Unique ways to get prepared for an interview (i.e. speed dating)?

[texas aggie]

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I had a friend say he did speed dating every week to get used to the MMI format. I thought it was ridiculous but he said it helped.

I asked my sister to interview me, and it went really well. Same thing happened when I asked my friend to interview me. I feel like having people you know interview you doesn't really prepare you that well (it doesn't make you nervous or anything). I honestly think I might try speed dating to get used to selling yourself in under 10 minutes.

Anyone know any other non-conventional ways to prepare?

EDIT - I meant "e.g." not "i.e."

 

[TheShaker]

I had a friend say he did speed dating every week to get used to the MMI format. I thought it was ridiculous but he said it helped.

I asked my sister to interview me, and it went really well. Same thing happened when I asked my friend to interview me. I feel like having people you know interview you doesn't really prepare you that well (it doesn't make you nervous or anything). I honestly think I might try speed dating to get used to selling yourself in under 10 minutes.

Anyone know any other non-conventional ways to prepare?

EDIT - I meant "e.g." not "i.e."

I talked to myself on my 20 minute drives home from school. 🙂

 

[isquared]

Apply for a job that you have no intention of taking. Practice selling yourself in the interview.

 

[NontradCA]

Apply for a job that you have no intention of taking. Practice selling yourself in the interview.

Yes this is probably the best thing.

 

[eyebrowdoc]

speed dating? I cringed just reading that

 

[OCDOCDOCD]

Apply for a job that you have no intention of taking. Practice selling yourself in the interview.

Yes this is probably the best thing.

Because it's not like applying for jobs is an extremely time consuming process in and of itself, right?

 

[Jepstein30]

Apply for a job that you have no intention of taking. Practice selling yourself in the interview.

Ah right, just waste other people's valuable time.. no big deal

Talk to yourself in the car
Get other willing people to conduct a mock interview
etc.

 

[TheWeeIceMan]

I tried the speed dating approach to get ready for my interviews this cycle. I'm not sure how well it worked though. Most of my interviewers didn't appreciate my advances, but I did get a few numbers....

 

[earf]

Record yourself on camera answering standard interview questions (e.g., tell me about yourself, why do you want to go into medicine, etc) and send it to your friends/family who are willing and would be honest to give you feedback. Take it one step further and post it to social media and ask for feedback. This way you can see for yourself the nuances in your speech and body language.

You have to follow up and not only take their advice, but implement their feedback in subsequent mock interviews. Notice subtle things that are bad habits (tapping hands, nervous tick, not looking directly at eyes/camera, filler words like um/uh/like/you know - this last one is quantifiable if you just count how many per interview you do) and try hard to reduce these in second, third, and further recordings/interviews.

Once you get comfortable with doing this on camera, you'll be much more comfortable doing this in person than if u hadnt practiced on camera. I think practicing in front of a mirror is good, but you don't notice habits you do that are bad unless someone else tells you or if you see yourself on camera.

Also, Google "How to ace an interview" and listen to podcasts. Then take the advice and practice it.

 

[rolliespring]

Talk to random people. Don't just say hi or something. Get into a conversation.
If you work or volunteer at a hospital, talk to patients or someone. I think this at least gets you into a mode of being comfortable talking to strangers.

 

[Doctor Strange]

Don't be a tease. Nobody likes a tease.

 

[earf]

Talk to random people. Don't just say hi or something. Get into a conversation.
If you work or volunteer at a hospital, talk to patients or someone. I think this at least gets you into a mode of being comfortable talking to strangers.

Leading people on isn't quite the same context or intention as trying to convey that you want to be a doctor. Unless you start with the line "hey baby. I'm going to be a doctor. Would you like a physical? 😉"

 

[NewYorker9]

I tried the speed dating approach to get ready for my interviews this cycle. I'm not sure how well it worked though. Most of my interviewers didn't appreciate my advances, but I did get a few numbers....

In all seriousness, OP, I did practice interviews with career services at my school to help prep me, and it gave me great practice talking about my application and experiences with people who were complete strangers.

Strangely enough, I thought taking the MCAT was good practice for MMI. There were quite a few parallels. Like how you have to keep on focusing on passages, there's a time limit, and whether you perform strongly or poorly on one you immediately have to have a short memory and move on to the next stage.

 

[Palam]

Interviewing. I didn't do so well on my first hospital interview, so despite getting the job, I still went on my second hospital job interview. I practiced how to be proactive in selling myself, not reactive. Know what you're applying for, where you're applying, and understand what the employer is looking for. Then spin everything you have in that direction and really harp on the stuff that's pertinent.

 

[serendipity007]

Apply for a job that you have no intention of taking. Practice selling yourself in the interview.

This (modified): I was already applying for some competitive internship programs and was lucky enough to get a couple of interviews. Since the actual interview is challenging, this is not impressive. Anyways, I went to the interviews and gave it my best shot. I was able to get only 1 position, but the toughest interviews helped me get in the zone, if you will.

Also, I practiced with an acquaintance who I hadn't seen in a good two years. I avoided practice interview with a friend because I was afraid they would be too nice to point unglaring flaws.

I had to take an Amtrak the day prior to my interview, I talked to a couple of strangers on purpose. This increased my comfort level. I was lucky (who was sitting next to me in the waiting area) since the 1st person turned out to be a guest researcher who had a very personal medical story which he kindly shared with me. And the 2nd person (who was sharing a seat with me in the train) was a former medical school admissions officer at a top medical school! He gave me pointers 🙂

Guys, seriously, go and talk to strangers in addition to targeted practice with friends/acquaintances. It is the best way to do it.

