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Mcmaster Interview Discussion 2015


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McMaster has 203 seats. This year, they are interviewing 552 applicants (~10% of applicants.)

 

On May 12th, 203 people will receive acceptances. So, purely by chance, we each have nearly a 40% chance of getting a first round offer. BUT about 80 people decline their offers annually (from old waitlist data, they don't publish it anymore.) That means that ~280 of the interviewees will eventually receive an offer - half!

 

That means that the fact that we've made it this far is awesome. Half of us, ish, will receive offers from Mac. :)

 

Differences between OOP and IP pools might also skew these numbers somewhat. Based on the statistics posted on the website (http://fhs.mcmaster.ca/mdprog/selection_process.html), they typically matriculate 10-15 OOP students per year. Since they said that max 10% of interviews go to OOP students ( ~55), OOPs may stand a chance far lower than 50% to be admitted post-interview.

 

On the other hand, I don't know how many OOPs would decline the offer. Tough to say!

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thanks for that analysis! I was actually planning to dig up these numbers myself lol...but you saved me the trouble. 80 people declining offers seems like a lot though.

 

It isn't, IMO. On average, I believe most Ontario applicants apply to at least three schools. The pool of applicants has a lot of overlap between Ottawa, Toronto, Queen's, Mac, and Western in particular. Many people accepted to one are accepted to others because, ultimately, the interviews are looking for roughly the same characteristics so people who interview particularly well will get multiple offers. There's bound to be a pool of (my rough estimate) 300 students applying to those five schools in Ontario who receive 3+ offers because they are just that good, so things will shift around a bit before stuff settles.

 

Differences between OOP and IP pools might also skew these numbers somewhat. Based on the statistics posted on the website (http://fhs.mcmaster.ca/mdprog/selection_process.html), they typically matriculate 10-15 OOP students per year. Since they said that max 10% of interviews go to OOP students ( ~55), OOPs may stand a chance far lower than 50% to be admitted post-interview.

 

On the other hand, I don't know how many OOPs would decline the offer. Tough to say!

Fair point. Wasn't intended to be an in-depth analysis, just sort of a ballpark idea to settle my nerves. :D

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It isn't, IMO. On average, I believe most Ontario applicants apply to at least three schools. The pool of applicants has a lot of overlap between Ottawa, Toronto, Queen's, Mac, and Western in particular. Many people accepted to one are accepted to others because, ultimately, the interviews are looking for roughly the same characteristics so people who interview particularly well will get multiple offers. There's bound to be a pool of (my rough estimate) 300 students applying to those five schools in Ontario who receive 3+ offers because they are just that good, so things will shift around a bit before stuff settles.

 

 

Fair point. Wasn't intended to be an in-depth analysis, just sort of a ballpark idea to settle my nerves. :D

 

Haha, that's totally fair. I spend excessive amounts of time reviewing statistics that I've already examined closely to see if I can put a more positive spin on my outlook 

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I will be attending the McMaster interview from out of province and would be very interested in billeting either on the evening of Friday March 20, Saturday March 21 or both. Pretty flexible right now.

 

If anyone in the area or at the school presently would have the capacity to do something like this please contact, I would be extremely appreciative.

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Yeah, waitlist movement can be very different from year-to-year, so I wouldn't put too much stock on the 80 people figure (could be lower, could be higher). That being said, the interview:seat ratio at Mac is pretty darn good for a competitive process like this - your odds are as decent as they're going to get. Congratulations to all of you! Mac is pretty transparent about their post-interview acceptance formula (70% interview), so rock the interview and we'll see you next year.

 

I found a document which has a bunch of admission statistics (http://www.afmc.ca/pdf/ADMISSION_REQUIREMENTS_EN.pdf) and the most recent McMaster info from 2008/2009 show that 79 offers were declined. So it seems like it is possible..

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  • 2 weeks later...

Thanks TurkeyHasTryptophan!!

I know this is silly, but just to clarify- you're not allowed to take notes at all? As in, not allowed to bring our own pencil and paper either?

Thank you for your help- it's much appreciated!! :)

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Thanks TurkeyHasTryptophan!!

I know this is silly, but just to clarify- you're not allowed to take notes at all? As in, not allowed to bring our own pencil and paper either?

Thank you for your help- it's much appreciated!! :)

 

You can't bring anything of your own into any interview (paper/pen, water, etc). Anything you need will be provided for you. If TurkeyHasTryptophan says you can't write notes, they will not provide you with paper and you are not allowed to bring any of your own.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Whenever I am in a situation like this where I cannot take notes, I make a mental note to myself of how many points I thought of in the minutes leading up to my turn to speak. Let's say you hit on 3 right of the bat. If there was a 4th issue that you thought was very important to bring up, it will come to mind quite quickly once you've reminded yourself that there are 4 important points.

 

Works for me, maybe not for everyone, but give it a try in practice if you are worried. An important caveat is to only count the most essential points. Hopefully your peripheral points will come through, but if you note to yourself that you have more than 5 points, the memory trick will not work, and you risk forgetting a main point.

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Hey all,

 

I am looking to host a dinner this Saturday night for those interviewing at Mac this upcoming weekend. This would be a very informal way to meet some of your peers and relax pre- or post- interview. I am not involved in the admissions process, but I can answer any lingering questions as well. Send me a PM if you can make it, and I will gauge interest and get back to you with details.

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Hey all,

 

I am looking to host a dinner this Saturday night for those interviewing at Mac this upcoming weekend. This would be a very informal way to meet some of your peers and relax pre- or post- interview. I am not involved in the admissions process, but I can answer any lingering questions as well. Send me a PM if you can make it, and I will gauge interest and get back to you with details.

 

Would recommend - first of all, you'll get to meet me ;)

 

 and Kanakari's cooking is amazing!

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