staying with student hosts

[drfancypants]

hey everybody, what's the experience of staying with a student host for an OOS interview been like? i would be honored and grateful to do this, but a good night's sleep is oh-so-very important the night before, and i'm a wicked light sleeper. anyone end up sharing a noisy studio apartment or regret not getting a hotel room?

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[mvenus929]

I only had one instance that resulted in me not getting a full night's sleep. Well, two, but they were on the same trip and for basically the same reason. The first, my flight into town got delayed by 4 hours, so I didn't get to the student's place until 1-2 in the morning (yes, I felt horrible, but I was under 21 and wouldn't have been able to find a hotel to stay in). They were doing construction in the building next door, so even though I had an afternoon interview, I was woken up fairly early due to that. The second one was on the same trip... I had to make my way out to the suburbs on the subway, and it took a whole lot longer than I expected, so I didn't end up arriving until 10 or so at night. They were all pretty quiet and everything, which was nice, but then I had to get up at 4 or 5 the next morning in order to catch a bus to the school. Definitely not fun.

Otherwise, I've had no issue. And I highly, highly recommend staying with a student if it's at all possible.

 

[Playa]

^ Try to see if you can get a hot chick as your host.

 

[NickNaylor]

You might just want to get a hotel room if you're a light sleeper...

 

[Avoidthetiger]

earplugs.

 

[ucsfstudents]

I would recommend hotel if you're a light sleeper. otherwise, having a student host should be a great way to learn about the school.

 

[accidentprone]

I highly recommend staying with student hosts--see the thread I started on this topic yesterday.

Although I'm not a light sleeper, I do have trouble falling asleep in a strange bed, especially when I know a big event will happen the next day. I've found that taking half a Unisom tablet (available at your local grocery store) takes care of that problem. A full one leaves me a bit too tired in the morning, but you can experiment to see what works well for you.

Another thing I've found is that what really matters is the sleep I get 2 and 3 nights before an important event. Losing a bit of sleep the night before doesn't really affect me, but it catches up to me on the second day. You may be different, but it's worth thinking about.

 

[45408]

I highly recommend staying with student hosts--see the thread I started on this topic yesterday.

Although I'm not a light sleeper, I do have trouble falling asleep in a strange bed, especially when I know a big event will happen the next day. I've found that taking half a Unisom tablet (available at your local grocery store) takes care of that problem. A full one leaves me a bit too tired in the morning, but you can experiment to see what works well for you.

Another thing I've found is that what really matters is the sleep I get 2 and 3 nights before an important event. Losing a bit of sleep the night before doesn't really affect me, but it catches up to me on the second day. You may be different, but it's worth thinking about.

Try a sleeping pill out in advance before you take something that might make you do something weird at someone else's house. Just saying.

 

[chman]

Try a sleeping pill out in advance before you take something that might make you do something weird at someone else's house. Just saying.

This is true, but as you probably know Unisom is just a glorified version of benadryl. In other words just an OTC pill.

 

[shoebusiness85]

I have the same problem -- I really need to stay in my own room before an interview to get a good night's sleep, and I don't mind paying for a hotel.

But I'm worried that if I stay in a hotel when there are student hosts offering their rooms, that will look bad. Does anyone else worry about this? I feel like if my interviewer finds out that I stayed at a hotel, he will think that I am not truly interested in his school because it might look like I don't have any interest in spending time with students the night before. Or worse, he'll think I'm antisocial, which is not the case.

What should I say if an interviewer asks me if I stayed with a host? I mean, how can I say that I stayed in a hotel, without sounding bad?

 

[chman]

I have the same problem -- I really need to stay in my own room before an interview to get a good night's sleep, and I don't mind paying for a hotel.

But I'm worried that if I stay in a hotel when there are student hosts offering their rooms, that will look bad. Does anyone else worry about this? I feel like if my interviewer finds out that I stayed at a hotel, he will think that I am not truly interested in his school because it might look like I don't have any interest in spending time with students the night before. Or worse, he'll think I'm antisocial, which is not the case.

What should I say if an interviewer asks me if I stayed with a host? I mean, how can I say that I stayed in a hotel, without sounding bad?

Just tell the truth!

 

[MedYEP]

I have the same problem -- I really need to stay in my own room before an interview to get a good night's sleep, and I don't mind paying for a hotel.

But I'm worried that if I stay in a hotel when there are student hosts offering their rooms, that will look bad. Does anyone else worry about this? I feel like if my interviewer finds out that I stayed at a hotel, he will think that I am not truly interested in his school because it might look like I don't have any interest in spending time with students the night before. Or worse, he'll think I'm antisocial, which is not the case.

What should I say if an interviewer asks me if I stayed with a host? I mean, how can I say that I stayed in a hotel, without sounding bad?

I didn't stay with a student host for any of my interviews. There is nothing wrong with it, it's just a personal preference. Interview day is important and you should do whatever you are most comfortable with to prepare for it, and if staying in a hotel is better for you, then you should do it and not worry about what your interviewer will think. I really, really doubt that anyone actually cares if you stay with a host or not, it's just a convenient option that's out there if you want to take advantage of it.

 

[mvenus929]

What should I say if an interviewer asks me if I stayed with a host? I mean, how can I say that I stayed in a hotel, without sounding bad?

There are times when there will be few med students willing to host... particularly around exam time. We do have the right to deny anyone that wants a host (though we tend to place them all), if for whatever reason we can't find a host for them on the night they want to come through.

 

[NickNaylor]

I have the same problem -- I really need to stay in my own room before an interview to get a good night's sleep, and I don't mind paying for a hotel.

But I'm worried that if I stay in a hotel when there are student hosts offering their rooms, that will look bad. Does anyone else worry about this? I feel like if my interviewer finds out that I stayed at a hotel, he will think that I am not truly interested in his school because it might look like I don't have any interest in spending time with students the night before. Or worse, he'll think I'm antisocial, which is not the case.

What should I say if an interviewer asks me if I stayed with a host? I mean, how can I say that I stayed in a hotel, without sounding bad?

For real?

 

[URHere]

But I'm worried that if I stay in a hotel when there are student hosts offering their rooms, that will look bad.

If it makes you feel any better, most schools don't really have a flood of students "offering their rooms". At my school, current students receive an email each week indicating which students have requested student hosting, and asking us to help out. If we have the space and time, we look at the bios, pick someone we think we would get along with, and volunteer. So, unless an applicant requests a student host, we really have no idea that they exist...

Long story short, no one will be offended if you stay in a hotel.

 

[DancinSarah]

If you are a bad sleeper, I think you should figure out remedies to deal with that at least for the short term (like sleeping pills), because IMO student hosting is an invaluable experience. From my interviews, I learned very little from the school on interview day, because most if not all of the relevant information is either available online or SDN. The students can give a much more honest view of the school, even though admittedly the student hosts obviously self-select for the students that are already in love with the school. The student who is miserable there probably wouldn't volunteer to host but these students are rare from what I hear.

Not to mention saving like $75 to $100+ on average is nothing to sneer at. Yay for student hosts!

 

[drfancypants]

If you are a bad sleeper, I think you should figure out remedies to deal with that at least for the short term (like sleeping pills), because IMO student hosting is an invaluable experience. From my interviews, I learned very little from the school on interview day, because most if not all of the relevant information is either available online or SDN. The students can give a much more honest view of the school, even though admittedly the student hosts obviously self-select for the students that are already in love with the school.

good advice, thanks! and i'm counting on medical school + residency as a cure for my body's picky sleeping habits.