Asking for Advice after first interview and rejection

[jmdavis1389]

I applied to a newly developed local program that will have it's first cohort begin classes Fall 2016. I completed my undergrad in 2012 with a BS in Biological Sciences and a sGPA of 3.2. Since graduation, I have amassed close to 4000 hours of HCE working as an ED medical scribe and later as a behavioral health tech at a local psychiatric hospital. During my time as a scribe, I also acted as in a supervisory role for 20+ other scribes who comprised the staff for the company's contract. In the semester before applying, I enrolled to retake organic chemistry since I fared poorly when I took the course during undergrad. I do have a reckless driving charge visible on my criminal record that occurred 2 years ago, which has been dismissed; no traffic violations or anything of that nature since this incident, and I've completed a defensive driving course since that time.

 

During my interview, I was interviewed by a young female PA that would be heavily involved with the program's clincical education as well as the course instruction. She was impressed with my clinical experience, especially regarding the work with psychiatric patients, and mentioned that my gpa was in the range they were seeking for prospective applicants. We spoke a bit about my record,which didn't seem to alter her opinion because she believed it to be an isolated incident given my efforts to improve myself and turn that obstacle into a tool to help others. I felt that this interview went particularly well because we spoke for far longer than the allotted interview time at her discretion.

My second interview was with the medical director. His questions during the process were much more personal/work related, and I felt I could use improvement and practice when it comes to discussing my experiences in healthcare, and how they have influenced me up to this point.

 

I would welcome any advice on how to go about improving myself and/or my approach to the application process and interviewing.

 

My plan at current is to contact the Dean and other staff who provided their information, and ask about setting up a meeting to discuss suggestions on how to could improve for the upcoming cycle.

Also, if anyone believes they would like to read my personal statement for critiquing purposes, I would be glad to share it through messaging.

 

Thank you for your help and welcomed advice.

[RuralER/Ortho]

Sorry to hear you were not accepted. Your plan to meet with someone from the school to evaluate your weaknesses is a good one.

 

A couple other thoughts:

-why/how did your driving issue come up?

- any chance you could get more hands on experience? What certification did you use for your behavioral health tech? Could this be used to be an ER tech for example? Typically scribing is not considered healthcare experience.

 

Best of luck!

[MT2PA]

Personally I think you may have several factors working against you in this one incidence.  You know about your driving issue and how your interviews went.  

 

My first instinct though, is that developing programs tend to rely heavily on the grades of applicants when accepting.  I have no evidence for this, so others may have different opinions, but new programs are under a lot of pressure to have impressive academics and great PANCE rates and identifying applicants that have strong academic backgrounds is favorable.

 

You got the interview, so your PS must not be terrible.  Next time I think you just need to apply wisely - confirm that programs accept scribe as HCE and identify programs where your GPA matches that of matriculating students.

[UGoLong]

If your driving record and all the other stuff was in your application and you still got an interview, that is a good sign. All of the purpose of the paperwork is to get to the interview, at which point you have as much of a chance as anyone else asked to come in.

 

Rather than fixate on stuff you can't change (and appears not to be a showstopper anyway), I would focus in on your interview performance. You certainly don't want to sound canned, but I think you need to be ready for some key questions. A little rehearsal is in order, but don't overdo it. Just decide what the key points you would like to get across for key questions you might expect.

 

Many applicants are very tense in interviews and it gets in their way. Best not to think that every interview is a match point on the journey of life. Learn and move on.

 

Good luck!