Weirdest Interview Moments?

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MedSchoolBarbie

MedSchoolBarbie

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So I haven't heard about super weird interviews (aside from odd stress test questions). What were some weird moments y'all have experienced this cycle? My interviewer gave me a hug after my interview (I wonder if I'm a shoe-in).:laugh:
 
At a DO school a couple months ago - otherwise a good school but this moment stuck with me.

Interviewer (2nd year student): So what was the biggest challenge you faced in undergrad?

Me: Well, idk if you have read my PS but I struggled with my grades early on and have really worked hard to improve my academic standing. In fact I've learned a lot about myself from overcoming this challenge... disciplined study habits, time-management, resilience, etc... Really have matured from this process.

Interviewer: I know how that can feel. I personally hate studying. I'm doing enough but I just find it hard to get motivated to study.

Me: Yea it's not exactly the highlight of my day.

Interviewer: I was actually on academic probation for a while back in undergad. Even now I dread classes, but I do great in clinicals!

I then changed the subject by asking something about the curriculum. But really, wow. :smack:
 
MaduNotSoff said:
At a DO school a couple months ago - otherwise a good school but this moment stuck with me.

Interviewer (2nd year student): So what was the biggest challenge you faced in undergrad?

Me: Well, idk if you have read my PS but I struggled with my grades early on and have really worked hard to improve my academic standing. In fact I've learned a lot about myself from overcoming this challenge... disciplined study habits, time-management, resilience, etc... Really have matured from this process.

Interviewer: I know how that can feel. I personally hate studying. I'm doing enough but I just find it hard to get motivated to study.

Me: Yea it's not exactly the highlight of my day.

Interviewer: I was actually on academic probation for a while back in undergad. Even now I dread classes, but I do great in clinicals!

I then changed the subject by asking something about the curriculum. But really, wow. :smack:
Click to expand...

What is this, LUCOM?
 
MaduNotSoff said:
At a DO school a couple months ago - otherwise a good school but this moment stuck with me.

Interviewer (2nd year student): So what was the biggest challenge you faced in undergrad?

Me: Well, idk if you have read my PS but I struggled with my grades early on and have really worked hard to improve my academic standing. In fact I've learned a lot about myself from overcoming this challenge... disciplined study habits, time-management, resilience, etc... Really have matured from this process.

Interviewer: I know how that can feel. I personally hate studying. I'm doing enough but I just find it hard to get motivated to study.

Me: Yea it's not exactly the highlight of my day.

Interviewer: I was actually on academic probation for a while back in undergad. Even now I dread classes, but I do great in clinicals!

I then changed the subject by asking something about the curriculum. But really, wow. :smack:
Click to expand...

the interviewer OWNED you!

My worst interview a couple of years back was with a guy who spent 90% of the time telling me how great he was and 10% of the time how he wished I played an instrument so that the class could be more interesting. Final minute he tells me he thinks i am a good fit, but admits that he has not read my file. He just "knows It" cause of the tinkle in my eye...


yea.. i didn't rank that program that high.
 
allantois said:
What is this, LUCOM?
Click to expand...

:hilarious: LOL no it wasn't. Newer school in the south.

HelpPleaseMD said:
the interviewer OWNED you!

My worst interview a couple of years back was with a guy who spent 90% of the time telling me how great he was and 10% of the time how he wished I played an instrument so that the class could be more interesting. Final minute he tells me he thinks i am a good fit, but admits that he has not read my file. He just "knows It" cause of the tinkle in my eye...


yea.. i didn't rank that program that high.
Click to expand...

Yea I definitely got 1-upped there... Not quite the best way to sell the school but I appreciated the honesty.
 
An interviewer told me his entire life story for an hour. It was very interesting and he was a really nice guy. I wasn't exactly sure how he was going to be able to advocate for me on the adcom ("Yes, Sunflower was very good at nodding and smiling and saying 'wow' at the appropriate times" or something?), but it all worked out and I got in 🙂
 
sunflower18 said:
An interviewer told me his entire life story for an hour. It was very interesting and he was a really nice guy. I wasn't exactly sure how he was going to be able to advocate for me on the adcom ("Yes, Sunflower was very good at nodding and smiling and saying 'wow' at the appropriate times" or something?), but it all worked out and I got in 🙂
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Being a good listener is important! Otherwise, how are you supposed to help your patients lol? One of my interviewers spent a lot of time talking, so I kept myself engaged and nodded and smiled and maintained eye contact. Personally, I'd rather sit there and listen to someone else talk than talk about myself.
 
