Feedback: U of T interview

[Guest DentApp]

Any thoughts?

[Guest Dentapp]

Had my Western interview over the weekend. Was pretty much the same as the U of T one. Didn't ask me if I wanted to become a dentist or anything along those lines. A very standard set of questions. Anyone else?

[Guest plugger]

I had a U of T dents interview on the sixth. What are your stats like, I'm trying to get a feel for the applicant pool, I'll start

c.g.p.a. 3.87

school. UofT

major. Neuroscience

DAT; Academic-19, PAT- 15(ouch)- I should have studied

Also applied to Meds - rejected everywhere (UofT(6 on verbal-MCAT), MAC(no research, and I'm not a concert pianist), Ottawa(who knows?), WESTERN(MCAT cutoff)- who needs meds any ways- Gov't workers without the benefits!

I only applied to meds because I wasn't sure of my chances for dents.

Everyone start posting!

[Guest SarahS]

Here are mine:

 

CGPA: 3.71 (OMSAS scale)

DAT: 95/150

 

I also applied to meds, but got interviews at several places. Will see what happens.

[Guest Tob]

Did you study for the MCAT or just go in and write it. 6 on the verbal, I'm sure you could do better, unless are you a foreign student. I heard the verbal score emphasis is there at many schools to keep foreign students with poor language skills but otherwise stellar marks out of the program.

 

BTW

for my stats UofT dents 3.8GPA cum. 92/150 DAT

[Guest plugger]

Oh I studied for the MCAT alright, I even took the Princeton Review and I couldn't improve my scores at all in verbal- I am a slow reader though, I got 12s in both Phys and Bio Sci (mainly because I barely even read those sections and just did the questions) and had an R on the essay section- that verbal test is b.s. - What, I can't be a doctor because I can't read a thousand words a minute, yet I can write a coherent well structued essay-BS And how many people can say they work between 20 and 25 hrs a week during the school year, coach a high school athletic team, have a girlfriend of five years, and maintain a 3.8+ GPA- no time management skills there.

I guess I'm not med material

[Guest Kirsteen]

Hi Plugger,

 

I apologize if it looks like I'm noseying in a little here (I have absolutely zippo to offer with respect to dentistry) but do have a few comments to offer re: VR based on some recent, wild experiences.

 

I figured that VR was placed on the MCAT to make sure that your English skills (reading/comprehension) were up to par. I'm not really sure how great VR scores size up and correlate to being a great physician, but from my own point of view I feel pretty darned comfortable with the English language and performed decently in the section. However, this past week, due to getting some ducks in row for a Plan B (in case I don't see a thickvelope arriving in the next couple of months) I've been interviewing with a number of different surgeons (plastics and neurosurg) for some research positions here in TO. My path had never really crossed that of any of these guys before and like I said, I feel that I have a fairly firm grasp of the mother tongue; but honestly, the common denominator between these guys is that each one of them just blew a crater into my perception of what it's like to be up to par in the English language.

 

Never mind the scientific/medical knowledge, but the array of vocabulary, the intonations, the phrases--whooo! Half the time it reminded me of sitting in front of some of the old programs on the BBC including quippy, witty British comics; expertly-delivered Shakespearean dramas; unreal, otherworldly-brainy quiz show contestants, etc. The interesting bit was that not one of them came across as being pompous, over-intelligent, and unapproachable because of this obvious talent--quite the opposite. Overall, it was tough to leave feeling so linguistically up to par, let me tell ya.

 

Now, I don't know if these gargantu-vocabs and obviously superior networkings of the English language sector of the brain contribute in an immense way to being a superstar doctor, but I got the distinct feeling that these guys would have a tough time not being in that elusive 13-15 section in the VR.

 

Cheers and best of luck,

Kirsteen

[Guest plugger]

That's an excellent point. Now here's mine. If you have trouble understanding them(surgeons,doctors, whoever-It could be nurses for all I care), how do you think patients will relate? Are doctors there to serve the general public, or just a select bunch of super keener nerds who read shakespeare in their spare time. That's a huge problem. My father, a very unprofessional person, has just recovered from cancer - half the time when I asked him, even he didn't know what the hell was wrong with him (he couldn't understand his doctor- you know, like you had trouble understanding, and you probably scored double digits on VR didn't you?). Not a good thing. Anyways, the simple fact of the matter is I can speak and understand the english language- how else could I explain the fact that I had straight As in all the english courses I've ever taken, but I can also relate to the common person - a strength many of the people in our med school system lack- they don't have enough experience with people (MAC excluded) and yes this is a run on sentence but who cares- they already rejected me. So to sum up - doctors should be technically proficient (I have straight As in the sciences as a result of a lot of hard work mind you), they should be able to speak our mother tongue with proficency and be able to communicate- a skill that will definitely come out in an interview setting, and they should care about and understand people's needs, hell I practically helped support my family financially when my father became ill- try doing that and going to school full time. I'm not bitter, meds was second to dentistry in the first place, but being rejected isn't cool especially when you've got stellar grades and have had to sacrifice a hell of alot to get them- you screw up on one test and they don't even want to talk to you - BS in my opinion.

Later

[Guest Kirsteen]

Hey again Plugger,

 

I'm not saying I had trouble understanding the surgeons--I didn't--but their skills with English were clearly superior. Also, just because they spoke in a certain way to me does not necessarily mean that they communicate similarly with everyone. This was demonstrated yesterday when I rode an elevator with one of the surgeons to an upper floor of the hospital. The elevator was packed and there was one elevator rider who was clearly confused with the buttons--he was pressing one in an attempt to descend when we were going up. It was the surgeon who stepped in and spoke with him in clear, basic English devoid of technicalities, explaining that the elevator was, in fact, going up, and that he'd probably be better off choosing to stay on with us and eventually having the elevator all to himself than wait ten minutes for the next elevator going down.

 

In any case, I agree with you that medicine, being one of the most social of professions should be filled with people who are not only intellectually proficient in the science of medicine, but also, in the art of communication. As such, I think that's why we see a trend towards attempting to select for qualities that are not simply academic. The tough thing is, finding the yardstick to accurately do so.

 

Cheers and again, best of luck,

Kirsteen

[Guest plugger]

I totally agree! Thanks for your input.

[Guest toothy]

In terms of "explaining oneself to the patient" I think the writing sample is a (relatively) better fitting test than the VR. My reason is that the WS involves expressing oneself, using convincing statements and proof. I only got 11 on VR and I must say that questions like "What was the tone of the writer in this article? (optimistic, authoritative, careful)" doesn't appear to be useful for practicing medicine. If I was a meds student who had to make a presentation for a journal article, for example, I would probably focus on the statistical and clinical significance rather than the tone of writing.

 

As a side note (and promoting dentistry ), the DAT reading sample is more appropriate. Just need to read quickly and choose answers which aren't too subjective.

[Guest bad hombre]

yeah, i have to say i was pleasantly surprised with the directness of the DAT reading section. i'm pretty scared about the verbal MCAT.

[Guest Tf]

Does UofT look at the best two undergrad years liek Western for GPA purposes?

 

Thanks

[Guest strider2004]

Kirsteen,

 

I really wish you had thought about Queen's. We would love to have you.

[Guest Kirsteen]

Sorry guys, that this has completely segued from molars and incisors, but cheers for that, strider2004 <bit of a blush>. I'm sure there's plenty of us out here "on the other side" who would love a wee opportunity to give the real thing a go, Queen's or otherwise. On Queen's specifically, I had a really terrific experience when I attended there in '98-'00 and I imagine that Queen's meds would be just as grand. You never know!

 

Cheers,

Kirsteen