Archive for category Interview
The Road to Medical School [Video]
Posted by medaholic in Admissions, Interview, Medical School, Pre-med on March 17, 2009
Getting into medical school is tough work. We often get so caught up with the whole rat race and the plethora of hoops to jump through that we forget to look at the humor and comedy involved. I came upon a video put on by the University of Alberta for their 2009 interview weekend.
The video is about the typical path a premed must journey through and the many types of people he will encounter along the way. I hope you enjoy it.
Links
Canadian Medical Schools – MMI vs Traditional Interviews
Posted by medaholic in Admissions, Interview on February 13, 2009
Sourced from the members on premed101.com forums is a list of what interview format, whether MMI or traditional interview format, each Canadian Medical School uses for the 2008-2009 cycle.The current trend is to adopt the MMI as the main interview format. All the medical schools in the west have already adopted the new stationed format. However, most of these schools have made their own tweaks and changes to McMaster’s format.
| School Name | Interview Style | Additional Comments |
|
Memorial University |
Traditional |
2-on-1, closed file |
|
Dalhousie University |
MMI |
|
|
Université Laval Université de Sherbrooke Université de Montréal |
MMI |
Joint School MMI |
|
McGill University |
MMI + Traditional |
20 minute traditional interview |
|
University of Ottawa |
Traditional |
3-on-1 interview (one med student, one physician, one professional) |
|
Queen’s University |
Traditional |
3-on-1 interview |
|
University of Toronto (UofT) |
Traditional |
1 Faculty, 1 Student |
|
McMaster University |
MMI |
|
|
University of Western Ontario (UWO) |
Traditional |
3-on-1 Interview |
|
Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM) |
MMI |
|
|
University of Manitoba (UofM) |
MMI |
|
|
University of Saskatchewan (UofS) |
MMI |
|
|
University of Alberta (UofA) |
MMI |
|
|
University of Calgary (UofC) |
MMI |
|
|
University of British Columbia (UBC) |
MMI |
My prediction is that more schools will adopt the MMI format in the future both in Canada and the States. The MMI has less interviewer bias andhas been shown to be a better indicator of future OSCE performance. However, it will be interesting to see each school will incorporate the MMI with traditional interviews. Especially since traditional interviews help schools to really know the applicants and are able to see if they are good fits.
Preparing for Med School Interviews
Posted by medaholic in Admissions, Interview on February 11, 2009
Over the next few days I will be writing posts for everyone with a medical school interview coming up who needs preparation. Med school interviews are not different from any other job interviews. However, you must prepare for it properly just like how anyone would prepare for a high-paying competitive and prestigious job.
First, you must take time to learn about the profession, understand yourself and demonstrate why you are the best applicant. If you have gotten an interview, your chances are already good. No one is invited without the possibility of being accepted. In order to make sure you do well on the day of, there are three steps you have to follow
(1) Prepare, (2) Practice, (3) Presentation
1) Preparation
Before you begin practicing typical interview questions, you must first know yourself and know the school you are applying to. Take the time to learn about what makes each medical school different from each other. What is it in their curriculum that you like, what are the pros/cons of each school, if you were given a choice, which would be your ideal school and why?
Getting to know the school is an important step in your preparations. Not only will it be beneficial for you on the interview day to know what qualities and characteristics the schools are looking for, but you will also get a feel for what kind of school you want. For instance, some schools are more research intensive while some have you in a clinical setting within the first week.
Knowing yourself is probably one of the hardest things in life to do. Take the time to really go questions that will help you understand yourself. Think, reflect, write things down. I have attached a few files with the most commonly asked questions that you MUST know how to answer. Especially for traditional interviews (not stationed MMI’s) your interviewers will ask you about your motivations, your accomplishments and your reasons why you would be a good physician.
I’m sure if you look online you will find hundreds including questions from past interviewers. The point is not to drill over all the questions over and over, but to think about them clearly and to find answers that are sincerely yours.
Approach each question your own way. Don’t look elsewhere to see what others have said before you have answered the question yourself. Write it down. Answer the important questions (Why Medicine?) multiple times, until you feel like you have a good answer that represents you. Each person is different; there are no right answer for almost all of the questions.
After you have prepared answers for these questions, find someone you can trust to practice with.