Pittsburgh, PA
Allopathic Medical Schools | Public Non-Profit
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Overall, applicants ranked the school in the top 16% of interviews, indicating it is highly regarded. They found the interview very impressive with a low stress level and felt they did well.
⭐ Overall Impressions ▼
SDN Interview Experience Score
8.6
Above Average
Higher scores indicate a smoother, more positive interview experience with professional staff, organized logistics, and a supportive environment.
Based on 1,421 responses
Score Reference:
9–10 Exceptional
8–8.9 Very Good
7–7.9 Good
6–6.9 Mixed
< 6 Needs Improvement
The SDN Interview Experience Score (SIES) is a composite metric that represents applicants overall impressions of their interview experience, based on multiple factors such as professionalism, facilities, responsiveness, and stress levels.
What was the stress level of the interview?
Most respondents rated their interview as low stress.
How do you rank this school among ALL other schools?
Most respondents rank this school above all other schools.
How did the interview impress you?
Most respondents felt positively about their interview.
Positively (87%)
Negatively (4%)
No change (8%)
How you think you did?
Most respondents thought they performed well at the interview.
Great (39%)
Good (48%)
Average (12%)
Poor (1%)
What are your general comments?
Applicants generally found the interview day at the school to be welcoming, relaxed, and enjoyable, with conversational interviews that aimed to get to know them as individuals. The facilities and opportunities offered at the school were highly praised, although some applicants had mixed feelings about the location and atmosphere of the area. Overall, Pitt received positive feedback as a top choice for many applicants.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
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Overall very welcoming environment. Made me excited to attend.
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Relax for the interview.
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Very relaxed, standard conversational interview. They want to get to know you and make sure you'd be a good fit.
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Very relaxed interview day, team exercise was not hard or stressful at all
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I personally did not like Pitt at all, partially because of its lackluster facilities (the arena across the street from the school is much nicer than any of the hospitals) but also because the group interview felt forced and superficial. I have met numerous other applicants who felt the same way and even an applicant from the area who said the area was a terrible place to live (but in much ruder terms). While the school does have great opportunities to offer, this was one of those interviews I genuinely am glad I went to interview because it showed the school was not a good fit for me.
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It was a really nice day. student interview was just a conversation really. faculty interview had very standard questions.
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The day is designed to make sure that you aren't stressed. I like how they calm everything down with the tour, and start the interviews with a student, then have a break before the faculty interview.
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Very cool school and overall a low-stress interview!
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This school is amazing! The students are friendly and the facilities are clean, modern, and new.
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Loved the school so much!
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*Definitely* emphasize your research
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Great school, they seem to be doing things right.
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Really great place if you are academic and research focused!
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Great school, very friendly and passionate faculty/student body
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I feel a lot less excited about Pitt after interviewing.
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Great school! Definitely went up as one of my top choices after the interview.
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Loved it.
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Overall a great school. Would go if I get in!
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First interview is with a student (closed file), second interview is with a faculty member (open file, but no grades/MCAT)
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A solid school. Pittsburgh may be too small for my taste, but it would be hard to turn down their research program.
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Excellent interview day, one of my top choices
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I absolutely loved Pitt - the school and the city - and hope for good news after January, 31!
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A laid back place
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Pitt is a renowned institution, rich in both opportunities and history. Students match very well and UPMC is a research mecca. This school should be a "Top 10" in US News....but Top 15 ain't bad either ;-)
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The interviewers were extremely nice and just cared about getting to know me. The information they provided to students was very valuable.
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Pitt is incredible
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Felt I couldn't have done better on the faculty interview but it was rather hard to get a read on them.
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After visiting, its my top choice.
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On paper the school looks great but you have to visit to determine whether it is right for you. I did not enjoy the atmosphere, the people (my student interviewer and student hosts were very awkward), and the general vibe.
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I was really impressed with Pitt. Extensive med facility and the students/faculty made it a point to make the interview day relaxed.
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Very low stress
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Loved Pitt, would be honored to get an acceptance!
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Very positive experience. The school has a very midwestern feel to it, and you may have to decide if that is for you.
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The school is fantastic and a place to be happy.
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It's a great school. I am keeping my fingers crossed!
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The students seems to be very happy with the school and city. Money for research projects seems to be flowing freely and there are several options for a structured year out for research. Also, from my previous interviewing experience in industry, I thought "Thou shalt wear pantyhose" was a commandment for the females wearing skirts to interviews. Apparently not, even for the girl with pale, bruised legs. It was a bit distracting.
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Pitt is an amazing school with unlimited research oppotunities. If your into research, this is the place for you
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The interview format was one student interview (blind, 35-40 minutes) and one faculty interview (half open – they see AMCAS personal statement and extracurriculars, but not UPitt supplement or grades/MCAT; 45 min-1 hour)
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Student interview is closed file; faculty interviewer has you extra curriculars and PS but nothing else.
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I keep thinking I caught Pitt on a bad day since most other people have such glowing things to say but... I can understand a couple things going wrong with an interview day but it just seemed like most things went wrong. Probably not the right school for me.
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One faculty and one student interview. Student was entirely blind, faculty knew everything except GPA/MCAT.
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There was one student and one faculty interview. The student was closed-file; the faculty was open-file except for MCAT and GPA scores. The interview day featured very little down-time.
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Great school, great people.
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Overall, an incredible place. I have nothing bad to say about it. Student interview is closed-file, faculty has AMCAS but no MCAT/GPA information.
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Pitt offers so many opportunities to students (research, early clinical exposure, money for whatever scholarly thing you want to do, "too many opportunities" as my faculty interview put it), it's a great option whether you're open-minded about what you want to do or you know you want to do something specific. The school definitely makes you feel welcome and treats you well. Bring walking shoes for the ~2 hr walking tour of the huge school campus. Stay with a student host.
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Take the 28X bus to and from the airport, it costs $2.60 exact change only. Save your money, stay with a student!
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I'm suprised at how much I liked Pittsburgh and Pitt itself. Definitely considering attending school here now...
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The interviews really are conversational. Sometimes the faculty interviews are far away from the main admissions building...walking down hills in heels + luggage = a disaster waiting to happen, but I managed to survive without any accidents.
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Faculty interviews were great across the board in my group. Student interviews were more variable.
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Faculty will ask specific questions on your personal statement
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Great school!
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Pittsburgh was not a top choice for me initially, but I would be hard pressed to choose another school over it after coming to see it first hand. Definitely stay with a student so you can see for yourself how great the student body is. As I was sitting around after my interviews, some random first years even brought me into their lab and hang out with them! A very good experience overall.
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I loved Pitt! I hope they loved me :)
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Definitely stay with student host! You interview w/ second year in fall. Think it switches to first years soon.
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They are very very friendly. but that does not mean you should not be on your good behavior.
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Interview was super laid back. They did a great job making sure you felt comfortable and at ease.
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They actually did provide us with ample amounts of food; everyone was so friendly and the whole day was incredibly laid back, they really just want to get to know you. I feel like they were trying to make a good impression on me moreso than I was trying to make one on them. The optional financial aid session is quite helpful if you already don't understand the process for med school in general. everyone loved talking about football, it was great :)
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Love this school. Go Pitt!
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I now love Pitt.
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Loved Pitt!
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NOTE: All of the feedback previously listed a weakness where they did not have a student as tour guide. In fact, they have changed on this one and brought a student in as tour guide this year! She was a very nice young lady. What a great interview! A school that tries to make you comfortable. Everyone around me were friendly. Some MS1 said hi to us and ask how we did. Both of my interviews were conducted in a very relaxed atmosphere and I feel I did very well. Additionally, most of other interviewee were pretty sharp people and most of them had good experience just like I did. I said there are three interviews because the adminstrative interview for me was quite long and it was conducted by a MD. There were questions asked that I feel weren't purely just administrative but rather, I feel that she was trying to get to know me as well. Prewriting response is a bad idea because the interviews are very conversational. Additionally, do not assume they will grant you a faculty interviewer with the specality you have asked for.
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Fine--not impressed
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Long day but well worth it. I recommend staying with a hosting student. Everything was laid back.
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Very good one. Had a pretty cool student host who showed me around the student housing (she lived off campus), the city of Pittsburgh, and some good restaurants. I was there over the weekend so got to see Pitt night life a little and had fun at a Super Bowl party.
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I was very pleased with the whole day. The day starts with a tour which is kind of long and a little boring, although this may be because it is so early. You then meet with a couple of students for lunch where you can ask them anything. If you are nervous this is a great way to get rid of some anxiety. Next you have your student interviewer. This is super relaxed...at least it was for me. They have to ask you certain things, just the stock questions like why medicine, but it was a very very conversational interview. Next you have your faculty interview. For me this was also very informal, and again nothing hard. Just the stock questions that everyone prepares a head of time.
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Overall, it was a good experience to get to know current students and got a lot of helpful information about the school.
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Overall awesome! the student interviewer was amazing! really cool guy who asked nothing difficult. it was definitely a conversation instead of an interview. we talked about my experiences, and his, for a whole hour and we would have kept on going. Then there was a 15min session with the Asst Dean of Adms who just asked how my day was going and what other schools i interviewed at. And then there was a faculty interview which was in another building, but they gave us a map so it was very easy and close to find. The faculty was amazing. Very friendly and down to earth. She even let me change my shoes in her office!!!THis was also a conversation about my experiences and life in Pitt. The energy at this place and the combination of city and suburbs is ideal. There is so much to do here and there are students everywhere since the undergrad is so close and there are so many other colleges in the area. Also the transport system is great and free for students with ID. This school is so awesome that i would definitely consider coming here if they accepted me. Maybe even better than Harvard...
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Pretty standard get to know you questions. The day is booked full so there is not a lot of down time.
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Very chill. Their interview process is just to evaluate you as a person and future colleague. Don't worry about it and be yourself.
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Overall my experience was great. I stayed with a student (in the fantastic apartments near the med school) and got to hang out with him and his friends. The campus is near Carnegie Mellon and is in a great part of Pittsburgh. The tour was given by a member of the admin staff and was pretty lame. The staff at the WISER center, however, was amazing. After lunch, there were three interviews. The first one was with an MS1 student who seemed distracted and disinterested. Then, I had to literally run all the way across the undergrad campus for my faculty interview, but that went really well. I then had to go back to the med school and wait 30 minutes past my appointment time for an interview with the diversity office. That guy was really, really cool and seemed geniunely interested in getting to know me. The bus to the airport is right out front and only costs $2.25, so that is nice. Overall it was a good day and the opportunities for early experience and so forth seem great. An MS1 student told me that he had already scrubbed in on 6 neurosurgeries.
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Overall, I enjoyed my experience. The campus is very near local bars, clubs, restaurants. The tour was led by an admissions staffer, and it was definitely lackluster. However, the students made up for this with their tremendous energy.
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Stayed with student host, went to morning lecture, talked to applicants, tour with admissions staff, lunch with students, interview with M1, interview with faculty, interview with admissiosn staff
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Tour in the morning, lunch with med students and then two interviews. One with student and one with faculty. The school seems very much into people that like people. Overall very laid back and friendly atmosphere. At the end of the day there are optional talks for an hour if you're interested in the topics.
