Mmi Guide By Arztin

[Arztin]

Disclaimer: opinion is my own, and I have no incentive from promoting these products. This is how I personally prepared.

Some say it's impossible to prepare, I disgress. I think there is no specific and perfect preparation, but I think the best way to prepare yourself is to acquire a good knowledge base and improve your interviewing skills. This way, you know how to express yourself better, and by acquiring maturity, you get to formulate answers that are more sound.

 

Beforehand, go figure out on your own what is a MMI. Any school's website will do that. 

Edit 2022:

Adding this section. Just some general, but important things.

- I cannot stress this enough: answer the question. 

- You have a limited amount of time but enough time to answer questions generally. Don't go on and on about non pertinent stuff. Be concise and answer the question.

- Pay attention to the cues given by interviewers.

Section 1 - Books to buy

 

1- Book for interviews: http://www.amazon.ca/Medical-School-Interviews-Practical-Mini-multi/dp/1905812051/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1422215371&sr=8-1&keywords=medical+school+interviews
Buy this book. Period. I really think it's worth every single penny because it actually has contents, plus the fact that 40 bux is really a fair price. In contrast, I personally think the MSC book is crap. It offers no content, which won't help the clueless candidate, plus the fact that it's way too expensive.

The way I recommend using this book:

Although the book has answers, I don't agree with some of them. Instead, I recommend you using your webcam, open a random page, pick a random question, take like 20 seconds to brainstorm and form an answer and watch yourself after: look for verbal communication improvements, flow of ideas, clarity from another person's standpoint.

Obviously, you can always ask for someone else's opinion too, e.g. pick a question, and tell them your answer and probe for feedback. Ideally, pick someone who is mature and has professional experience.

 

edit: LOL http://www.amazon.ca/gp/bestsellers/books/690498011/ref=pd_zg_hrsr_b_1_5_last

so looks like this book is number 2 in terms of sales regarding general medicine on amazon.ca now lol.

 

2- Medical ethics: I personnally don't think it's necessary to know more than this:

http://depts.washington.edu/bioethx/topics/index.html

I think Hebert (Doing Right) is a bit of an overkill plus the fact that it doesn't give you answers, leaving you wandering, although the book itself is pure gold.

3- Books about communication with patients: read about therapeutic communication. Therapeutic communication is often the model of communication for nursing, but it's pretty much the same as the one in medicine (patient centered), and it's great for MMI.

Rationale: actors = patients. Communicating well with actors = shows you can communicate well with patients.

I think chapter 3 of bates is all you need to know, although there is no use buying the entire book just for that.
http://www.amazon.ca/Bates-Guide-Physical-Examination-History-Taking/dp/1609137620

I personally read this book (and some other ones): http://www.amazon.ca/Skills-Communicating-Patients-Silverman/dp/1846193656/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1422231417&sr=8-1&keywords=skills+for+communicating+with+patients

but I think it was a bit of an overkill, although the book itself is pure awesomeness.

Also, if you wish, you can read about therapeutic communication. It's more for nurses but the principles stay the same.

 

4- I have not read this book myself, so it's purely a suggestion from someone else. A forum user told me they suggest this book highly. https://fernwoodpublishing.ca/book/about-canada-health-care-2nd-edition

It is my understanding that in the rest of Canada, they sometimes ask you about your comprehension about the Canadian health system. Wouldn't hurt to read it!

 

Section 2- Things that are important to know

-"Just be yourself" is actually not useful. If you have the perfect profile, great! If you don't have the right profile/personality traits, be yourself is bad. If you know your personality is incompatible, perhaps you should change some aspects about yourself.

 

-Read about social issues, social determinants of health, inequalities, psychology. It's more than just an interview. It's about being a mature person knowledgeable about global issues. The more you read, the better off you are. Medical schools want people who are articulate, who are mature. Articulate = good interview and communication skills. Mature = good with people having problems and knowledgeable about social issues.

 

- Public Health and Education are 2 big things. This is why I suggest to follow Bill Gates and WHO on Facebook. Both will allow you to understand the importance of public/preventive health. Lack of education, food, jobs, vaccines, social inequality = poor health overall. Read about Natives' health, and immigrants health. You'll learn something "cool" while understanding the importance of public health.

