Interview Tips

[kasrose123]

I would love to hear feedback about the challenge question!

[mnreyes]

Hey everyone, have some questions I need some advice on. Had my first  interview last week and wanted to know how do you respond/act when in a group interview, another applicant is constantly interrupting you and not letting you speak? Also I had a solo interview which consisted of taking a side of an issue and giving an argument for why you chose that stance. I found it really hard to keep stick with my side of the argument when the interviewer was yelling and banging on the table trying to get me to change my mind..lol anyone have any experience with this?

[beccadoo924]

Hi everyone,

 

I'm preparing for my first interview, and have heard that it's a good idea to bring copies of your transcripts. While I think this is a little silly (shouldn't these schools have all that information already?), I want to be prepared. My question is: do I bring sealed copies of transcripts, or will printouts (i.e., unofficial copies) suffice? Trying to save $ where possible, but certainly not at the expense of risking not getting in!

 

Your 2 cents is appreciated, and good luck to all those interviewing this month!

[Natalie2018]

Hi everyone,

 

I'm preparing for my first interview, and have heard that it's a good idea to bring copies of your transcripts. While I think this is a little silly (shouldn't these schools have all that information already?), I want to be prepared. My question is: do I bring sealed copies of transcripts, or will printouts (i.e., unofficial copies) suffice? Trying to save $ where possible, but certainly not at the expense of risking not getting in!

 

Your 2 cents is appreciated, and good luck to all those interviewing this month!

Personally, unless you have taken pre-requisite classes since you submitted your CASPA and the program you are interviewing at will not accept an email update, I think it's a waste of your money. I didn't bring formal copies of any records to my interviews and I got accepted (last cycle). I do know there were people in my class who portfolios etc but they said they didn't need them.

 

That's just my opinion, do whatever you are most comfortable with :) Good luck at your interview!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[MT2PA]

Hi everyone,

 

I'm preparing for my first interview, and have heard that it's a good idea to bring copies of your transcripts. While I think this is a little silly (shouldn't these schools have all that information already?), I want to be prepared. My question is: do I bring sealed copies of transcripts, or will printouts (i.e., unofficial copies) suffice? Trying to save $ where possible, but certainly not at the expense of risking not getting in!

 

Your 2 cents is appreciated, and good luck to all those interviewing this month!

 

I wouldn't do either.  The only program that wanted transcripts in person at the interview made it incredibly clear we were to bring them sealed, official transcripts.  I did usually take some resumes just in case but I never needed those, either.  

 

Most programs want the official transcript after you've been accepted.

[cerebro]

So, I just got interview invite from MCPHS. Just when you think things are getting easier. Now I have to try to ace this interview.

3.88 GPA

3.87 Science GPA

GRE (158V) (150Q) AW 4.5

HCE: Non direct patient care 16000hrs

Direct Patient Care- about 900hrs EMT/Cardiac Rehab/Phlebotomy

 

 

I prepping. Anyone who already went through this interview, i'd like tips please.

[oneloverach]

Advice I can give after three interviews:

 

Don't practice too much. I wrote all the questions and answers down and went nuts. During my first two interviews I probably sounded very artificial and I was waitlisted and denied. My last interview was more than a month later and I did hardly any review of the material, mainly just on the school. I just made sure I could answer. My answers definitely sounded more natural and it really was a conversation than a prethought out response. I got a call the next day.

 

Don't study so much you sound like a robot. Or at least study long enough ahead that everything sinks in and you can just converse and not parrot.

I like this advice! I have just over a month until my interview and I am trying to remind myself that it is more of a conversation than a rehearsed script. 

It's hard for me because last year I interviewed and did not prepare at all. I thought I did okay in the interview but was ultimately wait listed for that program.

[abl1206]

I like this advice! I have just over a month until my interview and I am trying to remind myself that it is more of a conversation than a rehearsed script. 

It's hard for me because last year I interviewed and did not prepare at all. I thought I did okay in the interview but was ultimately wait listed for that program.

