when interviewers ask what else would you be?

[Suey]

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I haven't been through interviews yet, but I've heard that some interviews they ask that if you cannot become a doctor, what would you be? How would you answer that? You can't say another profession because that shows you're not dedicated to entering the medical field, but I would feel silly saying I would find a way to change the system to become a doctor (b/c I really wouldn't). Truly, I would become a researcher in the field of medicine, but do you think interviewers would frown upon that answer since it seems like I'm not dedicated to becoming a physician? Or do you think they'd prefer the answer "I will become a doctor no matter what"?

 

[CanuckRazorback]

I haven't been through interviews yet, but I've heard that some interviews they ask that if you cannot become a doctor, what would you be? How would you answer that? You can't say another profession because that shows you're not dedicated to entering the medical field, but I would feel silly saying I would find a way to change the system to become a doctor (b/c I really wouldn't). Truly, I would become a researcher in the field of medicine, but do you think interviewers would frown upon that answer since it seems like I'm not dedicated to becoming a physician? Or do you think they'd prefer the answer "I will become a doctor no matter what"?

I usually answer that I would use my MBA and work as a consultant in healthcare for a year and reapply. Definitely say that you would reapply. I've always wanted to say that I would like to be a stand-up comic or something funny to see what reaction I would get

 

[synapse lapse]

Not a hard question to answer. I was asked this, and I was honest about what I would do if i absolutely could not become a physician. I think any answer is ok, as long as you back it up and still have show a commitment to medicine.

 

[subtle1epiphany]

If you're curious whether they mean you didn't get in this time and you can try again or if they meant that the career is closed or effectively doesn't exist, then you should definitely ask for a clarification.

For the former situation definitely say that you'd keep at it, dedication and persistence are key and essential to the practice and study of medicine. Ask any resident, or med student for that matter!

If it's that the field is closed to you, then offer a career that is similar in someway, something like nursing or a PA, or a job that allows you to interact with people daily, it all depends on you. I know that I'd end up teaching in some way, for many reasons, which you should try to express in the interview if they want: for me teaching has always been important, I've always been in school, even this past year after my BA I've enrolled in courses, and for the daily human interaction present in teaching at all levels. Also, the public is largely and generally ignorant of health issues, in every way they have little idea how to keep themselves healthy and they need a health professional to assist them in applying the new research and the old wisdom/research to their own lives. It is essential that a physician be able to teach their patients, patient education is one of our most important duties!

So that's why I say teaching, but you have to find something you're passionate about and have good reasons, they may not ask why, but if they do, you'd better know!

👍 Best of luck!

 

[Biscuit799]

I had an interviewer ask me this once. After I answered, she said she used the question to determine if I really wanted to go into medicine, or if I just felt pressured to go into it. Apparently (according to her), students who truly want to go into medicine will pause after the question, hesitate to answer, and then (while answering HONESTLY) choose some other profession. However, if a student is pressured to go into medicine (i.e. by parents) then they will already have an opinion formed, and quickly blurt out an answer. So the emphasis is less on the actual answer and more on the way the interviewee responds to the question.

 

[dopaminophile]

I had an interviewer ask me this once. After I answered, she said she used the question to determine if I really wanted to go into medicine, or if I just felt pressured to go into it. Apparently (according to her), students who truly want to go into medicine will pause after the question, hesitate to answer, and then (while answering HONESTLY) choose some other profession. However, if a student is pressured to go into medicine (i.e. by parents) then they will already have an opinion formed, and quickly blurt out an answer. So the emphasis is less on the actual answer and more on the way the interviewee responds to the question.

This is the direct opposite of what I was told by my interviewers. One asked me what I'd do if I didn't get in and I immediately said that I'd reapply. Then I asked if he meant that I couldn't go into medicine at all and he said no no, you wouldn't believe how many bozos answer with going into a different career.

Another interviewer asked me the same thing, I gave the same answer, and he said that he meant if I couldn't go into heath care at all. I told him immediately what I'd thought about previously and he seemed to like it. I got into the school a few weeks later.

IMHO, you'd be nuts not to have thought this through. Going into medicine is a major DECISION and if you've thought about that decision at all, by definition, you must have considered other options. It is almost certain that (God forbid) many of us will not become doctors, ever. There are certain physical, phsychological, and intellectual impairments that preclude some people from practicing medicine. It is only wise to think through other things that you might enjoy doing. Certainly medicine isn't the only thing you enjoy in the world. If it is, you haven't thought through many of the other possibilities.

cheers

-dope-

 

[Law2Doc]

I haven't been through interviews yet, but I've heard that some interviews they ask that if you cannot become a doctor, what would you be? How would you answer that? You can't say another profession because that shows you're not dedicated to entering the medical field, but I would feel silly saying I would find a way to change the system to become a doctor (b/c I really wouldn't). Truly, I would become a researcher in the field of medicine, but do you think interviewers would frown upon that answer since it seems like I'm not dedicated to becoming a physician? Or do you think they'd prefer the answer "I will become a doctor no matter what"?

My understanding is that if you said being a physician was the only thing you ever wanted to be and that you couldn't conceive of anything else, that was the "wrong" answer and would be taken as a sign of immaturity. At the other extreme, if you picked a career far afield from medicine, that would show you didn't have a committment to healthcare. The best answer is something else at least tangentially related to health.

 

[Cerberus]

I said i'd get an MPH

 

[Ross434]

I'd say either professional grifter (they make hella money), or an nba all star.

 

[cytoborg]

My understanding is that if you said being a physician was the only thing you ever wanted to be and that you couldn't conceive of anything else, that was the "wrong" answer and would be taken as a sign of immaturity.

Agreed. That's why they ask this question - to make sure you have made a thoughtful and mature decision.

At the other extreme, if you picked a career far afield from medicine, that would show you didn't have a committment to healthcare. The best answer is something else at least tangentially related to health.

I disagree on this one. I got the "If you couldn't do medicine, what would you do?" several times on the interview trail, and I answered honestly - I would get my PhD in classics and become a college professor. This went over well every time with a lot of interesting follow-up questions. I'm sure there ARE things you shouldn't say - join the circus, lobby for legalization of pot - but within reason, I think it's OK to show that you're human and have other interesting things to contribute to a medical school class.

 

[Law2Doc]

I disagree on this one. I got the "If you couldn't do medicine, what would you do?" several times on the interview trail, and I answered honestly - I would get my PhD in classics and become a college professor. This went over well every time with a lot of interesting follow-up questions. I'm sure there ARE things you shouldn't say - join the circus, lobby for legalization of pot - but within reason, I think it's OK to show that you're human and have other interesting things to contribute to a medical school class.

Okay, I agree that teaching is a good answer, and you even could improve upon it somewhat by noting that the physicians you have dealt with were always eager to teach things and that that was one of the things you found attractive about the medical field.

 

[tinkerbelle]

I said I'd either utilize my bio med engineering degree or go into public health (and i'd actually prefer public health)

I said i'd get an MPH

Cerb, you should seriously get an MPH. Public health class are so much fun 😍

 

[doogyhowser]

right on ross 434.

i suppose i'd have to open a deep sea fishing charter.

or i could return to the adult film industry 😉

 

[Ypo.]

I have no idea. That is the god honest truth. Last year I didn't get accepted, and it spurred an identity crisis of a kind. I could not figure out an alternative plan, at least not one that I could imagine being happy and stimulated by.

I considered going for an epidemiology program (MS), but I didn't really have a clear plan of what type of research I would do. Luckily I did get accepted this year. When I got asked what I would do if I didn't get accepted THIS year, I said I would do an MS in epidemiology, and reapply to med school when I finished with that.