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Overall good, with the exception of communication problems.
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Pretty long day - started at 8:30am with some intro, then a few tours, lunch with med students which was informative and a great way to get some perspective on the school. student interview at 1pm (this was closed-file), very relaxed and got a very good impression of the school. another interview with faculty, then a short ''how did everything go'' interview with assistant dean. everyone seemed really enthusiastic about the schools, students all seemed really happy and eager to share good comments
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The morning started off with a tour. This was a very extensive tour. Be prepared for about an hour and half to two hours of walking. We had a short presentation and then went off to lunch. After lunch, we had our three interviews. My first was a M2, and it lasted about 45-50 minutes. My second was a faculty member and also lasted about 45-50 minutes. The last was a member of the admissions staff and this lasted about 10-15 minutes. All the interviews were very low-key and conversational. It seemed liked they simply wanted to get to know you.
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8am weclome, then two hour tour, with a lot of time spent in awesome simulation lab. Financial aid and curriculum talks are pretty standard, then lunch with the studnets, which is quite informative. Three interviews: hour with student, hour with staff, 10-15 with admissions officer. None of them have your grades/MCATs. the interviews are very focused on getting to know you as a person and your goals/motivations. Really know yourself, your desires, and why you applied to pitt. you will be asked the same questions by all three interviewers.
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Good
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Great! Learned a lot about the school
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Overall great.
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Very conversational and laid back.
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Very laid back, I was lucky enough to get a student host, and interviewers who were connected to my undergraduate school so the interviews were more like conversations.
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Very laidback. Begins with tour and lunch. Followed by student interview and faculty interview. Finally meet briefly with dean or assistant dean of admissions. Low stress, conversational interview. No other fellow interviewee appeared to have a difficult time.
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Arrived at Scaife hall at 8:30 and mingled with the other applicants. There were 13 of us in total. Then we introduced ourselves and met the Asst. Dean of Admissions and some of the people in the admissions office. Guided tour around campus followed by a 30 min talk with someone from admissions. Then an hour lunch in the cafeteria with some M4s. Lunch is followed by a student interview, a faculty interview, and then a 15 minute interview with someone from admissions. The students only know your name, city, and undergrad school. The faculty member has your amcas personal statement. The admissions person has your full amcas. Overall the interviews were very conversational and laid back.
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I <3 Pitt. Very pleasant experience, low stress, enjoyed my conversations with staff and faculty, first choice by far.
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Like I said, student interview was kind of strange. He only had my name and alma mater. Faculty interview was fantistic--the guy was a real character and I truly enjoyed meeting him. It was pretty laid back. None of the interviewees were conversing much at the beginning of the day but had loosened up by the afternoon. Not enough was said about the curriculum or the research options.
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Everybody was really nice, and the people I interviewed with were very laid back.
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This was my first interview and it was GREAT! The people were really nice and the school seems to have sooo many opportunities for research and clinical experience. I knew a lot about the school and why I would come and I think that made the interviews really stress free. They were mainly conversations and my interviewers were extremely nice.
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Tour in the morning took about 2 hours. saw a lot of interesting things about the school. WISER simulation center is amazing. Then had lunch with 2nd year students. followed by a student interview (45 min) and then a faculty interview (45-60 min) then 2 short interviews with various adcom members. long day with no down time, but i liked being able to get a lot of different perspectives about Pitt
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Nice people, nice facility, Pittsburgh seems like a fine place to live.
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It was great..low stress..the only negative is that the day is too long. Don't really need 4 hours of filler in the morning. Really could have done everything in half the time
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All of my interviewers were very nice and made me feel comfortable. None of them tried to drill me on any questions. Having lunch with the students was a really informative experience and we had enough students for all the interviewees. Overall it was a great experience.
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8:00 Meet in Admissions 8:15 Tour 10:30 Meet with admissions staff for curriculum overview 11:00 Lunch with 1st year students (take advantage of this!) 12:00 Student interviews 1:00-ish (this varies by faculty schedules) Faculty interview 2:00-ish Admissions interview (easy) The hill was not that bad - I wore shoes because I didn't have anywhere to put a change of sneakers. I was fine. The whole interview was cold. It was about 9 degrees out in the morning and some of the indoor areas of the school were very cold. Don't give up your coat unless you have to! On the whole, I thought it was a good experience - pretty low stress.
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I came. I saw. I interviewed. Then I went home for a nice nap becuase the day lasted from 8-4 pm.
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I'm from the area, but had to wait several months to interview; every time I visited Scaife Hall I felt like Tantalus. The interview itself was very positive.
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A great school with a great reputation...the students, staff, and faculty seemed very friendly.
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Awesome experience overall. Pitt's a great school and for me at least, that really came across during the day. Pittsburgh isn't as exciting as I'd like it to be, but it seems like there are some really cute neighborhoods like Shadyside and Squirrel Hill. :-)
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I was very satisfied. Many complain that you don't really get to talk to the students, and they're right. Fortunately I stayed with a student, so I got to ask all the questions I wanted. Thay was really nice, and I highly recommend it. The interviews themselves were very low key, and very conversational. Nothing to sweat over. You probably won't talk about anything academic; they assume that if you got an interview, you're good enough on paper. This is their chance to get to know you as a person.
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What's already been said: overview by admissions committee, tour given by a staff member, 3 afternoon interviews.
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My faculty interviewer was very interesting and very opinionated about everything. He seems to really love Pittsburgh and enjoy his position. The student interviewer was a little worn out from the exam and kept telling me to relax and not worry that he has a sheet of questions in front of him, which he took most of questions from. The admissions staff just wanted to let me know about their various programs and we talked a little about the whole application process. Overall, it was a long day, but enjoyable.
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I arrived before the admissions office was open and one med student happened to pass me by and she very sweetly talked to me about the school until the office opened - I thought that was really nice of her. The tour was first and the hill is no big deal, though it was freezing the day I went so that wasn't so fun. I also didn't like the fact that the tour is not given by a med student since the tour for me is not about seeing facilities but getting a med student's perspective of the school. After lunch is the med student interview - mine was really chill and funny. The faculty interview was next and I had to walk there...up major hills...in the freezing cold...in a skirt - yah, not so fun. My ears were about to fall off by the time I got to the interview, but I guess if I go to Pittsburgh, I'll have to get used to it. The third interview with the dean is short and really laid-back.
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I think I had awesome interviews. It was unusual but our student interviewers were very junior and didn't have much to contribute about the school. The fellow interviwers were quiet relaxed and friendly. Watch out for the cheesy video about Pittsburgh.
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It was good. I just wished that they had made us feel more welcome.
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Both interviews were very laid back and conversational. The student interviewer almost made me cry because he was so funny. The faculty interviewer was very nice. He made it easy for me to open up.
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Both interviews were very conversational, no tough questions really. The student interviewer wasn't that great. After he asked me the obligatory questions (why medicine, why Pitt, shadowing experience, extracurriculars) he didn't know what else to ask me, so I had to lead the conversation a bit. Didn't seem very interested really in getting to know me, just read the questions off his sheet, and took notes. The faculty interviewer was great, and again, it was conversational. I did feel like I had to sell myself to him, because I am an older student, and he asked me a lot of questions about whether I was up for the task, being older and having a family. He also pushed research a lot (he had a phd), but overall was very pleasant. All in all, it was a great first interview, and gives me something to compare the next ones to.
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The tour was long but informative, and ladies - you walk a lot so break in those heels or wear comfy shoes. The interviews were in the afternoon, students first, then admissions and faculty. My student was really laid back, as well as my clinician. Long day but not highly stressful or intimidating.
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We started at 8 in the morning at the admissions office where they had the usual breakfast items. It was really easy to find, just remember the main entrance is across from the Peterson Event Center. Then we went on a two hour tour of the facilities. It wasn't like a boring museum tour; we had breaks and we spent a lot of time walking (So make sure you bring comfortable shoes and dress appropriately for PGH weather). Then we went to an admissions overview meeting and the lady who gave the talk was very informative and down-to-earth. The curriculum meeting was next which was a little boring and basically self-explainatory for the most part. Then at 11 we had lunch until 12 in the hospital cafeteria and you get a card that's good for $5. Then we ate with a 3rd year medical student who was very helpful. After lunch we went back to the admissions office and the 1st year medical students came in one at a time to get us for our first interview. The girl I had was very nice and also a fellow Pittsburgh native, so we got along great. Then the admissions staff took me over to the medical science tower to meet a molecular biology professor for my 2nd interview. He was really, really nice and we basically just had a friendly conversation. He asked me about my research and my job as a CNA, the medical student before mainly asked about why Pitt and why medicine. Next, this guy actually took me back to the admissions office and then I waited for like 5 mins to meet with the Dean of Admissions. The Dean I met with didn't really ask me any interview type questions, only about my day and told me about the opportunities that Pittsburgh has to offer me. Then we filled out an evaluation form and that was it. It was all over around 2:30. Compared to the other schools I have interviewed at, Pitt was defiently the most prepared and most organized for applicants.
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Arrived in admissions at 8 am, where there was coffee/breakfast/juice. Changes shoes for 8:15 - 10:30 tour (definitely do this - I was the only one in a skirt who wore sneakers for the tour, but it was definitely worth it and who cares if it looks funny? It's better than limping into your afternoon interview). After the tour a curriculum overview (doesn't give much more info than is available by carefully inspecting the website), then an hour for lunch ($5 voucher to cafeteria, we were joined by a 3rd-year student). Afterwards everyone has a closed-file interview with a Pitt student (1st or 2nd year), then in varying order a 10-15 minute one-on-one with the assistant dean, associate dean, or assistant director of admissions, and a somewhat closed-file (they have your personal statement) interview with a faculty member. I had to walk a ways to mine, but I got great directions from the admissions office and it wasn't a problem. Since I'm interested in the CSTP program, they paired me with someone from the program, which was really great. Then fill out an evaluation, and you're done. A long, busy day.
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Basically the same as everyone elses
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I had a great time. I went in thinking, ''Eh Pittsburgh'' and I came out saying, ''Ooh Pittsburgh.'' Great school, awesome people.
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It was great! The school's curriculum and program is amazing with all the opportunities. It's definitely one of my top choices now.
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The most extensive tour I have seen yet:) They also have an amazing patient simulation program. with at least 5 robots worth millions of dollars.. the second largest simulation set up other than the army.
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Amazing. All of the interviews were completely conversational.