 

To be wait listed, especially in your first year of applying without any preparation, is a great accomplishment! I have been through 2 interviews so far and accepted by one of them (still waiting to hear from the other). The list in the link below is what I used to practice. By practicing, I mean having a general answer prepared for each question so that I wouldn't be surprised by any questions. I practiced in front of other people, wording my answer differently each time. It really helped boost my confidence without sounding rehearsed. There wasn't really a question I was asked that I wasn't prepared for thanks to the list I reviewed (except it doesn't have a question along the lines of "3 words I would use to describe myself"). The interviews I attended were totally conversational. Definitely have some questions prepared to ask the interviewer. I generally asked what field they work in if they're a practicing PA, what they find current students struggle with most in their program, or if I can address any further questions or concerns they might have. Congratulations on the interview though and good luck!

 

Sample Questions:

http://www.thepalife.com/the-top-46-physician-assistant-applicant-interview-questions/

[AshA09]

What are some essay topics that you were asked to write about at your interview or was it a topic of your choosing?

[mm23]

Hey all,

 

I've been to 2 interviews this year that had a writing portion. One was to simply answer 2 questions. The other was a research question and we had computers to research the answer, and state why we chose that topic, how we researched it, etc.

 

What are they looking for here?

To see if you can answer a question and formulate thoughts to paper?

5 Paragraph format with Intro and Conclusion?

Am I totally overthinking it?

 

What is the end game here?

 

Thank you,

 

Chloe Pappas

[melmelmel]

Always greet your interviewer with a good firm handshake, a smile, & look them in the eye when you say hello.

 

Have fun with it!:)

Why did these tips made me think of that time I've met my girlfriend's father for the first time? :)

[bhs9014]

Interviews are always a tricky thing. You have to approach it like this "only one percent of the worlds population goes to college. Of that 1 percent, only 20 percent dare take Organic chemistry. Of that percentage only about 60 percent pass organic chemistry. Of that percentage less than 1 percent apply to PA School. Of that percentage even fewer get accepted. If offered an interview you are already the top of the top." most schools have approx. 50 seats. Depending on the school they will interview 150-600 people for those spots. I will take those odds any day. If you think about it that way its a great way to boost your confidence.

 

So onto interview tips themselves. I was told by a person in a place of authority once you have to be on your A game the second you walk into the interview, by that I mean the second you get out of the car in the parking lot. As soon as you walk on campus you are being observed. How do you interact with the other interviewees? How much interest do you have in the school? Are you constantly checking your phone? Each schools interviews are different but the main things stay the same. There will always be a speech by the dean or someone high up giving you numbers and facts, A tour, and Q and A with current first years, and the interview itself.

 

You will not be accepted on your behavior during the Deans speech but plenty have been rule out because of their body language. Make sure you are taking notes or at least pretending to take notes. Make sure your body language says Im interested even though its your last choice school. Make sure you ask questions (not stupid ones...relevant questions).

 

Make sure when their is downtime you interact with the other interviewees. Be friendly but not too friendly be nice but not fake. Always assume you are being watched the entire time.

 

The tour. More people have been ruled out by the tour than you can imagine. Most people (I even made this mistake) use the tour as time to think through their answers that they gave or are about to give. You need to ask questions to whoever is leading the tour. Be friendly but not too friendly. Show interest. Never check your phone during the tour. The tour guide is asked to report back to the admissions committee on people who stood out to them. Make sure your one who stood out for a good reason.

 

The Q and A with Current students. Ask anything you want. They have Zero say unless your asking them inappropriate questions then they can say something to the admissions saying this candidate was weird.

 

The interview itself. Their are several types of interviews. One on one, Group, or MMI. My personal favorite is the group. I will get to that in a second.

The one on one interview: Typically they have your CV in front of them. You will get a few questions about any gaps in your CV. You will get questions like tell use a time where you had a conflict with coworker. What is your greatest weakness? and my personal favorite...if you could have dinner with anyone living or dead who would it be? Everyone (especially if your on this forum) has answers prepared. Make sure you do not sound rehearsed. Make sure your answers are clear and concise. Always put in I learned this____ from that experience or a positive spin or this is what im doing to fix my weakness.

