Hi Everyone:
I have an interview next Friday at GWU. I am planning to fly from NYC to DC Thursday night.
Any words of advice on interviewing in general? On interviewing at GWU in particular?
Any insights on med school life at GWU? I know there are some OPMers out there (including the beloved Mary Renard !! 
) who attend GWU.
Any words of wisdom would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks.
– J
Hmmmm, I KNOW I just wrote a bunch about the GWU interview day but I can’t find the thread to link it to this reply, so here’s more of the same… Have fun. It is MEANT to be an informative, relaxing day. Of course when you are the one in the stiff new suit, it is very hard to be relaxed and you will only find out in hindsight that we mean it - you really can relax and just be yourself, and try to absorb as much as you can while you’re there.
You know that the GWU interview is “blind,” meaning your interviewer doesn’t know your grades, your MCAT scores, where you’ve taken your classes, etc. etc. The downside to this is that one of your first questions may be “tell me about yourself,” (I HATED that question) but the definite UPside to this situation is that you can control the “sales pitch,” if you will. You can emphasize the good stuff you’ve done, the interesting experiences you’ve had, the things that make you unique. Like most any school, GW “loves to be loved,” and i know that when I’ve interviewed people, I have responded favorably to those who cite real, specific reasons for wanting to be in Washington in general and at GW specifically. The school has recently updated its website and so I would definitely recommend browsing through its various parts and getting familiar with that stuff - it should give you some material for questions and also give you stuff to become enthusiastic about (www.gwumc.edu, and go to School of Medicine and Health Sciences link).
I was talking to an “emeritus” faculty member recently and said, “I wish I had been comfortable trusting my first impressions of GWU, that it was a friendly, happy place.” He quizzed me extensively about this remark. I explained that my somewhat skeptical nature caused me to be dubious of the positive comments I heard from students on my interview day - I interviewed early in the year, and most of the student hosts were first years, so I dismissed their enthusiasm to myself with, “They haven’t been here long enough, I bet they won’t be so happy eventually.” (what a terrible attitude for me to take!) Anyway, both the faculty member and I agreed that, despite my unwillingness to initially believe the evidence right in front of me, it IS a happy place. He said that he still doesn’t quite know WHY GW students seem generally happy but that has been his observation over many, many years.
so, really, relax and enjoy the day and know that people really are pretty happy here. Good luck to you!
Thanks, Mary. I'm looking forward to the interview. It's good to know that the students at GWU are happy campers. I attended law school in Washington, DC so I'm familiar with the city. I enjoyed living there in my former life, and would be perfectly happy to move back.
– J