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I had a really good interview experience. Everyone was really nice, and really seemed to want to get to know me as a person. The tour was very long, and we didn't see much. We had lunch with a couple of 3rd years. One of them was kind of odd, and kept talking about what he didn't like about the school/medicine/possibly becoming a doctor. The others were more helpful. My interviews went well. It's nice that the student interview is first, because it helps you get out your nervous energy. My faculty interviewer was nice. However, he did ask me the ''stress'' questions, such as ''how do you feel about euthanasia'' and ''do you think the government should fund stem cell research.'' I guess he thought I was comfortable enough to answer those. Originally he said I didn't have to, but since I answered one, he just kept asking. The interview with the dean is also nice. She just wanted to get to know me, and make sure I had a nice day. Nothing stressful
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I had a delightful experience at Pitt. The students and staff are extremely friendly. Aside from being intelligent, all of the students that I interacted with were unassuming with pleanty of interests outside of the classroom. I feel like I got very honest answers to all of my questions about Pitt.
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Overall, a very stress-free, positive experience
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Amazing! other than the one guy who grilled me a little about my clinical experience, everyone was so friendly and encouraging. definitely fun and low-stress.
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In the morning is a tour that lasts about two hours. It's not as intense as it sounds though as you're sitting in the WISER center for part of it. They also let you tour the cadaver lab, which has a small museum in the back. It was amazing. After is a talk about the curriculum, then lunch in the cafeteria. My group was joined by two second years. Following lunch is your student interview. This is supposed to be very easy and laid back, they tell you the students just want to make sure you're the type of person they would like to have in their class. My student mostly read down a list of basic questions (Why medicine? Why Pitt? etc). Sometime in the afternoon you will be scheduled for your faculty interview which hopefully will not be too far away because you are responsible for getting yourself there. Mine was in Magee, about as far as possible and scheduled for immediately after my student interview so we had to cut that one short so I wouldn't be late. Faculty interivew is also very laid back. It's mostly just a conversation. After that, you're scheduled to meet with either the dean or an assistant to discuss your experience that day. They don't really ask anything personal. Whole day was enjoyable and fun.
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*8am = Arrive at Admissions Office *8:15am = tour begins (comfy shoes!) *10:30am = return to Admissions Office *10:40am = Admissions & Curriculum Overview *11am = Lunch w/ 3rd Year Students at Hospital Cafeteria *12pm = Student Interview *1pm = Faculty Interview *2pm = Admissions Interview(s) (this may be 1 or 2 people, depending on whether you see the Minority Affairs Dean in addition to, Beth Piraino -or- Paula Davis) *3pm = The End. =P All of you can relax a little in the sense that Pitt's Interviews are non-confrontational, at least in my experience and that of the other kids I interviewed with that day. Everything is conversational, and discrete questions are plugged into that, almost to prevent soliloquys of any kind. Just be real and be yourself. But come prepared to answer the following questions: 1. Why Pitt? (think P2P big-time!) ; 2. Your Brief Bio ... and so --> Why Medicine? ; 3. Shadowing Experiences ; 4. Extracurriculars & Hobbies ; 5. What you think of Pittsburgh? ; 6. Where else are you interviewing?
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Great first interview, very laid-back and friendly. I learned a lot, and the interview gave me a good idea of how I could fit into the school.
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All the interviews were very conversational, and everyone was nice and friendly. There was a big emphasis placed on the location and Pittsburgh.
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We started at 8am with a light breakfast (bagels, doughnuts, juice) for people who hadn't eaten, and then took a really long tour. I wore tennis shoes with my interview suit and nobody flinched. The tour wound through umpteen buildings and outside and we all felt pretty disoriented but the interviewees were allowed to keep a running banter among outselves. We visited the WISER simulation lab which was state-of-the-art and really nice. Then we talked to a medical historian (hilarious) who recommended additional reading, attended discussions of curriculum (PBL) and had lunch with a 4th year student. The student answered all of our questions and more as we (mostly) dined on deli-style sandwiches (you get $5 from the cafeteria, which is plenty). Then we had an interview with a student (mostly 2nd year) where they asked us questions from a form. The students only had our name, school, and hometown to work with. That interview was 30-45 minutes. Then we had different faculty interviews around the campus (some people had to run really far away, so ladies beware!) for 45-60 minutes. Faculty interviewers had our personal statement. The interviews were very low-stress and focused on just giving a picture of ourselves. Pitt is focused on group work, so be prepared for questions about that. Also, the ubiquitous Why Pitt questions. At the end we had a 15 minute discussion with admissions (not sure if it was an interview or not...) to see if we had more questions. Then we were free to go. Most people got out of there at about 3:00, but they warn you that you might have to stay until 5:00. Walk down to 5th avenue to find the 28X bus. The stop will be on your right, and you will be able to take it to the airport for $2.25.
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Two 40-ish minute interviews, one student one faculty. Both open file (I think) and very relaxed. The students just want to know if you're someone they could get along with in PBL, so they'll probably ask about hobbies or family. The faculty interview was stress free and pleasant.
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The day was rainy, which made it a little gloomy, but the day was fine overall. Began with a tour of the school: by far the best part was the WISER center that teaches all sorts of clinical skills/procedures. The anatomy lab is a little dark and smelly, and the classes/halls are a little old/rustic. After this, nice lunch with a couple students. They seemed to enjoy their time at the school, but weren't very enthusiastic, so it was a little hard to read. Interviews followed. The first one was with a student (relaxed and conversational), and the other with faculty (who was very confrontational, and I think was trying to break fluster me; I was able to keep my cool, and by the end, he was easygoing). Just remember to never get flustered by interviewers (not just at this school, everywhere). Towards the end of the interview we were conversational, but I think he was trying to stress me the first half to see if I could hack it. All in all, the school is pretty nice, but I wasn't struck by lots of people who loved the school. Everyone seemed to be happy with their choice, but not blown away. Still, good school, nice facilities.
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Overall, the interviews were quite low-key and conversational. I suspect that genuine interaction is assessed more critically than the actual content of the interview.
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I had 3 interviews: second year student (about 60min); faculty (about 45min); and admissions (15 min). They were all extremely relaxed and more like a conversation than an interview. The day is long, but exciting, and I don't know why people on this site complain about walking up hills-there are maybe 2 of them during the tour, and they aren't that horrible. Ladies, make sure you bring a change of shoes, it made all the difference for me because the tour is 1.5hrs long and I normally don't wear heels. Overall, a great experience, awesome school, and I can definitely see myself fitting in here and being happy.
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The interview was well-organized and followed according to schedule. We started with breakfast and welcome remarks followed by a 2-hr walking tours (LADIES be prepared to WALK in your heels :) After that we met with the director of admissions and heard about how the process works. We were then provided with a presentation about the curriculm. Lunch followed and was hosted by third year medical students. After lunch we had our medical student interviews followed by a faculty interview and evaluation.
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The student interviewer was AMAZYING! He told me about ways that I can get involved with the Latino community. The faculty interviewer was just as amazying! Very enthusiastic and knowledgeable about the school and how I would be able to get involved and what I would expect out of my education their!
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Great, if they take me, i'd be happy to go. The PSTP and CSTP programs are free rides to med school! i'd definetly bump pitt up to top of my list if I get those two things!
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The admissions staff had me scheduled to interview 1hr before they told my interviewer that I would arrive. He wasn't prepared and angrily waved me away (he was on the phone) without any explaination. At that point I had no idea what was going on, I just showed up at the appropriate place/time (hurried to get there). The finally called me in 45 minutes later. Interviewer seemed mad at me the whole time--a real shame b/c I would totally have picked Pitt over top 5 schools.
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You interview with one student and one faculty member. Both were pretty relaxed and conversational. The school is solid and gaining reputation every year. The city is affordable. I was not all that impressed with the students.
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The interviews were conversational in tone, and it was great to be able to talk to three different people (student, faculty, assistant dean). It was fun talking to Lisa (asst dean) - we talked about the color scheme of my bag, her violating all safety regulations by lighting candles in her office, and our favorite Starburst flavors. Too bad we only had 15 minutes.
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I stayed with my sister (who goes to CMU) over the weekend and walked to the interview. Scaiffe Hall is really easy to find. The admissions office is pretty small. The applicants get a folder and a name tag and sit and wait for everyone to arrive. The staff had a small table set up with breakfast items, as well, so we could get a bagel while we waited. The first thing on the agenda was the tour. We saw the hospital, the lecture rooms, the PBL rooms, the WISER, the library, walked around outside a little and saw some views of Pittsburgh. The tourguide tried really hard to sell the city. Made me wonder why, since I don't think Pittsburgh is that bad to begin with, but maybe other people do. After the tour we had a really short Admissions overview and curriculum discussion, which was actually pretty helpful. Then we had lunch with med students and had a chance to ask questions. After lunch everyone had their student interview. The student only knows your name and undergrad institution/hometown. My interview was pretty conversational and laid back; the student just asked me about typical things, like extracurriculars, research, why medicine, hobbies, etc. Nothing out of the ordinary or unexpected. Then I had a 30 min break and my faculty interview, which was with an attending at the Emergency Department. It was also very conversational, and I enjoyed that one a lot; it was the highlight of my day. The attending was very nice but at the same time very open and honest. She told me about UPMC and what to look for in a hospital system in general when applying to med school. The questions were mostly about my life. The faculty interviewer has access to the personal statement, so she wanted to know more about my move from Russia, what issues I faced and how I dealt with them; my high school and college experiences, as well as my research and volunteer work. The faculty interview was a little less strained and more natural than the student one, probably because the attending had a lot more to say and also seemed more genuinely interested in me. The student tended to just take notes on specific thing she was supposed to learn. Overall, both interviewers had great things to say about Pitt and UPMC, but the attending had a greater effect on me. The last part of the day for me was a 15 minute interview with an adcom member. She just wanted to know how the day went, asked a couple questions similar to those of the other interviews (college, research, volunteering, etc.), and answered my questions. This interview is the most stressful, because it's short and probably bears the most weight, since this person is the only one of the three you meet with who will be in the room when the adcom makes a decision. The structure of the day, with interviews in the second half, is much more difficult to bear, so if you're interviewing there, try to keep your energy up throughout the day.
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Interview day was very organized and there wasn't much downtime. This was good because there wasn't too much time to get nervous waiting for interviews, but may be bad if you are not familiar with the school. Book your return ticket for the day after the interview so you can check out some things they just touch on during the tour. They give you all these ideas of places to visit, but no time. The interviews are very low stress for the most part. The student interview happens right after lunch and is always your first interview, which is nice because it calms you down. My stress level was a bit elevated since it was my first interview and I got stuck in traffic from an accident on my way and thought I'd be super late. The interviewers are all laid back and welcoming, though, so no need to be stressed. The student interviewer only know where your from and the faculty has your personal statement, but it seemed like my interviewer may not have read it very carefully, so remember to explain everything, even if you know it's in your personal statement. The questions were pretty standard and several originated from the conversation.
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All of the interviewees met in the Office of Admissions by 8:00 am. After a short orientation, one of the admissions staff members led a tour of the facilities which included the Winter Institute for Simulation, Education and Research (WISER) facility, the library, lecture rooms, and PBL rooms. We then attended a couple of briefs on the admissions process and the curriculum. Lunch was provided at the UPMC Presby hospital cafeteria, where we were joined by some medical students who answered any questions we had. The afternoon was filled with three interviews. The first was a 45 minute, closed file interview with a second year medical student (MS2). The second was a 45 - 60 minute, closed file (AMCAS personal statement provided) interview with a faculty member. The final interview was a 15 minute, open file interview with one of the assistant deans. For most people, the interview day ended at 3:00 - 3:30 pm.
