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University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine

Los Angeles, CA

Allopathic Medical Schools | Private Non-Profit

⭐ Overall Impressions

How did the interview impress you?

Positively

What was the stress level of the interview?

1 out of 10

How you think you did?

No responses

How do you rank this school among ALL other schools?

No responses

How do you rank this school among other schools to which you've applied?

No responses
💬 Interview Questions

What is one of the specific questions they asked you?

How will you combine medicine and research (faculty interview)?
What is a major problem in health care (asked during faculty interview)?
Would you feel comfortable treating HIV and Hep C patients during your clinical years (student interview)?

What was the most interesting question?

A faculty interviewer and I had an interesting talk about the american obesity epidemic, and how fast food compares to the tobacco industry.

What was the most difficult question?

Non l'hai sentito? Not really during an interview, but during dinner one of the faculty kind of shouted some italian at me (I lived in Italy for a while and wrote about it on my app) and I momentarily missed his roman accent.
🤝 Interview Format and Logistics

How long was the interview?

45 minutes

How many people interviewed you?

4

What was the style of the interview?

One-on-one

What type of interview was it?

Open file

Was this interview in-person or virtual?

No responses

Where did the interview take place?

At the school
📍 On-Site Experience

Who was the tour given by?

Student

How did the tour guide seem?

No responses

How do you rank the facilities?

No responses

What is your in-state status?

No responses

What were your total hours spent traveling?

No responses

What was your primary mode of travel?

No responses

About how much did you spend on room, food, and travel?

No responses

What airport did you fly into?

No responses

Where did you stay?

No responses

What is the name of the hotel you stayed in?

No responses

How would you rate the hotel?

No responses

Would you recommend the hotel?

No responses

What is your ranking of this school's location?

No responses

What is your ranking of this area's cultural life?

No responses

What are your comments on where you stayed?

No responses
✅ Interview Preparation and Impressions

How is the friendliness of the admissions office?

No responses

How is the responsiveness of the admissions office?

No responses

How did you prepare for the interview?

Read over papers out of my old labs again, read reviews in recent neuroscience journals, read current news magazines and website re: health issues.

What impressed you positively?

The students first of all. When he saw I was wearing a suit, one random student gave me an impromptu tour for 15 minutes before his class. Second, the facilities: the Zilkha neurogenetics center is very exciting. When I had a tour of the place, many offices were still empty as they are recruiting faculty. From discussions with Peter Jones, they are heavy on recruiting excellent faculty for Zilkha. By the time this year's class hits the labs, the Neurogenetics institute should be fully up and running.

What impressed you negatively?

The smog. A friend once said that LA is reminiscent of "the valley of ashes" from the great gatsby. Looking through a smoggy haze to downtown, I kind of agree. There are days when you should not be outdoors.

What did you wish you had known ahead of time?

The student interview is your med school interview and is closed file. For MD/PhD, if the faculty get your info in time it is open file.

What are your general comments?

Friendly students, great clinical exposure, new research facilities, and I haven't even mentioned the Caltech portion of the program! All in all I was greatly impressed by USC. In addition, the housing options are great and there is less traffic relative to UCLA/westwood.

What are your suggestions for the admissions office?

No responses