"So, do you have any questions for us?"

[EthylMethylMan]

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What's are good questions to ask when you get asked this at an interview? I have my first interview soon, and I've been sitting here trying to think of questions to ask if this comes up, but I'm drawing a massive blank. What kinds of questions have worked for people in the past?

 

[ANATOMYgirl22]

What's are good questions to ask when you get asked this at an interview? I have my first interview soon, and I've been sitting here trying to think of questions to ask if this comes up, but I'm drawing a massive blank. What kinds of questions have worked for people in the past?

A few that I think are good...

"Is there anything about XXX school that you think really makes it stand out among other medical schools?"
"Why did you decided to go to/work at/teach at XXX school?"
"If you could change anything about XXX school what would it be?"

I just like questions that are a little more personal and help you understand what other people really like/dislike about the school

 

[Lya]

"Is there anything you wish to see improved?l

This is one of questions I asked every interviewer, just adding to what the poster said above.

 

[Vans42]

What's are good questions to ask when you get asked this at an interview? I have my first interview soon, and I've been sitting here trying to think of questions to ask if this comes up, but I'm drawing a massive blank. What kinds of questions have worked for people in the past?

One thing I ask practically everyone is how they like living in the area and how they came to be there.

 

[13132]

Ugh...yeah totally have some ready to go.

One of my interviewers pulled the "What are you questions for me?" after only 5 minutes (out of 30-35) of inteviewing. He kept saying "What other questions? Any more? Surely you have more...". I think he was trying to see how I'd react, and after I ran out he went back to interviewing me.

Moral of the story...they dont always come at the end!

 

[alpinism]

How much time do you get to study for step 1?
How is 3rd year graded? (% of shelf exams v. attending evaluations v. skill assessments v. quizzes)
What are the required 3rd year rotations?
How many electives can you take 3rd and 4th year?
Are there any restrictions on where you can do electives?
How are the rotation sites and order of rotations determined?
How many students are on each rotation at one time?

Unfortunately many adcom members can't even answer most of these questions. Try to get the email addresses of a few M3s and M4s during your interview day.

 

[alpinism]

One of the best threads ever made on the subject:
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=104541

Agree with everything except the early patient contact being bogus part.

 

[Captain Sisko]

How much time do you get to study for step 1?
How is 3rd year graded? (% of shelf exams v. attending evaluations v. skill assessments v. quizzes)
What are the required 3rd year rotations?
How many electives can you take 3rd and 4th year?
Are there any restrictions on where you can do electives?
How are the rotation sites and order of rotations determined?
How many students are on each rotation at one time?

Unfortunately many adcom members can't even answer most of these questions. Try to get the email addresses of a few M3s and M4s during your interview day.

Pro-tip: avoid asking questions that can be answered by perusing the school website.

 

[Lya]

Pro-tip: avoid asking questions that can be answered by perusing the school website.

True.

OP, what I did was to have these questions in mind when you look through the school website. Some of them will be answered, and others won't. Take these unanswered questions for your interviews and student guides. You might not ask the same question over and over again, because maybe the answer was available publicly somewhere for some schools.

 

[weasel23]

I try to taylor my question to a strong point of my app. Like if I was big on research I would ask how good the research opps are and how many students do research. can apply it to whatever you like to do

 

[SN12357]

A few that I think are good...

"Is there anything about XXX school that you think really makes it stand out among other medical schools?"
"Why did you decided to go to/work at/teach at XXX school?"
"If you could change anything about XXX school what would it be?"

I just like questions that are a little more personal and help you understand what other people really like/dislike about the school

"Why did you decide to go to/work/teach at XXX school" is definitely a good one. People like to talk about themselves.

 

[Pandaeac]

I usually find a few unique points about the school and ask some questions about those. Like "can you tell me more about _______ program?"

 

[pyrrion89]

If you have any unique career aspirations or special interests that make you stand out, the best questions to task at the end of the interview should be about how the school can help you develop those aspirations and interests further. You will show that you are thoughtful, have a plan, are unique, and will get them thinking about how you will add to the diversity and talent of the student body. It's also a question that can require them to put some thought into to give you a customized response, so they'll find it refreshing to not have to give a "tour guide" response that they always give to students' generic questions.

 

[The Helpful Aye Aye]

A lot of premed advisors have contact information of alumnus that matriculated to medical school. A good way to prep for an interview in general is to talk to a current medical student- they know things about the school that are currently going on (such as new programs being tested out). Since pretty much everything is on the internet nowadays, a questions whose answer is easy to find shows a lack depth of interest in that particular school. Most schools have something interesting going on, so you don't have to feign interest in a mundane part of the school/force a question because you feel you have to.