luc_cervelo Posted June 21, 2008 Report Share Posted June 21, 2008 I didn't have the greatest interviews this year (all of mine were MMI format - I think most are nowadays) but I'd like to improve for applications next year. Any suggestions on how to go about doing better? I know that the MMI is supposed to show what kind of a person you are, and should not change much between sittings, but a friend of mine got help from a prof to improve interview performance this year, and got in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Med Guru Posted June 22, 2008 Report Share Posted June 22, 2008 Practice, Practice, Practice... The principals, questions, and values being assessed in a panel interview still hold up with the MMI. You must anticipate the area's that you will be tested on and develop an approach to attack them with. Now that you have been through it once, you will have a better idea of what they will throw at you. As well, your delivery of the questions is as important as their content, do not be afraid to get excited or have an opinion as these days 80% of the applicants going through the interview look very, very similar. Therefore the polished, practiced applicants are the ones that rise above the rest. cheers;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arctic_monkey Posted June 22, 2008 Report Share Posted June 22, 2008 hey there, i practiced with my mom...we found some MMI questions online and also some regular interview questions...i think those will help because they get you thinking about stuff like ethics, problem solving, current events, etc. Definitely RELAX the day of the interview! You don't want to be stressed, stumbling during the interview...SMILE! Also, I'm not sure if people do this but what I did during my MMI was knock on the door before entering. This is a sign of respect and doctors will do this before entering the room to see a patient as well. Shake hands, introduce yourself and treat it like a conversation (I know that the interviewer will be speaking minimally ,if at all, to you but if you go in with that mindset, you will be much more open about yourself, previous experiences and thoughts)....when you are waiting outside of the door, you have some time to jot down some notes and this is good but you don't have time to write something that is very structured...I would take that time to read and understand the question, jot down some things to consider but do not limit yourself to what you write - once you are actually in there, you will think of tons more to say and that is awesome! Also, don't worry if you find you keep saying some of the same stuff over and over at each station...it is bound to happen. It sounds cliche, but be yourself and smile! Oh another thing I thought about was timing...you have a certain amount of time at each station so when you are practicing, you can time yourself so that you are talking for the right amount of time and when it comes to the real thing, you will have a better idea of how long to talk for and will be less likely to go over the time limit or just be sitting there with nothing to say...don't be afraid to ask for clarification as well... Before doing interviews, I thought that the traditional style would be better since that is what most of us are used to (ie. with job interviews, etc.). However, I found the MMI was great for med school specifically...the best thing is that if you don't do so well at one station, you have many more to make up for it! Go in with a positive attitude and do your best! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reminisce Posted June 22, 2008 Report Share Posted June 22, 2008 preparation, preparation preparation.. the above posts have pretty much nailed the main spots on the head. practice with parents, friends, fellow applicants, MD's you may know, or a supervisor from work (anyone really). I read ALOT of books on ethics (doing right was probably the main one) and about healthcare as well (structure, economics, weaknesses, strengths), but one think i think I did that helped me alot was introspection. just really looking at why I wanted to be a doctor, how it important it was to me and just motivating myself intrinsically. I found that somehow, all those values, motivations and feelings genuinely worked themselves into my answers at each station and i like to think that my interviews picked up on that. good luck in all your future applications Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luc_cervelo Posted June 24, 2008 Author Report Share Posted June 24, 2008 I really went in with the mentality that I was going to have fun with this - and one of the interviewers said that he thought I was really having fun interviewing for something I would love - I don't think he was supposed to provide me with any feedback, but it really gave me the leg up after a bad previous station (the lady did not look impressed by my answer, but I think they tell some of them to look disinterested). So I guess, maybe he was supposed to be really encouraging, but it did make me feel a lot better :) AWESOME ANSWERS FROM EVERYONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thanks so much guys. I appreciate the thoughts you put out there because it's hard to get that kind of advice. I'll have to try to generally follow that in preparation for next year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mbene085 Posted June 24, 2008 Report Share Posted June 24, 2008 I'd venture to say that there's such a thing as too much practice. If you get nervous or flustered and have trouble thinking on your feet, practice the process, not the content. If you give them canned answers that sound too rehearsed, they'll be able to tell. I agree with the previous poster who mentioned having fun - this is what you want to be doing, so have fun with it. Show them how awesome you are. Get yourself comfortable with the process - and I'd recommend stopping the practice at that point. You want to be spontaneous, not rehearsed, imho. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beekeeper Posted June 24, 2008 Report Share Posted June 24, 2008 You want to be spontaneous, not rehearsed, imho. Great advice. The nice thing about the MMI process is that, at least in my case, there was no way I could have predicted a lot of the questions that were asked so in a way it assists you in being spontaneous. Try to toss around some answers to the typical questions of your reasons for pursuing medicine, important experiences that have helped/challenged you, etc. but by no means prepare an answer that can be regurgitated at a later date. I made a point of taking a deep breath in and out before opening the door and not barging in like so many others seem to do. In each case I had a big smile on my face and extended my hand to introduce myself to the interviewers. I have no idea if that made the slightest difference but at the very least it makes you seem friendly and approachable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hopeagainstodds Posted June 24, 2008 Report Share Posted June 24, 2008 I had three interviews this years and interviewed well enough to get accepted by the three universities. Ucalgary was my #1 choice and hence I harassed a lot of people (ex-UC students) during my preparation. People told me just to relax, understand my motivations, and be myself(all 10 said the same thing to me). I think thats the best thing you can do. For preparation, I would do what beekeeper suggest but I would also pick up a book/paper on ethics + physician responsibilities. Looking at something like this would allow you to frame your response and use the proper jargon to explain your answer. Just to emphasize, the key is to be yourself and to draw from your own experiences and not regurgitate "hypothetical responses" or book material. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlatan Posted June 24, 2008 Report Share Posted June 24, 2008 Several pointers: (1) Ethics - Doing Right by Hebert (2) HealthCare - http://www.canadian-healthcare.org/ + Think about current problems and solutions for our health care system (eg. long wait times, inadequate rural medicare, 2-tier systems, doctor shortage, etc) (3) Collaboration - giving and receiving instructions for origami or drawing (4) Communication - playing actors in various scenarios (5) Personal - same as the traditional panel interview questions Cheers, Charlatan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cleboman Posted June 24, 2008 Report Share Posted June 24, 2008 Most important thing is to stay calm. If you find a situation to be hard, it is very likely that most other people would find it hard too. Being calm will allow you to think more clearly while answering the question. Always be smiling. Another key thing is to give balanced arguments. Never give one-sided arguments, instead try to state why each side may be right and then slightly lean into what you feel is more appropriate in the certain circumstance. As a doctor you have to be multi-faceted and realize how a decision may effect the patient, their family, the healthcare system(nurses and limited resources), the institution the patient may be a part of. They are really trying to see if you can fit the role of a doctor and consider all sides of a conflict. There is no CORRECT answer, just be well balanced but at the same time take a stance for what you feel is right in the particular situation. If you have stations that deal with an actor, try to show empathy if they are suffering and don't be dismissive of their concerns. If its a situation with another student(puzzle type things), never put blame on the other person..instead say"if we were to do this again, i think we could improve if we did it this way..." The level of completion of whatever you are working on is irrelevant...its simply a communication exercise and they want to see how you work with other people good luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beekeeper Posted June 24, 2008 Report Share Posted June 24, 2008 ^Bang on. Completely. I forgot about the ethics realm but that is excellent advice too. I took a Philosophy Bioethics course which I felt was a huge help in getting enlightened to not only the current issues but just how to present an argument and look at all sides. If you can't/don't want to fit a course like that into your schedule take out those book recommendations by Charlatan. 'Doing Right' was especially helpful for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phulmayaa Posted June 30, 2008 Report Share Posted June 30, 2008 Several pointers: ... (5) Personal - same as the traditional panel interview questions Cheers, Charlatan Hi Charlatan, Does the UBC MMI format still include personal questions? I thought they eliminated this component completely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlatan Posted June 30, 2008 Report Share Posted June 30, 2008 Hi phulmayaa, Any of the above 5 areas posted above is fair game. For the 2008 entry, with the MMI being first implemented, UBC had posted a message regarding interview format and potential interview content on the "check status" page, sometime during January of 2008. It specifically stipulates that "not all of these 5 areas may appear every year". You should look out for similar message closer to interview time, and I recommend covering all 5 areas when preparing to avoid any unpleasant surprises on interview day. Cheers, Charlatan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jelly31 Posted July 23, 2008 Report Share Posted July 23, 2008 I got a few personal questions at the UBC interview. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surgimus Posted July 23, 2008 Report Share Posted July 23, 2008 From my experience of the MMI: I found a lot of resources on SDN, in terms of past MMI questions/ sample questions. I tried to have as many high yield sessions as possible by practicing with peers that I thought were really competitive. It was really easy to find weakspots by switching between discussing topics and doing timed sessions. After a while you get really good at pretty much all the scenarios. My approach on the day was entirely different in a way. I think I made absolutely sure that when answering a question I was connecting with the interviewer, and effectively communicating, as opposed to answering the question in a purely formulaic manner. I also networked with Med I's who rocked their interview the year before, they are really good at being able to tweak my answers. I ended up scoring 90+ percentile on my MMI... which was kinda nice because now the struggle is over. If you have any questions about particular scenarios or general tippers, do PM me, I'd be happy to Pay it Forward. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpanishFly Posted February 8, 2009 Report Share Posted February 8, 2009 When you walk into the room, does the interviewer ask you the question or do they expect you to get right into it since you've already read it? Also, if they ask follow up questions, I think its pretty fair to assume they will be related somehow to the previous question? And lastly, is it a good sign if they're asking follow-ups or does that mean you haven't done a very good job answering the first time? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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