How to Survive the Interview?

I was interviewed for Ross University in May 2015 for the May 2016 cycle. First off, let me explain the timeline of how things occurred.

• I submitted my application and all supplemental material by second week of April 2015
• I received an email invitation for an interview by the first week of May 2015
• Interviewed for Ross University School of Medicine first week of June 2015
• Received my acceptance email end of June 2015

So why aren't I in school now you ask? Well I asked to defer my acceptance to August 2016 in order to finish my AmerCorps service and earn another $6,000 grant for school...So now that I got that timeline out the way and it will help give some of you an idea of how long things typically take, let’s talk about the interview. The interview was about 1 hour long and the questions which were asked were specific to me and my application and resume.

A few questions which were asked included:

• Can you tell me more about your research you did in undergrad?
• What did you learn working/shadowing in the hospital?
• How do you believe working/shadowing in a hospital helped you validate your decision to pursue a career as a physician?
• It seems like you worked a lot while attending undergrad, do you understand that may not be possible for medical school? How do you then plan to finance your education and cost of living?
• What type of family support do you have while you will be attending medical school?
• In your personal statement, you mentioned…can you explain more about that? (so remember what you wrote, don’t make anything up and be sure your response is genuine)
• I noticed on your transcript you did not do as well on … what do you believe went wrong? How do you think you could have changed your study habits in order to get a better grade? What would you do different next time?
• How did you prepare/study for the MCAT?
• Despite being a Caribbean school, why Ross?

Some questions I asked were:

• What type of administrative support does Ross offer during clinical rotations?
• What is the process of choosing/attaining clinical rotation spots?

Much of the interview was spent, her getting to know me on a more personal level and going through my transcript, personal statement and resume with a fine toothed comb. The interviewer seemed very interested and satisfied with my in-depth thought out answers and mentioned that she could tell I have contemplated on my past years and undergrad and truly have thought about how approach medical school. If you want to rock the interview, just be yourself, know what you wrote on your resume and personal statement and be able to explain any hiccups in your academics; explaining how you have grown, without making any excuses. And don’t forget to send your interviewer a thank you note/card!!

As always, comment, subscribe, and share!

~xoxo Ash