How many people interviewed you?
| Response Average | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 2.23 | 123 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| Positively | 103 |
| Negatively | 5 |
| No change | 17 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 3.02 | 123 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 7.74 | 98 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 8.15 | 84 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| In Person | 1 |
| Virtual | 1 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 5 minutes | 0 |
| 10 minutes | 1 |
| 15 minutes | 0 |
| 20 minutes | 1 |
| 25 minutes | 2 |
| 30 minutes | 71 |
| 35 minutes | 17 |
| 40 minutes | 14 |
| 45 minutes | 8 |
| 50 minutes | 3 |
| 55 minutes | 1 |
| 60+ minutes | 6 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| At the school | 121 |
| At a regional location | 0 |
| At another location | 1 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| One-on-one | 123 |
| In a group | 0 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| Open file | 117 |
| Closed file | 6 |
| Response Average | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 2.23 | 123 |
"How do you think you can help with medical research."
"Question about how a hospital CEO's pay should be determined"
"What do you think of evidence based medicine?"
"Talk about your clinical experience."
"Talk to me about your internship in South Africa"
"What do you see yourself doing in 10 years?"
"How do you know that you want to be a doctor?"
"Tell me something I haven't already read in your file"
"Tell me about your international experience."
"Why medicine, specifically for you?"
"What is your attachment to Massachusetts?"
"What led you to medicine?"
"Where do you see American healthcare going?"
"Did you enjoy your time at _____? (undergrad school)"
"Why are there so many incompetent doctors?"
"describe your journey to medicine (i'm non-trad)"
"Whats wrong with Mass Healthcare"
"Looking at your transcripts, I see you got a B in [subject]. Can you explain what happened?"
"Tell me about your shadowing experiences in such and such a place."
"What is Medicaid?"
"What about (specific specialty I expressed interest in) is appealing to you?"
"One interviewer, while she could have looked at my file beforehand, chose not to. She just wanted to talk about what got me to the interview. My classes in college, activities, experiences etc. Very laid back."
"Tell me something about yourself I didn't read in your file."
"Why do you want to go to UMass Med?"
"Tell me about your clinical experience"
"Why do you want to be a doctor?"
"Tell me about yout yourself... you where born and...?"
"Tell me about yourself / why medicine?"
"Talked & asked questions about current research."
"Why did you choose to attend ''this school'' for your undergraduate education?"
"Describe the graduate program you are currently in."
"Why UMass?"
"Tell me about yourself and your experiences in Ireland."
"What makes people comfortable with you or want to confide in you?"
"Very standard questions about my application. They had read through my application and written down questions to ask me."
"How did you choose to come to UMASS?"
"How has your work as an EMT influenced what kind of medicine you want to practice?"
"Favorite book and favorite movie."
"I see that the few B's you got in college were in your major - why do you think that is?"
"what do you do when not working or studying?"
"What books have you read lately?"
"what field of medicine would you like to enter?"
"(didn't read my file) So tell me about your life, starting from birth."
"What books have you read?"
"Why are you interested in medicine?"
"Tell me about you current job - what do you do and how does it make you feel?"
"Who influenced your decision to become a doctor the most? "
"tell me about your travel abroad..."
"How can you be sure that you are prepared to handle the amount of work required in medical school?"
"Why medicine?/why now? (I'm still in college and want to go immediately after graduation)"
"Talk about your research."
"Why didn't you follow pre-med track as undergrad? I have a BA."
"A few questions trying to gauge my motivation to practice in MA"
"What clinical experience have you had that makes you ready to enter medical school?"
"Tell me about volunteer work"
"Will you apply to PA/DO schools? Why/why not?"
"So, tell me about yourself...(They mostly want to get to know the person behind the AMCAS and secondary...paper only tells so much)"
"What do you see as a major problem in healthcare today?"
"You're not a typical cookie-cutter premed student, tell me about how you ended up deciding on medicine."
"Why did I go down south for school?"
"How do you deal with stress?"
"What kind of emotional support system do you have?"
"How will you siginifantly impact patient's lives as a physician?"
"When did you decide to pursue a career in medicine?"
"What is the biggest challenge facing health care?"
"How would your friends describe you?"
"What would you say to someone that you are diagnosing with a fatal illness?"
"What is the biggest problem facing healthcare? Which system would you choose if you could only choose one?"
"What do think are the problems with today's healthcare system? "
"Why medicine and not other helping proffesions, what my parents do etc..."
"Most of my quesitons were very specific to my application. And I don't remember a whole lot of them properly at this point. :)"
"Why do you want to be a doctor... especially with the field of medicine going in the direction it is going."
"Why medicine? Why now?"
"Where did you get your name?"
"How would your patient describe you 10 years from now?"
"Why choose a career in medicine over any other helping or research profession?"
"(All from the second interview)Who has been a role model for you, and what were some of the qualities that made them a role model?"
"How will you cope with the emotional and physical stress during medical school and as a doctor?"
"How did you decide medicine was your career path?"
"What have you been doing since you graduated?"
"What book have you read recently?"
"Why medicine?"
"What are doing now? What do you do for fun? Why medicine ( in a general way)?"
"HMO and effect on clinical practice"
"Tell me about yourself."
"what do you think the biggest challenge facing healthcare today is?"
"why medicine"
"What is the most important part of practicing medicine?"
"What would you do with your friends tonight?"
"Talk about your research."
"Who inspired you to become a doctor? (No doctors in my family)"
"If you are accepted, what do you think your biggest challenge will be once you are in medical school?"
"Favorite book/movie?"
"Tell me a little bit about yourself."
"Describe how much culture exposure you have."
"What was the worst time in your life?"
"What have you learned about yourself throughout college?"
"What kind of movies and TV do you like to watch?"
"What do you see as some of the flaws in Obama's health care reform proposals?"
"How do you deal with stress?"
"What other schools have you applied to?"
"What do you feel is the biggest problem in health care in the US and what would you do to fix it?"
"questions about specific classes, experiences working abroad"
"Why do you want to be a physician"
"How do you think you would deal with the huge workload that comes with medical school and multi-tasking?"
"Why medicine?"
"What is the accomplishment of which you are most proud?"
"What is a community health center?"
"How did you come to choose (my undergraduate institution)?"
"The next interview was a bit more rigid. The interviewer had clearly checked my application and had written down some specifics that he wanted to discuss with me. Such as my research, studying abroad, future plans etc. Not a very high stress interview, but a bit more formal the last."
"What sets you apart from the other applicants?"
"What is the biggest problem facing healthcare today and how would you fix it?"
"Why do you want to be a doctor (only one interviewer asked me this question)"
"Tell me about yourself. (And that was the whole interview... very relaxed)"
"What is MassHealth?"
"Do you know what Medicaid is? What is it?"
"biggest healthcare crisis and solution."
"What would you do if you could not be a doctor?"
"What is the biggest problem with the healthcare system today? What would you do to fix it?"
"Was there any time you were disappointed by the way a doctor treated you?"
"Describe research you did as a senior, summarize the results."
"What would you be if you couldn't be a doctor?"
"N/A"
"What makes you want to join a field where many people are frusturated with the state of health care?"
"tell me about yourself."
"What do you like to do, besides work?"
"How did you get to this point in your life?"
"What do you like to do in your spare time?"
"What have you learned about yourself in college?"
"Why UMASS?"
"Discuss a difficult situation you have faced and how you handled it."
"What do you do in your free time?"
"Why medicine? Why UMass? What do you look for in a school?"
"why medicine and why now? (I am a post-bacc and been out of college 5 years)?"
"Tell me a little bit about yourself?"
"see above"
"What's a book you've read recently?"
"Where do you look for support to keep yourself going?"
"If you were surgeon general, what are the top 3 things you would change? Then something about abortion. "
"Biggest problem facing health care?"
"When did you decide/was there a specific event, time, moment?"
"Did you realize that you could be considered a disadvantaged student ? (I didnt)"
"Tell me something doctors don't do well in general terms. Follup: Why do you think it is that way? Do you think you can become a doctor and still feel fufilled with this problem?"
"What questions do you have for me?"
"tell me about ---- activity..."
"What specialty are you thinking of entering?"
"What did your volunteer work teach you about medicine?"
"Why medicine? Why now?"
"Ask me anything about this school (a hard question after you've read every piece of literature and been given four hours of presentations about the school)"
"What are your hobbies?"
"Tell me about your current research at the NIH."
"How will you handle your dual roles as clinician and researcher? (That is my goal, so not hard to answer)"
"What are you learning in _____ class?"
"Strengths/weaknesses"
"You do realize what's involved in a MD/PhD degree? You do realize that you can do science with just an MD? What makes you think you're ready for an MD/PhD? (they want to make sure you're ready and know what you're looking to get yourself into)"
"Where do you see yourself in 10 years? "
"Questions revolving around how I will balance family and medicine."
"questions about specific things in my application."
"What kind of research would you like to do? (and other questions related to describing my research)"
"What is the greatest challenge you will face in medical school? "
"What is the difference in immigrant experience between a Latino immigrant and a second0-generation Irishman?"
"What are some negative aspects of a career in medicine?"
"Where do you see yourself in ten years?"
"What would you do to fix healthcare? (we somehow got on the subject...so I guess I set myself up for this one)"
"Why were you in school for so long? If she had read my file, she would have seen that I started college in my early teens."
"How would your teammates describe you?"
"Do you think the United States could change their healthcare system to one that is funded by the government? Why or why not?"
"What will I do if I don't get in."
"Why have you attended >1 undergrad. institution?"
"How has your mom's occupation as a nurse influenced your decision to pursue medicne. "
"How would a friend describe you?"
"What are some of the reasons why you might want to spend the next four years of your life at this school?"
"What do you consider a problem or problems in the field of medicine?"
"Tell me about the work you are doing now. "
"What do you forsee as challenges in medicine ten years from now?"
"What support structure do you have which will help you through medical school here?"
"What area of medicine interests you?"
"Why not some other field, e.g. social work?"
"Where do you see yourself in 10 years? Are you confident in your abilities to handle a medical school curriculum?"
"Why medicine, why UMass"
"In what field and where do you seen yourself practicing in 10 years?"
