University of Virginia Health System

An interview is a structured exchange of information between people for a specific purpose. There are many kinds of interviews; our concern is the health professions school interview.

Admissions interviews generally serve two purposes: first, they effectively communicate in person your qualifications to a member of the admissions committee, and second, they further assess your desire to attend this health professions school.

Interviews come in different forms and formats. In most cases, you will be interviewed by one person at a time, usually in that person's office. However, you may have a series of one-on-one interviews or an interview with more than one person at a time. In some instances, you may be one of several applicants being interviewed simultaneously by several members of the admissions committee.

While the interview will most likely be in an office, it may take place in another setting, such as a restaurant or on a walk around the campus or hospital. The interviewer may know a great deal about you, read your application while talking with you, or know little or nothing about you (the so-called blind interview). The interviewer's personality may be friendly or reserved. You may receive clues from the interviewer, or you may leave the interview not knowing how you were received.

No matter what type of interview or interviewer you encounter, your job is to discuss your past experiences in a manner that demonstrates that you are a capable student, highly and clearly motivated to enter your chosen field, the kind of person desired in the health professions (e.g., mature, stable, dependable, honest), and an interesting, accomplished individual. You must carefully think about yourself in advance of the interview and be well prepared to let the interviewer know who you are.

• Introduction: exchange of pleasantries and small talk with the purpose of putting you at ease
• Discussion of your background: work experience, education, extracurricular activities, and hobbies
• Discussion of what you have to offer: skills, abilities, and ideas
• Closing

Interviewers' selection criteria vary, depending on the professional school program being discussed. In general, health professions schools look for people who will be successful both as students and later as professionals in the field. In this evaluation process, personal qualities may be as important as academic preparation. Qualities schools try to evaluate during the interview include:

• Self-concept: self-confidence, goal setting, realistic assessment of strengths and limitations
• Mature behavior and judgment
• Communication skills: the ability to interact with others and to get your points across
• Leadership potential: often demonstrated in extracurricular activities and on the job
• Personality: enthusiasm, poise, cheerfulness, flexibility, sense of humor, forthrightness
• Patterns of accomplishment
• Problem-solving, critical thinking, and decision-making skills
• Interest in and knowledge of career field
• Work ethic: acceptance of responsibility, ability to keep commitments
• Appearance: dress, grooming, manners, posture
• Academic abilities

• Review your background, especially as it relates to this school, and to the particular type of career/academic program that interests you. Know your own application very thoroughly, particularly your personal statement.
• If possible, go to the school the day before the interview to look around and talk to students, faculty, and staff. It may be possible to stay with a current student.
• Think about your career goals and be able to state them clearly.
• Analyze your strengths and weaknesses.
• Research the school. Learn as much as you can about the school's history and background-its goals and philosophy, whom it attempts to serve, and the kind(s) of practitioners it attempts to train. Understand how this school compares to other schools. Review the school's catalogue for the way the curriculum is organized and its emphasis. Read brochures and recent periodical articles; view videotapes (if available). Don't expect the interviewer to educate you!
• If available, review reports of prior interviews at professional schools.
• Attend How to Interview workshops offered by your school, professional schools, or summer programs. Practice interviewing with others (mock interviews).

Handling the Interview

• First of all, be on time! Even better, be early.
• In terms of appearance, dress appropriately; neatness and cleanliness are obviously important. Don't chew gum. Don't smoke. Women should avoid flashy and tight clothing, short hemlines, low-cut necklines, and large jewelry.
• Be polite. Try to be enthusiastic and interested, but don't overdo it. A firm handshake is important. Be alert. Sit up in your chair, but not on the edge. Try not to cross your arms, hands, or legs either in front or behind you. Look the interviewer in the eye.
• Do not address him or her by first name unless invited to do so.
• The interviewer is not your enemy, but he or she is not your buddy or best friend, either. Treat him or her with respect. Don't be misled by chit-chat at the beginning of the interview. The interviewer is trying to make you feel comfortable. Remember, you are being evaluated the whole time you are at the school.
• In terms of your nonverbal behavior, be aware of what your "body language" may be saying about you. Avoid distracting mannerisms.
• Listen to questions before answering. Ability to communicate is one of the factors on which you will be rated. If you are so preoccupied with the impression you are making, you won't hear what the interviewer is saying, and you won't be able to respond to the "cues" given you.
• When multiple questions come, pause, think, and answer one question at a time. You may need to ask that other questions be restated.
• Identify positive aspects of your past job or volunteer experience. Don't belittle your experience with comments like, "I was just a volunteer" or "I was just a lab helper."
• When discussing your skills, strengths, and abilities, mention a few specific ways in which you have demonstrated them.
• Try to relate past experience to the academic program for which you are applying; emphasize transferable skills.
• Since health careers require working with the public, it is important to come across as a warm, sympathetic person who demonstrates the ability to work with people.
• Don't answer with just "yes" or "no." Provide specific examples that support your response. Be confident in your responses-you don't want to create a sense of tentativeness.
• Look for openings that will allow you to stress your strong points.
• Be honest-but choose your truths carefully. Don't volunteer negative information, but don't try to hide the negative either.
• Be factual; explain circumstances. The interviewer is human, too.
• Some questions will come under the category of "The Probe." Most of these relate to your personal situation, your disposition, your motivation. Don't share all your problems. Emphasize the positive!
• Any information stated is subject to verification. Misrepresentation can lead to disqualification.