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Very laid back. One interview is with a 1 or 2 yr medstudent and the other is facluty.
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Excellent experience; exhausting day, but I had the opportunity to see almost everything I needed to see to get a vibe about the school. The facilities are excellent, and the anatomy lab is well-ventilated. Interviews were later in the day, after having the tour and lunch with the 3rd year medical students, so I was pretty beat by the time it my turn to interview.
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It was great; it made me really excited for the school. The truth is: it is the people who are going to make a great school and i strongly believe, after my interview, that the faculty and the students of pitt are truly incredible and compassionate people. And that definitely got me very enthusiastic about the school. The dean who interviewed me was so sweet too.
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Overall, it was a great day. all of my interviews were very relaxed and my fellow interviewees were so nice.
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Tour of facilities including anatomy lab and Simulation lab. One-on-one interview with a current MS2. One-on-one interview with faculty member.
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Three interviews: student, faculty, and dean. Basic questions, no really hard questions. Enjoyable tour and interview.
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It was pretty good. The students I interviewed with were crazy: one girl had like 10 interviews lined up.
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The whole day was very enjoyable and fun. I fell in love with the school.
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Very positive, everyone seems to be extremely nice. The advise for anyone goes there for interview, just relax and be yourself, it's going to be a fun experience.
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My interviews were with a student, the dean and a faculty member. The student interview lasted over an hour where we basically had a conversation about my life and the origins of and path I took to enter medicine. Its like one of those conversations you have with someone at a cafe that you just happen to strike conversation with. The Dean interview was about 15 minutes - its an informal meeting where she wants to find out about your interests of the school and how your day went. I'll just stay mum about my faculty interview because I dont think it was an ideal one - he asked me some questions, I answered, he jotted - you know what I mean? :) There was no stress interview and no ethical questions at all. All interviewers did not have access to any of my application except the faculty member who had my ps and thats was it.
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Arrive at the Office of Admissions Early. I stayed at the Hampton Inn in back of Magee-Women's Hospital by the Rep Theatre. I payed about 90 bucks/night and got free breakfast, HBO channels, complimentary water-bottles, free workout passes to a local gym, an indoor gym in the hotel itself, etc. This hotel also provides a free shuttle service that will drive you 3 miles in any direction for FREE. they will also come pick you up again if you call them before 10pm. This shuttle leaves every hour, on the hour from the hotel, starting at 6am, ending at 10pm. So - arrive before 8am at the Admissions Office (Rm 518). It's inside Scaife Hall, which is across the street from the Peterson Events Center Dome, and is alos behind Presby Hospital on Forbes. You go to Desoto from Forbes, go up the hill, curve left with the road, and Scaife is a big concrete block on your left, with the stone and glass Sports Arena on your right. Once at Scaife, you come into the 4th floor through the main entrance on Terrace Street, then past the guard, on toward the immediate left, you take the escalator up one floor ( to5th), and then immediately hang a right around the column. You'll first see elevators, then a lone door with two long windows on it in the middle of a pink-tile wall. This is the Office of Admissions & Fin-Aid. I'd recommend you get there by 7:45, although I got there at 7:30 and they had just opened up. They also give everyone a breakfast of bagels and cream cheese and fruits - but I'd recommend eating ahead of time to avoid spilling, bagel and cream-cheese stains, juice/coffee on yourself, etc. As soon as you come in, they have a bunch of blue Pitt Med folders with nametags and Interview Day Schedules on them. You tell the lady your name, and she hands it to you. Your schedule attached with a clip to the front of the folder says, WELCOME so-and-so to Univ. of Pitt. Medical School. It then schedules stuff by quarter hour blocks at most: Typical Pitt Interview Day ----------------------------------- **8-8:15am WELCOME (meet&greet over breakfast in the Admissions Waiting Area; arrive early) **8:15-10:15 TOUR (wear comfy shoes for sure, and bring a warm coat if it's winter-time in addition to your suit jacket. The tour is long, and you'll see the WISER Dummy Patient Simulation Center, Presby Hospital, Montefiore, Children's etc. You will walk up the Desoto Street hill as you've heard, but anyone who says it's horribly bad is truly out of shape and nagging you. Also - the tour is given by an Admissions office secretary/aid type of person; not a med-student, faculty, or AD-COM member). **10:15-10:30 Admissions Overview - this is given by a really funny sarcastic lady named Lisa - she's the Assoc. Dean of Admissions, but is actually the Acting Dean now since Dr. Curtiss passed away last month. At this point, Lisa will tell you, everyone here is academically capable at this med-school. As far as we are concerned - your numbers are all similar. Today, we want to know what makes you guys tick inside as people. That's all. (they're not kidding either) **10:30-11 CURRICULUM REVIEW (they have you pull out the color-coded sheet, and they explain it to you around a conference table with all the other interviewing students as neighbors. Speaking of which - you'll have at most 19 other people beside you vying for spots on any given Interview Day. **11-12pm LUNCH W/ MED-STUDENTS (usually MS 2) **12-1 STUDENT INTERVIEW (in my case, I got a 4th year, but usually it's a 1st year who talks to you - it's VERY conversational - no talk of MCAT's, GPA's, etc. YOu'll be asked, Why medicine, Why Pitt, your hobbies/interests, research if any, etc - but it's all in the flow of a normal conversation) **2-2:15 Meet with Paula Davis (short 15 mins) (Asst. Dean of Admissions - she just wants to know if you've got any questions, she wants to see your face and say hello to you, and to very lightly extract Why and How you came to like Pitt). **2:30-2:50 Franki Williams - you only meet with this woman, who is a TOTAL sweetheart and so much fun to talk to, if you're a minority. I'm Latino, so go figure why I had 4 interviews instead of 3. LOL. **3-4 Faculty Interview (mine was with a local internal medicine Legend named Dr. Elmer Holzinger ... he kept me for 2 hrs and 15 mins ... and he asked me, I want to know about your life; start with the day you were born. LOL. The weird part was, I actually enjoyed talking to the man; it was so interesting hearing about his own experiences. It felt like being shrunk by a sweet psychiatrist in some parts too, but it was still very cool as far as faculty interviews are concerned. I was VERY surprised it was so conversational and interested in ME, lol. I was expecting to meet a quitet, mum Doctor or PhD, and having them ask me random questions, look at me sternly while answering, and then saying, mhm, interesting, jot a thing or two down, and ask the next Q. NOT LIKE THAT AT ALL!!!!!!!! Be Prepared to talk like you're meeting your best friends for coffee at Starbucks after not seeing them for years. ------------------------------------ :::PITT-FOLDER::: Inside your blue folder packet you will find the following: (Day's Schedule on top) - Fact Book - Student Group Descriptions - Directions to tons of buildings from the Admissions Office - brochure on AOC's (Areas of Concentration) - Complete, color-coded Curriculum Overview by School-year, Month and by courses. - Clinical-Scientist Training Program (CSTP) inforomation sheet - Pitt Campus Safety Brochure - spiral bound Pitt Med Survival Guide (this tells you about classes, places to live, places to go hang out and eat, local cultural events, parks/recreation, etc) ------------------------------------- I should add that you should try contacting students randomly through the hosting Excel file in the Interview Tab through the secure Admissions site they give you when you file a secondary app. This will give you a chance to talk to epople about the school. You'll see hwo nice and randomly genial they are about everything. I e-mailed one kid a few questions a few weeks before interviewing, and got about 5 pages worh of response). The Atmosphere of Person-to-Person permeates everything they do in this school - be it research, teaching, PBL sessions, or clinical exposure. They NEVER want you to forget that patients (and med-students and their professors) are, before anything else ... also PEOPLE! So - if you're a textbook junkie who prefers a dark cave to study in than learning from an open environment where people like to share ideas and experiences - this may be the wrong place for you. People here are very sociable and friendly, and very cooperative with class-mates. For example, I was told by one woman whose mother got sick with cancer after Winter Break, that her professors allowed her to miss exams and make them up over summer sometime later when she felt like it, and her classmates took notes for her and kept her up to speed when she came back. In other cases, for Microbio for example, the students said stuf would happen where one student would spend 10+ hours doing Microbio spreadsheets with germ names, diseases, methods of contraction, etc ---> and then e-mailed it to everyone in the class so they could use it to study. Also - some cool facts: + Honors/Pass/Fail Grading + 6 weeks off plus Case-Based sessions in MS2 to review for USMLE Step 1 + only 1 Core Science offered at one time, so you only have to cram for one hard class, and not 5 at once. The other courses are easy stuff like Ethics, etc. So - everyone I meet tells me this ESP makes Medicine easier to study and more tolerable in the endurance test that is med-school. + Summative Year-end Exams (1 exam on 3 or more disciplines) are being thrown out next year + Research Project required (although this does NOT have to be bench work - one girl I met over lunch went to Ghana for a summer and completed a Public Health experiment to fulfill this) + MPH, MSc actively encouraged, as are certificate programs called AOC's (Areas of Concentration- noe extra fees or years to tack on - but you learn a little more ofus in areas like: Bio-Informatics, Geriatrics, Med-Humanities, NeuroSci, Women's Health, Disabilities/Rehab Medicine, Global Health/Int'l Medicine. ------------------------------------ Questions please e-mail: [email protected] Hope this helps a few people out.
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The tour is the first thing of the day, followed by a curriculum discussion. Lunch is in the cafeteria, followed by your interview with a 1st year student. Your faculty interview and 15 minute meeting with one of the deans is spaced out anytime between your student interview and 4:00.
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The interviews themselves were great. My student interviewer felt compelled to stick with the required questions a little too much, which made for some awkward moments while she decided what to ask next, but overall it was very laid back. My faculty interviewer seemed more interested in talking to me about football and racing than anything else, which worried me for a while because I thought he wasn't going to get to the important stuff. However, he eventually did, but it was still very conversational. The only thing that put me off was when I asked him what set Pitt grads apart from others when seeking residencies, he answered that just seeing Pitt makes the difference. I know it's a good school, but I'm sure it's not take your pick of any residency when you graduate. The last interview was with Lisa Wick, just a short sit down to see if I had any questions. Be prepared, she's extremely hyper, but she's really entertaining. They should definitely incorporate her more into the day. Overall the day was a little long, but bearable. The best part for me was the time I spent with my student hosts. They answered tons of my questions, and I got to go out to dinner with a bunch of other students, so I got an good idea of what they're like. Of course, all medical students are dorks, but it's nice to see bits and pieces of normalcy when possible.
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Long first half of the day...the second half picked up, though. the tour would be better if it was led by a student. the interviewers were a wealth of information.
