How many people interviewed you?
| Response Average | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 2.14 | 29 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| Positively | 18 |
| Negatively | 4 |
| No change | 7 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 5.69 | 29 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 7.00 | 13 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 8.85 | 13 |
No responses
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 5 minutes | 0 |
| 10 minutes | 0 |
| 15 minutes | 0 |
| 20 minutes | 0 |
| 25 minutes | 0 |
| 30 minutes | 1 |
| 35 minutes | 3 |
| 40 minutes | 6 |
| 45 minutes | 10 |
| 50 minutes | 7 |
| 55 minutes | 0 |
| 60+ minutes | 2 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| At the school | 26 |
| At a regional location | 1 |
| At another location | 0 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| One-on-one | 15 |
| In a group | 13 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| Open file | 26 |
| Closed file | 2 |
| Response Average | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 2.14 | 29 |
"As mentioned by others, a lot of the questions are tailored towards your sketch and/or essay. A general question, though, was what is your most proud accomplishment?"
"Most tailored to application. Some questions to clarify things in my essay."
"question about ethics (what would you do in a hypothetical situation) - but very straightforward"
"Cannot disclose. Wouldn't help anyway because they were mostly tailored to my file. Know your application well."
"Sketch"
"Somebody else had this one: a situation was set up where there was a husband and a wife, who are both of your patients, and you get results from a test, which tell you that the husbad has and STD which he has told you is from an affair he has had. He doesn't want his wife to know of the STD. What do you do?"
"What role do you see clinical trials playing in your research?"
"Your essay includes a number of quotations. Do you take any literature courses?"
"--tell me about yourself --stuff from my sketch"
"Who was my role model?"
"Tell us about yourself. "
"Why are all the female applicants wearing black suits? Why did you choose to wear a colourful scarf?"
"WHat is wrong with the health care system in Canada today and what would you do to fix it as the minister of health?"
"Do you mind if we tape this? Tell us about yourself. Tell us about your research. Who is one of your mentors and why."
"What is your favourite food?"
"Tell me about yourself"
"They asked about euthanasia in pets and in people."
"tell me about your travels."
"Give an example of a failure in your life."
"3 strengths/3 weaknesses.. haven't talked with other med students, seems a lot of people get asked about strengths and weaknesses"
"question about my extracurricular activities"
"Ethics"
"What is your opinion of evidence-based medicine?"
"If you had to choose between medical school and graduate school, which would you choose?"
"From your time spent teaching and tutoring, how did you deal with problematic situations with your students?"
"--talk about the human genome project --is U of T your 1st choice"
"What was my favourite book?"
"How do you reconcile your very broad range of interests with a career in medicine. "
"What unique contribution can you make to medicine? Why not law, or social work? What would be your greatest gift to your child, if you were to have one? "
"WHat makes you think that you are the right candidate for medicine?"
"What is one thing in your life that you are most proud of? Why medicine? Tell us about how you envision your career in the future. What are your hobbies?"
"Tell me about the last book you read."
"How did you contribute to groups with respect to problem-solving"
"They asked what my role was in various clubs that I was in, both in high school and in university."
"how will your backround in public health influence you in the future?"
"What are your weaknesses?"
"how did you learn to manage your time?"
"what questions I had for them"
"More Sketch"
"Explain the rules of (a certain sport) to me."
"Which professors (especially in this faculty) have influenced you to pursue medical research in this faculty? (i.e. who are your role models?)"
"Are you active on any athletic teams?"
"--what is your backup plan --what if you caught someone cheating"
"If I wasn't applying to medical school, what would I have stressed more on my application."
"You are in your surgical clerckship. A patient expresses (in writing) his wish that his surgery be performed only by the certified surgeon (no residents). In the surgical room preparing for the operation (patient is under), the surgeon walks in and says that he talked with the patient and it's ok for the resident to do the work. The resident operates, and at the end, the surgeon asks you to suture the patient. What do you do? After the patient wakes up, you are in his room and he asks you "did doctor X do the operation all by himself, like I asked?" What do you tell the patient? Now answer those questions again assuming that doctor X (the surgeon) is the physician evaluating you for this clerkship. "
"What are some flaws in the Canadian health care system? Do you think we should adopt an American-style system? How can we recruit physicians to rural areas? Should we reserve some spots in med school for applicants from rural areas? "
"If I were to give you the final exam before the exam to study from would you take it knowing that you are failing the course and need to pass?"