 

-Read stuff about the personnality traits required to be a good doc. CANMEDs would be a good starter. You can browse the competencies in Australia and England. It's pretty much the same thing. There is a new CANMEDs this year. Check it out! CANMEDs compliant = good doctor basically. 

 

- I strongly advise you to understand and know the Calgary-Cambridge structure = basis of a medical interview with a patient. What you will be doing with an actor is in a way the same thing: you see a person who has a problem, and you have to work with the person to solve the problem together. Do note that an MMI scenario is not a medical interview. 

 

If you know what is the point of a medical interview through this structure, you will understand what to do with actors:
e.g.: an actor has a problem
1- listen without judging, and listen to their concerns and point of view
2- understand them without reassuring prematurily
3- don't belittle nor lecture them
4- make the person understand that you want to work with him or her in order to figure out a solution together
5- try to find common ground and a solution

Obviously, do not be robotic. Do not memorize these steps and apply them like a robot. A MD is a human, not a robot.

 

-Know the challenges of the healthcare in the next 50 years. A few examples would be: aging population, less Rx are developped, antibiotics are losing efficiency, higher cost of new Rx, how to maintain trust in the medical/scientific field (e.g. Wakefield), the quickly rising costs of health care in Canada and its sustainability, the fact that medical knowledge is multiplying quickly and it's harder and harder for people to keep up to date, etc...

 

-Know current hot topics: e.g. aboriginal health, physician wages (Qc and Ontario right now), e-cigarettes

 

-Know about physician burnout and the importance of maintaining life balance.

 

Watch a bunch of good TED videos. The best one for an interview is this: http://www.ted.com/talks/amy_cuddy_your_body_language_shapes_who_you_are?language=en

I acutally did that while waiting in front of my doors, in the corridor, reading scenarios: power posing, stretching, jumping, extending myself, whereas others are stressed out. Nobody cares, you don't look ridiculous.

Some other TED talks I really recommend are:  Brian Goldman, the mayor of Oklahoma (Cornett), Goldacre

[Arztin]

Section 3: General recommendations

 

- Improve your interviewing skills. i.e. express your ideas clearly. Always answer your questions clearly. Don't be like this guy: 

This guy sucks because: he cannot give clear answers (answer the question, and give a specific example). Oh and stop saying you know because the evaluator doesn't know.

   Let's look at his first answer.

   - Why do you want to come here?

   - Um so I applied to several different places and everything but uh... but this one is particularly somewhere where I'd like to go. It's close to home, I have family around and uh there are a couple of interests that I'm interested in such as such as the specialties that I'm looking at. Uh so, there are a lot of strong residency programs associated with the school and I really like the hospitals around here. It's kind of what I'm looking for right now. 

     This answer is just bad. First sentence = really not useful to say. Proximity and cost are legitimate reasons, but you should never say it as the reason number 1. Reason number 1 should be something you like about the school: curriculum? method of teaching? strong research in some fields? outreach projects? That sentence about specialties makes him sound like he's high and doesn't say anything. Hospitals, okay, he likes the hospitals of the school but doesn't say why. So overall this is an example of a bad answer because he simply fails to answer the answer + rambles + never gives one single specific  example. It also gives the impression that he doesn't know the school at all and makes him look like an unmotivated generic applicant. Folks, don't do that.

 

-If your school requests a CV, learn your CV by heart.

 

-If your school requires CASPER, learn how to type quickly. It's also a useful skill in general.

 

-Know the school you're applying to: curriculum, positive things about the school, and some genuine things that you like about the school

 

-Know yourself. Whether it's MMI or panel, you'll be asked to talk about yourself. Have a few examples ready for some situations (e.g. tell me about a time when you were victim of injustice). If they want you to talk about some hardship you have gone through, don't talk about school. If you do, you just sound like a pampered child that doesn't know what it means to overcome hardship. Obviously, know your motivations to go in medicine.

 

-You're an applicant. You have flaws. When someone asks you if you have flaws, tell them about your flaws without sounding like you have a mental problem. e.g. lack of patience? lack of humour? Don't say: I have anger management issues because this makes you sound like you have a serious proble, or even a mental problem. Also don't give them something like this: well I'm so focused on details that I sometimes feel like I have OCD. No, don't say that. You sound like an arrogant douche. Be humble.