"tell me about this specific part of your personal essay"
"How do you think you can impact the medical field for the better?"
"tell me about [extracurricular]"
"Did you encounter any difficult situations while volunteering at _________?"
"How will your desire to work with the underserved influence your practice?"
"Whice of your extracurricular experiences has made the biggest impact on your life?"
"Tell me about your hobbies and interests aside from medicine."
"What would you do if you do not get into a medical school?"
"What do you think are the important qualities in a doctor?"
"What do you think of Obama's healthcare plan?"
"Why don't more people volunteer their time helping others?"
"What do you like to do in your spare time?"
"How would your friends describe you?"
"Since I was a re-applicant, I got a lot of "tell me what you have been doing since last year""
"bit on health policy--is universal healthcare a good idea, what are the big problems in our system"
"What does America do well and what does it do poorly when it comes to medicine?"
"Specific Q's for my application."
"Current problems you see in medicine?"
"What would you do to change the US health care system today?"
"Tell me about your early life and where you grew up."
"I was never asked "Why UMass", but I was asked "Why Medicine.""
"What do you do for yourself to relax?"
"What has been your closest relationship with a physician and how has it impacted you to become a doctor? What has he/she taught you?"
"What have you been up to since graduation?"
"Where do you see yourself in 15 years?"
"Why are you interested in community health?"
"why not go into politics (in reference in my prior legal experience)?"
"What is MassHealth?"
"What can you tell us about your MCAT scores."
"What do you like to do, beside work? (actually, it was the first question from the second interviewer)"
"Why do you want to be a doctor?"
"Explain the life cycle of the parasite that causes Schistosomiasis (related to my senior project)."
"N/A"
"How did you choose your undergrad institution/what have you learned from it?"
"What is the story with this specific health problem mentioned in one of your letters of rec?"
"How/why did you choose (your undergraduate school)?"
"What books have you read recently?"
"Where do you see yourself in five years?"
"How do you deal with stress? What is your support network like?"
"Extracurriculars"
"What did you learn from your research (and other activities)?"
"What do you do to relax?"
"Why a year off?"
"Tell me about your current research."
"Why medicine?"
"Tell me about your research. Follow-up questions about my research."
"what attributes make for a good doctor?"
"What weight class did you wrestle at?"
"Do you think you'll be able to handle the med school course cirriculum?"
"Geneal background questions..."
"Tell me about yourself."
"How did you wind up picking your undergraduate institution?"
"How do you handle stress?"
"Massachusetts tax payers enable you to attend UMass at a very decent price in comparison to private medical schools. How will you give back to the state of Massachusetts to express gratitude when you become a physician?"
"Tell me about yourself?"
"What do you have to bring to the class of 2010?"
"how do you think your experiences will make you better able to cope with the challenges of medical school?"
"Favorite book? Favorite Movie? Favorite TV shows? Favorite color? Hobbies? -- etc."
"How did you become interested in the medical specialties you mentioned on your application?"
"Why UMass?"
"Standard "tell me about yourself" questions"
"Tell me about your research."
"Who do you consider is a role model for you and why?"
"What do you like to do for fun?"
"Let's talk about the book in your secondary app."
"How do you deal with stress?"
"Tell me about your research..."
"Do you think you can handle the challenges of a doctor? "
"Would I be interested in doing some sort of research?"
"The same question from above about naming the time in my life when i really messed up."
"Where do you see yourself in 10 years?"
"Tell me about (activity)."
"What would you do if you didn't get into medical school on this try? (when I said that I would try again, he did not push me chose another profession.)"
"What is the biggest challenge that you will face in medical school?"
"If you couldn't go into healthcare, what would you do?"
"What type of music should I have my toddler listen to?"
"What are the three most important characteristics/qualities of a physician?"
"Tell me about your military experience. What made you decide you wanted to become a doctor?"
"Am I confident in my ability to complete/handle the workload in med. school."
"You have done other things, how can we be sure medicine is right?"
"Have you considered any specialities?"
"What are the areas you feel you need improve upon?"
"What is your family like?"
"What was the last book you read?"
"Why did you take a year off before applying?"
"What types of community service did you do? How will that help you when you are a doctor."
"Have you ever thought of an MPH?"
"How do you describe yourself?"
"I can't even remember, nothing you haven't already prepared for."
"What are some of the biggest concerns facing health care these days? How do you handle stress?"
"What do you do for fun (Discussion about hockey followed because I said I'm a big Bruins fan)."
"Would you say your GPA and MCAT scores accurately reflect your abilities and potential?"
"If a patient presented with x,y,z problems and you initially missed it, how would you deal with the patient when you noticed it?"
"Are you Indian?"
"questions that have nothing to do with medicine or healthcare. they are about your innate human qualities."
"Are you Indian? I'm definitely not Indian."
"What do you when you are over-stressed?"
"One of the interviewers gave me a senario of a young patient coming into the ED who needed surgery and many blood transfusions, however the parents refused the blood transfusions due to religious reasons and he asked me what I would do in the situation."
"Why did you chose to go to __ (my undergraduate university)?"
"About one of my specific activities"
"The lack of questions (see below)."
"Ethical dilemmas: would you bump a major hopsital donor to the head of a transplant list, etc."
"What personality type(s) do you not get along with?"
"I talked to one of my interviewers about gardening, and he showed me a picture of a tobacco hornworm he had found in his yard."
"How are you different from other applicants?"
"Do you think it is ethical for doctors to be overly optimistic during the consent process for an experimental therapy that may not help the patient? How would you handle the consent process of such a patient?"
"Why are there so many incompetent doctors?"
"See Q 2 above"
"If you could tell the admissions committee one thing about your application, what would it be?"
"Tell me about your hometown and why I would want to go there."
"How did that experience make you feel?"
"Both asked, "What would your friends say about you?""
"What is Medicaid? (see below)"
"I'm curious what your age group thinks about the shortage of primary care physicians."
"In 15 years when I open a medical journal, what will it say about you?"
"After working a long, hard 18 hour day and coming home exhausted, how could you be fulfilled by your career choice as a doctor? What will it give to you, not to other people? Whats in it for you?"
"Actually... nothing. I wasn't asked many questions at all. It was pretty much: ''tell me about yourself.''"
"Nothing was out of the ordinary."
"What drives you emotionally to medicine?"
"What is your support system? I've never had a school openly express interest in that."
"the questions were pretty standard"
"How do you relax?"
"Questions about my earlier career."
"Many people go into medicine because they want to be leaders. But now, doctors aren't usually the leader, it might be the HMO, or someone else; how do you feel about this? "
"As a doctor, you may be faced with many limitations that are imposed by HMOs. How will you deal with it?"
"No questions were asked, instead, I was asked to talk about myself and my experiences working and living in Ireland this year."
"What qualities do you look for in a friend?"
"Do you think physicians have a responsibility to be politically active?"
"Have you ever experienced a time when a doctor or the medical field let you down?"
"What did you learn from your abroad experience?"
"What advice would you give someone in high school who is thinking about becoming pre-med?"
"How do you think the placebo should be used in medicine?"
"Are physicians obligated to give back to their community?"
"asked to discuss the balance between medicine as a science and medicine as an art"
"Nothing out of the ordinary."
"What is the most significant problem in healthcare today?"
"Why medicine and not law or politics, teaching like your parents?"
"Nothing incredibly ''interesting'' was asked. Actually, very few questions were asked. One of my interviewers asked about my minor in astrobiology and we talked about that for a good 10 minutes."
"What do you like about rock-climbing? (Follow-up question to What do you do for fun?)."
"What are some of your favorite movies?"
"Tell me about yourself."
"what was a difficult and stressful situation you had to deal with, and how did you handle it?"
"Soo.. what's a book you've read recently?"
"I wasn't asked anything too exciting or unexpected, it was just an easy-going conversation."
"Why is the patient so important to you? (this was in regards to a question relating to my desire to pursue medicine)"
"How do you handle stress?"
"Why didn't you apply early decision if this is your number one choice?"
"If you could pick any vegetable that describes you, what would it be and why?"
"What do you have to bring to the class of 2010?"
"one interviewer asked me where i was born and the name of every school i attended"
"Where do you see yourself in 10 years?"
"Nothing too difficult or interesting -- pretty standard (Why medicine? Problems with US Health Care System?, etc.)"
"How do you plan to pursue your interest in journalism while being a physician, and how will being a physician help you do that?"
"What does a TLR3 do? (dont freak out, this is because i'm currently taking immunology)"
"How do we solve the crisis of the cost of healthcare and disparity of coverage?"
"What is your impression of Umass?"
"What is the most important issue in health care that needs to be adressed?"
"What is the most underserved area of Massachusetts?"
"How would your weaknesses affect you in medical school or as a doctor? "
"You're sitting in my chair, what do you ask an MD/PhD candidate to show you that they are the one who you'd like to put into your program?"
"What are you good/bad at? How do you deal with stress?"
"Did I planned to continue writing in medical school, particularly if I had given thought to writing a memoir piece of medical school?"
"Tell me about a time you really really messed up."
"Your grades for X semester aren't very impressive -- could you explain them?"
"What kind of emotional support system do you have?"
"How will you siginifantly impact patient's lives as a physician?"
"Most of the questions were straightforward and my interviews were conversational."
"none really - standard questions"
"Do you consider your parents to be intellectuals?"
"What is the biggest problem facing medicine today?"
"What do think are the problems with today's healthcare system? "
"25% of applicants are so great they will get in no matter what. 25% of applicants will never make it. 50% fall in the grey zone somewhere in between. Why should we pick you out of that 50%?"
"My second interviewer questioned me at length about how I had changed from the beginning of college to now, and how I had become better equipped to deal with the workload and learning environment."
"How would I deal with death."
"Same as hardest question (below)"
"What tools do you use now to handle your many activities and how can your carry those into your pursuit of medicine?"
"How would your patient describe you 10 years from now?"
"related to ps"
"What qualities made X person a role model for oyu?"
"all pretty basic questions"
"You are so interested in social justice, why medicine and not law?"
"What is your favorite Simpson's episode?"