 

[AdamAustin]

This can really be helpful sometimes. Once you gain confidence then no one can stop you from qualifying in any interview.

 

[487806]

Apply for a job that you have no intention of taking. Practice selling yourself in the interview.

Yup. The high unemployment rate is a myth and there are thousands of jobs out there with employers having nothing better to do but waste their time coaching a premed how to interview properly.

 

[jdfamily]

Yup. The high unemployment rate is a myth and there are thousands of jobs out there with employers having nothing better to do but waste their time coaching a premed how to interview properly.

I wouldn't say its a myth, there are lots of people without jobs... Whether or not they are all proactively looking for jobs is a separate ordeal... Nonetheless not so related to this topic.

I wouldn't apply for jobs you have no intention of taking; rather, I would utilize the resources available at your college or university that offers practice in this area. The university I attend has a 'Career Services' center that helps with all aspects of the application process. There are many things that your center could offer like video recordings that you might not know are available. I would hope that each university/college has a similar center.

 

[487806]

I wouldn't say its a myth, there are lots of people without jobs... Whether or not they are all proactively looking for jobs is a separate ordeal... Nonetheless not so related to this topic.

I wouldn't apply for jobs you have no intention of taking; rather, I would utilize the resources available at your college or university that offers practice in this area. The university I attend has a 'Career Services' center that helps with all aspects of the application process. There are many things that your center could offer like video recordings that you might not know are available. I would hope that each university/college has a similar center.

The "myth" on unemployment was a ridicule of someone saying to apply for a job you're not interested just to practice your interview skills. That was terrible advice.

I agree with what you say.

 

[Soulstice]

The "myth" on unemployment was a ridicule of someone saying to apply for a job you're not interested just to practice your interview skills. That was terrible advice.

I agree with what you say.

I don't know - consulting behavioral interviews are a good way to prep, IMO

 

[whatbout2morrow]

The Career Services department of the university I go to offers free mock interviews for students & alumni. See if something similar is available for you.

Also, there is a thread somewhere here which lists the names of volunteer SDNers in medical school who will give you a mock interview via Skype. Check that out as well.

 

[Kurosaki Ichigo]

I say go to the pages on SDN that list the surveys people took for their interviews. There's a page for each school and there's enough of a history of questions for most schools that you can compile a list of questions you're most likely to be asked.

Sit in a chair with your list of questions, and answer them in the mirror. This allows you to manipulate your posture, facial expressions, eye contact, hand movements, and literally see how you look when answering questions. After you've mastered this, see if a friend or family member can help you by asking you the questions, and you answer them. This way, you practice the stuff you did in the mirror, but with a real person this time. They can also catch you if you say anything that sounds stupid or incorrect. Also, it slightly pressures you to be a bit more concise with your responses. Lastly, you can usually do mock interviews at your college/university's career center. I personally didn't take advantage of this so I don't know what kind of questions they ask, but it gives you the opportunity to dress the part, interview with a stranger, and get a better feel for the whole thing.

Preparation is key. It greatly reduces nervousness for the actual day.

 

[487806]

I tried the speed dating approach to get ready for my interviews this cycle. I'm not sure how well it worked though. Most of my interviewers didn't appreciate my advances, but I did get a few numbers....

How did I miss this? This is actually an awesome advice and I recommend this to OP. 👍

 

[Ost3oclast]

I tried the speed dating approach to get ready for my interviews this cycle. I'm not sure how well it worked though. Most of my interviewers didn't appreciate my advances, but I did get a few numbers....

Haha hey at least you tried.

 

[jdfamily]

I say go to the pages on SDN that list the surveys people took for their interviews. There's a page for each school and there's enough of a history of questions for most schools that you can compile a list of questions you're most likely to be asked.

I looked for a bit and couldn't seem to find the pages with the survey and such. Could anyone be so kind and point me in the right direction?

Please and thanks!

 

[Pacna]

I looked for a bit and couldn't seem to find the pages with the survey and such. Could anyone be so kind and point me in the right direction?

Please and thanks!

http://studentdoctor.net/schools/?view=medical 👍

 

[wb1]

So, I got a list of speed dating events in my area from a friend. I'm surprised to find out there are more on the list with other interests.

I'm not interested in scoring any ph#. However, I feel that I could be contributing as a way for a few potential dater to practice on me. Others would probably want to beat me in the head because I'd waste their time.

What do you think guys think (MMI) question? Is it ethical or unethical? Obviously, I'd be using this event for personal gain rather than scoring a date?

PM me your Ans if you like no more than 57 lines.

 

[Doctor Strange]

So, I got a list of speed dating events in my area from a friend. I'm surprised to find out there are more on the list with other interests.

I'm not interested in scoring any ph#. However, I feel that I could be contributing as a way for a few potential dater to practice on me. Others would probably want to beat me in the head because I'd waste their time.

What do you think guys think (MMI) question? Is it ethical or unethical? Obviously, I'd be using this event for personal gain rather than scoring a date?

PM me your Ans if you like no more than 57 lines.

Are you drunk?

 

[Varaneka]

leading people on isn't quite the same context or intention as trying to convey that you want to be a doctor. Unless you start with the line "hey baby. I'm going to be a doctor. Would you like a physical? 😉"

lmao

 

[BlueLabel]

Leading people on isn't quite the same context or intention as trying to convey that you want to be a doctor. Unless you start with the line "hey baby. I'm going to be a doctor. Would you like a physical? 😉"

Free mammograms, step right up.