 

- Go to your interviews with confidence. Believe in yourself. 

Confidence is a skill. It can be learned.

[Arztin]

What I think about preparing for MMI

I think there are many things you can do alone first: record yourself speak with a webcam, watch yourself and discover your flaws: nervous ticks, clarity of ideas, "uh" "eh...", bad flow of ideas etc....  

 

When it comes to preparing with others, I don't think it's really necessary.

The reason why I mention this is often, a bunch of clueless premeds will practice together. What can you really learn from it? It might be beneficial, but I doubt it. When you have a good knowledge base, you're wasting your time with clueless people. Clueless people practicing with clueless people = no gain from neither side.

 

However, I do recognize that different people have different ways of functioning. If participating in a simulation scenario helps you familiarize with the environment/process, by all means, do it. 

 

Section 4 : approach to certain stations.  Disclaimer: I have never signed a confidentiality form with French schools, so examples are drawn from my MMI at the French schools. I am therefore not breaching any rule here since I'm not saying anything about the McGill stations. Note: these are vague translations, and by all means not perfect answers. (remember: there are no perfect answers)

 

4A- Situations with -Actors:

 

1- compromise

 

Situation: you live in the 3rd floor of a building and you have an exam next week. Your neighbour (Alice), who is also the building owner has a new dog since 2 weeks and the dog barks non stop, even at night. Alice also listens to music at night. These things are bothering you a lot since you are a busy student and you have exams in 2 weeks. You decided to talk to Alice about it.

 

-- What you can deduce from reading this is: you have probably have to try to find a compromise with the actress --

I'll write here more or less what I said and write my (thought process).

me: hi! how are you?

A: good, yourself?

me: hey listen, I wanted to talk to you about something. Any idea what that might be? (testing the waters, to see how she reacts)

A: no, not really.

me: well you have a new dog right? (talk about 1 thing at a time)

A: yeah! I just got it!

me: I guess you really like it uh? (just to make it more convivial. I saw the evaluator, who was in the room chuckle to that)

A: yeah of course I do!

me: well look, I wanted to talk about this because as you know, I'm a student, and I'm at the end of the semester. I really need to sleep properly to study and to perform well at my exams. However, your cute dog keeps barking and I feel like it doesn't really help me!

A: well, he's a small puppy! What can I do?

me: well, do you have a room in which you put the dog? (trying to figure out a solution)

A: nah. actually I keep him in a cage!

me: why do you put him in the cage?

A: well it's a small pup and he pees on the floor

me: well, if you allow the dog out of the cage, won't the dog stop barking?

Alice: well the dog makes a mess wherever it goes! I mean, it's a pup

me: well do you have any idea what can be done to make the dog not bark?(tried to get a direct point of view of the other person)

her: hmmmm not really

me: (thought: okay seems like regardless what I say, it won't work. I don't expect to reach a solution at this point. I'm going for a final attempt)

so have you tried dog school?

A: nah. Well you know, it's really expensive!

me: Yeah it is. I understand. Well look, do you have any relative that can take care of it just for the time being of the exam? I know you really like your dog but I really need to study for my exams too!

A: I can't trust anyone with my dog!

me: (okay this is getting nowhere. I'll talk about the sound problem)

Okay, we can talk about the dog in a moment. There's actually something else I wanted to talk too. Well, I understand you work at night, which makes you a night owl, and you watch movies at night.

A: {cuts me off} yeah ! i like my new sound system! It's awesome!

me: Yeah regarding that... I really do need to study though. I understand you have the right to enjoy the privacy of the home, but we somewhat all live under the same roof!

A: Yeah, well we live in an apartment building right? It's normal to have this kind of issue from time to time!

me: yeah it's true. What about earphones? I have really good earphones that I can lend you, and it comes with a lengthy wire!

A: ah sorry I can't use earphones because I have tinnitus!

me: Ah I understand. Well in that case can you reduce just a bit your sound system? Or put the bass on a table?