"nothing in particular"
"Discussing the role of physician as advocate vs. scientist and relating that to a previous job I had held. My first interview was very converstational and flowed well. The interviewer was attempting to get to know me not by just hearing my story. This discussion on "uncertainty" seemed very abstract but I thought was very intereresting"
"How will you handle the frustration of medical practice?"
"What do I view as the negative aspects of medicine."
"How do I deal with difficult people?"
"I would characterize the interviews as conversational. We discussed my file. It was very comfortable."
"What do you think about globalization?"
"Are you Indian?"
"Tell me about your self? After doing an MMI you want to say so much so say about yourself Because the rest of the stations are very topic heavy you don't get much of a chance to put in a plug for why you are good candidate. So to use those 6 mins to talk about yourself can be valuable but also very nerve wracking as you attempt to impress the interviewer and be memorable."
"What do you think of evidence based medicine? He went on a tirade afterwards about how EBM is destroying the fabric of doctor to patient care and how the government is in his exam room."
"Why do you think you didn't get into UMass when you previously applied?"
"Ambulance services are quite expensive. Do you find them necessary for simple patient transport, as you say you often do? (I work as an EMT)"
"Tell me something I haven't already read in your file"
"None that were difficult"
"My first interviewer didn't ask me a single question, he just talked about his own beliefs and then let me poke at him with questions."
"How would your friends describe you?"
"How will you deal with losing your patients?"
"What are your strengths and weaknesses?"
"Has anyone ever discouraged you from going into medicine? Why hasn't this turned you away? "
"Name some reasons why you will make a great doctor"
"What drives you?"
"Why are there so many incompetent doctors?"
"See Q 2 above"
"See above."
"Give an example of a time where you had to make a split second decision and say how you dealt with it and what the outcome was."
"Why do you really want to be a doctor?"
"None of the questions were particularly difficult. I found one interviewer to be easier to talk to than the other."
"What is Medicaid? It wasn't "difficult" in terms of giving the answer, because I just had to define it, but it was the very first question immediately after my interviewer introduced himself. Caught me slightly off guard b/c it was so direct, so I had to change mental gears for the rest of the interview."
"How do you think a single-payer health care system would affect your future practice?"
"Give me an example of a time in your life when you were the surgeon (in reference to being able to console patients)."
"Above."
"Nothing difficult was asked."
"How do you deal with difficult patients?"
"questions on Mass. insurance movement"
"Have you heard about XXX health care bill in Congress?"
"what's the biggest healthcare crisis and how would you resolve it? "
"Why have you never shadowed a physician long-term?"
"Questions about problems w/US healthcare system."
"Why medicine?"
"Residency is very difficult, discuss a challenge in your life and how you overcame it."
"Why are your SAT scores so good and your MCAT scores so bad?"
"N/A"
"Why should this school accept you/why do you fit with its goals as an institution?"
"What is the biggest challenge facing healthcare today? (n.b. this is not that unusual, or difficult anymore, but at the time, I was not prepared to answer it."
"Many people want to become doctor so that they can make the decisions. But now, doctors are not always in charge because of HMOs, etc...What are your thoughts?"
"What do you want the admissions committee to know about you?"
"nothing too difficult. ''What brought you to UMASS?'' was a little awkward to answer"
"(nothing, really)."
"Healthcare one."
"none were particularly difficult"
"Nothing too taxing. Pretty much just elaborating on my activities and my app."
"What about your parents' professions negatively affected your desire to enter those professions? (my dad is a professor and my mom directs a nursing home)"
"Nothing really difficult was asked. There was one question where the interviewer led me directly to the answer. He wanted to get my opinion on stem cell research, and a discussion about ethics and abortion ensued."
"What exactly does fMRI measure? (I use it in my research but when I answered her she repeated the question - I think she wanted the physics principles answer which I was unable to provide."
"What is hte biggest problem facing healthcare today?"
"What other community service work have you done?"
"same"
"How do you show leadership? Something along those lines."
"What other schools are you especially interested in."
"If you were surgeon general, what are the top 3 things you would change?"
"Nothing that difficult."
"How have you prepared mentally, physically, and scholastically for a future career in medicine?"
"See above^"
"What aspect of yourself will change the most when you enter medical school?"
"things were pretty basic, or a little strange (see above)"
"It was something about reforming the curriculum at UMass."
"see above"
"What are your feelings regarding Medicare/Medicaid and how they have been affected by recent events? ***They only asked because I brought up the topic, don't expect something like this out of the blue***"
"None were difficult"
"Same. "
"How do you think that your family situation affects your perception on medicine?"
"Why I decided to completely change my career trajectory after graduating from college?"
"How do you know you are ready for medical school?"
"How will you improve your application for next time in case you are rejected? (this is my second time applying and the interviewer agreed that my application is not lacking anything)"
"8-10 years from now, your wife who is pregnant with your second child asks you why you're doing your stupid research when you could make so much more money to support your family in a clinical practice. What do you say?"
"Why did you only do ______ (volunteer program) for 1 year?"
"How did I plan to balance life as a primary care physician with a family if I worked in a practice that had few partners and I was frequently on call?"
"same as above"
"I don't think your admissions essay tells me anything about what kind of person you are. So, tell me about yourself."
"What is the greatest challenge you will face in medical school? "
"What is the difference in immigrant experience between a Latino immigrant and a second0-generation Irishman? (this wasn't difficult...I knew the answer...I just had to phrase it delicately so as to not offend the interviewer, who is Irish.)"
"What are the negative effects on a family of a physician father spending lots of time away from home?"
"What is the biggest challenge that you will face in medical school?"
"what do you see as the greatest challenge you will face in medical school?"
"No questions were difficult, they just had little to do with medicine and assessing my abilities."
"Specific questions about a couple of the classes I had taken a number of years before which had interesting course titles. I would recommend reviewing your transcript and thinking about the classes you have taken, especially any that have names that stick out."
"Do you think the United States could change their healthcare system to one that is funded by the government? Why or why not?"
"In regards to a bad grade during undergrad: How can you assure me that something like this won't happen if you get in?"
"See above. Had to go quite in depth, but it was with a sympathetic interviewer, so I think that helped."
"Where do you see yourself in 10 years."
"What EXACTLY about one clinical experience I described on my AMCAS did I find so compelling? (be prepared to talk in a bit detail about what you have already said. no big deal, just be ready. as I said, the interviews were low stress.)"
"I was asked if the patient I spoke about in my essay was real or fictional."
"How would a friend describe you?"
"It was a very LOW stress interview - all questions were open-ended."
"What are two words you would use to describe the medical profession?"
"No difficult questions. I just talked about myself."
"Do you have any concerns regarding handling the rigors of med school?"
"If you go to school and find that your classmates are not interested in the social issues you are, what will you do?"
"How did the decision to enter medicine evolve? Begin in college and through your Ph.D."
"If you're so interested in a career where you can help others, why be a doctor and not say, a social worker?"
"The above discussion was the most difficult. He wasn't mean or overbearing. It was just simply different. He was asking how I felt and would respond to situtations where I knew I was being directly lied to. "
"Are you prepared for the constraints of HMO medicine (e.g., spending only 5 minutes with a patient?)"
"what would you say has been your most meaningful life experience?"
"What would I suggest as a solution to the potential medicare problems we will encounter in 10 years?"
"none"
"there were no hard questions at all."
"They really didn't ask anything difficult, but some of the other interviewees did have interviews with much high stress levels and all the typical questions asked."
"I practiced and looked up at interview techniques online."
"Mock MMI and reviewed bioethics principles"
"Read about MMI style interviews. Developed a general 'template' for answering questions. Made sure to give cons/pros for each case."
"I looked up sample MMI questions and practiced answering them in a real situation setting by timing myself and only allowing two mins to prep for each question."
"researched the school, read my app a few times so I could remember everything"
"Sdn, my application."
"sdn interview feedback, practiced with someone"
"SDN, reviewed my application- to know what they had seen, and asked others what questions other schools had asked"
"Reviewed my application."
"SDN, school's website, MSAR, and reviewing my app"
"SDN, reviewd my app, brainstormed answers to tentative questions, researched the school"
"Reading this site, and preparing for general questions, and reviewing my file"
"SDN feedback, website"
"Asked previous students."
"Read commonly asked questions, mock interview with advisor, reviewed healthcare policy changes and proposals"
"SDN, brushed up on healthcare policy and reform but didn't need to. Also had a mock interview with some docs from the school"
"SDN, read articles on healthcare, researched school website, practice saying question responses (why medicine, etc) many times"
"Read the website, SDN, slept well the night before."
"read past SDN questions, mock interview w/ friend"
"SDN feedback, mock interview, UMMS website"
"Mock interview, SDN, reading about the school"
"Read sdn stuff, looked over my apps, looked over umass website"
"mock, read apps, go over past interview materials"
"Read these interview feedbacks, read the UMMS website, reviewed interview-prep materials my pre-med advisor sent me, read up on health care issues."
"Read about UMASS and read over apps"
"SDN, healthcare review, mock interviews, read over essays and research"
"SDN, UMass website, Princeton Review, wiki on healthcare and healthcare in MA"
"I thought a lot and practiced speaking."
"read over application, visit umass website, keep up w/current medical news"
"UMass website, SDN, health care research (web and books), bioethics research (didn't need it)"
"UMass website (which was not needed for me). Talked to my Pre-Med advisors. SND website."
"SDN, mock interview, UMass website"
"SDN, mock interview, pre-med advisor prepared questions, medical students who have already gone through the process"
"Mock interview, SDN, studying up on healthcare reform, reading UMASS website, reviewing AMCAS and secondary application."
"SDN, umass website, talking to a friend who goes there"
"sdn, mock interview, UMass Medical news online, online question search"
"mock interview, SDN, prepped a billion questions, *should have reread my file more closely*"
"sdn, ''how to interview for medical school'' handbook, umass website"
"SDN, my application, school website, mock interview."
"Read a lot about the school, read some SDN feedback."
"Read the website, read the viewbook, prepared answers to sample questions"
"Reviewed application and the school's website."
"Read application, sdn, thought about answers to potential questions without memorizing anything"
"This web site and re-reading my AMCAS application"
"typical interview questions, UMASS website, review my application"
"SDN, website, my own application"
"reread AMCAS app, looked at info on the school website"
"Read the viewbook online, came up with questions to ask."