"How do you deal with stress? Compare the American and Canadian healthcare systems. Tell us about a recent Canadian healthcare policy you have been following in the news. What is one of your weaknesses? Describe yourself in one word. Describe one past experience where you faced an ethical dilemma and how you dealt with it. How do you deal with conflict, give an example. How will you contribute to the program? Do you consider yourself to be competitive? Do you have any questions for us? Do you have anything else you would like to tell us?"
"What specialty are you interested in?"
"What will you contribute to UofT"
"If you could pick your future med school classmates, what characteristics would they have?"
"What are your hobbies?"
"What would you do if you saw a classmate cheating?"
"who is your hero?"
"Cannot disclose because of confidentiality agreement. All very much tailored to my own file."
"Cannot disclose. Know sketch extremely well, including extrapolations of all activities, examples."
"We're under a gag order from UofT. Suffice it to say that if you get the wrong interviewer, accept my most heartfelt sympathies..."
"How do you handle stress?"
"What led you to the labs you've worked in?"
"Your essay included the quote "beggaring description". Can you please explain it?"
"tell us a joke (thank you Dubya!!!)"
"Something about the post-genomic era and its challenges."
"If I thought the scientific data obtained from experiments conducted by the Nazi on humans should be used"
"How do you rationalize your concerns about animal rights with a professed interest in research (ie. animal testing)?"
"What is the greatest gift you could give to your child?"
"You're a handsome man, have you ever modelled?"
"What is one thing that someone who doesn't like you would say about you?"
"Is it possible for a general practitioner running a small neighbourhood practice to have access to up-to-date medical technologies?"
"what do I think about carrying out AIDS vaccine trials in Africa"
""What's one thing you would change about yourself?" Followed by: "What's one thng you would change about the world?" There weren't really a lot of unusual questions, it was all pretty standard stuff I was expecting and had more or less prepared for. No surprises."
"You mention that you remember a lot of facts. Can you teach me something?"
"tell me about your experience skiiing and dealing with reckless snowboarders."
"If your house was on fire and all your family members were safe, what 3 things would you take with you?"
"How do you think research will help you be a good doctor and vice versa?"
"very straight forward interview, nothing TOO difficult.. one question asked about how my best friend would describe me."
"nothing particularly difficult"
"-"
"How will you deal with being around unhealthy people all the time?"
"If all your interests lie in research, why do you want to study medicine as well?"
"Describe a typical day in your life. (this was actually hard for me)"
"what is the difference b/w a job and a profession (apparently there is a formal definition)"
"All were ok."
"What was my special talent? the wording really threw me off"
"You have applied for a grant to do medical work in africa to combat AIDS. You receieve the grant of $5000 and are about to leave. What are your concerns and how will you spend the money? "
"The interviewers set up a scenario in which I had to inform a patient (one of the interviewers) that he was terminally ill with colon cancer and that the only option was palliative care."
"If I were to give you the final exam before the exam to study from would you take it knowing that you are failing the course and need to pass?"
"Compare and contrast the medicare system in the States vs. Canada. Also, what would a person who doesn't like you say about you."
"An ethical question on blood products and the wish of a young Jehovah's Witness not to receive them."
"none"
"I work as an RA and got positively grilled on my research for the first 10 minutes. To make sure I'm not just a test tube washer I guess. Lots of questions about the goal of the project and what it hopes to show and what that will mean in the long run, etc."
"How do you think the large number of women in medicine nowadays affects the workforce in general?"
"How do you feel about Abortion? "
"Practiced with med students/doctors."
"Re-read my OMSAS app. Used the interview feedback here."
"I didn't prepare much...just read my file and did some thinking about how I would answer some standard interview questions"
"Looked over my application, read health news, learned about canadian HC system, read bioethics book ''Doing Right'', mock interviews, previous interviews"
"Attempted practice interviews with friends, which were nothing like the real thing."
"I looked over my application, thought about my motivations to study medicine, and read up about Toronto's med school."
"Looked over my sketch and asked myself questions about it. The interview was very tailored that way. "
"I bettered myself as a human being, SDN, reading on medical practice, healthcare, CanMEDS 2000, medical ethics reading, Hastings Institute site on health policy, PBS site on financial crises of medical systems in North America"
"Read ethics books, mock interview, practice questions (especially those about ethics), read about Canadian and American health care systems, and read the paper"
"I read over the school's history (online), made sure to know my research projects in detail, and read a number of papers to familiarize myself with recent work in medical science."
"I read over posted interviews (on this site), read over the school's history, and reviewed my personal essay."
"--current events --2 mocks --ethics web site --reread essay + bios --mock quest."