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Ok, so normally you would have 3 interviews: One with a student (45-60min), one with a faculty member (45-60min), and one with the dean of admissions (10-15min). My 4th was with the director for Minority Affairs (20-30min). So, if you're not a minority, you don't have to worry. Everyone was very nice & they really just wanted to get to know me as a person. They didn't even mention grades or test scores. Make sure you have questions for them also. And specific ones for each person. They really want you to ask questions.
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Loooong tour (may grow weary during the curriculum review), don't walk outdoors if you can help it (unless it's a pretty day, you can get to your interviews via indoor bridges etc and avoid hiking up/down a hill in heels in windy/rainy weather); don't stress about the "dean interview;" it's just 10 minutes or so, very laid back, he wants to know if you have any unanswered questions
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The day was well-planned, and everyone I met who was affiliated with the school could not have been more encouraging and and kind. The tour is a too long; after the WISER simulation center (seems like a VERY good tool to have) you spend most of it walking through connecting bridges between hospitals. The interviews were really relaxed and Dean Curtiss was very plesant in our meeting/interview. (When you meet with the Dean, make sure you can concisely describe WHY PITT!)
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The day is about 8-3:30 depending on when your interviews end. The morning is an extensive tour of both the hospital (didn't see too much exciting stuff) and the school by an admissions staff member...the highlight is the WISER center, the largest non-military simulation lab in the country. Lunch is with med students in cafeteria, and then afternoon is personalized interview schedules: 1 dean (10 mins), 1 student (50 mins), 1 faculty member (50 mins)
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Overall, the day is way too packed. You see more of the hospital than you probably will in your first two years at the school. Student interviews you first and then a faculty member. Also, there is a hill leading up to the medical school, but it is not the behemoth other people have described.
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Great!--student interviewer was extremely nice and my interview was very conversational. the same goes for my faculty interviewer.
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I spent the night with an MD/PhD student who was really cool. We talked about a lot of issues and got lost trying to get to his house. On the interview day, we all got there at 9am & had coffee. A woman who worked in the admissions office took us on a tour, which basically consisted of walking through the 4 interconnected hospitals to the simulation center and then back to the admissions office. Then we had lunch at the hospital cafeteria & I had an interview with a student and the asst dean for diversity and then a Ph.D. bioengineer. Then I asked to meet with an MD, cause I wanted to ask about the patient population & they hooked me up with the dean of admissions, who is retired from practice. When I asked him my questions, he was super-disparaging. He doesn't practice anymore, they don't have this department anymore.... The rest of the day was pretty good, but the meeting with him was weird.
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Great interview. People were nice.
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Interviews were very relaxed ... one interviewer took me to Starbucks! I came away much more impressed with the school than I expected.
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Awesome in every way. the interviews were really chill, the tour is the best that ive had yet, and all in all, the school in just incredible.
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I was totally impressed and could see myself being very happy there. I left liking the school a lot more than when I arrived.
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What a special school. Pitt is just right on with all the ideals it espouses in its literature. The people here are caring, compassionate, friendly, fun, and happy to be at Pitt. I was impressed over and over again.
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I flew the red-eye flight so i left CA at 8pm and arrived in Pittsburgh at 6:30am. Changed into my suit at the airport bathroom and took the 28x shuttle to the school. I did not anticipate the hour long ride and didn't know where to get off so i overshot the stop and had to walk 5 blocks back the other way. By the time i sroll into the admissions office at the top of the hill, I was already 15 mins late. Day started with a tour to WISER - awesome sim dummies. We were suppose to go tour the anatomy labs but MS1 had an exam that day. About 10am, we had an admissions overview which didn't quite explain anything to me. We also had a cirriculum overview which was pretty good. Lunch was okay, $5 worth of food only. Around 1pm is when the interviews began. First interview was with Student, randomly matched. Student has no info on you except your name, school you went to, and city you're from. Afterwards, you either do Faculty interview or Associate(assistant) Dean interview for 15 mins. Associate Dean has your entire file and it is her job to figure out what questions adcom may have regarding the entire application. Third interview for me was faculty. She has your PS but nothing else. My faculty interview didn't go so well. On the other hand, I think i nailed the associate dean and student interviews. All the interviews asks exactly the same question: Why medicine, Why pitt, What extra cirricular. Each interviewer has a sheet they had to fill out with these questions on it. I think my faculty interviewer plowed through the questions in our first 10 mins so she will have it filled out. Then we talked about some non-sense: oil prices, hybrid cars, Hong Kong. I thought the interviewer was very nice but seem rushed. After you're done with the interviews, you fill out this eval and then you're ready to leave. Some people had late interview schedules so they couldn't leave until 4pm. I was lucky and left at 3:15pm. Caught the shuttle and arrived at the airport at 4:15pm for my flight at 6pm. I attribute my good interview day to the two pennies I picked up as i dropped them at the security checks before i flew to pittsburgh. Both pennies had the heads up. I'm keeping these pennies for a while.
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First, you interview with a student, which was actually a lot of fun. We started off with the usual questions, then we just had a random conversation for a half hour and ended it because I had to leave for another interview. The Dean of Admissions meets with you for 15 minutes. Be prepared for him to ask you where else you're applying, and to have comments on your answer! Next, I interviewed with a faculty member for a little under an hour. Again, we started with typical questions and then just had an interesting conversation about her research, current events, etc. These interviews are very low stress--enjoy them!
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One interview with a first year student, about 40 minutes, questions provided for student interviewer by admissions office. the student interview is completely closed file and was rather relaxed. this was followed by a 45-60 minute faculty interview, which is almost closed, although they do get to see your personal statement. also, fairly relaxed. then i had a 15 minute interview with the assistant dean of admission. the last interview is open-file, and for the most part seemed to be more so the school could gauge how interested you were in pitt (he asked me questions such as, how many schools did you apply to? how many interviews do you have?). all in all, while long, the interviews were very relaxed, and of the other propsective students who were there with me that day that i spoke with afterwards, all had similar experiences.
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The whole experience was really good. Although the number one complaint I've heard from interviewees is that the day is really long, I didn't have a problem with it, even if I did have to wake up at 6:30. The tour was thorough. The curriculum overview was very straight-forward and informative. No nonsense or fluff. I had three 30 min-1 hour interviews and a 15 min. interview with Dr. Curtiss.
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Great experience. This interview was more laid back and relaxed than I could have possibly imagined. I went away very impressed with the school itself and the friendliness of all the students.
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The day began at 8am with a 2 hour tour, followed by an information session with a faculty member and lunch with a few fourth-year med students. After lunch was a one-hour-long interview with a first or second year medical student, followed by a one-hour-long interview with a faculty member and a 15-minute individual session with the Dean of Admissions.
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Low stress, even though it was my first interview and I had flown halfway across the country to be there. Everyone was very professional and courteous. One student interview (she talked mainly about herself, so it was easy), a brief meeting with Dr. Curtiss in Admissions, then a faculty meeting. I've read complaints that the tour is too long -- it's thorough, but I had other tours that didn't show anything, so I was happy with this one. Great school.
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It was a really long day, 8-5. I enjoyed the day, but boy was I tired at the end.
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I think Pitt is a great place. The hospital is the only game in town, and the school keeps reinventing itself every year with all the money it receives. The only negative was my faculty interviewer was terrible. He repeatedly left in the middle of the interview, took phone calls, and proceeded to make anatagonistic comments about all of my experiences. He definitely shouldn't be interviewing medical students because he couldn't have gotten anything out of my interview except leaving me with a negative impression.
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The day begins with a long 2 hour tour of the school and UPMC hospitals followed by an hour presentation on the curriculum. After the presentation, you have lunch with a group of 3rd and 4th year students. Following lunch, you have an hour-long interview with a 1st year student who only knows your hometown and college (the student has a list of questions). Then, you have a hour-long interview with a faculty member who has been provided your AMCAS personal statement. Finally, you have a 15 minute wrapup interview with a member of the Admissions Committee who answers any final questions and gauges your interest in the school.
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Pitt was my top choice going into this. I really wish I had met more students during the day. I knew two people there from my college, but that wasn't enough. I met with a student interviewer as well as a faculty one. Neither of them see your grades, scores, etc. and the faculty interviewer gets your essay(s). Everyone was really nice, but by the end of the day at my last meeting, I was beat. My faculty interviewer was in charge of the Methods, Logic, and Medicine, and he was really pumped about it.
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University of Pittsburgh schedules its interviews for MSTP applicants over two consecutive days. The first day is filled involves ~6-7 interviews for the MSTP, and the second day is much lighter, with two interviews for the MD Program (faculty and student). You will likely be exhausted (unless you are quite the interview veteran) by the end of the first day: it was packed with interviews and informational sessions. However, during the entire day, I never felt rushed or stressed about getting from one place to another, and I liked the school more with each interview. The interviews were not stressful, but were not a free-form conversation. Going out to dinner with the MSTP students and applicants was very enjoyable, and allowed me to get a bit of a feel of Pittsburgh. The second day of interviews seemed almost relaxing after the first day. The interviews were more conversational, and were really aimed at getting to know the applicant as a person rather than as an "applicant." The tour of the school and hospital was great, and got me even more excited about their facilities.
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This is written for all of the BS/MD kids when I did it back in the day. This interview is feeble compared to real medical school interviews. It's basically a tour for you guys.
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The interviewers were awesome. They tried to make the situation as comfortable as possible by conducting the interview (really a conversation)in a quiet room devoid of distractions such as phones or other people. They walk you through the maze of a hospital. They seem genuinely sincere in their encouraging you to ask questions (not just as a way to gauge your interest of the school). They give out their contact information afterward. Really they make you as comfortable as possible and actually get to know you without pummeling you with questions.
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The interview day starts at 8:00 with a two hour long tour. The student interview was at 12:00 after lunch and the faculty interview was at 2:00.The student interview was very relaxed and it is done by first year students and they seem to know the stress associtaed with this whole interview process . My student interviewer was very nice and tried to make me relax and there were no difficult questions. The interview was conversational and was about 25 minutes. The faculty interview also was very relaxed and conversational.
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There was an extensive tour of the facilities (which were impressive) and a lunch with some current med students who were all very friendly and informative. There was also an overview of the school's curriculum and theory on medical education given by one of the directors of medical education that was very informative. We all then split up and went with current 1st and 2nd year students you interviewed us one on one. My interviewer was very laid back and friendly. Definitely was more of a get to know you conversation than an "interview". I then went to the office of my faculty interviewer. Once again she was very friendly and laid back. We spent more time talking about the Steelers than anything. I then returned to the admissions office and had a short wrap-up interview with one of the Dean's of Admission. This last interview was very short and more to make sure all my questions were answered than anything.
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Pitt is a great school. I think the place should be ranked more highly, but the fact is that the top 20 schools are all great, depending on one's individual preferences.
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Pitt looks like a great school. i am sure that i'd be happy there. i went in with a positive impression of pitt and it did not disappoint, but it also wasn't way better than i'd thought (which isn't really problematic, since i started with a good impression).
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Really well done, relaxed and efficient day. I was done by 4pm.