"UMass website, studentdoctor.net, practice w/doctors, reviewed application"
"read the website, read over my application"
"read over app, went online to website, looked over research I had done"
"mock interview w/ a faculty member at HMS, this site, UMASS materials"
"SDN, mock interview, school website, going over my app."
"SDN, re-read secondary and amcas applications, read school website"
"This website, Umass's website, interview books"
"SND, interview feedback, reviewed my AMCAS, came up with responses to the common questions."
"Read the website, read interview feedback, reviewed my AMCAS, interviewed at St. George's, mock interview, listened to myself talk"
"SDN, mock interview, school website, spoke to someone who had interviewed there earlier."
"website, application"
"UMMS website, SDN, online example interview questions, mock interview....basically anything and everything"
"reread my application, looked at UMass website and the online student manual"
"SDN feedback, re-reading my application, relaxing"
"Took a jog, read over my secondary, thought about all the good stuff I've done wiht my life."
"SDN interview forums, UMASS website, looked over my application"
"UMass website, SDN interview feedback"
"SDN, UMass website"
"sdn, 2ndary essays, umassmed website"
"Mock interview, school website, SDN feedback"
"SDN, UMass catalog"
"SDN mock interviews"
"SDN,UMMS Catalog, Application"
"SDN, school viewbook, AMCAS app"
"read SDN and the UMass website, as well as read www.cnn.com"
"SDN, read over my essays & personal statement, looked at the UMASS website"
"SDN, school's website. i wasn't aware of any other of my undergraduate classmates who already interviewed there."
"SDN, MSAR, read my essays"
"Website, catalog, mock interviews"
"Read the application, and read interview feedback from SDN."
"SDN website, Interview advice from my school, mock interviewing"
"SDN, talking with primary care docs, Umass web site."
"This website, viewbook, and former roommate that is a student there"
"Website info and this site"
"SDN interview feedback, talking to other applicants, doctors, and residents, prep questions in books, mock interviews"
"SDN (the one MD/PhD posting), School's webpage, practice interviews, reviewed research"
"UMASS website/viewbook, practice questions, SDN"
"School website, reveiwing possible questions, going over my application (particularly essay), SDN feedback"
"read the website, reread my application, looked over my 'favorite book'"
"read interview feedback, went over applications, looked at school website"
"Reread my application, reviewed the website. Read this website. "
"SDN, UMass website, read my app, talked to my friends at UMass."
"this site, UMMS website, spoke with physicians about potential questions"
"SDN, mock interview and reading up on current topics in health care"
"school's website, sdn"
"web, read about the school, reviewed AMCAS, sample interview questions."
"I read almost all their materials on their website, and I both read about and talked to people about healthcare. I skimmed my applications and re-read the book I wrote about in my secondary application."
"Reviewed studentdoctor.net interviews."
"This site, AMCAS app., asked some 1st yrs. what questions they had to answer."
"Read sdn, school website, spoke with personal contacts at the school."
"Newspaper,NPR, and discussion with peers. Prep books (Kaplan and Princeton Review) sections on interviews."
"UMASS web pages, review of UMASS research of interest, re-read my AMCAS application, mock interview with a friend"
"umass website, this website"
"The usual... UMass website, SDN, re-read AMCAS and secondary apps."
"amcas, ps, secondary essays, gave some thought to frequently asked questions... also, UMASS has excellent online resources!"
"Nothing in particular."
"Spoke with friends at the school, UMASS website"
"went to UMASS website, student doctor website, read the news"
"umass website, interview feedback, reviewed amcas and secondary, and current health issues"
"SDN, read the website (which isn't that useful), reread my secondary and essay"
"Read the PDF school catalog. "
"UMass web site, this site, tried to find info on primary care on the web"
"Read my essay and short answers. Read interview feedback."
"Interview feedback, read up about UMass from website and friends who currently go there."
"Read my AMCAS application and secondary. Did practice questions from different books and websites."
"read medical journals, re-read my applications, prepared answers to mock questions"
"Reviewed my application, spoke with current student, read through catalog and website, reviewed "typical" medical school questions, and viewed interview feedback"
"looked at practice interview questions on internet sites; read through the UMASS website"
"website; practice questions; mock interview"
"Visited the website."
"Nothing"
"The tour and curriculum presentation"
"How friendly the staff and students were."
"how beautiful the campus was and what an effort the school made in really making sure they were creating a supporting stress free (well as stress free as they can make it) environment for the students."
"happiness of students/staff, beautiful hospital and training facilities, beautiful and clean area with lovely river, great housing available"
"It's cheape than most schools."
"The people were really nice and friendly. I got asked by like 5 people whether I was lost during my 5min walk to the orientation room!"
"Community feel, great facilities, SUPER friendly people, value is unmatched."
"Both interviews were relaxed, friendly, and engaging. The process was well done."
"The current students' excitement about UMass and Worcester"
"very new facilities and great resources for med students & the low cost of housing"
"The new curriculum and student life."
"The school has amazing, new, nice facilities!"
"Everything. I loved this school, the enthusiasm of the students, faculty, and staff, the facilities (brand new anatomy lab, awesome sims, and kick-butt facilities overall), and the friendliness of everything at the school."
"The other interviewees were nice."
"The students and administration were extremely friendly and welcoming, and my interviewers were aloof but not antagonistic."
"I was surprised by how friendly everyone was."
"Enthusiasm of current students"
"The emergency department is beautiful, as is most of the rest of the building. You get a tricked out computer upon matriculation. The students were so, so friendly. The curriculum is structured well now, but they're changing it to make it even better. It seems like they train you really well to become clinicians."
"generalist initiative, impressive facilities, low cost, LPP/PPS courses"
"The friendliness of current students, the facilities, LPP/PPS program"
"The admission office staffs were really nice...the lunch was really good."
"The admissions office is great and incredibly helpful. Also the students on campus appear to be really happy."
"great community, good resources, awesome hospital, early clinical opportunities"
"The whole day was very laid back and they did a great job presenting as non-stressful an environment as possible. Students that I met were friendly and approachable. Lots of useful information."
"love the school"
"New facilities/buildings being built and friendliness/enthusiasm of all the students I met."
"the ED, taking the tour through the anatomy lab, how friendly and helpful the faculty and students were"
"The attempts of the admissions office to make us feel comfortable/ their promises not to let us get lost :D"
"quality of facilities"
"The cost ($8000 per year)! The students seem really happy and friendly. The facilities are certainly improving (e.g. brand new simulation lab). The associated hospital seems really happening."
"New facilities, nice people, and the price."
"The enthusiasm and caring that everyone had, "
"The interview day was a lot less stressful than I had anticipated. Everyone was nice and friendly and it seems like a very tight knit community. "
"Everyone was extremely kind and enthusiastic."
"Facilities are nice and new (sim lab), people seemed happy, new construction, expansion of research programs (nobel prize recently)"
"Everyone is really pleased with the school and seems genuinely happy"
"The interviewers has spent time with my application and asked relevant and interested questions. The school is undergoing a tremendous amount of positive growth, and the students get to reap the rewards."
"the students seemed really happy to be there and the class seemed to be close knit; the school was laid back and unpretentious"
"How friendly and happy everyone is: students and staff."
"Enthusiasm of students, staff, faculty."
"New facilities, students were friendly and down to earth"
"The interviewers had read my file and remembered specific things they wanted to discuss."
"enthusiasm of the students. Everyone seems to love it there. School has recently been renovated. Brand new simulation center to come in 2008."
"medical school is connected to a very active hospital"
"The laidback atmosphere"
"How the interview was conversational instead of an interrogation"
"The student tour guides. They were incredibly friendly and down-to-earth, and cared about showing us why they love UMASS so much. They were the best tour guides I've had yet. I also liked that the hospital is directly connected to the med school, which means that your education can easily be applied directly to practice."
"the students were vivacious and personable"
"Enthusiastic, friendly students, staff, faculty; the potential that UMass has as a medical school"
"How enthuisiastic the students were and how nice everyone was."
"Everyone was very friendly and welcoming. An effort was clearly made to match my interviewers with my interests and as a result both interviews went very smoothly. Great facilities!"
"The students and faculty were all incredibly friendly and I had a great time there. I really liked the atmosphere, and it was completely stress-free. They have great opportunities to go study abroad, lots of community service options, and chances to go ride along with medics in helicopters or just go and read stories to children in the cancer ward. There just seemed to be something for everyone."
"extremely friendly/helpful community, both involved in admissions and not (I ended up in the radiology dept looking for my 2nd interview, and an MD walked me (or tried to, she couldn't find it either) there). Very cohesive class, accesible faculty, school has everything you could want for a comprehensive and excellent education"
"I was positively impressed by several things at the school. The facilities are pretty good, but more importantly the students (and everyone) were very happy and friendly. The education is top-quality. The school has a great community feel, and there is a lot of respect between students and faculty members."
"The strong sense of community between the students."
"Worcester wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be and the students were all very nice."
"Students seemed happy. Interviewers spoke highly of the program and were not afraid to discuss the downsides too, ie, location, etc. Very honest, which I appreciated."
"I really liked the students. Everyone seems so friendly and happy to be there. The resources available are also a plus. Also, the different programs they have as far as community service and study abroad are a huge asset."
"The attitudes of the students, the early clinical exposure."
"how happy everyone was with the school"
"Everyone was so laid back. Also UMMS first nobel laureate ever!! Gotta love RNAi."
"the facilities were great, and the location and setting the school is in are not bad. It is a great deal financially."
"students and faculty are very nice and relaxed. there is a feeling of community and learning seems to be a collaborative effort. the recently renovated parts of the facilities are beautiful."
"The students are all really laid back and happy to be there, good sence of community. They enocourage you to have a life and personality. They integrate clinical teaching the second week of class. This place is a deal! "
"Friendliness of everyone"
"The students seem very happy and friendly--several wished me good luck in the hallways. The faculty also is incredibly committed to the students. Also, the tuition is a great deal."
"Students seem happy. Cheap tuition. Good opportunities."
