SDN Logo
 
 

A.T. Still University - School of Osteopathic Medicine in Arizona

Mesa, AZ

Osteopathic Medical Schools | Private For-Profit

⭐ Overall Impressions

How did the interview impress you?

No change

What was the stress level of the interview?

1 out of 10

How you think you did?

7 out of 10

How do you rank this school among ALL other schools?

7 out of 10

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

7 out of 10
💬 Interview Questions

What is one of the specific questions they asked you?

Part 1 - Group Activity Interviewees divided into groups of 4, asked to solve a problem in healthcare, evaluated by adcom on how well you work in a group, don't think they really cared about the solution to the prompt
Part 2 - File Review File review with adcom, an opportunity to address any dings in the application. Also, to verify/elaborate upon EC's and volunteer experiences. Was also asked 2 questions - 1) How do you deal with conflict? 2) Is there anything else we haven't discussed that you'd like me to pass on to the admissions committee? - Now I'm not sure if this really made a difference or not, but I let the adcom know that I was planning on canceling my future interviews if I got a positive response from this school, and he said he would definitely pass that on to the committee. Less than a week later, I received my acceptance phone call.
Part 3 - One-on-one interview Had mine with a DO, asked 5 questions. 1) What aspect of the osteopathic philosophy attracts you most to this profession? 2) Develop an ethical standpoint in deciding between giving a kidney transplant to a working mother of three or a prison convict. 3) Do pharmaceuticals have the ethical right to advertise their products to the general population? 4) What have you done that demonstrates your commitment to serving the under-served? 5) Something about maintaining high standards/quality control as a practicing physician; forgot exact question, sorry. 6) Can compassion be taught and does a physician need to have compassion to be successful? - This part was pretty tough. I was sure I bombed it, since I paused a lot to think about the ethical questions especially, and spoke really, really slowly the entire time. I swear I must have sound retarded, but I still got in!!!

What was the most interesting question?

kidney transplant

What was the most difficult question?

pharmaceuticals
🤝 Interview Format and Logistics

How long was the interview?

30 minutes

How many people interviewed you?

3

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?

Admissions staff

How did the tour guide seem?

Enthusiastic

How do you rank the facilities?

5 out of 10

What is your in-state status?

In state

What were your total hours spent traveling?

0-1 hour

What was your primary mode of travel?

Automobile

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

< $100

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?

8 out of 10

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

9 out of 10

What are your comments on where you stayed?

No responses
✅ Interview Preparation and Impressions

How is the friendliness of the admissions office?

8 out of 10

How is the responsiveness of the admissions office?

8 out of 10

How did you prepare for the interview?

none - I would recommend re-reading your secondary essays though since 2 of the 5 questions in the one-on-one came directly from there. Also, look over your primary app. again.

What impressed you positively?

progressive curriculum, enthusiasm of students, friendliness of admissions staff, prosection in anatomy lab w/ option to take dissection lab (I hate dissection), strong emphasis on technology and training of electronic medical record keeping from year 2, early clinical exposure, awesome dean, scholarship opportunities, OMM demonstration during lunch

What impressed you negatively?

no real library (everything is digital), no board scores, no residency match lists, provisional accreditation, requirement to pay for own criminal background check and CPR certification upon acceptance, $2000 deposit (most schools only require $1000 and applies to first-year tuition), no research opportunities, no guarantee of any CHC location upon acceptance

What did you wish you had known ahead of time?

that the admissions staff and office would not open until 7:55 AM for the 8 AM scheduled interviewees

What are your general comments?

The school does a really poor job of representing itself. I really want to go here because of what I've researched and experienced OUTSIDE of what's on their website and what I learned during the interview day. Before attending, I actually went and shadowed the 2011 class in my CHC of interest, and was really impressed by everything I saw. That's when my opinion of this school completely changed, and it's a pity that so many people will be missing out simply because they do not know enough about this program or feel they already know enough not to even consider this school. A huge myth is that this school locks you into primary care -- this is simply not true; you can specialize in anything you want, and because the class is so small (and new), I feel the students really have a lot of say and flexibility in what they get out of their education here.

What are your suggestions for the admissions office?

No responses