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Pitt organized the interview day well. It began with a long tour of the facilities, which I guess is good though. Then an overview of the admissions process and curriculum (in-depth). Then I had one student interview and then a faculty interview, each for an hour. Both were very nice, just trying to get to know me and why I applied to Pitt. You also meet with a member of the admissions committee for like 5-10 minutes just as a wrap-up...I guess to find out how the day went and how interested you are in Pitt! Overall, a good day...too bad the other applicants seemed kinda dry, boring, aloof people. Tends to happen at med school interviews tho!
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Overall, a phenomenal school. refer to subsequent sections for my opinions.
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I had no idea I would like Pitt so much. The students here are even happy with their PBL classes and are so relaxed. Competition seemed at a minimum. It certainly moved up my list of schools I'd like to attend after my day there.
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This was my first interview and, needless to say, I was quite intimidated at the start of the day. However, I tried my best to relax and be at ease with my fellow interviewees, a group of students applying not only to the MD program, but also the MD/PhD program. Overall, my impression of Pitt is that it is an amazing and ever growing school where you find your niche in any type of medicine.
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The day was very organized and they kept us so busy we didn't have time to be nervous!
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I really liked Pitt Med. The curriculum, faculty, and students are wonderful. I would love to go there except I'm not sure about living in PIttsburgh.
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There were 10 applicants: a short intro and long tour by admissions secretary, curriculum discussion (not long enough), lunch w/ a few students, interviews (one staff/one student). An OK experience all in all. I was definately much more excited about the school before my visit than I am now.
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The interview was over two days for the MD/PhD students. The first day was for the MD/PhD program and the second was for the MD program. Had 6 interviews on the first day and two on the second (a student and a faculty interview). Overall, interviews were low key and easy going.
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Very strong day. They load you up with a lot of information, sometimes too much information, like during the curriculum discussion, but too much is better than not enough. The medical complex is truly ginormous, so it takes two hours to do the tour. I'm a fan of the interview setup--one faculty, one student. I came interested in the school, and I left even more interested. Also, Pittsburgh seems like a cool place to live...at least to me.
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There are two interviewers, a student and a faculty member. Each interview is weighted equally. An hour is allotted for each interview, and they will run close to that. The student has a preprinted list of questions to which they're supposed to get the answers, but if you steer the conversation right, you'll address most of those points without them needing to ask you flat out. The student interview is totally closed file, while the faculty member has only your PS. They ask a lot of questions about how you feel about Pitt's block curriculum, PBL, and the city of Pittsburgh -- answer truthfully, with a positive spin. You also have a 15 minute interview with an admissions dean, who will ask you questions like how you feel about Pitt and how you see yourself practicing medicine in the future. Pitt is an amazing school with great training, great research opportunities, great primary care emphasis, and a great attitude toward their students. They're all about cooperation, listening to student feedback, and treating patients with respect.
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I think I was long winded enough, so I will just say that I loved this school. The little things...such as receiving an itinerary with my name on it...lets me know that Pitt spends much time and effort on making sure that the day goes smoothly.
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Excellent! Great, I just wish the class and school was a bit more diverse.
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The adcom office serves as sort of a home base where about 10-15 interviewees meet. There is a 2 hour tour of a geographically confusing facility, but I get lost everywhere. This is followed by a financial aid/curriculum info session. Then a student interview (~1 hour), a faculty interview (60 min), and 15 min interview with Dean Curtiss. I was very impressed with Pitt. They market themselves as a school "with heart" and I thought they were pretty convincing, having worked in similar environments. Note: Pay attention to the curriculum discussion.
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I am currently attending Pitt despite the fact that they offer little or no financial aid. They have impleneted a new curriculum that I am not 100% comfortable with. However, I still truly live the school.
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Pittsburgh tries to make the interview experience really relaxing, which it is, so this isn't one to stress out about. Do know stuff about Pittsburgh, because they're going to ask why you want to go there. Pittsburgh is a great school and it impressed me a lot - met my expectations.
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My interviewer was extremely friendly and took a genuine interest in my personal statement. She offered some insights into her work and gave me some advice for med school and residencies.
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Overall laid back. very jammed packed with stuff to do, barely could squeeze in a pee between interviews! informative. nice staff. didn't see hospital very much. boring curriculum talk, too detailed.
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Pitt is awesome! If I knew tomorrow that I got in I would skip the rest of my interviews... too bad we don't find out until Feb or March!
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It was my first interview and I was worried that I would mess it up because of nervousness, but it was really no big deal. I was ready for the obvious topics of discussion (Why do I want to be a doctor? What's wrong with health care in this country? Talk about research, etc.) and there were no curve ball questions at all. My student interview was with a very laid-back girl. We had a very casual conversation about med school and life and she barely asked me any official questions. My faculty interviewer was a little more serious, but she warmed up after a while and we had a good chat. The final interview with one of the deans was more of a wrap-up and she was incredibly friendly. Overall, I liked Pitt a lot and if they had rolling admissions and accepted me tomorrow I would probably withdraw my other applications and go. In general, as long as you are comfortable explaining why you want to go into medicine and are a sociable person, there is nothing to fear in this interview! In fact, it was sort of fun.
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A wonderful school. I liked the atmosphere, the UPMC hospitals, and the interviews were so low-key and not stressful. The student interviewer has no information about you and they have a checklist of questions they have to ask you. The faculty interviewer only has your personal statement (which they don't really read too much of), so basically we talked about very relaxed topics such as hobbies, life, Pittsburgh, etc
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You start with a breakfast of donuts, danish rolls, and coffee. Then you take a really long tour (truncated in our case due to the elevator jam). Then you have the student interview, faculty interview, and a short 15 min interview with one of the admissions Deans. If Pitt Med is your no. 1 choice, that's a good opportunity to let them know of that. Then you are done for the day.
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Wonderful, students were friendly, but my group of interviewers were so Anti Social....ugg! But the school was great, huge too! They really care about you, and a great wonderful day. Very organized, they give u food like muffins and coffee and juice in the morning, u go on the tour, then someone talks to us about curriculum....go to interviews, talk to dean for 15 mins, he just says do u have any questions, its lame....then its over!
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I was very positively impressed with the school's facilities, the administration and the students. As a whole, I think that Pitt has a truly healthy approach to teaching future doctors. The interview day was THOROUGH!!! But to be honest, I was glad they took the time to get to know me. I traveled six hours to the interview and felt that every part of the day made it worth the trip.
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Very good interview day; great tour (except of housing facilities) and lots of chances to speak with students. student interview is also another unique plus.
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Amazing day...I really enjoyed the interview. But I've enjoyed all of my interviews, so don't take it too seriously. Pitt is definitely my top choice after visiting for the day, they really are all about the people.
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It was good, i came out with a positive view of the school and the potential it could have in my future, now i just gotta endure the wait for a decision.
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Day started with long tour which consisted of being led from room to room with very little commentary, then lunch with only 2 students for 15 interviewees, then student interviews that were very good, then adcom interview, then faculty interview. It was a long day for me because I had to wait between interviews, but you can use the time to check out the Peterson center or see a little of the campus.
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The interviewer and I really connected in a manner I cannot say was duplicated in any other interview. He was really concerned with getting to know me.
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The day started very early. Climbing up the hill to Scaife hall can be tiring if you are out of shape like me. The only thing that impressed me that day was the simulation lab. It's nice but I don't think Pitt students use it as much as they'd like you to believe. It's an elective course after all. I really really wanted to like UPitt. I heard great stuff about it, so much so that my expectation for the school may have been too high. I wasn't blown away. Personally, I think they botched the interview day and left a bad impression in me. However, it's a great school and I'd still seriously consider it though. First thing on the agenda was the tour, bring sneakers. Next comes the boring talks about UPitt's curriculum. They basically read that MS1-MS4 chart to you and describe each course in detail, way too much detail. Then we interviewee got to talk to their uninteresting student rep at lunch (they really should pick someone more outgoing with a sense of humor). There was about 2 students for 15 interviewee. Next came the student interview followed by the faculty interview and then a debriefing where they ask about your impression and experience. The faculty interviewer gets your personal statement so they are less likely to ask about your EC and reason for being a doctor. They'll go for more detailed questions. My faculty interviewer was rather stoic and that stressed me. Many of us applicants were left waiting for hours afterwards because we all booked our flights after 7PM and did not expect the day to end at 3PM, 4PM etc.
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My interviewer was real nice, just wanted to get to know me. Student interviewer was also a nice guy, real mellow.
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Pretty well run day. Started off with some short talks and a tour by the staff, followed by an early lunch. Then you have an interview with a student, one with faculty, and a 15 minute one with a member of the admissions committee
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UPitt has a great program going for it. It combines lecture with PBL and the students all seem to like the curriculum. The Simulation Lab is great and will be a huge benefit to students (and patients!). The faculty was great, the students were encouraging and seemed to feel they were getting the best education out there. The UPitt hospital seems to be top notch and there is more construction going on to make new research buildings. You have a student interview, a faculty interview and then a quick meeting with a Dean. I was very pleasantly surprised with UPitt.
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This was my first interview, so it was only stressful in that I hadn't done one yet. The interviews were really conversational and mellow. The interview with the student was blind so it was easy to tell them what you wanted them to hear. The faculty interviewer got to read my personal statement and nothing else, so we mostly talked about that and her research interests. My interview with the Dean was short and I ended up having to rewrite (while he was waiting) the first two sentences in every paragraph of my secondary. Apparently this is the first year the secondary was online and they were having a lot of problems. I suggest taking your secondary responses with you. All in all it was a great school, unfortunately, the surrounding area didn't impress me.
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The school seems to take a really good care of medical students, providing enough support system, encouraging them to have life outside the school. All my interviewers were truly interested in getting to know who I am as a person. Lunch with 3rd-year students were informative.
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Great school, seems under-rated. All the students seem happy there. The interviews were very laid back and conversational. The student interview was great because you get a lot of one on one time with a current student so you can get a real feel for what it is like there.
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The people and the environment were very welcoming. I love this school
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I would advise staying with a student host. Mine was awesome. Very happy to answer my questions and sell U-Pitt to me. Take a bus to and from the school, dont drive. It is onlt $1.75 each way compared to $15 to park in the tower or $8 for a cab each way. The students at Pitt are all very friendly. I was asked multiple times when walking to my interviews if I needed any help finding where I was going. I dont think I looked lost, but us interviewees stick out like a sore thumb. Overall I think Pitt is a great school. I'm a small-town guy so I dont know if I could get used to living in Pittsburgh, but I was very impressed with the school.
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Not very stressful, a good experience overall.
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My first year interviewer just had an exam, so she was really tired. We had a nice conversation though. I had to regurgitate alot of my AMCAS application since the interview was closed-file. My faculty interviewer was really nice and we talked about random things and she gave me insight on future specialties. I was surprised at the handful of students who have babies - it seems like the school is very supportive. There were alot of interviewees - most were really nice. Overall, it was an impressive school.
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I had a great interview experience. There were too many other interviewees though so it was hard to walk around.