"how friendly and helpful everyone seemed particularly my interviewers. Also, Umass not only reaches out to the central Mass community but also to the international community. For those who really want to go abroad, I think the school is doing a great job at encouraging students to be more culturally aware. I was also impressed at how many faculty members had participated in health care outreach ops in developing nations. "
"The hospitals are busy with a large amount of patients. Even though the school is tops in primary care, they have excellent specialty opportunities & make sure that applicants know that."
"Everyone was extremely helpful and friendly, including first year students we simply passed by in the halls. "
"The students all seemed very close and friendly"
"The overall cost of education and the learning contract"
"the effort the school makes to make students comfortable and able to enjoy life a little"
"the students seemed really happy to be at UMass and they really seem non-competitive with each other."
"My first interview was very enthusiastic and had a good grasp of my folder and seemed interested in learning more about me. The cost is also very reasonable."
"enthusiasm of students, faculty, and staff, resources devoted to students, the way students are treated as colleagues by faculty. knowing how the Mass. gov't usually runs, I expected bureaucracy and general incompetence, but the school seems exceptionally well-run, not just for Mass. but compared to everywhere else."
"Great clinical training, close to my family, students seem to be a very close knit community."
"Ease of interviewers and administrators, intelligence of current students, Dean Paraskos' talk, academic opportunities (international medicine, LifeFlight), research facilities, cost of living in Worcester"
"how thrilled the students are to be there and how many of them chose UMass as their first choice."
"The students, faculty and staff were all so friendly and nice. I met a couple of first years in the bathroom and they were like, we love it here and don't be nervous for the interview at all, it's very low stress. They wished me good luck :)."
"Friendliness and happiness of everyone I met. Faculty seems very dedicated to students. Prepares great doctors. Has very diverse group of students. Access to diverse patient population. Liberal, open minded atmosphere. Aspirations (with development to back it up) of improving the research center"
"Alot, UMass is my first choice, and everything I saw confirmed my opinion of the school"
"Nice people, good atmosphere, students seem very happy"
"the enthusiasm and passion that everyone had for this school and the school's "family", the numerous opportunities that they give you to incorporate your interests into the field"
"The new research building and the HUGE amount of funding that the school is drawing from NIH grants and pumping into research. They've really built up what appears to be a solid program with a strong committment. "
"Everyone there was very friendly and really liked UMASS"
"The students were clearly very happy to be here and the learning environment seemed cooperative as opposed to competitive. I got the impression that the faculty are very available to students and that there are a lot of informal learning opportunities availabe. The students also seemed to have a good balance of studying and having fun."
"the students were great. One of my interviewers was a student, and so were the tour guides. They all seemed to really really enjoy it there."
"How helpful and friendly the interviewers were. The day was very organized, every minute was accounted for (so much so that I had to hussle just to get a bathroom break!)"
"Students were happy. "
"How patient-centered the UMass curriculum is! People were so warm and welcoming. Their mission si struly service-oriented."
"how happy everybody was to be there"
"UMass seemed like a friendly environment with an emphasis on primary care medicine, which is currently what I'm leaning towards practicing."
"how happy and enthusiastic the students were. also my off-campus interview was in a really nice hospital, and the second interview was with a prof and was great. "
"Not much. "
"How nice and welcoming all the people at the school were. The large international studies program/emphasis/opportunities."
"The students at UMASS Medical are very happy and seem to enjoy learning medicine there. They were excellent representatives of their school!"
"student/MD co-operation, value of student input, increasing research budget, clinical correlation & LPP, friendly atmosphere."
"I saw the library before it was renovated and all I can say is "wow", it looks great now. Great facilities all around, in terms of both learning resources and "down time" resources."
"The enthusiasm of the staff and students."
"very low competition among students and low stress interviews"
"the friendliness of everyone! UMass seems really cooperative, focused on patient care, and cheap. "
"How nice and accessible everyone was. Students seemed happy. Impressive match list. Interesting anatomy museum. Library looked like a great place to study. Lots of non-traditional students."
"The applicant pool is wildly competitive. The facilities are nice and the new building is gorgeous. There are many opportunities to get involved in community service, international medicine, and research."
"The friendly, positive students and the very strong feeling of community with students and professors. There is a massive amount of expansion and renovation going on with the buildings. Students with off-site interviews were transported with a limo."
"School's focus on community-based activities and medicine"
"the environment seemed really supportive- both students and faculty seemed to embrace the idea of collaborative learning. also the value, you can get a great education for a great price"
"tuition, nice students, good match lists for those of us who had off campus interviews, they picked us up in a limo to drive us to these sites!"
"The cost. It is great to graduate and have little debt and being able to have it forgiven if you practice in an underserved area in Mass."
"Student friendliness. Residency placements are stellar. "
"Student input on everything is take very seriously and acted on."
"The student facilitites. The lounge is very nice. The library is great and the first year classroom was cozy, comfortable and I could see myself there every day for a year."
"The facilities are awesome! The campus is beautiful! The students are cooperative!"
"The people! Everyone is very nice and helpful. The students all seem very happy, even during exams."
"The faculty and students were very nice. They went out of their way to make sure we had a positive experience. The facilties were also beautiful. "
"The students that are currently enrolled as well as the other applicatns were amazing. They are cooperative, interesting, and helpful. "
"Everyone was extremely nice! The whole interview process was very comfortable and low stress. It was honestly an enjoyable day."
"the worcester area isn't so bad."
"How enthusiastic and relatively unstressed the students were, and how cohesive their class seemed. Overall, a really friendly place and supportive environment with lots of opportunties for basic science research as well as public service-type work."
"The questioning of my race."
"The weather!"
"Lack of diversity in the student body."
"Not much really."
"the presentations ran a bit long; the school basically says you could hear your results in 5 minutes or not until April/May... really aggravating."
"Huge focus on primary care...I felt like my options would be very limited going there. Most of the third and fourth year rotations are at small clinics all around western and central mass and in NH. You have to drive to far out locations frequently in those years."
"Nothing really :)"
"Worcester isn't the best."
"Worcester in general"
"The Worcester area (but I love being in the city)."
"The students seemed almost too laid back?"
"Nothing!"
"The super early interview (before tour or anything else); and the complete oddness of the first interview. No questions asked, and the guy said don't worry about this, I'm not on the committee."
"Our tour guide seemed a bit apathetic"
"You shouldn't have to navigate your own way around the hospital/school to find your interviewers. They should have someone from admissions show you where to go cuz that place is really confusing. Location, worcester pretty much sucks."
"Location, small size"
"Not much, honestly. I wish it weren't in Worcester."
"worcester location, some inconsistency about curriculum changes to be implemented next year"
"The vague description of the change in curriculum"
"One of the interviewer made me wait outside because he was late and then grilled me for the entire time. He pulled out my file and went over everything and questioned everything. Then he asked me why are there incompetent doctors and suggested I might be one of them if I don't quit my job and volunteer/shadow doctors full time. He only has a PhD by the way."
"nothing"
"interviewer who suggested i didn't want to be a doctor"
"I may have to wait until May to hear an acceptance decision. "
"17 ppl interviewed that day.. "
"My disorganized schedule...my first interview happened 20 minutes after I was told to arrive and then the second one happened way later after orientation and the tour were over..."
"I found one of my interviewers to be a bit less engaging (would look at notes while I was talking, didn't offer much of a response to my responses), but that is simply a difference in style and to be expected."
"interview process could be slightly more organized (one fellow interviewer did not receive his 2nd interview assignment until halfway through the day) "
"Worcester is not the greatest place but UMass is in a nice area."
"Worcester is not the nicest city - but what can you do."
"Nothing, I had a great day."
"The campus is not very pretty. Maybe it was because it was cold and rainy on the day and there is a lot of construction. Also, Worcester is a tough area. And my second interview only lasted 15 mins instead of 30. "
"Although I was told a number of times that the interviews would be open-file, neither of the interviewers had bothered to read my file."
"location (worcester), other interviewees were years older than me( only a couple were still college seniors, others have been in industry for 3+ years) which is good but I wish i could also hang out with people my age"
"Needs some renovations to the labs. Lots of building on campus, recent new ER and research buildings"
"How long UMass can take to make a decision on an application post-interview."
"the facilities could use some renovating"
"The tour limited and brief."
"Teaching facilities are behind the times. Even D.O. schools have better set ups for students in terms of labs, classrooms, simulators, technology."
"Hard to navigate around the building to find my interviewers' offices, but at least the secretary gave an ''emergency'' number to call her in case we got lost"
"The school can be difficult to navigate, but the admissions staff is great about helping."
"Worcester isn't really that interesting. "
"Nothing."
"They send you on a maze to get to your interview"
"The facilities seemed a bit older, and I didn't love the location, which seemed very isolated. However, UMASS is constantly building new facilities, and everyone told me that Worcester is a very culturally diverse location with many opportunities for service in the community."
"the lunch was not great. the facilities aren't spectacular, although there is a lot of construction and there research funding has grown a lot."
"Nothing really, besides the low ceilings in the first floor hospital. "
"Worcester"
"Not really a negative, but I thought it was a little strange that first year students gave the tour because they had only been at the school a couple months at this point."
"Still working on renovations for part of the medical school (should be done by 2007). You absolutely need a car to get around."
"Not much"
"The facilities, the lack of a campus, and Worcester's not so hot."
"tour was kind of short, and I didn't see anything I hadn't seen before"
"Worcester wasn't that impressive, but I was prepared for that ahead of time. It didn't fall short of my already low expectations."
"Nothing really disappointed me. I'm familiar with the location, etc, so I knew what to expect when I arrived."
"There's no student housing! But that's not a big deal. There's nothing negative I can find about the school!"
"Match results - in 2001, 63% of grads got first choice for match, not nearly as good at other schools I'm applying to."
"some facilities need to be spruced up"
"all the sick people...hahaha just kidding, everything was great."
"we couldn't see much of the hospital."
"the parts that haven't been renovated yet need a little help. "
"No MPH integration possible w/MD. Worcester is nice and all, but its no Boston/NYC/ other cultural center. You have to have a car to get around. The library closes at 11pm (how am I supposed to cram????)."
"Nothing, all though the hospital seems run down in certain areas."
"Well, Worcester didn't impress me....but it wasn't as bad as I had expected. It's someplace I could live for a few years."