"Read up on ethics - although my interview was not heavy on ethics - and read over my essay and sketch."
"kept up on current events, read an ethics book, reviewed my application."
"Read interview feedback. Read online about the canadian medical system and ethical issues (euthanasia, abortion, jehovah's witnesses' blood). Reviewed my essay and my research. "
"I read up on Canadian health care policy and bioethics, did a mock interview, and challenged my own motivations for pursuing medicine. "
"Read this website, studied a book on ethics, and mock interviews."
"First and foremost, reread your essays and really think about what drives you, what motivates you and how life experiences have affected you and your career goals. I also read the newspaper for several weeks before the interview and brushed up on knowledge about the Canadian and American medicare systems and Canadian healthcare policies highlighted in the news recently. I did mock interviews with friends and talked to the other candidates before the interview to ease my nerves."
"Researched the school's mission and curriculum. Re-read autobiographical essay and sketch. Deep introspection and reflection. Kept up with the news and current events."
"this site, current news,practice interviews, alot of introspection"
"Ian Wong's site, this site, U of T's advice page, did practice questions with a friend and read my essay and autobio sketch."
"Read newpapers, did a mock interview, browsed internet forums."
"reading newspaper, talking to med students, mock intervews, thinking and relaxing!"
"Read over essay, UT website, mock interview."
"Read the newspapers, re-read my essay and relaxed"
"I'm from the area and I went to UofT and I already love it so nothing really affected me positively or negatively."
"Very friendly, laid-back interview."
"UofT is the only medical school in Canada where students do their own dissections in anatomy lab (the dissections are only optional at other schools). This is definitely a positive for me, because I learn better by going through the process myself."
"The interviews were very relaxed and interviewers were friendly and seemed genuinely interested in finding out who I am. I had fun! I like how the interviewers hung around to have lunch with us. The lunch was the yummiest out of all of my interviews."
"The curriculum and facilities"
"The interviewers seemed genuinely interested in getting to know me as a person. The interview style was very conversational and very warm. The information about the program impressed me more than I expected."
"very laid back, relaxing"
"The place we interviewed at was nice, but as seen on the tour, the rest of the facilities were less nice."
"In spite of living an hour away from campus, an early Sunday morning drive only took 45 mins."
"Everyone was very approachable and willing to answer questions"
"The faculty and students were very friendly and social, and the interviews were held much earlier than usual medical school interviews, so they did not interfere with assignments and/or exams."
"The medical students and faculty members were not condescending; rather, they were very kind and approachable."
"--how laid back U of T is (don't buy the rumors)"
"The friendliness of the interviewers and the fact that they had thoroughly looked through my essay and file. "
"The students were very friendly"
"The interviewers seemed very interested in me personally. They asked questions (aside from the scenario ones and a couple standards) that demonstrated they had carefully reviewed my application. "
"The surgical skills centre at Mount Sinai hospital. It's a fantastic, world class facility!"
"The guy told me that I'd probably get in but he can't say it on the record. He said that I have nothing to worry about come June when they send out acceptances and that I would make an excellent physician."
"The interview was laid back. I was given plenty of time to respond and express myself. Time was of no factor."
"Friendliness of the medical students. Friendliness of fellow applicants. Free lunch. Low-stress interview."
"It was so relaxed and laid back, they really tried to get to know my life experiences and my views. Very comfortable, they weren't intimidating just being themselves."
"SARS meant a lot of stuff got cancelled, so I pretty much just showed up for the interview. I went to U of T for undergrad and live in T.O. so I know the campus, med building and admin, and city pretty well already."
"The students seemed really happy, and they had the whole day set up for us."
"the interviewers made me feel so comfortable and the med students were on hand to answer questions"
"Proximity of several first-class hospitals, friendly med students, well-organized interview day."
"The whole organization of the day was fantastic, student presentations, lunch and students on hand to help ease the anxiety."
"Tour was poorly organized and short."
"First year classes run 9-5 on some days. Also, it gets cold in Toronto in the winter."
"There were not many students around to talk to."
"Students were poorly organized. Relatively few showed up (interview was a sunday at 7am which might explain it). I go to this school for undergrad and could have given a much better tour than the guide."
"There were not very many students around to talk to (apparently they had exams the next day). It would have been nice to hear about their different experiences/perspectives."
"UofT medicine has so many students, there didn't seem to be much friendship between everybody. Students at other med schools seemed more friendly with each other."