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I had no opinion of Pitt when I went there but now I really really like it. The cafeteria had decent food, everyone I met was nice, the curriculum seems well thought out. All the feedback I read on here is really honest and accurate. I knew what to expect. I was stressed because it was my very first interview. My interviewers really tried to make it a low stress day. The student interview was about 45 minutes as was the faculty interview. It was more conversational. My student interviewer didn't even take notes and he only knew my name. The faculty had my personal statement. Then I had a 15 minute meeting with the dean. As far as I could tell she only had my picture. Oh yeah they ask you to bring a picture with you to the interview so if you have pictures left over from your secondaries, hold on to them. The tour was long but informative. They really try to familiarize you with the school and surrounding area. If you plan to do any sightseeing on your own tho, bring your comfortable shoes!!! The school is on a seriously steep hill.
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Good. surprisingly, the most stressful "interview" was the 15 min meeting with the dean... it was just too short a time to convey anything
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Good overall experience. I had an interview with a faculty member and a student. Both were mostly closed file (student was completely blind and faculty only had personal statement). We also had a tour and lunch with some 3rd year students. My day ended at 3:30PM.
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Overall, I was impressed. Make sure you're proactive in getting your questions answered.
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Definitely my favorite med school so far (I've already had 4 interviews.) Well organized day; they kept us busy. Gave us a lot of information. Met with students and faculty. Plenty of things to do in the area also. Just a note: neither the student or faculty interview has your file. The student has nothing at all; the faculty member has a copy of your personal statement and your hometown and college. That's it. Then there's a final 15-minute "meeting" with one of the Deans. Very low stress.
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In general, a very pleasant experience. the students were very nice and seemed to think very positively of the school and their classmates. lunch was good. try to get an early interview, when first years are still in the anatomy lab.
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Received a great tour of the facilities, including the anatomy lab. Met current students who were very interested in talking to us, despite their upcoming exams. Interviewed with one 2nd year student, one faculty member, and an admissions Dean. All were casual and fun.
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Faculty interviewers have your personal statement, but they don't have most of your file. The interviews are completely stress-free. It is a lot of fun to interview at Pitt.
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It was overall a very relaxed day. My student interview was a closed file and was very nice. The whole point seemed to be to get to know you. The last interview was actually a quick 15 minute meeting in which the admissions staff member just talked to me about how nice Pittsburg was (I had never been there before)
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Overall I had a wonderful experience interviewing at Pitt. It was my first interview, so I was a bit stressed out. Luckily, we took the tour first which helped me loosen up and get comfortable. Interviewed with fourteen other students, all of whom were very friendly and interesting to talk to. The facilities at Pitt are REALLY impressive - as mentioned in another feedback. The student interview was a bit disappointing, while the faculty interview was incredible! At the end of the day, you interview with one of the deans for admission for about fifteen minutes. All the interviews were low stress, and were more of a conversation than a grill session. I felt they really tried to get to know me as a person, and were willing to share who they were and where they came from too. Pitt is at the top of my list - but we have to wait until March to find out if we got in...
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Overall, I thought Pittsburgh was impressive. The days starts early (around 8AM), and though there was supposed to be a 'welcome', we just chatted amongst ourselves before we were called for the tour. One interesting part of the tour was a stop in the anatomy lab where students were dissecting. It was a surprising first experience of anatomy and certainly impressive that they let prospectives in there. The students were very open to questions and excited to show us what they were working on. After the tour was a speech about the curriculum and then lunch with some 1st/2nd years. The interviews were all fairly laid back. The student/faculty interviewers have a paper with reqiured and suggested questions on them and my faculty interviewer even went over questions they were supposed to answer about us (e.g. Does this student demonstrate creativity?). There is also a fifteen minutes meeting with a dean, and though this should be easy, for some reason, mine wasn't despite the other interviews going extremely well. All-in-all Pitt does a good job selling itself despite hosting such a long day. I would love to go here.
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Student interviewer was cool, faculty interviewer was a toolbox.
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The interviews were pretty relaxed and low-stress. My student interview (completely closed file) was short because my interviewer had to get to her ambulatory care rotation, but I felt as comfortable as if I were talking to a friend. My faculty interview (closed-file except AMCAS personal essay) was almost an hour long, and we talked about common interests like singing. Then there's a 15-minute open-file meeting with the dean. This was my first interview, so I was a little nervous, but all in all it was a good experience and not very stressful. Overall, Pitt looks like an excellent school in a fun, affordable area to live, and I would be happy to go here.
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So pitt was a "pleasant surprise" - it looks to be a very good school that wants to take itself up to the upper tier of schools. also, here's the deal with interviews. There are 3, but one is with an admissions dean and is only 15 minutes. that one is open file, but the other two are closed except that the faculty member has your AMCAS app - the student has only a name and hometown. it's very stress-free, and they make a good case for themselves. The student interview was great - I interviewed her as much as she did me - and she just wanted to get to know me. Also, we toured the GA lab... WHILE THE 1ST YEARS WERE IN THERE DISSECTING! how friggin' cool is that!
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It was a great experience. I was nervous because it was my first interview, but they did everything they could to make it not stressful. It worked, too! I enjoyed the whole day. It was kind of long, though. I was there from 7:30am-4:30pm. Overall, I was very impressed by their program and I feel I would be very happy going there.
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Mostly positive, I do wish I had asked for a second faculty interview just to get someone who was a little more experienced and who could compare me with other applicants, but no big complaints.
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Positive experience, no attitude and everyone seemed very interested in reducing the stress level of the day. A
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I fell in love with the school while I was there, had a fabulous student interviewer, but my interview with my faculty interviewer was incredibly disappointing.
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Everyone at Pitt was really friendly. The school definitely has great facilities if you are interested in research. The students all seemed really friendly, I got the feeling Pitt is non-competitive. My faculty interviewer was really nice, gave me positive feedback. However, the lack of diversity in Pittsburgh turned me off.
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THe interview day was very informative and interesting. Interview with a student, faculty member and an admissions staff member. The tour and curriculum presentation were very informative.
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I left with a positive impression of the school.
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VERY positively....I am from Pittsburgh and love the area and now the school as well :-)
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It went really well; no stress at all; just relax, in addition to 2 interviews (one student, one faculty) there is a 15min meeting w/ the dean or admissions staff. If you really want Pitt, tell them - they are the ones voting and deciding on you - try to make as best an impression on them as possible.
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Pitt is a fine institution. However, the city itself is not so great.
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Good facilities, great people, horribly horribly cold
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I have mixed feelings about the school. The program seems good, but something about it didn't live up to the hype it gets. I think that was just the lack of new facilities that some schools have, and not a reflection of the program.
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If tuition were not an issue, U. of Pitt would be my top choice. The interview is low stress but I did not leave with an idea of how well I did. From what I hear, the interview is just part of the equation and it will not make or break you.
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I really like Pitt.
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It took a bit of warming up my faculty interviewer to get him to talk more.
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Pitt is an extraordinary school with a wonderful feel to it. Students and faculty are both happy about each other and there seems to be a very constructive environment in which to pursue medicine
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Best yet. You have nothing to be afraid of at Pitt: they are good people and they try to make things comfortable.
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There are 3 interviews: 1 Faculty(1 hr., closed file), 1 student(1 hr., closed file), Admissions staff(15 min., open file) All the interviewers are just trying to get to know you. The faculty and student interview carry the same weight and summarize the interview they had with you as well as rate you on a 10 point scale. The day lasts from 8:45am until about 3pm. The day also includes breakfast and lunch, a "Welcome" talk, a tour (with time spent in "anatomy museum"), and a bit long-winded discussion on the curriculum. You receive a stack of papers and a book upon arriving. The staff is friendly and the atmosphere seems congenial. Curriculum is constantly changing which shows a commitment to the students and their input and ideas. Strong research facilities and partnerships in the region make UPMC an attractive residency choice as well.
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I really enjoyed myself in Pittsburgh. From the moment I arrived until the moment I left I felt welcome and comfortable. I stayed at the Shadyside Inn which is increadibly cheap and really, really nice. It's also close to the "chic" area of town. The interiew was really low key. An extremely friendly woman made the introductions. We then went on a very short tour consisting of the student lounge, the anatomy lab, PBL rooms, and a class room. I'm glad they spared us the tour of the hospital...you've seen one you've seen them all. Then we listened to a woman talk about the curriculum which was informative. Lunch was with a third year med student and that was cool. He talked to us about time management because he has a wife and child. Then, on to the student interviews. It lasted an hour but he was so easy to talk to we could have easily talked for longer. He had a list of questions that he basically gave to me and asked if there was anything he had forgotten. I thought that was kind of funny. Then on to a short interview with the Director of Admissions. She was so nice and we just chit chatted. The factulty interview was not as easy but followed the same conversational pattern. Most of the questions followed the conversation aside from the few that were directly from the paper, which looked a lot like the one the student had. And then the day was over.
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First they fed you breakfast. There was a tour, a talk about the curriculum, and lunch with the students. Then I had a student interview and a faculty member interview, each was about 50 min. The student was great, but the faculty member talked the whole time himself. I enjoyed listening to him, but I wasn't sure if he got a good idea of who I am at all. There was also a 15min interview with the dean of admissions, and it was just an informal chat. I thought that was nice since we don't often get to talk to the dean on a one-on-one basis.
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As described in all previous postings, the interviews were VERY conversational. You have 3 interviews; one with a student, one with a faculty member (both scheduled for 1 hr), and a short 15 min with someone on the admissions committee. The student had a list of questions which I think he was supposed to ask and fill out on a sheet, but we never got around to em becuase we were just talking about all sorts of things in a conversational way. I guess the list of Q's is a suggested list for non-talkers? (either that or I failed the interview in the fist 5 minutes and he decided not to waste his time in answering the Q's!) The faculty interview was very conversational as well and they don't do anything to rattle you or ask any hard questions at all. I was only asked like 3 questions out of the blue, and the rest of them were little questions that were based on the conversation.
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I really enjoyed my interview experience here! My student interviewer was very friendly, and asked non-threatening "tell my about yourself and why you want to be a doctor"-type questions. My faculty interviewer was also very friendly and talkative, and gave me the impression that he really liked meeting me. However, I did not enjoy meeting witht he Director of Minority Affairs. They did not tell that it was going to be an interview beforehand, (they called it a "meeting"). She asked the same exact questions that I had already been asked twice before, so I was pretty tired of answering at that point.
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The day was low key and low stress. My interviews were very conversational. Everybody was friendly.
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3 MD/PhD faculty interviewers, 1/2 hour each. 1 student MD/PhD interview, 1/2 hour. 1 faculty MD interview, 1 student MD interview. I forget the length of time for them, but I think they were both an hour each. Note the MD/PhD interview is two days, MD/PhD interviews on day 1, MD interviews on day 2. If you are applying MD/PhD look out for the director. He seems like a real nice guy, but he puts on this game face when he interviews and tries not to respond at all when you interview him. Before and just after the interview, he returns to normal person mode.