"My 2nd interviewer made it clear that she didn't have a lot of time and was really squeezing me in. Not so cool, in my opinion. No campus, just 1 med building, 1 research building, 1 hospital. "
"That Worcester doesn't seem to have much going on, but it's manageable. There's stuff to do. "
"The tour amounts to seeing 1 classroom, the library entrance, the museum and the student lounge."
"Construction made finding things a little confusing."
"There was construction... lots of construction that the tour guide said was supposed to have been done almost a year ago but isnt. "
"The facilities, though boasted as hi-tech, look antiquated. The location is dreary as well."
"the school is a few miles away from the city, feels isolated"
"nothing really."
"My second interviewer repeatedly yawned during the interview, and did not have an opportunity to read my file prior to meeting with me -- I felt like I reiterated much of what is in my file."
"medical school building was tough to navigate, and the way they number the rooms makes it 10 times worse than it already is, but if you go there on a regular basis I imagine it becomes easy enough."
"Doesn't seem to be very research heavy, but they seem to be getting more and more money for research every year. Worcester isnt the greatest city."
"Facilities are a little rough; one interviewer had some disconcerting, old medical apparati in his office that I think were the "utensils" used to relax hysterical women in Victorian days. "
"worcester even though the students swear it grows on you"
"The tour given by the student went til 1:00 and my first interview was scheduled for 1:00 and I asked if I could leave 10 minutes before-hand so that I could get to my interview on time, but he said not to worry. Even though the interviewer didn't mind, I was rushed to get there on time and had trouble recovering from my nervousness due to my lateness."
"Campus was not the prettiest area. Worcester....but not as negatively as I thought it would"
"It was a little confusing navigating the hospital for an interview, but was solved easily enough"
"Worcester, construction"
"my second interviewer had a low energy level"
"Honestly, the fact that everything was so rushed over and that there wasn't more time to spend with the six interviewers and exploring the school and research facilities. "
"School is under construction, facilities aren't great. The 15 other students interviewing were STARVING by the time the day ended"
"The city of Worcester leaves a bit to be desired. I also wish that they had given more time for the tour. We barely got to see the facilities and everyone who had an afternoon interview was at least five or ten minutes late for it because our tour ran over."
"Worcester is cold and not that impressive of a city."
"The day was really rushed because each interview was only about 30 minutes and I had to book it from building to building. Fortunately, secretaries showed me where to go, but others weren't as lucky and got lost and were late to interviews/meetings."
"Admissions presentation was kind of BLAH. Not so nice room/food/power point presentation. "
"Nothing. I wish Worcester were a big city like NYC, but it's not that bad."
"lots of construction...could hear loud banging that shook the room every 2-3 seconds during the interview"
"The construction, but it wasn't a big deal."
"the first interviewer seemed bored (a lot of sighing and looking at the clock) and asked uninteresting questions (greatest strengths/weaknesses, etc)"
"Cold, campus is not very nice, Worcester is a terrible city to live in. The students were mostly from Boston and Worcester."
"not much..."
"The tour was rushed so that people could get to their interviews by 1:00. "
"not too much. once the construction is complete it should be a nice campus."
"Lunch could have been better. Other than that, not much :). I'm from Worcester, so I knew what to expect from the city."
"Admissions staff didn't get me to my first interview on time"
"worcester and the lack of diversity at umass, my second interviewer did not ask me any questions. "
"Nothing really... "
"The food was subpar. They changed the pickup location for off-site interviews and didn't tell us about it."
"the only negative is the fact it's in worcester- blah"
"shabby, lack of diversity"
"White, very white. Not much diversity at all. Western Mass is not as urban as Boston, the logistics of the interviews were not that well organized"
"The organization of the day. Some students complained that their first interviewer did not show. The medical school can be difficult to navigate and you are kind of on your own."
"Class doesn't seem that diverse, Worcester isn't as urban as I would like, but not as bad as I thought it would be."
"Lack of preparedness of the staff for interviewees. There were no name tags and the agenda was pretty loose. Two students lead us around which made of for this."
"My first interview was in another building and I was late to my second because I didn't have enough time to make it back. The second interviewer was cool with it, though."
"nothing....it was a wonderful experience"
"The unrealistic time frames they tried to implement."
"the two students who gave us an overview of the orientation were really NOT very impressive, though they were nice."
"It's kind of isolated in Worcester, but really not that bad."
"The racism"
"How to get from the parking garage to the correct building."
"The parking situation"
"long tour - don't wear heels, ladies"
"That they drive students around in a white stretch limo if you have an off campus interview."
"That the interview was going to be very low stress."
"That the other interviewees and I would need to walk through 5 inches of snow to get to the med school building!"
"That I shouldn't have been nervous, the day was exciting!"
"If you get there early, you'll sit in the lounge and can talk to students, watch some tv, relax, etc."
"That I was in somewhere else already, so I could calm down."
"That they would ask a fair amount of trivial questions (I think I bombed on discussing my hobbies!)"
"Well my first interviewer never showed up (got stuck in surgery I later found out) so I had to wait around for a couple hours while they found a new one for me. But couldn't have predicted that, obviously. Ended up interviewing with the residency director for EM so that was pretty cool!"
"All interviewees wear suits. The interviews themselves were very relaxed, more conversational than formal."
"Do not be ashamed if you have to change into your comfy shoes for the tour."
"more specifically about the curriculum"
"I was pretty prepared"
"Nothing really, the day went really well."
"17 ppl interviewed that day.."
"that there would be no health care questions/discussion and that theymostly wanted to know about my hobbies/personality."
"that it wouldn't be super easy to find a parking space in the garage. would have given myself a little bit more time."
"I wish I'd been better prepared for a situation where I might feel ill at ease/ discouraged from discoursing at length."
"How direct my first interview was going to be in terms of questions."
"Other interviewees can be very annoying and try to psyche you out. I tried not to pay attention to them and followed my own path."
"No reason at all to be stressed out about interviewing at UMASS--nothing difficult was asked and everyone was kind."
"UMass takes a while to get a decision back to you."
"Not much; I had a pretty good sense of how the day would flow. "
"There's a lot of down time between commitments. Come prepared with questions you can ask students while hanging out in the student lounge."
"This school thinks too highly of itself. They claim to want a diverse student population, but actually offer acceptances to one type of student."
"Interviewers may not always be members of the admissions committee or doctors; my first interviewer was a staff member outside of admissions"
"Unless you are an MD/PHD candidate, you will either have two interviews in the morning or two interviews in the afternoon. I personally think that I was lucky to get the morning interview because we spent more time with our tour guides and had less stress during the tour."
"Nothing, I interviewed at UMass last year also."
"There is no one to meet you when you arrive, opposite of what it says on the email invitation"
"Worcester County is apparently almost a perfect replica of the US, demographically."
"Nothing. "
"N/A"
"Everyone there is so nice! Current students wished me good luck in the halls, the administrators were very friendly and helpful... The main building is EXTREMELY confusing to navigate. I was late to both interviews, and I had to ask at least 5 people before one of them could find the room for me."
"nothing"
"Where the entrance to the school was, it was under construction."
"It didn't take me nearly as long to get there as I expected."
"that the interview was so not as stressful as i thought it would be."
"admission has parking vouchers apparently, so I had to pay $4."
"??"
"I thought their questions were supposed to be "get to know you questions" but my interviewer seemed to really like asking about current events. "
"If you said you don't mind where your interview is, you can be assigned to an off-site location. They drive you there & bring you back, but it makes for a very long day because you might have to wait til 3:30 to have your interview, and then also wait for another student to interview after you do before you get a ride back to the school."
"That it wasn't going to take as long as I thought to get to Worcester."
"Although both the interviews were supposed to be open file, one of my interviewers said that he personally prefered closed file so he chose not to read my application ahead of time... same guy that asked me what vegetable I wanted to be.... "
"the parking garage was (almost) full and the garage which the interview invitation said to use was closed"
"how long it was going to take to get out to Worcester"
"There are morning interviews and afternoon -- if you have an afternoon, they ship you off-campus(in a stretch limousine, that's right!) to other area buildings affiliated with the school -- it was a long day."
"That they don't dig deep into every facet of your application. Instead they focus on a couple interesting things they found."
"the school is under construction"
"Look up the people on the admissions committee beforehand, so you know who your interviewer is. For me, it was a complete surprise...and I really wish that I had looked up in advance."
"How friendly the interviewers were"
"Medical school was a little crazy, construction and there was a bazaar in the lobby. The light lunch was quite good, better than I had expected!"
"morning interviews happen immediately upon arrival, tour and orientation later."
"That UMass Worcester serves as the main health care system for everything west of 495."
"Partial tuition reimbursement if you practice in MA for 4 years post residency"
"The directions given on the website are not the best way to get to the medical school portion of the campus. Also half of last year's entering class came from the wait list."
"If you said 'yes' to an 'off-campus' interview, you had to take a van off the premises, and it added on much more time to theh length of the entire interview day. Also-lunch is early...we ate at 11. Lots of down-time too throughout the day."
"bring floss! (after lunch you still have interviews)"
"That what you wear doesn't matter. "
"Because one of my interviews was off-site, it was scheduled later in the day than I realized. This could have been a problem if you had to take a flight."
"they serve lunch. and the entrance to the school is underneath a lot of construction - a bit confusing."
"I had not read about their international studies program in advance, but it was fine because I asked my interviewers to tell me about it."
"You can defer 2/3 of your tuition until gradution, and you can pay off the rest of your tution if you work for the state in a underserved area."
"The class is very white, and I'm not sure that really reflects the applicant pool completely."
"Nothing for myself. If you do not drive however, make sure to look up all the train and bus schedules ahead of time."
"That people in Worcester drive like people in Boston! :) Grading in the first and second years is not as complicated as other resources make it out to be."
"UMass will defer 2/3 of anyone's tuition until after finishing med school, and there are ways of getting all of that erased in a few years."
"Parking is $4"
"How stress-free and relaxed the interviews would be. The interviewers were more concerned with learning about me than seeing how I would react under pressure. I also learned that the majority of UMass' funding does not come from the state, so don't be afraid of Romney's budget cuts!"