True Story:

Be me. Be at Drexel interviewing. One-on-one goes well. He puts his hand out but it was high so I was confused. I went in for the hug. I could tell by the look on his face that it was a handshake, not a hug. He hugged me anyway. I'm sure it was to make me feel less like a *****. We were locked in this SUPER AWKWARD embrace for a few seconds. I walked away embarrassed. I got wait listed. I blame it on the hug.
 
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DrOMG said:
True Story:

Be me. Be at Drexel interviewing. One-on-one goes well. He puts his hand out but it was high so I was confused. I went in for the hug. I could tell by the look on his face that it was a handshake, not a hug. He hugged me anyway. I'm sure it was to make me feel less like a *****. We were locked in this SUPER AWKWARD embrace for a few seconds. I walked away embarrassed. I got wait listed. I blame it on the hug.
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Ouch. Yep, anything that can make me cringe like this wins. 😛
 
DrOMG said:
True Story:

Be me. Be at Drexel interviewing. One-on-one goes well. He puts his hand out but it was high so I was confused. I went in for the hug. I could tell by the look on his face that it was a handshake, not a hug. He hugged me anyway. I'm sure it was to make me feel less like a *****. We were locked in this SUPER AWKWARD embrace for a few seconds. I walked away embarrassed. I got wait listed. I blame it on the hug.
Click to expand...
That's SO weird! The interviewer who hugged me was at Drexel!
 
When I interviewed at Vanderbilt, which, at the time, did a single 1-hour interview with a faculty member, my interviewer had a nameplate outside of his door and on his desk that simply said "The King." I was absolutely mortified, but he ended up being a very pleasant guy. It struck me as quite odd that someone would actually do that with a nameplate, though.
 
Gregarious_and_Hilarious said:
I had a student interviewer who was drinking soda and burping throughout the interview, and then concluded the interview by stating she didn't really want to be there

It was interesting to say the least
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She? Eww...
 
NickNaylor said:
When I interviewed at Vanderbilt, which, at the time, did a single 1-hour interview with a faculty member, my interviewer had a nameplate outside of his door and on his desk that simply said "The King." I was absolutely mortified, but he ended up being a very pleasant guy. It struck me as quite odd that someone would actually do that with a nameplate, though.
Click to expand...
I expect that more in the South for some reason.
 
tuhtles said:
In one of my interviews I entered the faculty's office and on her desk was an anatomy/physiology textbook propped open on the section of the male reproductive system.
Click to expand...

Obviously for research purposes.
 
Ace Khalifa said:
Being a good listener is important! Otherwise, how are you supposed to help your patients lol? One of my interviewers spent a lot of time talking, so I kept myself engaged and nodded and smiled and maintained eye contact. Personally, I'd rather sit there and listen to someone else talk than talk about myself.
Click to expand...

I know being a good listener is important, I was just kidding 🙂 he was a really neat guy! I was just surprised. But it all worked out!
 
NickNaylor said:
When I interviewed at Vanderbilt, which, at the time, did a single 1-hour interview with a faculty member, my interviewer had a nameplate outside of his door and on his desk that simply said "The King." I was absolutely mortified, but he ended up being a very pleasant guy. It struck me as quite odd that someone would actually do that with a nameplate, though.
Click to expand...

given it was at Vandy, my guess would be some kind of Elvis Presley reference/inside joke, still funny though lol
 
DoctorLacrosse said:
given it was at Vandy, my guess would be some kind of Elvis Presley reference/inside joke, still funny though lol
Click to expand...

That's a good point actually, but nothing led me to believe that he was much of an Elvis fan...

But perhaps I was selling him short and assuming the worst.
 
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A faculty interviewer's phone went off about 15 minutes into our interview. I nodded towards the phone as if to say "go ahead and answer if you need to" and she said "That's just my calendar reminding me that I am supposed to be interviewing you right now." me: well, here I am.

During the same interview as above - she says her calf is cramping, and proceeds to begin stretching/doing yoga on the floor.

