Iowa City, IA
Allopathic Medical Schools | Public Non-Profit
Application Cycle: 2009-10
⭐ Overall Impressions
How do you rank the facilities?
10 out of 10
0 = Bad, 10 = Great
How do you rank this school among ALL other schools?
9 out of 10
0 = Below, 10 = Above
How do you rank this school among other schools to which you've applied?
9 out of 10
0 = Below, 10 = Above
What is your ranking of this school's location?
8 out of 10
0 = Bad, 10 = Great
What is your ranking of this area's cultural life?
8 out of 10
0 = Bad, 10 = Great
💬 Interview Questions
What is one of the specific questions they asked you?
(MD only): Why do you want to be a doctor?
✅ Interview Preparation and Impressions
How long was the interview?
30 minutes
How did the interview impress you?
Positively 🙂
How many people interviewed you?
6
What was the stress level of the interview?
3 out of 10
0 = Low Stress, 10 = High Stress
How you think you did?
9 out of 10
0 = Bad, 10 = Great
What was the style of the interview?
One-on-one
What type of interview was it?
Open file
Where did the interview take place?
At the school
How did you prepare for the interview?
Read SDN, read papers from those I would interview with. Re-read my research experiences. Read about each lab I would visit.
What impressed you positively?
The level of research at Iowa is fantastic. I was floored by the shear volume of publications coming out of the graduate department I interviewed with. It was on par with other mahor MSTPs I interviewed with, including Duke. Worth checking out.
Also, the MSTP program seems VERY well integrated. It is obvious the directors bend over backwards to help the students.
Iowa has a program called Clinical Connections which allows you to stay up-to-date with your clinical skills while picking a specialty to focus on during the entire PhD years. And this allows their MSTP students to reduce the amount of electives required in year 7.
Lastly, UIowa's Hospital is amazing. Very highly ranked, and seems like an awesome place to learn clinical medicine.
What impressed you negatively?
Really nothing. However, I was a little upset the football stadium was not completed yet.
What did you wish you had known ahead of time?
I wish I knew more about the MSTP directors.
What are your general comments?
The interview was the best MSTP interview I have had. They seem to care so much about the students, and they really want to attract those interested in their school. The first night was a nice catered orientation event. On friday, you interview with three scientist/physicians for the MSTP interviews, and you also have to go through the basic MD interviews (X2). The regular MD interviews were a little strange. Very formatted (closed file, no expressions, talk yourself into a hole if not careful). But the MD/PhD interviews were very relaxed. And, EVERTHING was paid for.
📍 On-Site Experience
Who was the tour given by?
Student
How did the tour guide seem?
Enthusiastic
What were your total hours spent traveling?
4-6 hours
What was your primary mode of travel?
Airplane
About how much did you spend on room, food, and travel?
< $100
What airport did you fly into?
CID
Where did you stay?
Hotel
What is the name of the hotel you stayed in?
Iowa House
How would you rate the hotel?
8 out of 10
0 = Bad, 10 = Great
Would you recommend the hotel?
yes
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