson, Director, Graduate Entry
Professor Cathal Kelly, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine
Dr. Kenneth Winser, Vice Dean
Dr. Terry McWade

My friend who is a first year at RCSI said that she was interviewed by 2 people, Alan Johnson and Kenneth Winser. If you are applying for the Graduate Entry (4-year) Programme then I assume that Alan Johnson would be there.

I think I am going to go get breakfast at the Sheraton at around 7:45 if anyone who as an early interview wants to join.
Click to expand...

If anyone could answer any of these questions it would be greatl appreciated:
- What is the interview length? I have heard everything from 15-45 minutes!
- According to the posts I have read, most applicants where interviewed by only 2 people (Winser and Kelly). Is it going to be 4 for us this time? :eek:
- What is the # of applicants/seat ratio for us first rounders? All i know at the moment is about 50% of applicants are chosen. Hopefully that the other 50% decided not to attend RCSI, because a 50% reject rate is damn high, considering that all the first rounders are the cream the crop.
- ...and What type of clothes are you guys wearing for the interview? :laugh:

Interview
2007 Provisional Interview Schedule for non EU overseas students
USA - New York March 23rd - 25th
Canada - Toronto March 27th - 28th
Malaysia - Early March 2007
Singapore - Mid March
Hong Kong - Mid March
Middle East - Late March/early April 2007
UK - to be determined
Last but not least, i got this from http://www.rcsi.ie/admissions/Interview/index.asp?id=24&pid=1099. what is really confusing is that I am Canadian applicant from Vancouver, but I was sent to New York??? This makes no sense.
 
"Cream of the crop"? Just because you aren't selected for the first round doesn't mean you aren't the "cream of the crop". Last time I checked, a 3.81, 6+ publications and 3 years of surgical assisting isn't too shabby.
 
AMEN, Mr. McDuck!

Med school apps are a crap shoot and everyone knows it.
 
Hmmm anyone knows why they want us to study the website? There doesn't seem to be anything substantial enough really to spend a lot of time studying. I was expecting a large amount but there only seems to be a relatively small pdf file and some small paragraphs on other pages.
 
BRAR said:
If anyone could answer any of these questions it would be greatl appreciated:
- What is the interview length? I have heard everything from 15-45 minutes!
- According to the posts I have read, most applicants where interviewed by only 2 people (Winser and Kelly). Is it going to be 4 for us this time? :eek:
- What is the # of applicants/seat ratio for us first rounders? All i know at the moment is about 50% of applicants are chosen. Hopefully that the other 50% decided not to attend RCSI, because a 50% reject rate is damn high, considering that all the first rounders are the cream the crop.
- ...and What type of clothes are you guys wearing for the interview? :laugh:
Click to expand...

Each Interview Slot is 1 hour long. So i guess it could vary within that timeframe.

Typically you will have 2 interviewers. Four faculty will be there, so you could have all four, you could have two. It shouldn't matter.

The ratio is variable. If you have an interview its a foot in the door, but they don't have a set number of people to accept becasue there is always second round.
 
Hey all,

I'm new to the boards. Just as an FYI, I emailed ABP and they informed me that 50% of the seats are alloted to round 1, and the other 50% is for the round 2 interviewers:)

Looks like they just devide the applicant pool in two, and an equal amount of acceptances are given from each round.
 
I may be wrong, but I have a theory that they just separate the two groups alphabetically.
 
I doubt that. My last name begins with G, which is only the 7th (7th? Yeah, 7th) letter.
 
Maybe it's reverse alphabetical order! Mine starts with C... (I don't know if I'm in the second round yet...not sure I want to find out at the moment)
 
I doubt it's alphabetical. I really don't know the reasoning behind it. I would have thought it would be based on merit, but obviously that isn't it either. It may just be random. :confused:
 
redsand said:
I emailed ABP and they informed me that 50% of the seats are alloted to round 1, and the other 50% is for the round 2 interviewers:)
Click to expand...

So...would that be 12.5 seats for each round? :laugh:
 
I'm not sure.

But this is an excerpt from the email I was sent

"...there will be two rounds of
interviews this year. 50% of the class will be chosen from each round"

Hope that helps:)
 
Now, because I know how much we all love to torture ourselves through speculation...

Has the geographical location theory been thrown out? I am under the impression that no one from the West has gotten an interview yet. Any thoughts?
 
No, it's not geographical, because I'm in the second round, and I'm in NJ.
 
hey anyone know the dress code for the interview?
 
Suite, dress shirt, tie, shoes, dress socks.

Face should be clean shaved, nails clipped, make sure cell phone is off, and also make sure you are not wearing heavey jewlery.

These are tips for any interview.

Make good eye contact, do not use your hands as part of body language (unless absolutely necessary), try not to be nervous, SPEAK CLEARLY AND SLOWLY. Have a good breakfast before the interview (nothing greasy though, because that might give you upset stomach)

Best of luck.
 
lol did you get that from ABP? cuz I asked them about the dress code when I made my appointment and they said that I don't have to wear a suit.
 
If you don't want to wear a suit (or if you don't have one) you can wear dress pants, a dress shirt and a tie if you are a guy. If you are a girl a dress skirt or pants and a professional looking shirt is fine. Just no jeans or cargo pants. Generally, it is a better idea to overdress than under dress for an interview. Best of luck with your interview.
 
No I did not get that from ABP.

I have been a working professional for some time now, and the dress code I've stated above basically is a standard dress code for any interview.

I also agree with mdcanuck...if you don't have a suite then just wear dress pants and a shirt.....but you must look professional.
 
Since when is talking with your hands a bad thing? I would think that being a little animated and interested is better than looking like a robot.
 
Mr. McDuck said:
Since when is talking with your hands a bad thing? I would think that being a little animated and interested is better than looking like a robot.
Click to expand...
:laugh: I definitely agree. Just give me one of those interviews---or in my case, just an acceptance :D
 
I talk with my hands all the time. I've never had an interview in which I used my hands that didn't A) go well, and B) end with a good result. In fact, the one interview in which I DIDN'T use my hands, I never got a call back.
 
There is a difference between being interesting and engaging the interviewer with your intellect versus being "animated".

Excessive use of hands makes one stand out......not necesserily in a positive way.

What I am suggesting is that the use of body language should be judicious, some people have a tendency to over do with body language under stressful situations (i.e. Medical School Interviews).
 
So, don't make me beg. Let's have some feedback on the interviews!

Questions asked, length of the interview, what you [and everyone else] wore, etc.
 
I had my interview on Saturday for the 4 year program. The person before me was a no-show, so i went early. Overall the interview was really relaxed. There were 2 interviewers who couldn't have been nicer. They asked the usual questions you would expect:
Why RCSI?
Why Medicine?
They also asked
Where else are you applying and what is your first choice
I didnt want to lie, so I told them i was applying to an american school as well, which maybe was a mistake.
The worst was when one of them asked me about a specific course I had taken as an undergrad like, 4 years ago. I explained the course but then he wanted me to recall specific facts. I totally blanked and tried to dodge the question as best I could. Of course on the 5 hour bus ride home i thought of a billion things i could have said. oh well.
Overall, they were really great about answering all my questions and they had a good sense of humor.
I'm a little worried, cause my interview was only about 20 minutes. it was the last interview of the day though, so i'm hoping that's the reason.
There were 2 other students in the waiting area (i think high school) and everyone wore a suit, including the interviewers, so i'd recommend going formal. thats it... good luck to everyone else.
 
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