"2/3 of tuition is defered until medical training is complete. That means through residency. Wow! and its already cheap to begin with"
"They have a really strong international experience program, with its own office and substantial budget."
"That the interviewers had very little knowledge of the actual school it's self. They were physicians that volunteered and therefore were unable to answer my questions."
"that the interviews would be so conversational. didn't need to prepare to talk at depth about my research."
"Nothing"
"An interviewer at one of my MMI stations spent the first 1.5 mins talking and I was really frustrated because I couldn't finish my answer."
"I had a blast during my interview day. The staff and students were extremely nice. Despite not having experience with this style of interview, UMMS did a great job on explaining the template and why most schools are changing to the format. As for the MMI, the interviewer doesn't expect you to talk for the full six minutes. Rather, they will ask you questions about your particular stance or provide additional information. Also, be cautious about being to adamant about one side. Ideally, you should give pros/cons for your decision and then why you think (blank) is the best option."
"Its a wonderful school and the staff and administration is really on the students side helping them become the best version of themselves. That's the type of school I would want to go to. Where your individual weaknesses are addresses and you feel supported!"
"I wish UMass would let applicants know their admissions results, or at least keep us in-the-loop with where our apps are in the process. You interview in the early fall and you still haven't heard a peep in the early spring...?"
"Good school, ultimately didn't go here because I thought it would limit future options and therefore not provide as full and education as other schools."
"Great school and top choice :)"
"I thought the process was well laid out, and low stress."
"The school and hospital at UMass are in excellent shape, but I'm still not convinced that Worcester is a nice city to live in."
"I had an off-campus interview and I was nervous about finding my way and mode of transportation (I thought I'd have to take the campus bus or something)...but they gave us a limo! It was very cool :)"
"Overall, great school for the price. Boonies location, and pretty low level facilities at some parts. One interviewer was very open and friendly but far more judgmental to responses, other was off-beat and odd without a care in the world. I have no idea how to interpret either. Also, waiting months and months to hear back is absurd and unprofessional, for any type of organization."
"It was my first interview, and I was very nervous, but I loved my visit and felt extremely comfortable throughout the day."
"Unlike just about everyone that has given feedback for UMass, I didn't get a single question on healthcare policy or reform."
"Great school. I'm crossing my fingers."
"Overall the interview process was low stress, but I think I didn't perform all that well (I spoke a little fast, mispronounced a disease I was talking about, etc.) To everyone else interviewing, just relax and be yourself."
"I had 2, 30 minute, one-on-one interviews. The interview process was extremely relaxed; it felt like the interviewers wanted to get to know you as a person. Just be yourself!"
"That one person who interviewed me really upset me."
"There were 17 people who interviewed that day, but I was part of the afternoon group of which there were only 6 of us. So it was a bit crowded in the beginning, but it wasn't an issue. Very impressed with the school, they've got a lot of new buildings coming in the next 5 years or so. Thoroughly enjoyable first interview."
"I was a little thrown on some questions (not sure how to answer and how much to say) but overall the day was fun and UMass would be a great school to attend."
"It was a great day. Very laidback. Admissions people are super nice. "
"Don't overprepare, but at least think about what you might say to various questions you are sure to be asked. Mock interviewers are great, if you can get someone who knows how to do them."
"Very laid back, conversational interview. Overall a great day"
"Interview was not as stressful as I thought it was going to be. The only thing that I was put off by was my second interviewer, who ended the interview 15 mins early cause it seemed like he was too busy to talk to me and wanted to get back to his research. But the current students are really nice and the new ER is amazing. "
"Both interviews were conversational. In fact, sometimes it was difficult for me to cut in, as both interviewers seemed more interested in hearing themselves talk. I often had to interrupt with statments like, ''that's why I want to be a doctor'' or ''I think so too.''"
"Arrival in the morning, presentation by admissions staff, have some breakfast and students come in and talk and give a presentation. We take a tour and have 2 interviews. Some interviews may be off campus, but they provide shuttles and everything. The admissions staff actually does look at SDN interview feedback for ways to improve. I appreciate that. They run a smooth day and I was impressed with UMass!"
"Very positive. Everyone is really happy. The facility is undergoing lots of new/recent buidling. Lots of oppurtunities to explore different aspects of medicine."
"Met in the admissions office at 9:15 with the other morning interviewers. Got our interviewer information with times (10:00 and 10:45) and location (both within the hospital/med school complex). Had a little bit of time to kill before the 12:00 presentations by admissions and financial aid, which the afternoon interviewees come for as well. Then lunch in the room (which you have to sit hungrily and smell while folks are presenting), followed by a presentation by students, then a tour. "
"Really enjoyed talking with both my interviewers. Thought they got to see the best I had to offer. They were honest with me, that if I didn't get in, (which I didn't) it would be b/c of MCAT scores. Which makes you wonder why they bothered inviting me to interview for 3 years in a row."
"Nice state school and short interview day. But admissions decisions are the slowest of any school I applied to! "
"I arrived at 9:00am and was given information about my 2 interviews. The interviews were done by 11:15 and I returned to meet with the other students and have a lunch as the associate dean did a brief presentation. Then we were given a student led tour of the school. Vouchers were also given for parking."
"UMASS admissions people stressed that they so no point in adding stress to the candidate's experience. Although I was nervous at the beginning of the interview, both interviewers were able to put me at ease pretty easily. Also the admissions staff definitly is interested in improving the interviewing experience for candidates. The admissions lady admitted to us that she was giving extra time for questions because someone on studentdoctor.net said she didn't give enough time. Perhaps they could extend the tour time in the future because some people in our group missed part of the tour so they could get to their afternoon interviews on time. "
"Overall, it was very laid back and conversational. The interview was somewhat difficult for me because I was suffering from jet lag when I went."
"It was very relaxing and there was little pressure. The first interviewer went on for an hour instead of 30min, very conversational and freeflowing interview"
"The experience overall was okay. I did not expect to love the students as much as I did. However, the information session seemed a bit perfunctory; they asked if we (the whole group) had any questions but literally didn't pause to let us ask anything. My interviewers were strange. They were more interested in talking themselves--which is fine except I'm not sure how they plan to evaluate whether I am a good match for the school--and seemed uncomfortable."
"The interviews were laid back and conversational. My second interviewer mostly just sold the school to me."
"Great experience. For afternoon interviewees: lunch/presentation, followed by student led tour; and interviews. Everyone felt happy to be there and proud of UMass accomplishments. "
"Overall it was a good experience. The interviews felt very relaxed and I was more impressed with UMass than I thought I would be."
"Great experience overall! Lunch was good and they even paid for parking. I was quite nervous going into the day, but both my interviewers really helped me to feel relaxed."
"My interviews were great. I talked a lot about my undergrad and my thesis I'm currently writing, as well as my volunteer work as an EMT. We also talked about collaboration between med-students, and what field I wanted to go into. Very relaxed, nothing to worry about. Towards the end of the interviews, it seemed as if they were trying to sell the school to me, and told me why they were so happy there."
"The faculty interviewer kept closing his eyes and didn't seem to be listening to me. At other times he was very attentive and condescending, didn't know what was going on there. The student interviewer was much more laid back and nice, she asked normal questions and wasn't confrontational at all."
"The interviews were very laid-back and comfortable. One was with a faculty member of the grad school and one was with a second year student/adcom member."
"very conversational, pleasent experience. I enjoyed myself a lot."
"Very good overall. Low key, interviewers were great and made it not-stressful."
"Great experience in all. Interviews were both mostly conversational, with some standard questions mixed in, but nothing to tough and certainly nothing to stress about. Just do the standard prep and you'll be fine at UMass."
"I really enjoyed it. It was a great school to have a first interview at, and I wasn't nervous at all. I'm really hoping I get in!"
"Three of us arrived for morning interviews, and were joined after our interviews by 12 more who came for afternoon interviews. We had lunch, a presentation by two 1st-years, and a brief tour. There is usually a presentation by the dean or director of admissions, but they were out of town at a conference. I was out of there by 1:15."
"Basically, this was my first med school interview ever, so I was extrememly nervous and wanted to be prepared but did not want to appear to be memorizing a script. My first interviewer I really couldn't gauge. I almost felt like I wasted time talking about stupid stuff and not really about the strengths of my application. My second interviewer was great though. He really just sat and listened and it was a great genuine, free-flowing conversation. I love this school, maybe because I am a UMass alum but the people and facilities are amazing."
"very laid back, casual conversations, mostly about whatever I wanted to talk about with some prodding by the interviewers for more info on certain parts of my application."
"Showed up early, talked to students. Orientation w/ dean and 2 MS2. Italian lunch. 2 interviews. 1st guy v busy doc, left interview (x4). Gracious, offered more time if needed. ? how I did. 2nd interviewer, researcher. seemed like it went well."
"I had a great day. The students, faculty, and staff were all incredibly nice and friendly....everyone tried to emphasize not to be to stressed or worried about the interviews. The other interviewees also seemed like people I'd want to go to school with (something *certainly* not true at other interviews I've had). One of my interviews was "
"School was great, interviewers not so much. First interviewer acted like she didn't believe any of my answers. Second one in a rush."
"Overall, the best by far. I think the school did such a great job of pairing me with interviewers who were in fields that I would like to explore. I was impressed at how well they knew my application. One interviewer is on the adcom, so his questions were focused on Why medicine and the like. He tried to clarify some parts of my application, but it flowed, and there weren't any awkward moments. The second interview was bit more relaxed, tried to get to know me as a person. "
"All in all it was a good experience. Every person there (except interviewees!) was easy going & friendly."
"Overall the experience was pleasant. Faculty, students, and staff were all extremely friendly and my interviews were more like open conversations than critiques. I feel like UMass has the best value and noncompetitive atmosphere for state residents and there is a plethora of opportunity for students to experience culture and volunteer work."
"The interview was very low key, there were about 6 people in the first round of interviews (starting at 10am) and about 5 for the later interviews. Pesronally I liked having the interviews first thing in the day so I could enjoy the tour and the lunch more, I dont think I would have eaten anything if I still had to interview. The open file interview was more of a conversation than an interview. He would comment on something on my file and then ask about it, but it was very low key and low stress. The closed file interview was more stressful for me."