 

Group interviews are the best. Because you can show the interviewers that your a team player just by your body language. When someone else is answering make sure you are listening and opening up your body to them. When you are asked the question Make sure you make eye contact with the interviewers as well as your other candidates. As part of your answer I highly encourage you to reference the other interviewers. EX. I 100 percent agree with interviewer A's answer, You have to show the patients compassion and empathy, and I did so in this example ______ (tell your story). It shows that you are a team player. Playing off others answers is always a good idea

 

MMI. (multiple mini interviews). This in my opinion is the hardest of the 3 types of interviews. You have to impress 8 different people. or however many MMI stations there are. They will give you a prompt to answer that will take a fraction of the time allowed to you. What do you do with the remaining time? take it and run with it. Tell a story that ties into the prompt. My favorite question I was ever asked in an MMI " so you are on your way to work and accidently run over the neighbors cat, and go to work. When you get home that night you notice the neighbors looking for their cat. What do you do?" The biggest mistake everyone makes is saying they would not have gone to work to told your neighbors then. First off you are abandoning your job and second you are not answering the question. Make sure you answer the exact question they ask and the exact wording they use. They have worded it a specific way for a reason.

 

So final tips: Make sure you arrive 15 mins early, assume you are always watched from the moment you step on campus, pay attention to your body language, ask good questions, have the attitude that you would do anything to get into that school regardless of its ranking on your list, be prepared to answer anything (they ask questions you never thought of to throw you off and see how you are on the spot), KNOW WHAT IS SPECIAL about that school and when in doubt weave in you want to go to that school because of the faculty and the reputation of the faculty (when in doubt that is always a great way to suck up), FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS GOOD IN THIS WORLD MAKE SURE YOU SAY YOU WANT TO GO INTO FAMILY MEDICINE OR PRIMARY CARE regardless of what you actually want to go into.

 

Questions I have been asked to be used as a throw off question:

What question were you hoping I would ask?

What question were you hoping I would not ask?

If you could have dinner with anyone living or dead who would it be?

Define Underserved (then they don't accept your answer and challenge you...meant to get under your skin)

What would your sibling say is the most annoying thing about you?

Tell me about a time you wish you could go back and change?

 

Good Luck

[sockerkid9]

Interviews are always a tricky thing. You have to approach it like this "only one percent of the worlds population goes to college. Of that 1 percent, only 20 percent dare take Organic chemistry. Of that percentage only about 60 percent pass organic chemistry. Of that percentage less than 1 percent apply to PA School. Of that percentage even fewer get accepted. If offered an interview you are already the top of the top." most schools have approx. 50 seats. Depending on the school they will interview 150-600 people for those spots. I will take those odds any day. If you think about it that way its a great way to boost your confidence.

 

So onto interview tips themselves. I was told by a person in a place of authority once you have to be on your A game the second you walk into the interview, by that I mean the second you get out of the car in the parking lot. As soon as you walk on campus you are being observed. How do you interact with the other interviewees? How much interest do you have in the school? Are you constantly checking your phone? Each schools interviews are different but the main things stay the same. There will always be a speech by the dean or someone high up giving you numbers and facts, A tour, and Q and A with current first years, and the interview itself.

 

You will not be accepted on your behavior during the Deans speech but plenty have been rule out because of their body language. Make sure you are taking notes or at least pretending to take notes. Make sure your body language says Im interested even though its your last choice school. Make sure you ask questions (not stupid ones...relevant questions).

 

Make sure when their is downtime you interact with the other interviewees. Be friendly but not too friendly be nice but not fake. Always assume you are being watched the entire time.

 

The tour. More people have been ruled out by the tour than you can imagine. Most people (I even made this mistake) use the tour as time to think through their answers that they gave or are about to give. You need to ask questions to whoever is leading the tour. Be friendly but not too friendly. Show interest. Never check your phone during the tour. The tour guide is asked to report back to the admissions committee on people who stood out to them. Make sure your one who stood out for a good reason.

 

The Q and A with Current students. Ask anything you want. They have Zero say unless your asking them inappropriate questions then they can say something to the admissions saying this candidate was weird.

 

The interview itself. Their are several types of interviews. One on one, Group, or MMI. My personal favorite is the group. I will get to that in a second.

