Congratulations! It’s interview season and you’re almost finished with the seemingly endless application cycle. Waiting to receive interview invitations can be very nerve-wracking, but it’s also a great time to take a breath, refocus, and prepare for this final step. Here, I’ll share the highest yield information to help you succeed in traditional one-on-one medical school interviews.

1. What does receiving an interview mean?

Receiving an interview invitation is a huge step toward acceptance. After reviewing so much information about you—including your MCAT score, GPA, personal statement, extracurricular descriptions, and recommendation letters—the admissions committee is impressed, and they want to get to know you more. It’s a time for the medical school to get to know you as a person beyond a list of numbers and character-limited descriptions. Interviewers are interested in the ways you interact with others, how you communicate, and the overall impression you provide. Thankfully, there are ways to prepare.

2. Review your application

At this point, it’s been a handful of months since you prepared and submitted your application. You’ll want to refresh yourself about what you wrote about and how you’d like to speak about each topic. After all, you may be asked about that research project you did freshman year, and you want to be ready to speak about anything with confidence and familiarity. The advice “show, don’t tell” applies here too. It’s more memorable to share a story about what made an experience meaningful rather than give a general description and cliché response. 

3. What’s your hook?

This is also a good time to either reaffirm or identify what your “brand” or “hook” is. What 1-2 key things do you want the admissions committee to remember most about you? What do you specifically add to their medical school class? Are you the research star whose eyes light up when speaking about Western blots? Do you have an interesting path to medicine that makes you unique? Are you going to expand healthcare access to the underprivileged? Whatever your unique strengths are, be intentional about identifying them and planning how you will highlight them during interviews. 

4. Familiarize yourself with commonly asked questions 

While interview structure and discussion vary widely, there are common questions you should prepare for. Find a list of interview questions online and think about your responses. Some of the most common questions are: “Why do you want to be a doctor?” “Tell us about yourself.” “Why do you want to attend our school?” “What experiences have you had working with sick people?” “Where do you see yourself in 15 years?” Again, if possible, respond by showing rather than telling, by drawing on your supply of experiences.

5. Practice like you play 

It’s a great idea to practice answering interview questions with a friend, mentor, or even individually. Remember, the interview is foremost a conversation; the goal is to be practiced, never scripted. It’s important to be human and show your personality, not just recite your resume.

For virtual interviews, set up a good space in advance with proper background and lighting. Even if your interview isn't virtual, recording yourself can be a great idea to recognize filler words (um, ah, like) and nervous habits.

Finally, be sure to familiarize yourself with the medical school: what is special/different about this program? What is the format of their interviews?

6. Interview day 

Congratulations, this is a big accomplishment. Since you've spent a good deal of time practicing, it's time to loosen up, relax, and have fun! Here are some tips to help you out on interview day:

  • Be enthusiastic and smile! It’s an honor to receive an interview invitation and you want to show the medical school you are excited and passionate about the prospect of joining their class. 
  • Be yourself—authentic and honest—and appropriately let your personality come through. 
  • Ask great questions. At the end of the interview, there will be a time for you to ask questions, and you should have some prepared. The more conversation-provoking, the better (i.e., ask “What medical school did you attend and how does it compare to this school?” rather than “Are their volunteer opportunities available here?”)
  • Keep your cool. If you are asked a difficult question, it’s completely okay to take a breath and show you are considering a thoughtful response rather than just regurgitating a preformed answer without new thought. 

Comments

topicTopics
academics study skills MCAT medical school admissions SAT college admissions expository writing English MD/PhD admissions writing LSAT GMAT strategy GRE physics chemistry math biology graduate admissions ACT law school admissions interview prep test anxiety language learning academic advice MBA admissions premed personal statements homework help career advice AP exams creative writing MD study schedules Common Application summer activities test prep history computer science philosophy organic chemistry secondary applications supplements economics PSAT admissions coaching grammar mathematics research law statistics & probability psychology 1L ESL CARS SSAT covid-19 dental admissions legal studies logic games reading comprehension USMLE engineering Spanish calculus parents Latin verbal reasoning DAT PhD admissions case coaching excel mentorship political science AMCAS French Linguistics MBA coursework Tutoring Approaches academic integrity chinese medical school Anki DO English literature Social Advocacy admissions advice algebra astrophysics biochemistry business classics diversity statement genetics geometry kinematics mental health presentations quantitative reasoning skills study abroad time management work and activities IB exams ISEE MD/PhD programs STEM adjusting to college algorithms art history artificial intelligence athletics business skills careers cold emails data science functions gap year international students internships letters of recommendation logic mechanical engineering poetry resume science social sciences software engineering tech industry technical interviews trigonometry 2L 3L AAMC Academic Interest DMD EMT FlexMed Fourier Series Greek Health Professional Shortage Area Italian Lagrange multipliers London MD vs PhD MMI Montessori National Health Service Corps Pythagorean Theorem Python Sentence Correction Step 2 TMDSAS Taylor Series Zoom acids and bases amino acids analysis essay architecture argumentative writing art art and design schools art portfolios biomedicine brain teaser campus visits cantonese capacitors capital markets cell biology central limit theorem centrifugal force chemical engineering chess chromatography class participation climate change clinical experience community service constitutional law consulting cover letters curriculum dementia demonstrated interest dental school dimensional analysis distance learning electric engineering electricity and magnetism enrichment escape velocity european history executive function finance first generation student freewriting fun facts genomics graphing harmonics health policy history of medicine history of science hybrid vehicles hydrophobic effect ideal gas law induction infinite information sessions institutional actions integrated reasoning intern investing investment banking lab reports linear algebra linear maps mandarin chinese matrices mba medical physics meiosis microeconomics mitosis music music theory neurology neuroscience office hours operating systems organization pedagogy phrase structure rules plagiarism potential energy pre-dental proofs pseudocode psych/soc qualifying exams quantum mechanics relativity