A: yeah I can try to reduce a bit the sound

-----------end of 5 minutes-----------

Evaluator asks me:

- How do you think it went?  (answer this question honestly)

I said: I think it went fairly well. In this case it was a problem of trying to figure out a solution to an impossible conflict. I think I listened to her concerns fairly well, without just pushing my own priorities first. So I think it was fairly good overall.

- What can you improve on? - I forgot what I said

 

Key: In a situation where you won't come to a common ground, realize that you won't come to a perfect compromise. Try to come to a compromise but don't push your priorities. Understand and listen the other person, and try to work together towards finding a solution together. You will encounter conflicts in life. Knowing how to deal with differences is really important!

 

If you think you did something awfully, when the evaluator asks: just admit it and be honest. 

***have self awareness. If you clearly sucked at something: say it. i.e. I lacked sensibility. I was a bit judgemental. Even if you did everything just right, still add something like: I could have been more patient, have listened more, or little things you could have tweaked.*** Remember, be humble.

After a 1.5 years of med school, I cannot stress enough. Being humble, having self-criticism, and willing to accept feedback are important qualities to become a competent MD. Having a giang ego is not a quality.

 

4B -Evaluators - discussion

 

1- the WTF station

At my French schools, I've encountered a station that was all about destabilizing the applicant. There were 2 evaluators, a med 4 and a MD. They kept asking me questions that were simply weird, and expecting me to not know.

For example, they asked me: do you know CANMEDs competencies?

me - yes I do

her - name me 3

And so I did. They didn't expect candidates to know any. The thing there is to expect to be blasted by the fact that you don't know, and keep your cool. 

They then asked me: if you were a fruit, what would you be? Technically, it's just a random question, isn't it? The sole purpose of it is just to destabilize the applicant. They didn't expect me to know about CANMEDs. The key of this type of station is: keep your cool. Remember the actors are paid to try to throw you off.

 

2- you suck

Situation: read (in 2 minutes) the profiles of 3 cancidates applying to medicine. (1 = nerd, 2 = good at school with fairly good social life, 3 = had crap grades but has done international volunteering in africa and is older and more mature). The text is like 1 entire page long. It's basicaly impossible to read.

 

The evaluator (1) actually opened the door, and to my surprise, there was another evaluator (2).

They greeted me and asked me if I read the scenario, and then asked me: "who do you think is the best candidate?"

I think the key here would be to try to give good arguments about one, but still recognizing that the other 2 have great qualities too, very succintly.

Then, they asked me: "which candidate do you think you mostly look like?"

(thought: oh crap. It's a trap. If I say I look like the one I say is best, they'll blast me for that. If I say I look like another candidate, then I'm basically admitting I'm a bad candidate).

And so yeah, I said I look more like the candidate I picked.

Eval 1: seems like you're a manipulator. You're trying to convince us you're a big shot eh?

Meanwhile, Eval2 is shaking her head, and during the whole interview, looks at her watch, and roll eyes as if she's bored.

 

Key: I was in a situation where I would get criticized regardless what I say. They want to see what you do when you get challenged. Stay focused and keep your cool.

 

3- pot - ethics

situation: some background information about pot. Discussion with evaluator.

 

E: so do you think pot should be legalized?

me: (thought: I'm going to give some positive and negative arguments and then pick my side)

- I just start explaning my thought process that are in favour of legalizing.

---he cuts me off---

E: no, you have to pick a side now {while pointing at the table}

me: well personnally I'm against legalizing pot because I think there are arguments against it. For example, pot causes amotivational syndrome. As a result, a lot of teenagers and adults who smoke get really lazy the next day and it's basically a huge loss of productivity for the whole society. I think it ruins the life of many people because they wasted a few key years of their youth smoking pot while they could have done for sure something more worthwhile. Also, I just find it ethically wrong to sell a product which makes people get high, and make money from them by taxing them. (thought: I'm going to get blasted. It would happen regardless which side I pick)

E: well pot doesn't kill people. Pot doesn't cause addiction. Think about prohibition. The crime rate went down when they decided to legalize alcohol again. People would have pure and better weed. Also, it would generate a lot of money.

 

..... so on and so fourth...