"the 10 minutes before i went in for my interview...very nerve wracking"
"The interviewers were purposely confrontational to gage my reaction to stressful events (i guess!). "
"Awful interviewers. Student leaders of the interview proceedings were foul-mouthed and a little too insouciant about our life-altering interview day. Also, I've seen nicer facilities at almost every school I visited."
"The tour didn't really give a good sense of the school environment"
"The MD/PhD interviews did not include a tour of the facilities and hospitals."
"As I already attend the school as an undergraduate, none of the negatives still bother me."
"--the tours were rushed"
"Nothing. "
"The information session went from 8:15 am to 8:55 am. My interview was at 9:00am, and the students didn't really know where the rooms were. I ended up being very flustered, and didn't really get it together for the interview. My suggestion...if you have a 9:00am interview, skip the session. We were kinda herded into the room, but avoid it if you can."
"Many interesting areas of the medical school were temporarily closed, and first-year students were in the middle of a test, so we didn't see any of them. First year, they have classes 9-5. Tuition is very high for a canadian school, $18,000 for residents (I think) and $30,000 for americans/international. In US dollars, those numbers are about 14,000 and 23,000, respectively. "
"I had to register at 11:00 a.m., but my interview was scheduled for 4:00 p.m. By the time the 5 hours had passed, I just wanted the interview to be over with."
"The building is old and doesn't look very appealing."
"The interviewers were extremely stiff and formal. They gave no feedback to my responses and did not follow up on anything that I said. Their questions were so standard and expected, that I was really hoping for a challenging and interesting question that involved some semblance of creativity. The interview did not flow as well as I would have liked it to."
"The medical student lounge and overall 'old' feel of the facilities."
"It's unfortunate because of the SARS situation that we didn't get the whole tour/lunch "interview day" stuff. But I attend UofT, so it wasn't that big of a deal for me."
"Reminded just how much U of T admin bugs me... Applicants get treated poorly (ie, not finding out status of application until way late), and the whole weekend was in disarray thanks to SARS. An email sent THE NIGHT BEFORE my interview told me to come at 2 instead of 11, and more chaos almost cancelled my whole interview altogether. SARS aside, I think U of T's size and big university mentality leads to a lot of admin bullshit. I know a lot of other students feel the same way..."
"The only thing we really saw on the tour was the anatomy museum."
"nothing"
"The Medical Sciences Building had a strange numbering system for the rooms (so make sure you find your interview room ahead of time!); the lecture halls also seem a little old/run-down. Another negative aspect was the high cost of living downtown. "
"The waiting for the interview. "
"I wish I had prepared in more detail. Once we were granted interviews, the admissions lady told is no way of really preparing, just be yourself.. I more or less did that, except I reviewed my essay and sketch and did a few mocks, but I never memorized anything and I found myself rambling sometimes because I didn't have a coherent sentence to articulate.."
"No need to be stressed!"
"Relax. Think a little about the question before you respond. Don't be nervous, just enjoy it."
"That my interviewers would be adversarial the whole way through."
"Knowing the faculty interviewing you ahead of time would let you read over their papers, which might impress them more during the interview."
"I made no great discoveries the day of the interview."
"--how the interviews are like conversations and they aren't out to get you...only to get to know if you are a "good" person"
"There was no water in the room! I should have taken one last mega-gulp of water before stepping in."
"I had heard that TO interviews were very laid back and friendly. Mine wasn't at all! The interviewers were stone faced and very unreceptive to me."
"How friendly everyone would be. I had gotten the impression that the interviews would be harsh and the students more competitive. The interview was certainly challenging, but the interviewers were very personable. Also, UofT does a lot of research and gets a lot of money. They have far more research money than any other school in Canada, and the school puts out the second largest number of publications in North America, after Harvard. "
"I wish I had known my interview was scheduled for 4:00 p.m.1"
"Nothing really. I read up about the program on the website. One fun fact that I learned during the information session: U of T is second to Harvard in the number of research publications it puts out, which is impressive. The school is really research oriented and perfect for someone who wishes to combine the rote memory work of a physician with the investigative and curious nature of a clinical scientist."
"Nothing really. Already know the place pretty well."
"N/A"
"that it would be so casual an atmosphere"
"nothing."
"Just remember, the interview is worth only 20%, so if you have a high GPA, just don't say anything that'll get you flagged and you'll be fine."
"I'm not supposed to disclose the specific questions (due to the confidentiality agreement), but the interview was really conversational and not stressful. I've heard otherwise from people who interviewed in previous years, so I was a bit apprehensive at first, but the questions were quite straightforward and there wasn't really anything tricky. The faculty member who interviewed me was actually the author of a medical ethics book (I only found out just before my interview), so I did get a few ethics questions, but they were straightforward. Just remember to put the needs of the patient first and you'll do fine!"
