How To Get Started? Good Prep Material?

[hopefulgirl123]

Hi everyone! I don't have any interviews arranged at this moment, but I want to be well prepared for my first interviews. I don't have any previous experience and would love to hear from the forum community on how I can get started. I've seen the initial pinned MMI guide post here and it was great.

1) Where should I start for more resources like that? 

2) What are good prep materials I should grab? (I hear "Doing Right" is a very popular choice.)

3) What else should I know before getting started?

[HappyAndHopeful]

Current medical students I've spoken to have highly recommended Doing Right, as well as a book called "So You Want to be a Doctor, Eh?". They also said that practice questions were invaluable, and suggested arranging as many mock interviews as possible (dress up, try to simulate the environment, and have the person who's interviewing you pretend that it's the real thing as well). My friend also recommended reading and/or listening to CBC to become informed about current issues.

 

I'm in the same boat as you (first time applying) and would like to start preparing early for any interviews I might have as well, so I'm interested to see what others have to say too!

[Bambi]

It has been my experience that the best preparation is no prep. This is because you have prepared for the MMI your entire life by accumulating your life experiences. Believe it or not, you go in to have fun, treat it like a practice session, and just be your communicative, ethical, problem solving self. You cannot imagine the scenarios they will throw at you, so be adaptable, go with the flow and enjoy it. Remain calm, never show frustration, think before you talk.

[Blinkbest]

I would add to this: make A good introspection (strenghts, weaknesses, important Life experiences, values...) this will help you orient your answers to questions about yourself!

 

Good luck!

[HappyAndHopeful]

Good tips, thanks! Do you have any tips/advice for dealing with nerves? I feel confident in my ability to articulate myself, but when I'm nervous, I often get flustered and can't find words I'm looking for. I also tend to talk in questions (turn my voice up at the end of sentences). I think that will be my biggest struggle if I do have any interviews, especially in the panel interview where you don't have as much time to formulate responses.

[MacMed2018]

Hi everyone! I don't have any interviews arranged at this moment, but I want to be well prepared for my first interviews. I don't have any previous experience and would love to hear from the forum community on how I can get started. I've seen the initial pinned MMI guide post here and it was great.

 

1) Where should I start for more resources like that? 

 

2) What are good prep materials I should grab? (I hear "Doing Right" is a very popular choice.)

 

3) What else should I know before getting started?

 

I don't know why so many applicants buy Doing Right.  The CMAJ series is also excellent and free!

[End Poverty]

It has been my experience that the best preparation is no prep. This is because you have prepared for the MMI your entire life by accumulating your life experiences. Believe it or not, you go in to have fun, treat it like a practice session, and just be your communicative, ethical, problem solving self. You cannot imagine the scenarios they will throw at you, so be adaptable, go with the flow and enjoy it. Remain calm, never show frustration, think before you talk.

 

 

Bambi, you are probably naturally amazing

 

From my experience,  I found that A LOT of practice help with the MMIs.  I naturally get anxious when I have to speak about something new in front of strangers. Therefore, I had to practice to calm my nerves.

[Bambi]

Good tips, thanks! Do you have any tips/advice for dealing with nerves? I feel confident in my ability to articulate myself, but when I'm nervous, I often get flustered and can't find words I'm looking for. I also tend to talk in questions (turn my voice up at the end of sentences). I think that will be my biggest struggle if I do have any interviews, especially in the panel interview where you don't have as much time to formulate responses.

Treat the person in the room like an 11 or 12 year old whom you treat with respect and wish to explain your point of view. Do not consider yourself as being judged, rather consider this an opportunity for you to give an explanation to an answer. You need to play head games with yourself to overcome anxiety, which will only negatively affect your performance. I am just an average person who used this approach combined with treating the MMI like it was a practice session, and it worked!

[squishy23456]

Treat the person in the room like an 11 or 12 year old whom you treat with respect and wish to explain your point of view. Do not consider yourself as being judged, rather consider this an opportunity for you to give an explanation to an answer. You need to play head games with yourself to overcome anxiety, which will only negatively affect your performance. I am just an average person who used this approach combined with treating the MMI like it was a practice session, and it worked!

 

What if you are a below average person in terms of social interactions/interview skills?

[End Poverty]

What if you are a below average person in terms of social interactions/interview skills?

 

Then you practice a lot until you become average  

[HappyAndHopeful]

Treat the person in the room like an 11 or 12 year old whom you treat with respect and wish to explain your point of view. Do not consider yourself as being judged, rather consider this an opportunity for you to give an explanation to an answer. You need to play head games with yourself to overcome anxiety, which will only negatively affect your performance. I am just an average person who used this approach combined with treating the MMI like it was a practice session, and it worked!

 

 

Thank you, that is really helpful!

[End Poverty]

I heard that this book is useful:

 

http://www.medical-interviews.co.uk/p-206-medical-school-interviews-book.aspx

 

Not sure, though. Did anyone try it?

[mdjdot]

I think you have to practice for sure just like for any other life experiences, you need to experience it either through similar life experience or preparing actively - there's lot of questions online I recently saw a list of 100 sample mmi/med school interview questions which I posted on another thread but I don't remember it right now. I'll post if when I find it again.  

 

And of course maybe someone who can give you honest feedback. One thing I can say is stay away from your school career center or school organized mock interviews. I had pretty terrible experience. I'm not a fan of conspiracy theories so I'm not going to say that they were intentionally misleading but they don't seem to know what they are doing but of course they have good intentions, it's just problematic to ask them for help when you find out they have a bachelor in English for example with no experience.  

 

And I was turned off by them saying "it's free" "don't pay for it anywhere" like we don't understand that they get paid from our tuition which is pretty hefty. Nothing is free in universities, they get our tuition money AND money from the government per student to pay those nice salaries and benefits

 

Good luck to all of you and I'll post those questions as soon as I can find them! :-)