Long School of Medicine - University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio

How did you decide on medicine as a career?

Tell me about your family.

Why do you rank School X over School Y? (During my stress interview.)

Did you like the film Madagascar? I liked that film. You probably didn't like that one since you like such high-falutin' films. (8-o! During my stress interview.)

With what other schools have you interviewed? (Also during my stress interview.)

Researched school's website, reread TMDSAS application, reviewed HPO interview tips, talked with current students at a mixer the previous night.

Scope and designation of clinical facilities—all five hospitals are public, including one military. Micro-location: on the edge of the beautiful Texas Hill Country, that there are so many nice housing options near campus, and with lots of new facilities being constructed. Students were very warm. The administration seemed very supportive of their students—nobody's forced out or falls through the cracks.

Macro-location: San Antonio's not the most happening city (but I'm also an Austinite snob). The administration and student body seemed a bit too conservative (not just in the political sense) for me. During my stress interview, that I was being harassed in such a manner! (This wore off.)

One of the teaching facilities is in an Air Force hospital, which affords students the chance to get lots of hands-on clinical experience and be around the newest technology. With how military realignment pans out this could become even better if UTSA develops more ties to the Brooks Army Medical Center—slated to be the nation's #2 military hospital after Bethesda. Also, the opportunity to do parts of all of the third and fourth years at the South Texas Medical Center in Harlingen. With NO residency programs there, students who elect this option the primary assistants on all rotations and procedures! Stressful, but a great learning opportunity.

My first interview with a pediatric ER doctor was very laid back. (Ironically, however, he was the second person from that specialty with whom I've interviewed in my six interviews!) We had an extremely polite, funny, and warm conversation. I relayed my path toward medicine and he agreed with it. Talking about my extracurriculars and my schoolwork, he said that I was very mature and had already begun to consider thoughtfully many of the dilemmas of the medical community. As I left, he asked me about my next interviewer. I told him the name and he replied that I'd really like him since he's "quite a character". I figured this meant my next interviewer would be really funny. Wow, was I shocked at first. The second interviewer ran late with his previous interview—which seemed to be going okay. (Interviews were being conducted in study rooms of library with glass doors, so I was able to take a glance.) From the second I sat down, however, he started harassing me. Initially I thought that he was just coming across as gruff while jotting down my basic bio, but once we delved into more serious things, he'd hijack my answers by the fifth word and crash them in the most explosive and caustic way possible. To my credit I spotted the stress interview quickly and never lost my cool. I always tried to regain control of the conversation and steer it back to a more civil course. I never cracked, but, when I sensed that he began wanting me to push back a little, I obliged civilly. The scariest moment was when he asked me about the others schools where I'd intereviewed and demanded that I rank them—and then summarily derided my responses, of course. However, by this point he was giving me a little wink or a "good job" smirk as he asked each successively more inflammatory question. When he came to open up for my questions, I decided to calmly hit back with his own tactics: Question 1 (Getting My Bearings): "What does UTSA have to offer me over the other schools? What are your exact board scores? Your match rate?" Question 2 (Surprise Him Out of Left Field with Slight Derision): "Why did you choose that tie today?" (It was a holiday Grinch tie) Question 3 (Showing My Preparedness With Something He May Not Be Ready For): "Tell me about the Medical Humanities Center at UTSA." Question 4 (Finally Learning About Him): "How did you come to UTSA and what's your specialty? From the final quesiton I learned that he was the ER coordinator for all of San Antonio and that he'd come to it from the similar position in the military. This explained why he chose the stress route: to see if I could handle stress in the ambulance or in the trenches. I think he was impressed as he complemented me on my questions and preparedness (and implicitly my calmness). Morals of the story: 1. Beware the stress interview—they'll pop up when you least expect. 2. If you get one, KEEP YOUR COOL. Remember that you're being tested on your character and not your numbers now (which may be a blessing). But still remain professional and attempt to sell yourself. 3. Block out all your emotions and other thoughts and focus.