Tips on Handling Panel Interviews

Panel interviews are used by a few health professions schools in their interview process. A panel may consist of three or more interviewers. Panel members may have differing viewpoints, and you may not be able to please them all. Below are some tips on handling panel interviews.

• To avoid an awkward introduction phase, the panel may present you with a current issue or hypothetical situation and ask you to react. It would serve you well to acquaint yourself with some prominent events in current medical news and form an opinion on them.
• Be both a good listener and an active, cooperative participant. State your opinions clearly and be tolerant of other views.

Questions Applicants May Ask in an Interview

An interview should be an exchange of information. The interviewer will ask pertinent questions in order to obtain the information needed. At the same time, you should be prepared to ask questions so that you can make an intelligent decision about accepting an admissions offer. During an interview, you will usually be given the opportunity to ask questions.

Prior research of the school, plus general knowledge of the field, enable you to prepare questions to ask the interviewer and respond in a positive, confident way to the interviewer's questions. Familiarity with the career field and specific knowledge about the school will impress the interviewer.

The questions will vary depending on the purpose of the interview. Don't ask questions that you can answer on your own. Do your "homework" and ask good questions that show thought on your part. The following are suggestions for questions that might be appropriate to ask in an interview:

• How does the educational mission of this school fit with my interest to go into primary care or research or specialty training?
• Are the relationships good between students and faculty, as well as among students?
• How has the recently developed problem-based curriculum been working out in practice? What modifications, if any, are expected? (Of course, this is only appropriate if the school has a problem-based curriculum; other curricula warrant other questions.)
• What has been the success rate of recent graduates getting one of their top three residency choices? Into what kinds of residencies are they being accepted?
• What percentage of recent graduates have passed the National or State Boards on the first attempt?
• What is the average debt of graduates of this program?
• What is the availability of student housing and affordable recreation?
• What do you consider to be the major problems facing the field today?
• What is the next step? Will I be hearing from you or should I contact you?

Questions-How to Deal With Them

The first thing to do is think about the questions you may be asked, and have answers ready. The following are typical questions which interviewers may ask.

• What are your career plans?
• Why are you interested in this school?
• How did you choose your major and undergraduate university/college?
• What did you like or dislike about your major?
• Tell me/us about yourself.
• In what school activities have you participated? Why? Which did you enjoy the most?
• Do you feel you have done the best academic work of which you are capable?
• In what type of community do you hope to serve?
• What qualifications do you have that make you feel that you will be successful in your career?
• What have you learned from some of the jobs/volunteer positions you have had?
• What have you done that shows initiative and willingness to work?
• What kinds of books have you read?
• What are your strengths and weaknesses?
• Why do you want to be a dentist, physical therapist, physician, scientist?
• Describe an ethical situation you have faced and how you dealt with it.

Note: If you take the time to write out answers to these questions, it can help you clarify your own thinking and develop answers in your interviews.Difficult Questions-What's Behind Them

Every year there are many stories that circulate among health professions school applicants about so-called "stress interviews." Many of these stories are nothing more than tales with little or no basis in fact. While some interviewers may ask difficult questions that cause "stress," their purpose is not to cause the applicant discomfort, but rather to measure the breadth and depth of the student's knowledge and background. Some questions that may prove difficult include the following.

