How did the interview impress you?

Positively

What was the stress level of the interview?

3 out of 10

How long was the interview?

45 minutes

Where did the interview take place?

At the school

How many people interviewed you?

3

What was the style of the interview?

One-on-one

What type of interview was it?

Closed file

What is one of the specific questions they asked you (question 1)?

"Asked why I married my wife, i.e., what I liked about her. I could think of a million reasons, but somehow they didn't come to me in the middle of an interview." Report Response | I was asked this question too

What is one of the specific questions they asked you (question 2)?

""What prejudices do you carry with you about the south?" Racism is actually one of my big concerns about living in Louisiana, so I was glad he brought it up and we had a chance to discuss it." Report Response | I was asked this question too

What is one of the specific questions they asked you (question 3)?

""What's your handicap?" This question came right on the tail of a question about my strengths, so I almost started responding something about my weaknesses. I stuttered a little and then asked "I assume we're not talking about golf?" to which he responded, "of course we're talking about golf!" " Report Response | I was asked this question too

What was the most interesting question?

"They didn't really go out of their way to ask "interesting" questions. It was pretty relaxed, get-to-know-you kind of stuff. I guess the only exception I can think of was "what prejudices do you carry with you about the south?"" Report Response | I was asked this question too

What was the most difficult question?

""When did you decide to get married?" I started answering something about our joint decision, and she interrupted: "No, not when did 'WE' decide, I mean when did YOU decide?" I struggled with that one a little, and she shifted gears to ask me WHY I chose my wife, what I saw in her, why I thought we were so compatible. In retrospect, my answer was pretty lame and predictable, but I guess I was just caught off guard." Report Response | I was asked this question too

How did you prepare for the interview?

"Read Tulane's info in the MSAR, read their website, read feedback on StudentDoctor.net. Interestingly, one interviewer asked me how I prepared for my interview, and when I mentioned sd.net, he giggled, "yeah, we read that occasionally and laugh."" Report Response

What impressed you positively?

"Tulane is more of an academic power-house than I think most people consider. In my first interview, I was talking about why I want to go to Tulane instead of the other school that's accepted me already, Albany Medical College. AMC has virtually no research, and I was mentioning some research that interests me. When I mentioned optical sensor retinal implants, the interviewer stopped me to ask if I knew that that very research was being done right upstairs. (I didn't, but I was impressed.) Walking through the halls, one begins to realize just how much cool research is happening there. It's not Johns Hopkins, but Tulane definitely has lots of possibilities. I also really like the MD/MPH&TM option and their study-abroad programs. Another point that appealed to the geek in me: almost the entire medical school is wired for wireless internet! Since I already have a G4 powerbook, I guess my next tech purchase is going to be an AirPort card! Sweet!" Report Response

What impressed you negatively?

"Nobody goes to class, and students are very forthcoming about that, even proud of it. They seem to feel that they don't need to, and that Tulane has designed their curriculum such that students aren't required to be in class. I'm all for self-motivated learning, but I wonder if the school as a whole doesn't suffer decreased student quality as a result of allowing people to blow off class. I also agree with another poster's feedback (2/2/2003 2:24:15 AM), in that I found Dr. Pisano's "borrow all you want, $200,000+ in debt really isn't that big a deal" speech to be a little too cavalier. He made some good points, but I think that the school should be a little more concerned about keeping costs down." Report Response

What did you wish you had known ahead of time?

"Housing is much more of an issue than I had previously thought. It's possible to find cheap housing, and it's possible to live near the school, but the fact that the school is smack in the middle of downtown (i.e., not the cleanest/quietest/safest place in the world) makes it more difficult to imagine finding nice, comfortable, affordable housing. On the whole, though, I don't think that it's that significant. The embryology museum is awesome, but for God's sake don't go there if you're thinking about having kids any time soon! It's fascinating, but it's a total house of horrors! Many of the "monsters" in there (they are in fact so labelled) look like they're straight out of the National Enquirer or Ripley's Believe It Or Not." Report Response

What are your general comments?

"On the whole a relaxed experience. Questions were neither difficult nor interesting on the whole. It was really a get-to-know-you type interview. They really do NOT want to hear about your academics, which is difficult in a case like mine. (Especially when they ask "so, what's different about your application this time," as opposed to my application six years ago.) I was asked NO difficult, typical questions. The "why do you want to be a doctor" question came up, but that one's so easy that it doesn't count, especially with the kind of experience I have under my belt. There were no ethical questions, no "what would you do to change healthcare" questions, no confrontational questions (unless you count the one about my wife)." Report Response

Who was the tour given by?

Student

On what date did the interview take place?

01/30/2003