At the end he asked for my position again, to which I replied: "I personally will always stand against legalizing drug for the reasons I mentionned. But as a rational person, I think we need good studies to show that it's actually overall better legalize pot. If there is compelling evidence that it's overall more positive for society to legalize it, then be it. I have no problem with legalizing it, although personally, I do not think it's a good thing to do for the reasons I stated earlier"

 

Key: Ethics = you get blasted regardless what you say. I'm not knowledgeable about pot. So that didn't help. I'm sure someone more knowledgeable than me would have formed better answers. However, you cannot be super knowledgeable about every single possible subject. Remember: there is no right or wrong answer but there are better and bad/awful answers. Your argument won't be perfect - you only have a few minutes on the fly to make a point. When attacked, acknowledge the flaws of your arguments but don't just hop from one side of the fence to the other non stop.

[Arztin]

Wil expand eventually:

 

Section 5: general considerations about MMI

 

- When reading the scenario

You usually have 2 minutes. It should be more than enough time, so take your time to read properly. After doing that, try to think of a few main themes that you will be evaluated on: e.g. honesty? communication? etc.... If it's an ethics situation, think of a few major themes you want to cover.

 

- Answer the question!

It might be simple, but many people don't actually do it, whether it's stress, or their thought process is disorganized. Just like for your personal statement, you need to answer the question. 

 

- MMI ethics scenarios:

There is no right or wrong answer, not perfect answer generally speaking for MMI scenarios. However, there definitely are awful answers and there are good ones.

The thing is to understand that there are multiple perspectives to an issue, and to stick with one. You have to realize that the side you stick to has flaws too. You will definitely get challenged by the evaluator regardless of your answer. You will defend it, but admitting that the evaluator has a valid point too would be a good idea.

 

- Don't ramble and shamble. Better shush it than to ramble.

Keep your answers concise, seldom over 60 seconds. I have to say: I personally always speak fast. (People message me about this quite often. If your opening statement in a discussion statement can be really good and longer than say 2-3 minutes, go for it. Just make sure your arguments are clear and easy to understand. However, it's more than possible that you will have to discuss about an issue you might not know so well. In that case, talking too long would be more likely to be bad.)

reason: long answer = you might go on a tangent, you might start to forget what you said earlier, and you might ramble and shamble. It also makes it hard for the evaluator to stay focused, follow your argument.

edit: for your initial statement, it can be a bit longer for sure. But try to stay concise.

 

I HIGHLY doubt you will be put into a station, and have to talk about an issue without 8 minutes, while the evaluator has no follow up questions. That just seems to me extremely unlikely.

 

- Don't narate when they ask you about a time you did X.  Make sure you describe the scenario and your role succintly and clearly, and explain what you learned from it.

Random example: tell me a time you had to show leadership

better answer: I was doing a summer project in biology with 3 other teammates and they all seemed clueless and somewhat disorganized. I then took the initiative to assign roles and deadlines, and scheduled meetings. I also made sure we all communicated to each other efficiently. As a result, we were able to complete our tasks in a timely manner with a top grade. I learned from that experience that good leadership requires good organization, communication, and empowerment of team members.

vs

awful answer: I was doing a summer project with 2 guys, Jon and Joe, and a girl, Kayla. Jon didn't know what to do. Joe was like always lost, and Kayla is always like: hey guys what should we be doings? So then I was like this is not gonna work guys. I then called them to meet. Then since they didn't know what to do, I had to tell them what to do. So I was basically coordinating the team. ---- Meanwhile, the evaluator is getting frustrated at you and thinks you are stupid.

 

- On ''Being yourself''

They want people who fit the personality according to the evaluator. Obviously, if you have the right personnality, be yourself. If you don't have the outgoing, nice, caring, sociable personnality they're looking for, you need to work on this. In other words, for these people, ''being yourself'' is definitely not a good tip.

 

- NUTRITION

MMI day: AVOID SALTY STUFF, EAT LIGHTLY, AVOID GREASY FOOD. Salt makes your mouth dry, and you'll have a "pasty" mouth. Some people puke because of their stress: you minimize that probability by eating lightly. Greasy = hard to digest and more % of vomit. I'm being a bit like a parent here, but do eat lightly. I remember at my MMI and we had food offered before our MMI. Nobody had appetite. After our MMI, everyone ate.

