will someone walk me through an interview?

[drmota]

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i have no idea what to expect the day of an interview. so i get there at 9, lets say. then what happens? do they interview me immediately? what the hell am i doing til 3 pm?? if i am given a tour, who is giving it to me? am i wandering by myself for periods of time? details would be great.
-mota

 

[CerealBox]

It's different for every school... you need to read the interview feedback onthe school you're going to.

 

[Flopotomist]

Mota - read EVERY interview feedback thread on the interview feedback page of SDN - they are tremendously helpful. Also, make sure to reread your secondary and primary so that you can answer any questions about your app. I also googled the school I interviewed at so that if there is any interesting news about the school, you can talk about it. GOOD LUCK!!!

 

[ClearDay]

i have no idea what to expect the day of an interview. so i get there at 9, lets say. then what happens? do they interview me immediately? what the hell am i doing til 3 pm?? if i am given a tour, who is giving it to me? am i wandering by myself for periods of time? details would be great.
-mota

Different schools have different schedules. Usually, the interview day includes:
- Interview(s) - of course!
- An overview of the school with highlights on some selling points.
- Tour of the facility (usually is guided by med students - small groups)
- Meet with some students - might be in the form of student panels to answer questions you may have.
- Some schools give a talk on financial aid.

That's all I can think of so far. Like other posters said, though, each school is different.

The most important thing is that you need to know your app inside out. Prepare some questions to ask you interviewer. If the school is heavy on ethics, read up on current ethical issues.

Good luck!

 

[fiddler]

i have no idea what to expect the day of an interview. so i get there at 9, lets say. then what happens? do they interview me immediately? what the hell am i doing til 3 pm?? if i am given a tour, who is giving it to me? am i wandering by myself for periods of time? details would be great.
-mota

hey Mota,

is this for Drexel?

you get there at 9:00 and there is a general orientation of the school. They tell you stuff about the school and the medical program.

people get pulled for interviews and then come back.

You get to ask questions and stuff after the presentation.

You get your interview with a faculty member or if it's after lunch then you get the student interview first.

After that, you are more or less done. You can stay for the PIL presentation. i have to warn you. The faculty that answers the questions on the PIL program is passionate about it and the attitude is infectious. I went into the meeting with the attitude that I was just here to kill time and he had me nearly convinced to sign up for it.

Then you say goodbye to everybody and head to the airport. I suggest getting a cab with some fellow interviewees.

fiddler

 

[crazy_cavalier]

i have no idea what to expect the day of an interview. so i get there at 9, lets say. then what happens? do they interview me immediately? what the hell am i doing til 3 pm?? if i am given a tour, who is giving it to me? am i wandering by myself for periods of time? details would be great.
-mota

I can tell you about the day at drexel, but I'll do that later in Dec. when it's closer to the actual date of your interview 🙂

 

[dajimmers]

will someone walk me through an interview?

*shakes hand*
"Hello, I am Doctor Jones, welcome to XY SOM. Please, have a seat"
*both sit down*
"I've been very impressed with you file, Mr. Mota. How have you enjoyed your day?"
answer positively
"That's good. I found your experience as a teacher at an elementary school very interesting. Could you tell me more about that?"
answer
"And how do you feel this experience prepares you to be a doctor?"
.
.e
.t
.c
.
*shake hands, leave*

 

[Elastase]

I cant remember if you go to Berkeley or not, but I would definitely set up an appointment with the Career Center (its a great 20 minute interview w/feedback)...just call them.

Also expect to meet with fellow applicants during your interview day. Expect to state the school that you went to and what you have been doing since graduating around a hundred times...I think the most important things are to know your application inside out, have solid answers for why medicine, and tell me about yourself, read up some ethics/health policy, make eye contact, be POSITIVE, be yourself, be grateful for the opportunity. Good luck! 👍

 

[Jaider]

Doing a mock interview is great advice. I just did a mock today, and got some interesting feedback! My interviewer told me to be cautious about my eye contact. She said that I tend to not break my gaze often enough, and that it's intimidating to speak to me. I never would have thought of that, but it makes perfect sense. In a stressful situation like that, I'm concentrating so hard on what the interviewer is saying that I do intently look at them. My interviewer suggested that I take a small bottle of water with me, so that I can break my gaze periodically to take a drink. That way, it will seem more natural that I'm looking away, instead of me purposefully trying to awkwardly look around the room once in awhile.

Anyway, I thought that was interesting advice. Maintain eye contact, but not too much! 🙂

 

[gdbaby]

i have no idea what to expect the day of an interview. so i get there at 9, lets say. then what happens? do they interview me immediately? what the hell am i doing til 3 pm?? if i am given a tour, who is giving it to me? am i wandering by myself for periods of time? details would be great.
-mota

Mota, I would LOVE to walk you through your interview, but I won't be in town when you're there.

 

[drmota]

Mota, I would LOVE to walk you through your interview, but I won't be in town when you're there.

ROAD TRIP!
-mota

 

[jmnykrkts]

Doing a mock interview is great advice. I just did a mock today, and got some interesting feedback! My interviewer told me to be cautious about my eye contact. She said that I tend to not break my gaze often enough, and that it's intimidating to speak to me. I never would have thought of that, but it makes perfect sense. In a stressful situation like that, I'm concentrating so hard on what the interviewer is saying that I do intently look at them. My interviewer suggested that I take a small bottle of water with me, so that I can break my gaze periodically to take a drink. That way, it will seem more natural that I'm looking away, instead of me purposefully trying to awkwardly look around the room once in awhile.

Anyway, I thought that was interesting advice. Maintain eye contact, but not too much! 🙂

I don't really know why but this made me laugh out loud. Imagine seeing your interviewer start to get all squirmy and nervous and you're like 'what the hell is going on here?' and then you realize that, oops, you just happened to have been blinklessly staring at them for the last 20 minutes... (OK maybe it's just me)
You should wear those big, black, thick old person sunglasses to your next interview.

 

[gdbaby]

ROAD TRIP!
-mota

Okay, I'll road trip with you if you bring the musical score from "Rocky" and allow me to run up those stairs in a grey Champion sweatsuit.

 

[Shredder]

jk. although it could be, depending on the interviewer. i had one that was kinda grillish