• What are your career plans? This question is asked to compare your future plans to those of the school. The interviewer wants to know if the academic program under discussion meets your short-range goals or fulfills a future career goal.
• Why are you interested in our school? The interviewer is asking this question to determine how much you know about the field and how much research you have done about the specific school. Often the response to this question is complementary to the school's reputation in its field. You should be able to articulate a career plan that is compatible with the school with which you are interviewing.
• How did you choose your major and undergraduate university? Interviewers are trying to determine your decision-making process. Tell about the considerations that went into your decisions. Interviewers will be as interested in the way you conducted your research as with the results.
• Tell me about yourself. Your response is used by the interviewer to compare your personal profile with those of prior successful applicants. Be factual. The interviewer may also ask what qualifications you have that make you feel that you will be successful in your career and the types of activities you have done that show initiative and willingness to work. Talk about the people, events, and ideas that have motivated you in the right direction. Emphasize the positive.
• With what other schools are you interviewing? The interviewer asks this question to determine how interested you are in their type of academic program. Tell the interviewer whom you have seen or will see, and relate a commonality among them.
• What are your greatest strengths? What are your chief weaknesses? Interviewers ask these questions to determine your self-image. This is an opportunity to point out all of the strengths acquired through your past studies/jobs, campus/community activities, and relate them to their need. Don't dwell on the negative. Briefly mention a weakness that you are taking steps to overcome or already have overcome. Interviewers look for the ability to overcome difficulty. Concentrate on strengths and weaknesses related to the academic environment.
• You may be asked questions about health care reform, abortion, euthanasia, or other current controversial issues. The interviewer is seeking information on the level of your understanding of the issue(s) and your ability to state your position clearly and effectively. You are not expected to agree with the interviewer.
• What will you do if you are not accepted? The interviewer is interested in what other careers you are considering and how realistic you are in your planning. Everyone should realize that not being accepted is a possibility and that alternate plans are essential. Failure to consider alternatives may be a sign of a lack of realism in the applicant.

Discriminatory Questions

If you encounter what you feel to be a discriminatory question, you may feel compelled to choose between answering the question and feeling uncomfortable, and refusing to answer the question and possibly losing your chance for an acceptance to a school. It may help to know a little bit about the kinds of questions that can be considered discriminatory, and the reasons why they may be asked. Having this information will help you think about how you might respond.

Questions can, in some instances, be considered discriminatory when asked of a female and not a male applicant (e.g., questions about marital status, marital plans, plans to have children, child care arrangements). In these cases, traditional gender-role stereotyping on the part of the interviewer could produce these types of discriminatory questions. If possible, do not try to make an issue of the questions (even though they may be irrelevant and discriminatory). Make your answers concise and non-specific: "I have given my career plans much thought and preparation. I am confident that my personal plans will not interfere with my career plans." This type of response answers the interviewer's question; however, it also makes it clear that your personal life will not interfere with your performance.

If you feel that you have been asked unfair questions, try to control your anger. Pause and take a few deep breaths while you think of an appropriate response. You may decide to contact the admissions office and present your complaint. It is possible that you may have misinterpreted the questions or the reason for them. Therefore, formal complaints should be made carefully. You may wish to consult your pre-health professions advisor to help gauge your response. If you had an unfortunate experience, such as a ten-minute interview, a very tardy interviewer, or an interview at the end of the day, you should contact the admissions office before leaving the school; it may be possible to arrange another interview.Ending it Gracefully

• Don't linger when the interview is over.
• Ask if there is any further information the interviewer would like or if there are additional steps you should take.
• Reiterate your interest in the program, and if the interviewer doesn't indicate a timeline, ask when you may expect a decision.
• Thank the interviewer for his or her time.
• Be sure to note the interviewer's name and office address.
• You may want to send a follow-up letter to the interviewer, expressing thanks and restating your sincere interest in the school. Your letter will help him/her to remember you. While courtesy is always in style, these letters need not be sent routinely, but may be appropriate if an interviewer was especially helpful.

Interview Preparation ResourcesConsult your pre-health admissions or career center for interview preparation materials. Noteworthy publications include Sweaty Palms: The Neglected Art of Being Interviewed (H. Anthony Medley, 1992) and The Medical School Interview (Randall Zielinski, M.D., 1996) available through the National Association of Advisors for the Health Professions, Inc., P.O. Box 1518, Champaign IL 61820.

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