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?
Practiced interview questions with about 6-7 doctors. They each focused on slightly different things when asking questions (e.g., one focused heavily on ethics and others tended to ask about experiences or my personality). I also read 3-4 white and green papers on various bioethics topics, but I was not asked specifically about anything I learned from these. In addition I watched the healthcare debate series on youtube (very informative) and read about a dozen newspaper articles on the debate. Last, I read the "Pfizer Medical School Manual", which contains lots of practice interview questions and useful tips for interviewing. It is inexpensive to purchase online (I paid less than $10 for the book and S/H). I bought the 2007 edition by Mike Magee.
What impressed you positively?
-Themed learning
-Has a good cafeteria (great veggie burgers and nice interior decoration)
-The hospital and school are physically connected (minimizes transit time)
-The current students I spoke to stated that 85% of students pass each class and the rest do even better, thereby creating a non-competitive environment where everyone helps each other learn and almost everyone gets the same grade
-There are 6 students per cadaver in anatomy labs. The students take turns being responsible for dissection and prosection. Because each student does not need to dissect every single thing, this reduces the number of anatomy lab hours needed, hence saving students' time.
-Typical housing is an apartment within 5 blocks of campus at a monthly rent of $400-600. The area has a low cost of living
-Student body seemed relatively tight-knit
-Nice library where students spend a lot of time studying. Open until midnight on weekdays and about 10 on weekends
-Good preparation for USMLE step 1: 50% of exam questions are from past USMLE's
-Weather was fine (although the ground can collect up to 3' of snow in the winter).
-There is a "den mother" - a faculty member who is (voluntarily, I believe) available to help students with any questions, concerns, or problems that might arise
-Reasonable amount of time for outside activities during first year, such as club basketball (not so much free time during second year though)
What impressed you negatively?
No responses
What did you wish you had known ahead of time?
No responses
What are your general comments?
I left my interview quite content with the school and its students, faculty, facilities, and clinical training. I would gladly go here if accepted. A previous interviewee had left feedback stating that if you want to go to a school for the sole purpose of medical education, Albany Medical College is a great place. I agree - it does not have much else going on in terms of cultural activities, night life, or entertainment, but it is a solid medical school. I had two interviewers - one was a PhD who taught first and second year med students and the other was a current med student. You may have one or two interviewers depending on interviewer availability. One interview lasted 45 minutes and the other 30 minutes. There was a gap of about 30 minutes between interviews for me, but this varies for each interviewee. Also, interviews either start in the morning or afternoon and both groups of interviewees share the tour and lunch. The afternoon group usually finishes by 3:30pm if they started at 11:15am.
What are your suggestions for the admissions office?
No responses