"Arrived and recieved interview time and names of interviewers, presentation by students/faculty and then had an interview! Lunch and tours of the medical campus followed."
"Stressful when it shouldn't have been. "
"Not too bad. Asked a lot of questions from my essay and sketch. Definitely know what you said, and be able to expand on your items."
"Overall the day was okay, other interviewees were extremely tense and everybody was very uptight and didn't seem to be having a good time (at least before their interviews), the interview itself was more stressful necessary, the students were nice"
"Bad."
"I got lucky and all of my questions pertained to my experiences/strengths/weaknesses, etc. People were friendly and I made them laugh, so that's all that matters to me."
"The interview was friendly, although less relaxed than the MD interviews. The questions revolved around research, both current experiences and future expectations. The 5-person panel was larger than typical MD interviews as well. Overall, though, there's no reason to feel nervous."
"The interview was relaxed, with the student and professor being very friendly and joking. After the first few questions, I stopped feeling nervous, and the rest of the ~40 minutes passed very quickly."
"--the interviewers only had one purpose...to get to know me"
"I loved it. Really cozy coffee-table feel conversation. Not confrontational at all and not scary if you prepare well."
"Not an overly positive one. I didn't think it was well organized, and the attitude of interviewers soured me against UoT."
"They day was very nice. Let the admissions officer, Leslie Taylor, know if you have any dietary restrictions. They were very accomodating. Interestingly, most (but not all) of the other interviewees were either undergraduates or graduates already at UofT. "
"Overall, it was a pleasant experience. Both inteviewers were very responsive to my answers, and seemed to be engaged in the interview. "
"Went in for interview then tour."
"I would give the interview a 6 on a scale of 10. The interview was laid back in the sense that the interviewers were not out to stump me, but I felt like it was too scripted. The questions were so standard that I had already anticipated all my answers beforehand. I never had to think on my feet. They asked a lot about my research experience, and about my underlying motivations for wanting to pursue a career in medicine. The physician continually scanned her notes and the med student seemed a little nervous himself. Although the interview was structured, there was no room for any dynamic interaction. I only got the interviewers to crack a smile in the last 5 minutes of the interview."
"Overall, a really good experience. Was really impressed with the informal conversational feel of the interview. World-class faculty and hospitals."
"Comfortable, relaxed"
"Pretty decent overall. Interviewers were friendly but not laid back. Questions ran the gamut from sketch experiences, to standard "why med" questions, to introspective stuff (biggest diappointment, etc), to ethical questions, to more fun getting to know you questions (what tv shows do you watch?, etc). Felt like they made a good effort to get to know me. Plus no "tricks" or complicated questions. I got a fair shot, overall."
"Not bad, the student was really nice, but the physician seemed fairly disinterested, she didn't make much eye contact with me."
"Great experience...nice interviewers and very relaxed "confersation"..."
"U of T is definitely one of the top Canadian med schools and is probably worth the higher tuition. The interview day was not stressful and everyone there tried to make me feel comfortable. My interviewers were very friendly and we even shared a laugh. Overall, I had a pleasant experience and would love to attend U of T if possible. "
"Overall a great school with enthusiastic students. The interview was very relaxed and they mostly asked questions relating to my essay. Everyone was really friendly and welcoming. "
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| Student | 24 |
| Faculty member | 0 |
| Admissions staff | 1 |
| Other | 0 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| Enthusiastic | 7 |
| Neutral | 3 |
| Discouraging | 0 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 8.62 | 13 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| In state | 9 |
| Out of state | 2 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 0-1 hour | 7 |
| 2-3 hours | 0 |
| 4-6 hours | 1 |
| 7+ hours | 0 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| Airplane | 1 |
| Automobile | 3 |
| Train or subway | 7 |
| Other | 2 |
YYZ
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| At school facility | 0 |
| With students at the school | 0 |
| Friends or family | 1 |
| Hotel | 1 |
| Home | 0 |
| Other | 0 |
No responses
No responses
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| < $100 | 4 |
| $101-$200 | 0 |
| $201-$300 | 0 |
| $301-$400 | 0 |
| $401-$500 | 0 |
| $501+ | 1 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 8.69 | 13 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 9.69 | 13 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 9.08 | 13 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 8.00 | 3 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 7.33 | 3 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 5.67 | 3 |
We help students become doctors. TM
What is one of the specific questions they asked you (question 1)?