So … I have two interviews that I haven’t written about. I will write a separate post for each.
University of Colorado (Jan. 17, 2014). Status: ACCEPTED! 
Colorado is like a second home to me. I was actually born there (in rural CO, near Pueblo), my dad’s whole family lives there, and as a kid my family visited my relatives there about once a year. I also have family ties to CU - my dad went to medical school there, and my mom got her MSN there. One of my current PIs at Northwestern also went to CU for her MD/PhD.
But there is hearing about a school, and then there is actually seeing the school yourself. CU, which is now in Aurora (just outside of Denver) on a nearly brand new campus, is a gorgeous school. The anatomy lab even has windows, which I’ve been told is a huge plus! There are multiple hospitals on the campus, and because CU is the only major medical center in the area, I was told a lot of interesting cases are brought (often flown) in. As a future physician-scientist, I also like that the school places a high value on research, offering a specific “track” in research (as well as a couple of other subjects).
I stayed the night before my interview with a student, who was a great host - I very much recommend doing this if you can. She told me things about the school and the area I never would have heard otherwise.
As for the interview day itself - it was very relaxed. I had two 30-minute sessions, one with a retired MD, one with a JD. The JD asked me several thought-provoking ethical/hypothetical questions, but not onerous ones. I felt confident in my answers, and that I displayed a mature, well-thought-out response as opposed to a surface one. The MD interview was more laid back. He told me about his career (which spanned pediatrics and aerospace medicine!), and I told him about mine - past, present, and future. The associate dean of students also talked in between interview sessions. Turns out that he works part time as a PCP in the same rural town where I was born, and where my dad worked in FP … such a strange coincidence. A clinical researcher (a nontrad - former engineer!) talked about some amazing work she is doing in obesity. There was also, of course, the obligatory financial aid presentation (those are always fun).
I really enjoyed my interview day, and the school in general.
I wound up staying with my cousin (who lives a few minutes from the medical school campus) over the long Martin Luther King holiday weekend, and even got to go up to Rocky Mountain National Park on Sunday. Good times all around.
And a little more than three weeks later, my second acceptance!
Weill Cornell Medical College (Feb. 26, 2014). Status: ?
To my understanding, Cornell chooses its incoming class in March. Which is now. So even though I interviewed very late (the last interview session as a matter of fact), I’m not in a terrible place.
Which is good. Because I very much liked it there.
My interview day was … interesting. And simultaneously wonderful.
I have a (presumed) stress fracture in my foot, and my doctor told me that if I was going to be traveling, I had to be on crutches. This made everything more difficult, as many of you know. Having never been on crutches, I was quickly made aware of this reality. From the airport, to my hotel, to Cornell, I had to ask numerous people (strangers) for help. Being an independent woman, and rather self-sufficient, this was very hard for me. And certainly gave me some empathy for people who deal with a physical disability on a regular basis.
I was blown away by the helpfulness of my fellow interviewees, my interviewers, the Cornell students I met, and especially the admissions staff. From stowing my luggage, to getting a bottle of water, to slowing down while walking, to hailing a taxi, people could not have been more kind.
So there was that. Then there was the interview experience itself.
My tour was led by not one but TWO non-trads. Totally coincidental, but that plus the fact that one of their classmates, an MS1 now, started at age 53, and I am totally impressed with the diversity of age range and life experiences at Cornell. There were opening remarks with one of the deans, lunch with students, and the aforementioned tour, as well as two 30-minute interview sessions. My first session was with an MD. We talked some about my secondary application essays (which included one on my divorce - a touchy subject for some perhaps, but one I am fine discussing). So word to the wise: if you don’t want to talk about it, DON’T write about it. We also talked about a program he is involved in, Music in Medicine, which is a privately funded program aimed at encouraging medical students to stay involved in music (instrumental, vocal, whatever). Given that I have played the piano since I was 8, I was intrigued by that for sure. They also have a writing group (yay!). My second interview was with a 4th year med student who, while in medical school, had managed to publish in peer-reviewed journals, write a book, and then take a year off to work on the Dr. Oz show. His take-home message was that if you want to accomplish something - from research to going abroad to whatever else - Cornell will help you make it happen, or at least put you in touch with the right people.
