Post-Interview Thoughts

[Jess24]

First off congrats to everyone who interviewed the last two weekends! Getting through that is an accomplishment in itself!!

 

Thought I would create this thread for anyone interested in using this as a therapeutic avenue to help navigate what will be a long wait until May 12th!

 

Note: This is NOT a place to discuss interview content (as per our confidentiality agreements) but a forum for people to pen their feelings from the past two weekends. Any such content will be removed by Moderators  

[Fleming]

The interview itself was trickier than I expected but I have to say, I was incredibly impressed by the facilities (such as the anatomy lab with all the organs around the room) and the people. It was a good weekend!

[fightoffyourdemons]

I had my interview a few weeks ago, and I agree that it was pretty tricky. I had Mac afterwards and felt like Mac's questions were a lot more straightforward. I also don't like their format as much as Mac's - it felt a lot more like a monologue than a dialogue, contrary to what people say an MMI is supposed to be.

[Fleming]

I had my interview a few weeks ago, and I agree that it was pretty tricky. I had Mac afterwards and felt like Mac's questions were a lot more straightforward. I also don't like their format as much as Mac's - it felt a lot more like a monologue than a dialogue, contrary to what people say an MMI is supposed to be.

 

I would agree with that. A lot more awkward silence going on at Queen's if you ran out of things to say. 

[( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)]

I actually felt like I needed more time for some stations. The way the MMI format is set up made me feel a bit rushed and I definitely could have said more and expanded as new thoughts came to mind but didn't get a chance. Though hindsight is always 20/20 huh

And that awkward silence thing is interesting bc my interviewers actually initiated non-MMI related conversation for the stations where I had a bit of time left. It was definitely a pleasant surprise

Concensus around here seems to be that the panel is always quite warm and kind. Definitely true for me too.

[jlkhhylyiluh6]

Does anyone know how they combine the MMI and panel when scoring? Like is the panel just counted as another station? I felt like I did so much better on the panel lol

[Jess24]

I have to agree with the thoughts so far. I know for one station I didn't know if I had to make some sort of executive decision and when I was about to the interviewer had to cut me off to move forward so I don't know if I even really answered the question . The scenarios were definitely interesting and dynamic which was nice! Lets hope showing your work counts for something! lol.

From a logistics perspective, I think one thing that could have been different was maybe starting the initial portion when everyone was standing at the door. For example I finished one station and my next one was in a different section. A nice first year showed me where to go and handed me a cup of water (thanks!) but when I got to the station I had to balance my water in the cup with trying to make up for lost time. If you would have seen me it would have been a way to make nerves sink away for sure with a laugh!

All in all it was a great experience. I just hope there is a way to recover from uneasy stations. I guess the outcome will be the best way to determine that!

Best of luck to everyone!

[( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)]

I agree with starting the 2 mins when everyone's at the door.  Another thing I experienced as a shorter applicant that others probably didn't was I felt like the prompts were so high up! I struggled with holding open the flap and still being able to write notes since I was on my tippy toes reaching up. It was a little awkward and uncomfortable aha. Although I'm sure it won't make a difference in the grand scheme of things.

Minor inconveniences. Overall, the experience was fabulous.

[jmira]

I felt that the stations were a lot more interesting than Mac's, which seemed a little bit impersonal. At Queen's I felt they really wanted to get a better sense of who we are and our motivations for medicine.

 

Also, in previous years it seems that most people found the MMI to be pretty difficult (even for those who got accepted). What did people think this year?  

[fightoffyourdemons]

I'm glad I wasn't the only one with that problem. I ended up reading the prompt without lifting the flap, as they didn't close all the way.... Must have looked ridiculous. We're not all 6 feet tall!

 

I agree with starting the 2 mins when everyone's at the door. Another thing I experienced as a shorter applicant that others probably didn't was I felt like the prompts were so high up! I struggled with holding open the flap and still being able to write notes since I was on my tippy toes reaching up. It was a little awkward and uncomfortable aha. Although I'm sure it won't make a difference in the grand scheme of things.

 

Minor inconveniences. Overall, the experience was fabulous.

[Fleming]

I undoubtedly experienced the issues with the height of the prompts, and I'm not even especially short (5'9). I can imagine this was an issue for shorter than average interviewees. I also agree with the concept that they wanted to see who we are as people. A lot of the stations stated a fact, then asked for our opinion on it, which contrasted with the methods utilized by other schools (in my opinion, in a good way).

