Advice for MMI approach

[jojo59]

Hi Everyone,

 

From the people who have been accepted at McMaster (either initially or off the wait-list), I'm wondering if you can give any advice as to how you approached giving responses to MMI questions. I'm currently still wait-listed at Mac (giving up hope now) but trying figure out where I went wrong on the MMI to be so far down on the wait-list. This was my first and only interview, so I'd like to know where to improve for next year's cycle. Thanks!

[AlliMack7]

My approach was to try and be as comfortable and confident as possible during the MMI. I didn't necessarily focus on trying to come up with the perfect answer for every possible scenario. Instead I focussed on making sure nerves didn't overshadow my personality. To gain the confidence I needed I took a couple of steps:

 

1. Practised with peers - ask them to give you feedback and do the same for them. Doing this allows you to become familiar with the time limits if you choose to time it.

2. Practiced with a physician - they can give you extra scenarios which can really push you. They can also help you brush up on your familiarity with the healthcare system.

3. Shadowed a physician - I found shadowing physicians really gave me excellent guidance on how to interact with patients. This is a great way to figure out what works best in some of the acting scenarios. It also gives you an idea of confidentiality.

4. Got a solid night's sleep before the interview - I honestly went to bed at 9:30 the night before because I knew nerves would keep me up for at least an hour.

 

Anyway, this is just my two cents but I hope it helps!

[jojo59]

Thanks AlliMack7!

 

How about how you actually went about answering questions? The advice I got was to explore various possibilities and options to a prompt but come to a decision and back it up when challenged. However in lots of my stations the interviewers didn't really let me do that, they kept prompting with more and more questions after I'd say a sentence or a point. I'm just wondering if there's something Mac MMI interviewers are looking for in the 8 minute session that I missed? I felt really confident with most stations though for being able to converse through their crazy amounts of prompts, but I still can't see what they're looking for.

[mangoarecool]

if you're good at acting is that a + in the mmi?

[321izme]

For me, it felt so real that I didn't have to "try and act". The actors are good enough to make you forget that the scenario is contrived. You'll automatically start behaving as you naturally would in that situation. It's hard to believe this or even understand what I'm saying until you actually try a practice acting scenario with a friend or get to the actual interview

[Big Bird]

Keep in mind most of the MMI is not just what you say but rather how you say it. There are marking sheets for MMIs from some schools floating around and the rubric has scores on questions like "Would you envision this person being a physician in your community?" "How professional does the applicant come across as?" etc. The rubric scores you as Top 1% Top 5% and so forth.

 

A good handshake, eye contact and good posture will be just as important as a well-thought out and genuine answer.

[inthesticks]

I was accepted into McMaster (but turned it down for a spot IP), and it was my first time taking part in an MMI.

I really didn't do extensive prep for it, I just thought of the standard questions I may get asked (and any variations of them) and tried to formulate adequate responses which called on work/life experiences that allowed me to come to my answer. I also read up on local/national health-related news for a month or so leading up to the interview just in case I was asked about current affairs in medicine.

I just tried to make sure I was as calm as can be throughout the entire MMI process. The small things were focuses of mine too - I tried to ensure adequate eye contact, and made sure I said my thank you's/have a great day's to the interviewer before turning my back to them to leave. I dont know, stuff like that.

 

I'm also a horrible actor but felt my acting station went very well!