Another thing I like about the school is that nearly all medical students go abroad for a clinical - either to an established program, or to one of their making. Cornell is also piloting a new 18-month curriculum (as done at NYU, for example) that would allow for more flexibility in clinicals and other activities (such as going abroad). And who can beat subsidized housing in Manhattan, across the street from your classes?
We shall see …
So I got lucky to land 5 interviews (out of 15 apps) and have done 3 so far. Sorry this post is quasi-long, but I tried to keep it short. If anyone has any school specific questions, let me know. My strategy to interviews was initially to “memorize” responses to a couple of the standard questions, but I went off script after “Hi, my name is…” Bullets worked best for me, especially for the “why this school” question. All in all, I haven’t felt really nervous at any place. My advice: You know who you are, so just have a conversation with the person across the table. I have an MMI coming up, so a little nervous about how that’ll go.
Wake Forest: The school itself is attached to a teaching hospital and has all of the benefits of being in close proximity to large clinical opportunities. It consisted of 3 interviews/20 minutes each, and there were only 6 applicants in the session. My first interview was with an MD, and the general consensus with the group was that he was by far the most difficult (confusing). He asked me why I chose to get an MBA not once, not twice, but three times in a row. Perhaps he didn’t like my answers, but they were my answers… He seemed to praise my background yet also questions its value all at the same time. I have no idea how it went. Second interview was with a PhD who tailored the interview based on my experiences since I’ve been out of school for 10 years. He asked some thought provoking questions but it was very conversational. The final interview was with an MS-4, and it felt more like what a traditional interview would be like. “Why do you want to go into medicine, what in your past makes you a good candidate”. Other than interview 1, I felt it went alright and I really loved the school and student community.
Univ Colorado: Lorien kind of said it all. I would have to put CU at a close #1 over WF on my wish list. Lots of the same opportunities available, but more windows in the buildings. My first interviewer was an older MD and was the traditional interview song and dance. He made ME choose an medical ethics situation, and I’m pretty sure I botched it with an incomplete answer that made me sound kind of terse. His mid-interview feedback was that I hadn’t talked much about the humanistic side of medicine, so hopefully I pulled it out (not confident after this interview). My second interviewer was a retired MD and former Navy physician, so we had a common ground. It was very conversational, talking about my experiences and why they would help me be a good physician. He asked me to compare European healthcare models with the former and future US models as well as a question on why I felt that the US ranks low on the quality of healthcare despite our costs and positive outcomes. His curve ball question was: “If I gave you the keys to my cabin for 3 months and told you to write a book, what would you write about.” I am not a writer…but he seemed to like my answer. He ended with some very positive words of encouragement, so I may have a chance…
Hofstra: New school with a unique curriculum style which is predominantly student-led small groups. It is attached to the North Shore health system, so lots of clinical opportunities for students. The classrooms and admin are located on the main campus of Hofstra. Students do have to have a car because some labs are located offsite. 2 interviewers/30ish minutes scheduled. 1st was a Plastic Surgeon who said he was very excited to meet me based on my application. It felt like a short interview but he was very motivated by my potential. Sometimes it felt like he was answering questions for me based on my app Very positive parting words. 2nd interviewer was impossible to read (psychiatrist). Again, it felt like the “paper” me made them comfortable enough to not make it your standard interview. He gave me an ethical situation, which again I felt like I could have answered more completely given more information that I should have asked for… All in all, very conversational. He may have talked more than I did (is that good?) and told several stories about some of the topics we were discussing. Good thing I took my phone in, because he asked to see a picture of my kid. “Do you have a picture? Like on your phone? Of course you do, if you didn’t, I think that would be an auto-reject.” All in all, they were open and honest with answers to my questions and did their best to recruit me to NY.