[fightoffyourdemons]

I've heard that the panel is just for catching red flags.... but who knows if that's true or not. I would love it if it were weighted the same (or more) than the MMI stations.

 

Does anyone know how they combine the MMI and panel when scoring? Like is the panel just counted as another station? I felt like I did so much better on the panel lol

[jlkhhylyiluh6]

I've heard that the panel is just for catching red flags.... but who knows if that's true or not. I would love it if it were weighted the same (or more) than the MMI stations.

 

 

That would sort of suck, both since I didn't feel great on the MMI and because the panel was not even that short lol

[Jess24]

Beeboop, That is an interesting point you bring up because my panel was rather short!

 

Also it will be interesting to know what the expectation of the MMI is. Considering it is so short it took me a station to get into the groove of things but when you have such a small class size, that might be fatal lol. So how that plays into the weighting would be interesting. 

[( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)]

I've actually heard the panel can make you or break you and isn't just a flag. I think they really do consider what you say in the panel. But of course this is all just speculation

[thsc]

I thought the MMI was set up really awkardly for some stations; I obviously can't go into detail but I'm sure people that interviewed know what I'm referring to for the non-acting stations. I felt like they could've just laid out the scenarios in a more straightforward manner like Mac. 

[jlkhhylyiluh6]

I thought the MMI was set up really awkardly for some stations; I obviously can't go into detail but I'm sure people that interviewed know what I'm referring to for the non-acting stations. I felt like they could've just laid out the scenarios in a more straightforward manner like Mac. 

 

agreed. "those" stations you are talking about were basically you ranting for 8 minutes on something you read for 2 minutes, which just doesnt seem realistic

[rinzler]

Definitely short, not enough time to read, not enough time to answer. I would have appreciated more choice with my time instead of "this time is allocated for this and after it's up you cannot add to it no matter what"
 

Panel was also short, overall it was not what I was expecting at all...

[B3.572A]

Definitely short, not enough time to read, not enough time to answer. I would have appreciated more choice with my time instead of "this time is allocated for this and after it's up you cannot add to it no matter what"

 

Panel was also short, overall it was not what I was expecting at all...

 

Definitely agree and cannot say better myself than this.

[fightoffyourdemons]

Especially for the "acting" scenarios. Without going into specifics, I didn't know whether or not I was supposed to really try to convince the actor to change their mind on something, or if I was supposed to hear out their reasons and explain my side. Given the seriousness of the topic that we were discussing, there's no way you'd be able to convince someone in real life within that time limit...

 

I interviewed on the 8th, so if anyone else did too, you might know which station one I'm referring to.

[thsc]

Especially for the "acting" scenarios. Without going into specifics, I didn't know whether or not I was supposed to really try to convince the actor to change their mind on something, or if I was supposed to hear out their reasons and explain my side. Given the seriousness of the topic that we were discussing, there's no way you'd be able to convince someone in real life within that time limit...

 

I interviewed on the 8th, so if anyone else did too, you might know which station one I'm referring to.

I know what you're talking about. I def think the way Queen's set up their MMI is not an accurate assessment of the applicant's thoughts and aptitude.

 

I think Mac has got it down really well. Mcgill for sure did acting stations 10x better than anywhere else. 

[looksgoodinwhite]

I experienced the same thing as well! It was challenging to read and also take any sort of notes. Hopefully the students noticed this and can communicate it to those organizing it for next year.

 

I agree with starting the 2 mins when everyone's at the door.  Another thing I experienced as a shorter applicant that others probably didn't was I felt like the prompts were so high up! I struggled with holding open the flap and still being able to write notes since I was on my tippy toes reaching up. It was a little awkward and uncomfortable aha. Although I'm sure it won't make a difference in the grand scheme of things.

Minor inconveniences. Overall, the experience was fabulous.

[dassy]

We can try to pass this issue on to the admissions committee, however, we had the same issue arrive when we interviewed the year before.

Rest assured that it probably didn't impact you as much as you thought, we have a girl that's 5'1 in our class!

[fightoffyourdemons]

Is anyone going to be checking SOLUS the day before to see if they have screw-up number... what is it, 3 or 4? Haha.

[Riverpeth]

Is anyone going to be checking SOLUS the day before to see if they have screw-up number... what is it, 3 or 4? Haha.

What do you mean by screw-up number?