"The interviews were fine but the tour and orientation were mediocre. The person who led the orientation read a power point slide and the tour failed to impress me. We visited one lecture room, the anatomy museum (no labs), the library, and the research building. "
"the facilities are nice and the students very upbeat and happy, however my interviewers were very disconnected from the school and students which made it difficult to ask them questions"
"Pretty standard. Low stress. Lunch was very good -- not just cold sandwitches. I hope that the disinterest of my 2nd interviewer does not detract form my review."
"Interviews began a little late and ran long, hopefully because they were interested in me. But they were very enjoyable, we had some great conversations, and they almost seemed over too quickly. They didn't go too deeply into my application, because they both were intrigued by my response to a short essay question and we spent at least half the time of each interview on topics related to that question."
"I liked the school a lot but don't want to be in Worcester with 100% MA residents."
"Overall, I had a great experience at Umass. It's my first choice and I hope that I get in :). The people are so happy, friendly and warm. Students are very cooperative with one another and do not compete with one another (it's actually highly discouraged by the faculty)."
"Great first interview. Looked lost in hallways, and students came up to me, introduced themselves and helped me to where I needed to be. Umass is a great place where I could certainly see myself"
"This was my first one and I found the interviewers easy going. No big questions to solve the health care system or any ethical questions. Just have an idea of what you have learned in each experience and how that will help you in medical school"
"overall positive except they didn't give much idea of when we'd hear back"
"a great interview experience! although the time allotted was not suppose to surpass 30 minutes, we spent 45 minutes discussing not only myself, but their lives as well."
"Overall it was a somewhat positive and low stress day. Of 6 interviews, only 3 were difficult. Everyone was super-nice and there seems to be a very collaborative environment built around the whole institution. Bring your walking shoes, cause you'll be trekking all over the campus, which was fun in the Worcester winter weather. Don't pass up this gem of a school because it's not in Boston. If you have any doubts about Worcester, it's a great city to live in on the med student's budget. Some of the Mud Phuds even bought houses with their cushy $24k stipends. "
"This was my first interview so I was nervous. The day was long...everyone was very hungry by the end. I didn't know I would have 1 off campus interview, but it was only a few minutes down the road. This is an awesome school though. "
"Overall I was very impressed with the school and its students. I felt like there was a great learning environment and everybody helped me to feel at ease. Both of my interviewers were friendly and easy to talk to. The interviews were more like conversations and flew by. There was ample time to ask questions and get information. Tour could have been better but this is definitely my first choice school."
"The whole day was really low-stress and enjoyable."
"It was a really good day -- met with a lot of faculty and most of them were real friendly and just wanted to answer questions. The only really tough interview was with the director of the MD/PhD program who went through my application with a fine-tooth comb: asked questions about every little thing in my application and things I said. "
"First interviewer, a PhD biochemist, wasn't prepared (the original interviewer was sick) bc he found out he was interviewing me moments before. The second interviewer, a PhD psychologist, ran 20 minutes over but was really friendly. After asking some specific questions about my application, she stuck to a list of questions on some form. Really nice people though. "
"As these were open file interviews, the interviewers asked about my file and for me to go more in depth in certain areas. Almost every question was in reference to my application. "
"UMass is an awesome school and I had a great day. The interview group of applicants was smaller compared to other schools with only 8-10 people. Everyone tried their best to put me at ease, including my two interviewers."
"The interview is supposed to be open file but neither of my 2 interviewers were familiar with my file and had overlooked crucial aspects of my application. They asked me why I received poor grades in classes that I had received A's in. It was just confusing and strange. They were both struggling to read my file and interview at the same time and it just came out messy. Neither knew much about the school. The whole day dragged on with a boring tour of ancient facilities. "
" The day either starts or ends with two interviews depending on whether you are a morning interviewee or afternoon interviewee. Between the morning group and afternoon groups sets of interviews, there are two presentations for all interviewees over a light lunch in the late morning (one by admissions/faculty and one by students) followed by a very short tour by students. The interviews are scheduled for about 30 to 40 minutes. They are relaxed/informal like everyone else says, but it is hard not to be somewhat nervous before you get through your interviews. It is a nice place with nice people. Enjoy the interview process and try to get as much as you can out of it. Ask questions whenever you want throughout the day. The experience was definitely a positive one."
"Great school, great price. Worcester is not so bad; they have made a lot of improvments in the area. The interviewers made me feel comfortable and not so stressed. They mostly wanted to know about my military experience in the Navy."
"Extremely stress free environment and overall a good experience. It's more conversational than than any interview I've ever had."
"I'm quite familiar with the school -- I worked on and off in a lab there from junior year in high school to the summer before senior year of college, and I've also volunteered in the hospital. I've seen the facilities improve a great deal in that time, and it seems like they're investing a lot more money for the future. I don't there's anything to complain about on that front. The students I know who went/go there all loved it and are doing very well. The tuition is low and living expenses are not like the Boston area. Despite what people think, there's plenty to do in Worcester, not that you'll have a whole lot of time to party. In short, there's not much to complain about. Unless you're not a resident of Massachusetts. ;) My first interviewer was a bit tough to read, but my second interview went much better. Going off campus isn't such a big deal unless it's really cold that day."
"Fantastic. UMass seems to keep their students' happiness at the top of their priority list. They didn't need to brag about their program or cost (which speak for themselves). Instead, they focused on the opportunities you can make for yourself at their school."
"very low stress, seemed to want to get to know me, one interviewer discussed her research quite a bit."
"Had a great time. The interviewers seemed genuinly interested to get to know me. Made every effort to keep a relaxed atmosphere."
"Friendly people in an encouraging atmosphere. Conversational interviews (a few standard questions tossed in but nothing too provocative)."
"Both of my interviewers were doctors, and mostly seemed to want to know more about me. My first interview was very conversational, we mostly just talked about big things in my application, e.g. the volunteer experience in my essay, my research, one other anonymous EC that would give me away instantly. My second one was more like an interview, with the doctor asking a few tougher questions that weren't just variations on "Tell me about yourself." The second one seemed more formal than the first, but neither one was very intense."
"Both of my interviewers were friendly and relaxed. We basically just spoke about my application and my experiences. "
"this was my first interview so naturally i was really nervous...but shouldn't have been! the interviews were basically just conversations. there were no tough questions, the interviewers just wanted to get to know you a bit i think. definately a low stress day. Also, the students seemed genuinely happy and friendly...i came into the day not thrilled about UMASS and left with a completely different feeling. the faculty/staff/students all seemed wonderful and they definitely sold me on the school!"
"I had higher expectations regarding the school. The weather was awful, which contributed to the bleak atmosphere."
"It was a relaxed conversational experience. One of my interviewers actually had to send me away because he had a meeting to go to, but they grabbed someone else and it was fine. My second interviewer was great, she had really read my file and had interesting thoughtful questions."
"Overall very good. We will see."
"I was pleasantly surprised with the school. I already thought it was a good school, but the interview day increased that feeling. Everyone seems very committed to UMass having the greatest positive effect possible in local healthcare and beyond. Friendly atmosphere."
"Fine day. I was in the afternoon interview group. There were only 7 of us total. My secodn itnerview was a piece of cake. He asked simple things from my application and I think he was more nervous than me. On the tour definitely ask to see the Anatomy Museum. It is an amazing collection of specimens that would definitely provide a key learning source."
"I llked the school before I visited, and positively LOVE it now. Too bad it's so hard to get in. One question that had concerned me before I visited UMass was that the School would be adversely affected by the Commonwealth's fiscal woes. But it seems that the med school has good friends on Beacon Hill that keep the cash pipeline flowing. Also, the research dollars UMass has been awarded from other sources has grown in the last few years by tens of millions of dollars. GO HERE if you get in. You'll never regret your decision."
"This was a great experience & I would love to attend this school."
"I did not know that this website exsitsted before my ineterview. Perhaps I would have been less nervous had I read some of this feedback before my interview. I would reccomend UMass to anyone applying to medical school. It is a great school."
"The school is amazing and definitely my top choice. But the interview left me feeling very uneasy about the day and uncomfortable with the schools decision on how to evaluate students."
"the day was very pleasant. everyone was very very nice. my interviewers were pretty removed from the main medicine and/or admissions world, which was a little strange."
"Loved UMass!"
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| Student | 121 |
| Faculty member | 1 |
| Admissions staff | 0 |
| Other | 0 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| Enthusiastic | 79 |
| Neutral | 3 |
| Discouraging | 0 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 7.86 | 80 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| In state | 76 |
| Out of state | 2 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 0-1 hour | 55 |
| 2-3 hours | 18 |
| 4-6 hours | 7 |
| 7+ hours | 1 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| Airplane | 8 |
| Automobile | 67 |
| Train or subway | 6 |
| Other | 0 |
N/A
PROV
BOS
PVD
ALB
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| At school facility | 0 |
| With students at the school | 1 |
| Friends or family | 23 |
| Hotel | 6 |
| Home | 5 |
| Other | 0 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| < $100 | 53 |
| $101-$200 | 8 |
| $201-$300 | 3 |
| $301-$400 | 1 |
| $401-$500 | 0 |
| $501+ | 1 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 8.17 | 81 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 5.68 | 84 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 5.74 | 84 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 7.78 | 40 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 8.98 | 41 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 6.13 | 39 |
"Please provide recycling bins for our MMI notes/materials? I felt sad seeing all that paper thrown away"
"would be great to be more in-the-loop regarding where my app is in the process"
"There must be a better way to hand out acceptances instead of waiting until may"
"Maybe describe what the interview day will be like prior to the interview so we know what to expect and can prepare better"
"For the afternoon interviews, the day was too crammed and the presentations felt rushed through."
"Organization is key! My interview invite email said to arrive at 11am for a 2pm interview. So I ar"
"No complaints thus far. All my questions have been answered promptly and cordially."
"Organize schedules better so there's no weird downtime or sudden changes."
"I enjoyed the tour of the facilities greatly. The admissions office presentations, particularly on"
"No suggestions, I had a great experience!"
"They do a great job and actively elicit feedback."
We help students become doctors. TM
What is one of the specific questions they asked you (question 1)?