The one on one interview: Typically they have your CV in front of them. You will get a few questions about any gaps in your CV. You will get questions like tell use a time where you had a conflict with coworker. What is your greatest weakness? and my personal favorite...if you could have dinner with anyone living or dead who would it be? Everyone (especially if your on this forum) has answers prepared. Make sure you do not sound rehearsed. Make sure your answers are clear and concise. Always put in I learned this____ from that experience or a positive spin or this is what im doing to fix my weakness.

 

Group interviews are the best. Because you can show the interviewers that your a team player just by your body language. When someone else is answering make sure you are listening and opening up your body to them. When you are asked the question Make sure you make eye contact with the interviewers as well as your other candidates. As part of your answer I highly encourage you to reference the other interviewers. EX. I 100 percent agree with interviewer A's answer, You have to show the patients compassion and empathy, and I did so in this example ______ (tell your story). It shows that you are a team player. Playing off others answers is always a good idea

 

MMI. (multiple mini interviews). This in my opinion is the hardest of the 3 types of interviews. You have to impress 8 different people. or however many MMI stations there are. They will give you a prompt to answer that will take a fraction of the time allowed to you. What do you do with the remaining time? take it and run with it. Tell a story that ties into the prompt. My favorite question I was ever asked in an MMI " so you are on your way to work and accidently run over the neighbors cat, and go to work. When you get home that night you notice the neighbors looking for their cat. What do you do?" The biggest mistake everyone makes is saying they would not have gone to work to told your neighbors then. First off you are abandoning your job and second you are not answering the question. Make sure you answer the exact question they ask and the exact wording they use. They have worded it a specific way for a reason.

 

So final tips: Make sure you arrive 15 mins early, assume you are always watched from the moment you step on campus, pay attention to your body language, ask good questions, have the attitude that you would do anything to get into that school regardless of its ranking on your list, be prepared to answer anything (they ask questions you never thought of to throw you off and see how you are on the spot), KNOW WHAT IS SPECIAL about that school and when in doubt weave in you want to go to that school because of the faculty and the reputation of the faculty (when in doubt that is always a great way to suck up), FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS GOOD IN THIS WORLD MAKE SURE YOU SAY YOU WANT TO GO INTO FAMILY MEDICINE OR PRIMARY CARE regardless of what you actually want to go into.

 

Questions I have been asked to be used as a throw off question:

What question were you hoping I would ask?

What question were you hoping I would not ask?

If you could have dinner with anyone living or dead who would it be?

Define Underserved (then they don't accept your answer and challenge you...meant to get under your skin)

What would your sibling say is the most annoying thing about you?

Tell me about a time you wish you could go back and change?

 

Good Luck

Just curious, is there a reason why you heavily advise to say that you want to go into primary care/family med regardless of what you are interested in? I have read a few other topics on this thread that say to answer honestly not fake an answer, and physicians/PA's that I have spoken to have also said something along those lines, and to give a field of study rather saying "I don't know". Just curious on your opinion :)

[PACrankset]

Just curious, is there a reason why you heavily advise to say that you want to go into primary care/family med regardless of what you are interested in? I have read a few other topics on this thread that say to answer honestly not fake an answer, and physicians/PA's that I have spoken to have also said something along those lines, and to give a field of study rather saying "I don't know". Just curious on your opinion :)

I would tend to agree, don't pretend to be something you aren't. If you have no interest going into family med then don't say you do, I did not say anything like that in my interviews despite one school being very primary care focused and I got into all programs I interviewed at.

I do think however it is important to understand the value of good primary care and how it significantly helps support the rest of the healthcare system.

[bhs9014]

I know it may be bad policy to not be 100 percent yourself. It is honestly something what they are looking for. If you say you want to specialize they will automatically group you in a sub category and the likely hood of you getting accepted drops dramatically. I was told this by a person is on an admissions committee. So if you want to handicap yourself go ahead. Who am I to stop you. But I am telling you exactly what they are looking for. If you do not say primary care or family practice you will lose points in your interview. It does not mean you wont get in but it will make it harder. Again this is coming from admissions committees. 

