What's the Consensus on Virtual Interviews vs. In-Person?

[winter_wolves1702]

I've heard from a lot of premeds that virtual interviews are way more scary since you have to watch out for eye-contact, facial expressions, etc.

Isn't that the same case in-person? Just wondering how people view both formats and which one they prefer.

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[FloatingAbyss]

Personally was more scared for in person as you can’t really fidget under the table and have to be “on” at all times lol

 

[winter_wolves1702]

Personally was more scared for in person as you can’t really fidget under the table and have to be “on” at all times lol

Solid point! I guess you can hide the nervousness in body language a bit behind a screen lol

 

[FarmHand]

Not paying for travel and accommodations made virtual fantastic for me.

Having to fly/drive in the day of OR the night before and getting a hotel made the experience quite stressful and I felt that showed in the in-person interview.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Obligatory mention: Show Me About Yourself: Virtual Interviewing Platforms for Health Professions Programs - SDN

 

[Glassdyr]

Honestly, virtual is where it's at. My savings account would not look as pretty as it is if I had to fly/drive everywhere, rent hotels, etc. One of the silver linings of COVID is how it really pushed along remote work/virtual interviewing, which is just so much more efficient.

You can flex the charisma a little more in-person, though. It's a lot easier to read someone's "vibe" in real life. Conversation also flows a little differently over Zoom; stream delays make you talk over each other and lead to brief, awkward pauses.

Still, I'd take virtual any day for finance's sake.

Personally was more scared for in person as you can’t really fidget under the table and have to be “on” at all times lol

Also this lol. On any given interview, I was toying with either my house keys, an eraser, or a Transformers minifigure. (The Transformer got me my two As so far.)

 

[Snoozles]

I love the benefits of virtual interviews in terms of cost, convenience, increasing access, etc. But I am much stronger in person where I can flex my charisma so I would prefer in-person interviews if possible.

 

[winter_wolves1702]

Honestly, virtual is where it's at. My savings account would not look as pretty as it is if I had to fly/drive everywhere, rent hotels, etc. One of the silver linings of COVID is how it really pushed along remote work/virtual interviewing, which is just so much more efficient.

You can flex the charisma a little more in-person, though. It's a lot easier to read someone's "vibe" in real life. Conversation also flows a little differently over Zoom; stream delays make you talk over each other and lead to brief, awkward pauses.

Still, I'd take virtual any day for finance's sake.



Also this lol. On any given interview, I was toying with either my house keys, an eraser, or a Transformers minifigure. (The Transformer got me my two As so far.)

100% agree! Love the Transformer mention too haha, I think I should get something similar

 

[apple_juice]

I think both have their advantages and disadvantages. I had so much fun at my one in-person interview this cycle, but also appreciate being able to take off my suit jacket and crawl into bed between virtual interview sessions…