 

-I cannot stress this enough. Keep your cool at all times. e.g. if your scenario is 5 pages long, it's obvious that they don't expect you to be able to read it in 2 minutes. If they ask you to do a task that takes 5 hours in the few minutes alloted in the room, then they probably don't expect you to be able to do it.

Some actors are paid to be nasty. Remain calm. Some evaluators are paid actors too. They will be nasty. Remain calm. Never lose your temper. If you are easily stressed/worried, you do need to work on this.

 

- It's okay to pause a bit before talking if you're thinking. It's only natural. 

[coldpizzahotsriracha]

Thank you for this, Arztin! 

[loodogg]

Thank you Arztin

[武田信玄]

thanks. just about to prepare for mmi

[武田信玄]

I Have a question. I was at MUN a while ago and their MMI station was around 8 min each. It seems that the interviewers have around 3 follow-up questions at each station. How many minutes would you recommend to spend on the main response and how many minutes would you recommend to leave for the 3 follow-up questions? I had stations where they were about to ask me something but the time was up (doesn't really matter now since I'm not going to take the second english course).

[Heisencat]

This is great! Thank you, Arztin. 

[FinalShowtime]

Excellent guide. Sums pretty much what you need to know for the MMI.

 

I actually enjoyed mine and I think knowing yourself as much as you can is perhaps one of the most important thing you can do to prepare.

[JessieMed]

Artzin, when did you do your UdeM MMI? By curiosity, did you get in ?

[Arztin]

Artzin, when did you do your UdeM MMI? By curiosity, did you get in ?

April last year. yup accepted 1st day, even though my CRU was definitely in the lower ends.

Accepted at McGill 1st day as well.

[RedLily]

Thanks for posting this Arztin, in-depth and super helpful! 

 

They then asked me: if you were a fruit, what would you be? 

 

If you say 'apple,' do you think that's an automatic fail?

[Arztin]

Thanks for posting this Arztin, in-depth and super helpful! 

 

 

If you say 'apple,' do you think that's an automatic fail?

Silly question, silly answer. Anything can be okay. I doubt they expect a real rational answer.

Just come up with something quick and silly haha.

[LeBronto2019]

I would love some WTF or you suck stations! 

[Purple13]

Hi!

 

I have a few general questions regarding MMIs at McGill: 

 

1) Is it recommended/good/bad to summarize the prompt we get once we enter the room and say that we're doing it to ensure that we understood it correctly, or should we just go straight into our answer/discussion/etc. once we've introduced ourselves?

 

2) With regards to acting stations, do we get a chance to walk in and introduce ourselves or do we just enter and start interacting with the actors? Also, at the end of an acting station, do we get a chance to thank everyone involved or should we just thank the "interviewer"?

 

3) Do the questions posted outside the rooms identify at the top whether they are going to role-play, writing, or just discussion? I wonder because I too am unsure whether I should go into the room and begin acting or should greet the interviewers first? (question by Duggar99)

 

4)Regarding role-play/situational questions, are we expected to stick to the prompt we read? Or is it ok/good/bad to add in some details of our own that we make up? (question by Duggar99)

 

Thanks!

[Que]

Hi!

 

I have a few general questions regarding MMIs at McGill: 

 

1) Is it recommended/good/bad to summarize the prompt we get once we enter the room and say that we're doing it to ensure that we understood it correctly, or should we just go straight into our answer/discussion/etc. once we've introduced ourselves?

 

2) With regards to acting stations, do we get a chance to walk in and introduce ourselves or do we just enter and start interacting with the actors? Also, at the end of an acting station, do we get a chance to thank everyone involved or should we just thank the "interviewer"?

 

3) Do the questions posted outside the rooms identify at the top whether they are going to role-play, writing, or just discussion? I wonder because I too am unsure whether I should go into the room and begin acting or should greet the interviewers first? (question by Duggar99)

 

4)Regarding role-play/situational questions, are we expected to stick to the prompt we read? Or is it ok/good/bad to add in some details of our own that we make up? (question by Duggar99)

 

Thanks!

I'd also like some clarification regarding this please thanks!

[( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)]

Awesome post! Thank you

 

Is someone able to comment on whether or not McGill provides paper + pen while reading prompts to jot down quick points/notes?

[ecobeco]

Anyone read the Medical School Interviews outlined in OPs first post? Would you recommend I pick it up?

[Arztin]

Hi!

 

I have a few general questions regarding MMIs at McGill: 

 

1) Is it recommended/good/bad to summarize the prompt we get once we enter the room and say that we're doing it to ensure that we understood it correctly, or should we just go straight into our answer/discussion/etc. once we've introduced ourselves?

 

2) With regards to acting stations, do we get a chance to walk in and introduce ourselves or do we just enter and start interacting with the actors? Also, at the end of an acting station, do we get a chance to thank everyone involved or should we just thank the "interviewer"?

 

3) Do the questions posted outside the rooms identify at the top whether they are going to role-play, writing, or just discussion? I wonder because I too am unsure whether I should go into the room and begin acting or should greet the interviewers first? (question by Duggar99)

 

4)Regarding role-play/situational questions, are we expected to stick to the prompt we read? Or is it ok/good/bad to add in some details of our own that we make up? (question by Duggar99)

 

Thanks!

1- yes, do it to make sure you understood. I do that every time, even with actors. 

2- I just walk in every time as fast as I can and each time say: Hi my name is X and I proceed right away. No time for formalities. I don't knock on doors. That's just my way of doing things. At the end, I shake hands with everyone in the room each time and say have a nice day before leaving the room. (unless they're like 2 meters away) 

3- It's pretty self explanatory once you're there. It won't be ambiguous.

4- Use your own judgement on that once you're there. But try to stick to the prompt as much as possible. I think you can use examples of your own personal life too if you think it's appropriate. E.g. talking to dude who has some alcohol problem, and you actually have a friend who went through alcoholism. Then, for sure it would be appropriate to bring it up.

[Health_in_Perspective90]

Absolutely wonderful guide! Thank you for the series of helpful posts Artzin! 

[Purple13]

1- yes, do it to make sure you understood. I do that every time, even with actors. 

2- I just walk in every time as fast as I can and each time say: Hi my name is X and I proceed right away. No time for formalities. I don't knock on doors. That's just my way of doing things. At the end, I shake hands with everyone in the room each time and say have a nice day before leaving the room. (unless they're like 2 meters away) 

3- It's pretty self explanatory once you're there. It won't be ambiguous.

4- Use your own judgement on that once you're there. But try to stick to the prompt as much as possible. I think you can use examples of your own personal life too if you think it's appropriate. E.g. talking to dude who has some alcohol problem, and you actually have a friend who went through alcoholism. Then, for sure it would be appropriate to bring it up.

 

Thank you!! 

[xkittens]

Okay so I've been doing practice interview questions and I usually end up talking for 8 minutes straight. How can you possibly break down the problem, contemplate the different issues and then suggest possible actions in only 1-2 minutes?! I usually use 5-6 points in that time and I don't really ramble if that's what you were thinking, I just like to explain everything thoroughly. 

[Que]

How would you summarize a prompt with actors? Would they ask what you are doing?

[Arztin]

How would you summarize a prompt with actors? Would they ask what you are doing?

i.e. scenario: "your friend Kurt asks you to meet his sister Kate. Kate has cancer and stopped chemo and oncology care. Instead, she started following a guru who can apparently cure any sort of cancer with herbal voodoo traditional medicine. Knowing you are a medical student, Kurt wants you to have a good talk with his sister."

(real scenario that I had in French schools by the way)

I'd go in and say 

-hi how are you?

-actor says whatever

- Hey I know your brother Kurt pretty well. Hum this might be a bit of a sensitive topic. He asked me to talk to you about the fact that you recently stopped chemo and oncology and started following a certain guru who can cure cancer? Would it be okay with you if we talk about this?

 

Something like that, something real quick.

 

Obviously, expect to be left in the dark with a scenario that really doesn't leave you any clue. That does happen. In one of my French stations, it was something like: "Your neighbour Thierry really wants to talk to you. You don't actually really know him. You just know he likes sports, especially football" You find out what's up only once you're in.