[PA-C-to-be]

Not all schools focus on primary care/family medicine. While the profession as a whole tends to lean that way to try to fill the need for PCPs, I doubt that is what every program wants to hear from every applicant. When I was picking schools I saw some that were surgical, pediatric-focused, geriatric-focused, etc. Of course the curriculum for these programs still trained students as generalists and looked similar to the primary care-based schools, but I purposefully did not apply to the surgical programs due to having very little interest. I did apply to a geriatric one and talked about my interest in the specialty in my interview since I've worked extensively with that population and could see myself maybe in that field. Point is: know what they are looking for and make sure your views match, but we won't all be primary care providers and that is okay. Plus, if you lie and then later attend that program you may have to deal with your lie being exposed or keep lying for 27ish months...

 

How I answered this question in most interviews: I don't know if I'll specialize, but have interest in starting a generalist field like primary care or emergency med to learn as much as possible about all specialties and patient-types and then maybe I'll find a passion and specialize, or maybe I'll love being a generalist and will make that my career. Clinicals will probably be pretty telling in determining where I want to work as well.

[sockerkid9]

Not all schools focus on primary care/family medicine. While the profession as a whole tends to lean that way to try to fill the need for PCPs, I doubt that is what every program wants to hear from every applicant. When I was picking schools I saw some that were surgical, pediatric-focused, geriatric-focused, etc. Of course the curriculum for these programs still trained students as generalists and looked similar to the primary care-based schools, but I purposefully did not apply to the surgical programs due to having very little interest. I did apply to a geriatric one and talked about my interest in the specialty in my interview since I've worked extensively with that population and could see myself maybe in that field. Point is: know what they are looking for and make sure your views match, but we won't all be primary care providers and that is okay. Plus, if you lie and then later attend that program you may have to deal with your lie being exposed or keep lying for 27ish months...

 

How I answered this question in most interviews: I don't know if I'll specialize, but have interest in starting a generalist field like primary care or emergency med to learn as much as possible about all specialties and patient-types and then maybe I'll find a passion and specialize, or maybe I'll love being a generalist and will make that my career. Clinicals will probably be pretty telling in determining where I want to work as well.

I completely agree with how you answered the question for your interview, that is pretty much what I was getting at before. Everyone has told me to say either what I truly have an interest in, or say I want to use my clinical experience to determine if I want to specialize in a specific area. I was told to at least have an answer of some sort, not just say "i don't know" type of deal.

[sockerkid9]

I know it may be bad policy to not be 100 percent yourself. It is honestly something what they are looking for. If you say you want to specialize they will automatically group you in a sub category and the likely hood of you getting accepted drops dramatically. I was told this by a person is on an admissions committee. So if you want to handicap yourself go ahead. Who am I to stop you. But I am telling you exactly what they are looking for. If you do not say primary care or family practice you will lose points in your interview. It does not mean you wont get in but it will make it harder. Again this is coming from admissions committees. 

Eh, personally I disagree. To each their own and every school/committee is different. I understand the importance of PAs being in the primary care field and how crucial they are when it comes to family med/primary care. I have nothing against working in that field, I've worked in family med for many years and have nothing bad to say about any provider who works in family med. I also don't think that when you get an interview you should straight up lie. If that's your thing, then good luck. IMO, although I am not on a committee, this a mutual thing. Would you really want to attend a program that lied to you while you were applying and then was completely different once you paid your tuition and you couldn't drop out? I doubt it. I also doubt a school wants to waste time investing in a great student if they find out you lied to them. Interviews are a mutual interview, you're interviewing the school and the school is interviewing you. It does no one any good when either is sitting there lying. I guess its more of a personal view of what your answer should be in the situation where they would ask you that. Personally, if you've worked for over 5 years in primary care and genuinely don't see yourself working in it, I'm all for the "let me use my rotations to see what interests me the most/where I best fit" and maybe start in a ED type of position rather than straight up saying family med. People change their mind after rotations all the time, no doubt about that. Committees also look for applicants who have done more than just shadow a few PAs and give generic answers - they also look for applicants who are dedicated to this field and know they want to work in it/can prove it.

[PA-C-to-be]

I completely agree with everything you said sockerkid9. I am not on an adcom but if I was and had an interviewee with all of their patient care/shadowing/volunteer experience in a very specialized field, my mind would lead me to think that applicant probably has a strong interest in that field and may end up practicing in it; but if that applicant told me they wanted to be in primary care and had zero exposure to the field from what I could see on their CASPA, I'd need a good explanation to be convinced they're not lying through their teeth. PAs (and other providers) by nature tend to be perceptive to lying and human behavior patterns, they can frequently tell when their patients are lying and I'd be willing to bet they can tell when applicants lie in interviews too.