Quite an interesting experience for my first ever interview.
 
Group interview with fellow med students. They ask us if we have had any other interviews. I say I have had one and then they ask where, how it went and my opinion of the school I interviewed at. I tried my best to strike a “I liked the school, but really like what I see here today more” type of response, but think it came out a little clumsy and insincere. In hindsight, I should have just lied and said I had no interviews yet.

Also at the same school had a faculty interview where the interviewer said "Oh I see you are from (neighboring state) surely you will get in to their state school". I responded with well I hope so, but I like this school better. He ended the interview with saying he thought I would be fine. Funny thing is was that interviewer ended up being right and I got accepted to that state school.

End result for that interview: Waitlisted though very likely rejection come spring
 
MedSchoolBarbie said:
That's SO weird! The interviewer who hugged me was at Drexel!
Click to expand...
Lol I know exactly who you're talking about. A girl came back and told me how she received a hug from him and I was like "oh boy, I hope this doesn't get awkward," turns out he didn't hug me (would've been kind of weird) but every girl who had him got a hug lol.
 
Sandmeezy said:
Lol I know exactly who you're talking about. A girl came back and told me how she received a hug from him and I was like "oh boy, I hope this doesn't get awkward," turns out he didn't hug me (would've been kind of weird) but every girl who had him got a hug lol.
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That's... odd.
 
NickNaylor said:
When I interviewed at Vanderbilt, which, at the time, did a single 1-hour interview with a faculty member, my interviewer had a nameplate outside of his door and on his desk that simply said "The King." I was absolutely mortified, but he ended up being a very pleasant guy. It struck me as quite odd that someone would actually do that with a nameplate, though.
Click to expand...

Sounds like a gift from his 'underlings' --


NachoPlatter said:
At another interview I was asked where the root of human evil comes from too-- and then as a follow up, how we can change it.
Click to expand...

Very interesting, but off the wall question. What did you say?
 
DokterMom said:
Sounds like a gift from his 'underlings' --




Very interesting, but off the wall question. What did you say?
Click to expand...

It was given in response to talking about work I do with campus sexual assault advocacy and prevention. I said something along the lines that it's largely mob mentality and that evil isn't the first route we'd choose but were habituated to it by our culture of consumerism. I went into a tangent then about arguing against Steven Pinker and how I disagree with his novel and how I think the true cause of human (and specifically sexual) violence began with agriculture since I'd literally read it a few weeks before. And then to prevent it I said the key was in education, using an example of how rape prevention targeted to potential rapists is far more affective than telling women to walk in twos or watch their drinks.

Basically I rambled for a while but I was accepted there so the Psychiatrist interviewing me must have approved of my answer. But it was still a moment of a blank are you seriously asking me that loaded question?" face.
 
At the beginning of the interview, my interviewer told me that he needed to finish some work. I sat in silence for two-three minutes while he worked on his computer.
 
NachoPlatter said:
It was given in response to talking about work I do with campus sexual assault advocacy and prevention. I said something along the lines that it's largely mob mentality and that evil isn't the first route we'd choose but were habituated to it by our culture of consumerism. I went into a tangent then about arguing against Steven Pinker and how I disagree with his novel and how I think the true cause of human (and specifically sexual) violence began with agriculture since I'd literally read it a few weeks before. And then to prevent it I said the key was in education, using an example of how rape prevention targeted to potential rapists is far more affective than telling women to walk in twos or watch their drinks.

Basically I rambled for a while but I was accepted there so the Psychiatrist interviewing me must have approved of my answer. But it was still a moment of a blank are you seriously asking me that loaded question?" face.
Click to expand...

Amazing answer!
 
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In one interview I had a female doctor interview me. It was fun,we laughed. On the way back to the room with the other interviewees she laughed so hard a big fart came out. She said excuse me and then she I just pretended it didn't happen. It was awkward, I was like "what am I suppose to do here?" Anywho I got into that school, its not the one I chose to attend, but I wonder if I did decide to go there, would it be awkward every time I saw her.
 
NickNaylor said:
That's a good point actually, but nothing led me to believe that he was much of an Elvis fan...

But perhaps I was selling him short and assuming the worst.
Click to expand...
You mean he didn't have his Elvis suit on?
 
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