PM2016 Posted October 10, 2013 Share Posted October 10, 2013 Hey guys! Just wanted to share my interview experience at a particular school that I will not name lol. I am a family studies major and was basically CRUCIFIED and bullied by one of my interviews for being so. He literally could not move passed it and didn't even ask me questions that were relevant to PA school or being a PA. A word of advice to all you non science majors..be prepared to defend your major!!!!!! I left my interview crying..my feelings were very hurt he was rude and tried to make me feel stupid. He asked me things like so what's the divorce rate..how can we reduce it..etc etc. what in the world does any of that have to do with being a PA? Nothing. By the way I have 3.7 GPA..3.5 science GPA..great HCE. but I guarantee u I'll be rejected simply because he hates my major. On a brighter note I have been accepted elsewhere lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator rev ronin Posted October 10, 2013 Administrator Share Posted October 10, 2013 Some schools want to see how you react under pressure. Wasn't anything personal--they probably just do that to everyone. If it wasn't a major, it would be something else. I don't think much of such tactics in interviews. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nebaker Posted October 10, 2013 Share Posted October 10, 2013 Knowing the divorce rate and offering suggestions on what could be done to improve it may not have anything to do with PA school, but it does show them that you have digested the course material and that you are able to apply critical thinking towards it. Not saying the rudeness was necessary, but I can understand why they would want to see you answer questions of such nature. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaijyn Posted October 10, 2013 Share Posted October 10, 2013 While I was not there to say if the interviewer was intentionally being malicious in his line of questioning; a counter argument could be made that he was legitimately interested in your answers and the questions. Going to play devil's advocate here. You have to remember that we are all human and have curiosities that go along with that. Maybe the divorce issue is something that he is dealing with in his personal life. It may be that he had never met anyone who majored in that and felt that in order to determine your worthiness as a candidate and future PA he needed to learn more about you and why you chose that. Further, patient education is one area where the PA profession excels when compared to other providers. Often patients will express increased satisfaction that the PA "listened", "cared" or "talked" to them more when compared with physicians or other practitioners. My experience with this is largely anecdotal but I feel it is likely true other places as well. So, perhaps he was playing the role of the patient to see how you would be at patient education and if he felt you could relate to the individual asking the questions. Also, and this may or may not have something to do with his line of questioning, it is pretty much understood that applicants prepare for the common AdCom questions. By asking you something you were likely to not have prepared for he can get a better idea of who you are and throw you off your game so your carefully prepared answers are not as easily accessible and you have to think on your feet so-to-speak. Just thought I would throw some other possibilities out there. In any event, congrats on the acceptance to the other program and good luck to you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
t22 Posted October 10, 2013 Share Posted October 10, 2013 Hey guys! Just wanted to share my interview experience at a particular school that I will not name lol. I am a family studies major and was basically CRUCIFIED and bullied by one of my interviews for being so. He literally could not move passed it and didn't even ask me questions that were relevant to PA school or being a PA. A word of advice to all you non science majors..be prepared to defend your major!!!!!! I left my interview crying..my feelings were very hurt he was rude and tried to make me feel stupid. He asked me things like so what's the divorce rate..how can we reduce it..etc etc. what in the world does any of that have to do with being a PA? Nothing. By the way I have 3.7 GPA..3.5 science GPA..great HCE. but I guarantee u I'll be rejected simply because he hates my major. On a brighter note I have been accepted elsewhere lol. I know exactly who you're talking about. My experience was pretty negative as well... my group was warned prior to going in probably because of what happened to you. He maybe asked me one or two questions, none that i felt were relevant to or helpful in deciding if i should be accepted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rcreek Posted October 10, 2013 Share Posted October 10, 2013 There are many people with non-science degrees who excel during PA school and make excellent PA's. It has been like this for years. I wouldn't worry about what your 4 year degree is provided you do well in the pre-requisites. In my opinion a strong case could be made that earning something other than a biology degree can actually make you a more well-rounded candidate with a unique perspective - and that's how you should sell it during interviews. I agree with others who have already replied here, that the interviewer may have been trying to see how you react under pressure, OR may have in fact actually been interested in your course of study. Of course there is also the possibility that he is just a jerk. If so then I am truly sorry that happened to you. If the program supports his approach to interviewing then maybe it is not the right program for you. Generally speaking you shouldn't take anything personal during the interviews. A good program will design the entire process to evaluate your personal qualities to see if you would be a good fit and can handle the difficulties of being a PA, including conflicts with others. Sometimes that involves a bit of pressure or forcing you to defend some aspect of your application. During my interviews I was asked about my choice in getting a health education degree. I said that I felt it would help me with patient education and community health efforts. I'm sure there are things you learned through the family studies major that would help you in areas of patient care, such as aspects of interpersonal development or how to best utilize the family support systems of your patients. