about butterflies.
So, about nerves/nervousness going into the interview—unless you are the Buddha himself, or some super zen meditation master, you are going to have some nerves going into it. Just accept that.
But in order to crush some of those butterflies wrecking havoc in the stomach, I have what I basically call my war ritual, which I also did before the MCAT, and other important events. It involves a lot of loud dance music, me yelling and doing horrible dance moves in my car, and just generally getting myself pumped, telling myself that I’m awesome, that I’m going to do great, and I don’t even need to sweat it because I’m supercool.
And that’s it. Despite many insecurities and fears, I know who I am and I know that, if given the opportunity, I will be a good doctor. I know why I want to be a doctor and why it is important to me. It also helps that I’m at ease talking with other people, even if they are strangers. One key element of my strategy, so to speak, is to listen and observe carefully the person I’m talking to—they can reveal a lot about themselves in just a few short sentences or in pictures on a wall. If I can draw those things out, and find parallels in my own experience to talk to them about, I find it is much easier to relate to others.
The whole point of an interview is so that the medical school admissions board can get to know you as a person, and to figure out if you would make a good doctor. So if you don’t know yourself, it is going to make that task infinitely harder, because you are not going to know what to tell them, especially when those “unexpected” or wild card questions come up. So my best advice is to figure out who you are, at least to some certain, basic extent. Then you don’t really need to be afraid of any question.
a post about the interview
So as those of you who have been watching know, I interviewed for my top choice medical school last week. Now, I don’t want to jinx anything or be overly hopeful, but I think it really well. My first interviewer actually said “I see no reason why you wouldn’t get in, and I am going to highly recommend you to the admissions board”. My second interviewer really appreciated that I had gone through struggles during my middle school and high school year and had come out on the other side, she said it was very refreshing to see someone like me applying to medical school.
So, obviously I haven’t gotten in yet, but here is my approach to the whole thing, as well as some questions I got:
1. Appearance. When I got there there, there was only one other person that wasn’t wearing the most boring business suit in existence. Now, I’m not saying you should wear your loudest outfit and accessories, but not a single one of these people stood out to me in any way. You want to stand out, you want to be remembered (in a good way of course). So guys, maybe wear a NICE but interesting tie, nothing cheesy or terrible or outrageous, but maybe something with a unique color or pattern that catches the eye.
Ladies, black blazers are professional looking, a really nice blouse or cardigan/sweater can be just a professional and actually bring some color to you rather than just being an entire. solid. wall. of. black. Or wear an interesting pair of shoes, or earrings. Something that reflects your personality and makes you look like a person with their own individual sense of self, rather than just a carbon copy of everybody else there. I’m sure some people might disagree with me, but the interview is all about getting to know YOU. And the first impression starts with outward appearance.
(Of course, remember always to shower, do your hair up nice, brush your teeth and carry mints with you but DO NOT suck or chew on them when you are actually in the interview. A nice perfume or cologne is always advisable, but don’t drown yourself in it.)
2. The introduction. Always introduce yourself, shake hands, smile, and make eye contact. Be cool.
3. The questions. Don’t memorize entire blocks of text as responses to typical questions. Know bullet points, but then be able to elaborate on your own naturally. If you have problems with nervousness, PRACTICE. Practice on your mom, practice on your significant other, practice on your dog/cat/bearded dragon. If you’re in school, many schools have career help offices which offer free practice interviews with their staff, who will give you advice afterward.
Questions you should have an idea of how you are going to respond to before you walk in:
1. Why do you want to be a doctor? I never got this one, actually, which was really annoying because I spent a long time creating what I thought was a really beautiful answer. There is no “right” answer to this question, but there are many wrong ones. Try not to be cliche, and make the response personal to your own experiences, not just some vague statement that could apply to any pre-med.
2. Tell me about yourself. FOCUS ON THE GOOD POINTS. If you had some particular obstacle or struggle in your life which you overcame, you should definitely talk about it, but don’t talk about things you’re still having problems with—>you are trying to sell yourself here. Don’t get overwhelm them with pointless details of your life—talk about important, definitive moments in your life which had a big impact on you. Very open-ended questions like this are a great opportunity for you to bring up things you want them to know about, especially if you didn’t get a chance to talk about them in your paper application.
3. What do you think of X in the medical community? Be updated on current events in the medical field. Have an opinion on euthanasia, universal healthcare, technology in medicine, etc—you don’t need to be able to cite papers or anything, but just to show that these are things you have thought about. Again, there is no right answer, just answers that show integrity and compassion as well as some reasoned contemplation. One of the guys that interviewed with my group said he got asked about the role of technology in medicine, and whether or not he would accept a friend request of a patient on Facebook, and he just laughed and kind of stammered out “I don’t know”. THIS IS NOT A GOOD ANSWER! Questions like this may sound silly, but they can reveal a lot about you as person.
Ultimately, there is no way to prepare for every question you might get thrown, and it is an exercise in futility to try. So the best way to prepare is to simply know yourself. Know who you are and why you are working towards a career in medicine. Know how you feel about medicine and how it works and what you feel its purpose is. If you don’t know these things, now is a really good time to find out.
The other thing is that if your interviewer references something you just don’t know about, don’t pretend like you do. Be honest. As far as I could tell, getting caught in a lie or pretending to be/know something was one of the quickest ways to ruin any chance you had. But if you get asked an ethical question you’ve never thought about, you still have the chance to form an opinion. Just say “Well, that’s something I’d never really considered, however, I feel that…” etc etc. Don’t be afraid to ask an interviewer to clarify something.
4. Don’t be a douche. I feel this should go without saying, but don’t come off as an arrogant prick. There were three frat boys in my group who mentioned partying at least four times between interviews. They all reported having at least one bad/weird/mediocre interview. There was also a girl from Duke who acted like she was about 10x more important than everyone else there. Medicine is no longer this elitist venture. It’s a team sport, and it’s looking for down to Earth players that have compassion, flexibility, and dedication. You are going to fare a lot better if you come off as a someone who understands the importance and value of your peers, a good work ethic, and a general respect for life.
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General advice/thoughts: Be yourself. Smile, laugh, and make eye contact. Always think about an answer before you give it, even if its something you’ve rehearsed. Pay attention and listen to what your interviewer says—if you can, figure out some things they are interested in/appreciate, and talk about personal experiences you’ve had that relate to that. You also have power to dictate and steer the conversation—take advantage of every opportunity to bring up things you think are important or will help put you in a good light. DO NOT WORD VOMIT.
update part deux.
Officially have 2 interviews at my two in-state medical schools!!
So excited I could pee my pants. But I won’t.
:)
