Before I actually began my own interview process, I never really knew what an interview day for medical school actually entailed. I thought it would be nice to give a little recap of what interview days have been like for me so far and what you can possibly expect as a medical school applicant on one of the most important days on your journey to medical school.
Interview day
7:30 A.M.
- My interview day check in time was scheduled for 11:30 A.M. and the school where I interviewed at was about an hour away from my house. I was aiming to get there at least by 10:00-10:30 to give myself ample time to park my car and locate where the interviews were taking place. Yes, an hour beforehand might be a little excessive for most, but for me being late stresses me out like no other, so I don't mind being early. I began my day as usual. I got ready, had some breakfast, and then snapped this little pic before heading out the door!
9:00 A.M.
-I left the house, put some gas in my car, and was on my way. Traffic wasn't too terrible, but as I got closer to the city ( my interview was in Chicago) the traffic was a bit crappy ( Thanks! Chicago construction...).
10:10 A.M.
- I parked my car and wandered around trying to figure out where the heck I was supposed to interview. The campus was rather large so it took me a bit to orient myself and figure out what direction I should be headed in. This was the moment that I was happy that I had arrived early, and that I had worn my comfiest heels as I did quite a bit of walking.
10:20-10:30 A.M.
- I arrived in the right building. I searched for the nearest restroom to put myself together and apply some lipstick ( a girl's gotta look good haha). Then wandered around the building trying to find the interview room. On my route, a nice ( and cute;)) student asked me if I was looking for the interview room and directed me in the right direction. I had a general idea of where it was, but I did appreciate him taking the time to help a sister out. It gave me a good impression of what the students are like here.
On my way, I found this really cool display case with art some of the med students had made. There was also a hand drawn picture of Dr. House holding a brain that was really awesome.
10:30 A.M.
-After wandering around a bit, I found the interview room. It definitely had a Hogwarts vibe going. I checked in, took a seat, and tried to snap a quick picture while "checking something on my phone". I chatted with some of the applicants from the morning session and asked them how the interviewers were. They all said their interviews felt really laid back, so that made me feel better about what was to come later in the afternoon. My fellow afternoon session-ers started coming in and I chatted with them as well. Overall, the group was really nice and it definitely made for a laid back environment.
12:00 P.M.
-We had sat in the check-in room for quite some time waiting for everyone from the afternoon session to come in before the interview coordinator came to escort us to another location for the Dean's presentation.
12:15 P.M.
- The dean welcomed us and gave us an overview of the school and what programs they had to offer. The school surprisingly was ranked pretty high among other medical schools in the U.S. and even above another school that had been my top choice. I was rather impressed.
12:45 P.M.
-Lunch time! we all gathered back in the Harry Potter room and went to serve ourselves lunch. They had ordered Thai food for us, so I was definitely in my happy place as pad thai is one of my favorite meals. If I had to choose a school on what food they offered, this school had just won me over. During our meal, some of the med students came to sit with us. It was pretty nice and it gave us a chance to have our questions answered.
1: 30 P.M
- Tour time! After lunch, one of the med students took us around campus showing us what the medical school looked like. The main floor of the medical school building had an older feel ( as shown in the picture above), but the upper floors had just been remodeled and were super modern. I was very happy with the campus and could see myself as a student there.
1:50 P.M.
- We came back to the Harry Potter room as some of the afternoon session had interviews beginning at 2:00. I had a break in the first block, so I sat and chatted with the some of the M2s ( second-year students) before my first interview.
2:40 P.M.
-Interview time! The interview coordinator came to get me for my first interview. The interview process for this school was made up of three 30 minute one-on-one interviews. One with a faculty member and the other two with medical students. My first interviewer was a retired biochem professor ( an adorable and hilarious older, Indian woman), and the med students were actually two of the students that had sat at my end of the table during lunch. Overall, every interview felt pretty laid back. The first interviewer had me writing down the Nicaraguan medicines my mom uses at home and the med students were super chill. I wasn't asked anything too difficult, and while they asked me the typical med school interview questions ( why do you want to be a doctor, tell us about yourself, etc.) they asked them in a very conversational way. It was definitely the most fun I had had during an interview. All the interviewers took the time to give me a bit of their background as well, so it added a nice touch and created a very friendly environment.
4:45
- End of Interview day! I walked out of my last interview and headed back to my car. I was exhausted from such a busy day, but very happy that I had such a great experience. The dean told us during our interview session that the school would try to make decisions by the end of the month, so I am hopeful to hear good results:)
Overview
This was definitely my favorite interview day by far. I felt so at ease the entire day, and I feel like the structure of the interviews allowed me to show off my personality. I joked around with the med students, and just had a good time. Not going to lie, every interview has its own vibe but in general, you'll typically have the same elements. I hope this gave you a better picture of the interview day, and what to expect. It definitely can be a lot of fun, so try not to be too nervous:)
~Genesis<3
No comments