What is a medicine interview like?

What is a medicine interview like?

By Roberta

The interview, the final step between you and your medical school offer, liked by a few but feared by many. Before we dive any further into this topic, let me tell you the truth: it is not that bad. In fact, unlike other aspects of the medical application process, except maybe for the personal statement, it represents a great opportunity to show the medical school who you really are and your motivation to pursue medicine as a career. 

In the UK there are two types of medical school interview: 

•  (1) Panel
• (2) Multiple Mini Interviews (otherwise known as MMIs). 

In a panel interview, you are interviewed by two or more people which can include doctors, members of the university and even students! The questions in this type of interview are more focused on you and your experience with medicine, rather than being task-based. It normally tends to follow the flow of a conversation rather than being back-to-back questions, although that might depend on your interviewers. In a panel interview there is no exact time limit, but on average they last approximately 15-30 minutes. The questions you’ll get asked will vary by medical school and can differ from candidate to candidate, but some general tips can easily be found online on university portals and other medical school application forums. Some universities might change things up a little and forward you an article in advance to be discussed during your interview. Although the article will be different every year, it is normally about important topics in the medical field. As you go through this, it’s important to remember that your interviewers are not trying to trick you or test your knowledge on the topic, rather, they are more interested in hearing your opinion and seeing you reason your answers. Do not worry, during your panel interview you will have plenty of time to pause and think about your answers before you give them, unlike MMIs which tend to be more time pressured. 

MMIs are slightly different; as the name suggests, they consist of multiple, brief interviews which are taken as part of a circuit with different interviewers. This interview style is often popular because it helps interviewers assess multiple soft skills at once, thus potentially drawing a whole-rounded picture of every candidate. Nowadays, MMIs is the most common style of interview, whilst panel interview is regarded as the more ‘traditional’ one. Just like the latter, MMIs will vary by university, but some common stations include: 

• Role-plays
  • Eg. they are your friend and they asked you to look after their house whilst they were on holiday, unfortunately during this time you accidentally broke their mum’s precious vase and now you need to explain that to them.
• Situational judgement tests
  • Eg. Today you are on a ward round with Dr. X, a consultant, and everything is progressing smoothly until Dr. X becomes adamant you perform in his place a procedure you have never performed before, unsupervised, as he is in a rush to attend another meeting. You are not comfortable with the procedure, what should you do now?
• Giving instructions stations
  • Eg. Explain how to tie shoelaces, without using any hand gestures.
• Description stations
  • Eg. You will be given a picture of a landscape or a scene and you have to describe it without making assumptions.
•  Data interpretation stations

There is no better or worse interview style, there are pros and cons to each one and preferences tend to be subjective to one’s personal skills. The advantage that is often mentioned for MMIs is that if a mistake is made, it is always possible to start fresh with the next station. On the other hand, the time pressure in MMIs might make it an overall more stressful experience compared to the almost ‘laid back’ conversation of panel interviews. 

Nonetheless, no matter the interview you have to face always make sure you: 

Understand what skills make good doctors and know how to prove that you own them. 

• Practise giving concise but clear answers.
• Understand the key principles of medical ethics and how these apply to our country’s healthcare system.
• Know how to discuss, describe and reflect on your work experiences.
• Are up-to-date with what is happening in the healthcare world (eg. NHS Hot Topics). 

Finally, always keep an eye out for practice sessions which sometimes are even run for free and along the side of other medical students, like the ones organised by the Youth Mentorship Scheme and Centre of the Cell! Alternatively, ask your friends, family or school tutors to help you practice your interview skills as many times you can. No matter how confident you may feel, sometimes time pressure and uncertainty can get the best of us, so it is always good to have some practice to back you up. 

Hope you found this helpful, good luck!