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winterallsummer Posted October 10, 2013 Share Posted October 10, 2013 Try to shake it off and move on. I disagree with others defending the interviewer. It is obvious from the OPs post that this guy was being malicious. I doubt innocent questioning or curiosity would lead the applicant in tears. Look at it this way - better to know that a program is unprofessional and unsupportive during the interview instead of getting lured in and accepting a school ran by people who attack their students rather than support them. You dodged a bullet. I actually was told on one interview not to go to the school because it was poorly ran. Some interviews are good and some are bad and proved you wasted money and time by applying to that school. Unfortunately it's all just part of the PA game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beano Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 I was not a bio or pre-med major, and had several years of dog training experience when I went in to interview. I was asked, how my undergrad prepared me to be a PA, and was asked how to get a dog to stop pulling on the leash. I did not take any offense, they asked me to interview which means they wanted me as a student otherwise they wouldnt waste their time. I thought they were trying to get a feel for who I am and how I interact with people..its not all about GPA. I don't know because I wasnt there, but it is possible that you were feeling defensive about your chosen major and are seeing the interviewer's actions in a different light than he intended. there will be plenty of times when patients will question your ability as an ASSISTANT and you need to be confident in you skills and your education. then again, some people are just d bags...but you have to learn to deal with it. Congrats on your acceptances! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nebaker Posted October 11, 2013 Share Posted October 11, 2013 That was my thought. If they truly didn't take you seriously as a candidate, regardless of your major, they never would have extended you an invitation to interview. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator rev ronin Posted October 12, 2013 Administrator Share Posted October 12, 2013 I doubt innocent questioning or curiosity would lead the applicant in tears. On what basis do you assert this? PA school interviews are designed to find out who is going to stick with the program, pass the PANCE, and practice as a PA. Lots of sucky stuff happens to PA students--hard work, emotionally charged outcomes, having to miss important events because of the demands of school--and various schools will pick various ways to stress the applicants. I interviewed at five schools, and only one of them used an adversarial interview process: Rocky Mountain College. If you've never thought about adversarial interviewing, you'll be at a disadvantage. Here's one quick overview: http://employment.typepad.com/for_job_seekers/2006/06/adversarial_int.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winterallsummer Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 Read the OP's note: - CRUCIFIED and bullied - didn't even ask me questions that were relevant to PA school or being a PA - left my interview crying..my feelings were very hurt he was rude and tried to make me feel stupid I am familiar with and have experienced challenging/adversarial interviewing, and while yes it can be frustrating, I doubt it would elicit this response. Maybe the OP is extremely over sensitive but I like to give people the benefit of the doubt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Latina PA Posted October 12, 2013 Share Posted October 12, 2013 Must agree with Rev Ronin. I was interviewed by a "good cop, bad cop" team and the bad cop interrupted me, challenged every word I said and demanded I explained my answers to the last detail. I don't think it was personal, they just want to see how you react under pressure and if you can back up what you are saying and what you stand for....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator rev ronin Posted October 12, 2013 Administrator Share Posted October 12, 2013 Maybe the OP is extremely over sensitive but I like to give people the benefit of the doubt. I give people the benefit of the doubt, too. Which is why I assume that PA school faculty have a sane reason for what may be perceived as quite harsh interviewing tactics, even if I disagree that it's the best way to get the desired outcome. I don't know the OP's background. She does identify as female in her username, and identifies the interviewer as male. Based on power disparities, communication style differences, and the plethora of other gender-based differences which may or may not apply, I have absolutely no problem in believing that the OP's good-faith report of her perception of the interview may differ markedly from what the interviewer would say that he had done in that same interview. Again, I am not endorsing the tactic used, and this report is a good reason why. Of course, at the same time, I understand why programs may want to weed out people who can't deal with confrontation or stress well--our school system and society certainly aren't doing a good job of this anymore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator rev ronin Posted October 12, 2013 Administrator Share Posted October 12, 2013 - didn't even ask me questions that were relevant to PA school or being a PA I wanted to follow up on this separately... I would say that about 1/3 of the PA school interviews I did (five schools, probably 8 interviews total) focused little to not at all on the profession at all. By that point, they had my academic records, my personal statement, my letters of reference... much of what the programs wanted to see is how I would conduct myself in person: was I the kind of person who could have a good conversation? Would I be someone they would want explaining a diagnosis to their loved one? Just because there is no obvious connection to PA school or the PA profession doesn't mean that the questions are off-target. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PM2016 Posted October 27, 2013 Author Share Posted October 27, 2013 Hello everyone I appreciate all of your comments. I just wanted to give you a quick update on this school. I ended up being wait listed which was surprising lol I thought a rejection would be a guarantee. Maybe he was tryin to see how I reacted under pressure..I smiled through out my entire interview because when I'm nervous I smile. I did not let him see how much he was intimidating me..however when I got to my car I broke down. I am sensitive but it is very hard to make me cry. I do still believe that the interviewer was out of line and took the whole bad cop routine to another level. I spoke to another faculty member about my interview experience and she literally called him a douche bag lol and will bring this issue up to the rest of the committee members because I was not the only person that he tried to fry. This interview process has been a roller coaster of emotions and I am happy that is over! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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