All I can say is WOW!!! Lorien, I would be hard pressed to not take Cornell. I know it isn’t a combined program, but it is part of a childhood dream of mine. When I was a kid, one of the standard field trips in 4-H was to the Cornell Vet School. They had a cow with a “window” in its’ side so you could observe the inner workings of the bovine stomach. I was FASCINATED!! We then went to the operating theatre for their free spay and neuter program, and got to watch a dog get spayed, with the vet doing a clinical type lecture while doing it. Again, I was HOOKED!! I have walked the Ithaca Campus a thousand times, and of course, have lived in NYC, and love it there. I would SOOO be going to Cornell if invited. I know it does not have the exact dual program you seek…but Ivy League??? I can’t tell you how many doors a prestigious university degree has opened for me over the years. Syracuse is not Ivy League, but close (Cornell and Syracuse vied for the slot back in the early 1800’s). And that SU diploma has opened MANY doors for me. Just sayin’!!!
Kennymac - gotta love the Hofstra interview. Again, I would be tempted by any school that gave a toot about my kids!!
Sail on!!!
Vicki
The MMI:
My take is it’s not that bad. I would almost call it fun because you truly don’t know what situation they will give you and they pretty much don’t care about the rest of your application. Some may find that more stressful. It’s all about who you are and how you think/think through problems that you may or may not have faced. You can probably get by on what you know now, so there is no advanced prep needed. The time absolutely flew by, and the strict timeline means you have to be succinct. You may not be able to fully answer follow on questions, but I think that’s expected. You aren’t responsible for keeping time.
Downside of interview day is right before we started the MMI I got a wait list notification from another school. Doh!
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) - MD/PhD program
Given that this was my second MD/PhD interview (the first being at University of Illinois at Chicago), I more or less knew what to expect - LOTS of interview sessions with researchers, and LOTS of questions about my research. Also: Why both degees? And less of an emphasis about the clinical side of things. This pretty much held true at UIUC as well.
A little about this program - it’s different than most MD/PhD programs. Most of them have you do 2 years of med school (the basic sciences), then grad school, then the 2 years of clinicals. UIUC’s program involves all of grad school first, THEN all of med school. This means that you immediately apply to a specific graduate school program. In my case, since I am interested in diabetes/metabolism, it is the Division of Nutritional Sciences (DNS).
First thing in the morning, I had a 30-minute panel interview with both MD and PhD people. Given that this was my sixth med school interview, that wasn’t such a big deal. The rest of the day was (mostly) DNS interviews. I met with five researchers, plus the assistant director of the program, as well as had lunch with DNS students and later dinner at the DNS director’s house. (There had also been a social event with DNS students the previous night.) These MD/PhD interviews are INTENSE, to say the least!
I was very impressed with the administrators of the MD/PhD program - they truly seem to care about their students, and to support them in every way possible. The DNS folks were also quite wonderful. The PIs I talked with are doing some incredible work, and the administrators (like on the MD/PhD side) seemed very supportive and helpful.
One drawback on the MD side, though, is that Champaign-Urbana is a college community (population ~180,000), so the clinical opportunities aren’t the same as they would be in Chicago, for example. A downside on the PhD side is that you have to commit to a PI immediately (rather than do multiple lab rotations, as is done at many institutions).
The admissions process to this program is three pronged. You have to be accepted to the MD/PhD program, to the graduate school program, and to the College of Medicine (which is separate from the MD/PhD program). UIUC and UIC are in the same state university system, and I was accepted at UIC, so the College of Medicine acceptance part is taken care of for me. The other two groups are making their decisions very soon, so I won’t have to wait long to know the outcome …
Final interview at Georgetown. It was pretty much the standard interview day but we could attend an optional class lecture, and our lunch was scheduled with a special lecture for the social justice track. There was only one 30ish minute interview with the regular questions about motivation, qualifications, what I would contribute, etc. I thought it went pretty well, but with my wait list emails coming in I’m getting some self doubt. On a good note, the admissions rep said of the 1200 interviews last year, only 70 or so people didn’t get into any med school.
Anyone know if schools will grant deferrals off the wait list? Only one school I applied to specifically mentions NOT deferring off the wait list. Didn’t know if this is the regular practice.