[TexasPrePA]

• Be yourself! They want to get to know YOU!
• Be professional. Dress professional.
• Do your research!!! Research your program, current challenges PA's face, changes in healthcare...etc.
• Be confident in your answers. Do not sound rehearsed.
• Find out who your interviewers are and get to know them.
• Avoid generic answers. (Why do you want to be a PA? I want to help people.) Give them more!
• Tell them a story. If they ask you a question, answer it and then give an example or go further into detail, like "One time when I was shadowing a PA..."
• Find some way to connect with the person interviewing you. They will remember you more than other candidates if you achieve this! Send a thank you letter after your interview mentioning specific things you talked about that connected you with them.

 

...that's all I have for now!

[ckas22]

Hey everyone! I'm in the middle of didactic year and have a blog called Balancing China. I wrote a post on Interview Mistakes to Avoid that I highly recommend checking out. 

Here is the link: http://balancingchina.com/page/4/

 

I have helped our faculty to facilitate multiple interview sessions and these things are the biggest "don'ts" on interview day. I'll have a lot more content related to PA school so subscribe if you are interested in keeping up! 

[sfine]

I have my first PA interview this Saturday and can't wait, I've got the typical nerves and excitement. Yesterday at work I asked one of the docs if she had any suggestions. She told me that it is always better to engage the interviewers and ask them questions get to know them, they really don't care what you have to say. People are more interested in talking about themselves. Which I think is excellent advice. We'll see how it goes. Good luck to everyone! We've all come so far.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[mandrew1]

Here are a few suggestions for interviewing:

 

1. Remember, "It's not about you, it's about them." 

 

2. Be sure you can "demonstrate" the qualities that would make you a great PA student and PA; compassion, community service, empathy, team player, etc. 

 

3. Try to find "multipliers" related to the program you are interviewing to. Infusing multipliers into your answers, along with the qualities you possess, will supercharge your answers. For example, go beyond the website and search the internet to see if you can find any special projects the PA program participates in during the length of the program. Perhaps the students work at a local soup kitchen during the didactic year. Maybe students take a mission trip to Guatemala to provide medical support to rural areas of that country. Some programs set up free clinics for undeserved populations in the local community. 

 

If you can infuse qualities and multipliers into your answers, you will come across as someone who is already a part of the program. Most applicants don't infuse qualities and multipliers because they don't go beyond the program's website. So, try googling the program (Duke University PA Program Events), visit the program's Facebook page, go on YouTube. You'll be surprised how much insider information you'll find.

 

PA programs already know the qualities they're looking for before you come to the interview. It is your job to "demonstrate" that you have these qualities to show that you're the Perfect Applicant, and not a "Vanilla" applicant. It's not about you, it's about them.

 

Prepare for the PA school interview, as you might if you were applying for a job at IBM. Know the culture of the program, special projects they're involved in, faculty and staff, etc.

 

andrewrodican.com

[SoulPA13]

I have an interview coming up and the Admissions Officer said to be ready to discuss my grades in the past. I messed up a lot during my freshman and sophmore year of college, which brought my GPA way down, like below 3.0. However, I have spend the past 4 years trying to increase and improve my GPA. My post-bac GPA is 3.8, so I have really tried to redeem myself. II am really thankful that they see the person I am now instead of the person I was many years ago when I received those bad grades.

 

I was wondering what would be good things to say and what not to say for when I explain this journey of being a bad student to now excelling in school. If anyone has any tips or advice, I would greatly appreciate it! Thanks :)

[cjarosz]

SoulPA13,

 

I think its best to be honest and upfront, do not make excuses.  Take responsibility for your past grades and turn it into a positive (I.e you are a more mature and driven individual).  Make them see your motivation and reassure them it will not happen again (i.e use your post-bacc grades to support your newly accomplished abilities as a student).  Have faith in your-self and the admissions committee will too. They have already looked past your grades by inviting you to an interview, they just want to see your maturity and ability to take responsibility in my opinion. I hope this helps:)

 

Good luck on your interview!