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Interview Tips : How to prepare for medical school interviews

Interview Tips

Top Tips to Ace Your Medicine Interviews



It is currently interview season! Some of you may be in the process of preparing for interviews or are still waiting to hear back from universities. Making sure you prepare for these interviews is really important. Interview preparation can ensure you feel more confident going into the interview and know roughly what to expect. 

Below are our top five tips to help you smash your medical school interviews:

1. Research the medical school

It is good to research the medical school before your interview so that you can consider why you want to go there. Think about things like the course structure, societies, location, and unique features of the medical school that have influenced your decision to apply there.

Course structure: 

Consider the way you will be taught, such as whether the medical school uses problem-based learning or case-based learning, and how that appeals to you and will help you learn. In addition to this, consider whether anatomy is taught using prosection or dissection, as well as the amount of clinical exposure you will get.

Societies:

It is also useful to have a look at the societies the university has to offer and think about which ones you might want to join. This can be a good way to consider extracurricular activities and help you answer questions relating to university life. 

Location:

It is worth thinking about the location of the medical school, and finding out a bit more about the city and what it has to offer! You could potentially be living in the city for a few years, so it’s a good idea to familiarise yourself with it. Consider things like food places and things you can do there, as well as the demographic, as this may come up in your interview.

Unique features:

Look at the medical school's unique features that set it apart from others and appeal to you. These can be useful to consider, and you can even briefly refer to these in your interview.

2. Familiarise yourself with the interview format:

Have a look at the interview format of the medical school, whether it is a panel-style interview or multiple-mini interviews (MMIs). 

Additionally, some medical schools have information on their websites about things they consider in an interview. Although these are not the actual stations, they can help you have an idea about what to expect in the interview, so it is important to have a look at this information during your interview preparation.

3. Practice common interview questions

It is important to practice common interview questions, such as your motivation to study medicine, skills, background knowledge of the NHS, and medical ethics. These types of questions may come up in your interview, so it is useful to think about them and practice.

Motivation to study medicine:

Why medicine, reflection on work experience and volunteering, realistic insight into the profession, and challenges of the profession.

Skills:
Communication, teamwork, leadership, resilience, problem-solving, empathy, strengths, and weaknesses

Background knowledge: 
Knowledge of the NHS, BMA, GMC, NHS hot topics, and current affairs. 
To keep up to date with current affairs and familiarise myself with current health news, I would check the Health section of BBC News every day and read at least one article that interested me. 

Ethics and critical thinking:
Ethical issues, including medical ethics, prioritisation. To help with medical ethics, reading the GMC's Guide to Good Medical Practice was very helpful, as well as having a good knowledge of the Pillars of Medical Ethics.

Practical station: 
Discussion of an article, role play, group task, and data analysis. Again, by familiarising yourself with current health news, it makes things like discussing an article much easier. You could even discuss a health article you find interesting with a friend or family member and get them to ask follow-up questions.

4. Use examples 

Have a few examples from your personal life, work experience, or volunteering that you can refer to in your interview. These can be examples that might demonstrate a skill that you have developed over time that has strengthened your decision to study medicine or has given you a more realistic insight into the medical profession. Whatever these may be, it is good to have a few examples ready that you can incorporate into your answers during the interview, if relevant.

5. Practice, practice, and practice!

Finally, one of the most important pieces of advice is to make sure you practice. This can be something as simple as making your own mock interviews and doing them with friends and family, or even getting a teacher at school to do it with you! If you have online interviews, it’s also a good idea to record yourself on the device you plan on using or practice with your friends over Zoom or Microsoft Teams. By doing so, you are helping to familiarise yourself with the interview process and preparing yourself to formulate your answers aloud.



Free resources to help ace your medical interviews:


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