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I had an enjoyable day at Pitt. I liked learning more about the PBL curriculm, the studentswith whom I spoke were very informative, my student interview was great. Despite my faculty interview starting late, I still felt the time was well spent and my day ended around 3:00 with a meeting by an admission committee member. Overall, the experience went really well!
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I arrived at the Admissions office at around 8:45 am. We were taken on a tour of the med school, which lasted about an hour. After the tour, we were given an in-depth view of the curriculum. Lunch was hosted by 1st + 3rd year students at 12 noon. My first interview was with a 2nd year student at 1:20. My second interview was with a faculty member. Linda, the director of admissions, spoke to me briefly at around 3 pm and the day was over!!!
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Pitt is a wonderful school for a number of reasons. First, everyone there -- students, faculty, and staff -- seemingly LOVE the school and all are more than willing to talk to you about why. The school is in the middle of changing what is an already good curriculum and adding time at the end of the second year for a rotation or two in order to give students more time before having to apply for residencies. They seem to be very responsive to student demands, and this seems to foster good student-faculty relations. The interviews were easy, laid-back, and striaghtforward. My first hour was with a current first-year who was simply a very cool guy, and I enjoyed talking with him. The faculty interview was with a PhD who teaches, and we had a wonderful discussion about me, my motivations for medicine, growing up in Pittsburgh, life at my undergrad school, etc. We also talked about his research, as I knew a little bit about his field. He was very laid back, conversational, etc. and I truly enjoyed talking to him. I had a final closing interview (15 min) with an admissions representative -- the only one of the three interviews which is open-file -- and was given the opportunity to address anything else I wanted them to know about me. Having this interview as open file allowed me to address a transcript issue, and she explained the unforunate non-rolling admissions policy (no notification until March!). All in all, Pitt is a wonderful school and one that is likely going to be my first-choice.
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The student interview was great, informative, just a conversation. My student interviewer even gave me tips for my faculty interview. On the other hand, my faculty interviewer was 45 minutes late. The interview was scheduled for one hour and only lasted about 15 minutes. The interview wasn't conversational at all, mostly shot questions (although most weren't very difficult) at me. Overall, the interview was rushed.
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The student interviewer was really nice, but i felt like my faculty interviewer wished he didn't have to waste his time with me.
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The whole day was laid back. Everyone went out of their way to remove as much stress as possible.
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The day started with a meeting with faculty, who presented about financial aid, the medical school, and Pittsburgh. We were given bagels and drinks (which was great since most of us had not eaten). There were about nine of us interviewing. We were given a tour by the financial aid director. We had lunch with medical students and then had our interviews in the afternoon. I was interviewed by one student, one physician, and another staff member. These interviews were the best interviews (relaxed, open dialogue, very interested people, friendly) of all the interviews I have had (7 schools, 18 people). The interviewers were sincerely interested in me and wanted to know more about who I am as a person. I learned a lot about the area by asking questions of the interviewers. The students are happy at the medical school. Pittsburgh is a nice city, that is very affordable $80K buys you a house not too far from the school. It has problem based learning integrated into a traditional style of teaching.
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Pitt seems like a great school, the students are really happy and they seem to be getting a great education, I really like the why the curriculum is set up.
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U Pitt was not close to the top of my medical school list, but they really impressed me. Their problem-base learining is not the whole focus of their classes, but it is really cool and still a major part of the learning there. My faculty interviewer was awesome, and I actually enjoyed talking to him.
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I had a wonderful time.
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Overall, a good day, but very long. You will probably have lots of down time between interviews. Other interviewees were very fun to talk with though! U.Pitt seems to produce very happy med students!
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It was awesome - it was a great way to start the interview season, if i like all the schools as i liked pitt than i will hava hard decision.
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I was very impressed. The interview is two days long. First day is for MD/PhD. There is one research faculty interview. The rest is with MSTP administrators. Be sure to know the reason for getting both degrees. There is also a MSTP student interview. The second day is straight MD interview with one faculty and one student. Overall very low stress. Students are very happy.
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Awesome
-
It was pretty good overall. I enjoyed interacting with the students.
-
The whole experience was more stressful than another interview I'd had. They provide some food in the morning which is nice. Someone did a presentation on the curriculum which was way too detailed and boring. My student interviewer said he wasn't told until that morning that he was going to interview me. Not the way to make someone feel too welcome. But then again, nothing catastrophic happened either.
-
The student interviewer and the faculty interviewer each have a sheet with about six questions they have to answer. I couldn't read it completely (upside-down to me during the interview) but two I picked up on seemed to be "summarize their background" and "comment on the candidate's interpersonal skills," along with the aforementioned interesting and difficult questions. They pretty much just asked you about your background, then asked you a few questions, and then just chatted about whatever was their passing fancy. There's a 15-minute chat with someone in the Admissions department; I chatted with Lisa Wick, the assistant director of admissions, and she was very personable and pretty much just pages through your AMCAS application in front of you and comments on it informally. I felt comfortable asking her any questions I had about how admissions committees would react to various things in my application.
-
A very low-stress, casual interview day. The schedule is full, so be prepared for spending the whole day there. But it's well spent time that goes by fast because of the accommodating, light-hearted admissions staff and faculty.
-
Both interviewers were extremely nice, friendly, and easy to talk to--the whole day was very low key...they are not out to stress you, they just want to meet you and talk to you.
-
The interviews were useless & insulting. They can't be worth much because there are two boxes at the bottom of the question sheet. Would you recommend this person: Yes or No
-
Went very well. I was laughing and telling jokes at both interviews
💬 Interview Process ▼
Length, number, and type of interviews
🕐
Length:
49 Minutes Average
🔄
Number:
2.5 Interviews Average
👥
Interview Type (Interaction):
99% One-on-One
1% Group Interview
📁
File Type:
25% Open-File
75% Closed-File
💻
Interview Modality:
100% Virtual
0% In-Person
PITT-MED-COMP interviews are an average of 49 minutes, with an average of 2.5 interviews. 99% of interviews are one-on-one, 0% are in-person, and 75% are closed-file.
What is one of the specific questions they asked you?
The most commonly asked interview questions at medical schools include inquiries about the applicant's motivation for pursuing medicine, specific interests in the field, reasons for choosing the University of Pittsburgh, experiences working in teams, and personal qualities that make them a suitable candidate for medical school. Additionally, many responses mentioned the standard questions about research experiences, career goals, extracurricular activities, and how the applicant's background aligns with their interest in medicine. Some respondents noted being asked about their uniqueness, future aspirations in medicine, and specific details about their research roles.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
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Share an experience where you worked with others on a project. What role did you play? What did you learn from this?
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Where do you see medicine in the future?
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Why Pitt?
-
Why Medicine? Why University of Pittsburgh? Why Pittsburgh (As a city)?
-
Tell me how you made the decision to pursue medicine. Tell me how you tested or explored this decision
-
Why pitt, why medicine, all the usual crap. There were no surprise questions at all.
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Why PittMed? Why medicine? What makes you unique?
-
Tell me about yourself, why medicine, why nursing/PA/researcher...
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Why medicine
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How does your major connect to medicine?
-
Tell me about your research
-
Why do you want to go into medicine?
-
Tell me about yourself
-
Tell me about yourself.
-
All the typical interview questions. Why Pitt? Why medicine? Why not PA/NP? Tell me about your research. Student interview is closed, faculty is open except for MCAT/GPA.
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Tell me about an experience working in a team.
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Why medicine?
-
What sets you apart?
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Why University of Pittsburgh?
-
What else have you done in college that is not on your application?
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What are leadership positions you have had?
-
How are you creative?
-
Why Pitt? Why doctor and not other medical field (nurse, PA, etc)?
-
Why I though my educational path was best for medicine
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Where do you see yourself in 20 years? (for MSTP interview)
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"What do you do for fun?"
-
In closed-file interview (with student) I was asked about clinical experiences, what I do in my free time, etc.
-
Tell me about yourself. Why medicine? Why Pitt?
-
Tell me an example of a time you demonstrated creativity
-
Student interviewer (MS2) had a list of questions: Why medicine? Why Pitt? What kind of clinical experience do you have? What *other* clinical experiences do you have? Hobbies? What kind of superpower would you like to have? Do you have any questions?
-
Why do you want to work with [insert specific demographic from my application]?
-
What book have you read recently?
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When did you know you wanted to go into medicine?
-
Why Pitt...why medicine...some questions about my activities...tell me about yourself.
-
They mainly tried to gauge what I was like as a person, and why the school was a good fit for me.
-
Why MD vs nurse practioner or another career
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The basics, tell me about yourself, tell me why you want to be a physician, tell me why pitt
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What led you pursue medicine?
-
How did you find out about Pitt Med? (I'm from CA)
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Why medicine, why pitt
-
Tell me about the process that led you into deciding to go into medicine.
-
Tell me about yourself/your interest in medicine.
-
Tell me about your research and your role in it.
-
Why medicine? Why Pitt?
-
Student interviewer: Why do you want to be a doctor?
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Both student and faculty: why medicine?
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Why UPitt?
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What would make you come to Pitt?
-
Why Pitt
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What are you looking for in a medical school?
-
What kind of research do you do?
-
How are you creative
-
Why Pitt? (both my student and faculty interviewers asked me this)
-
Besides why medicine and why Pitt, what kind of doctor do you want to be?
-
What made you want to go into medicine?
-
So what are you doing here at Pitt? (in other words, Why Pitt?)
-
Was there a specific moment in your life that compelled you to pursue medical school?
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From student interviewer: Why Pitt?
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Tell me about yourself, Why Med
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Tell me about yourself. tell me about your research, your undergrad, (everything basic). what do you do for fun
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Questions about my undergrad institution. How did I choose my major, and what type of classes does it entail?
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General get to know you questions: tell me about yourself, your background. What have you been doing since graduating?
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What's the biggest healthcare problem and how would you change it?
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Student Interviewer: What motivates you? How do you deal with competition? What do you believe will be your biggest sacrifice coming into medical school?
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What brings you to Pittsburgh?
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Where did you go to school and why medicine?
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Why Pitt (Most common question)
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Tell me about yourself. Something that's not in your application.
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Have you ever considered research?
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What do you like about Pittsburgh?
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What have you done since you graduated college?
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Are you interested in research?
-
Why Pitt? I'm from LA.
-
Why med school?
-
What did you do during undergrad?
-
Why Pitt? What have you learned about Pitt since you have been here?
-
What are some non-medically relatedly activities you're involved in?
-
Why did you choose to go into medicine?
-
Student: What superpower would you want? Why medicine? Why Pitt? What do you do for fun? Tell me about your extra curricular activities.
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By student: in an informal, conversational way: why medicine, why pitt...I asked her a lot of questions about her work in community outreach.
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What do you do for fun
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Why do you want to be a doctor?
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Is diversity important to you?
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How did you get here?
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Are you married?
-
Besides your clinical experience (3 years) what other medical experience have you had? I thought this was an odd question. It seems to me that 3 yrs of nearly full-time clinical experience is fairly significant for a medical school applicant.
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Student interviewer: How do you work in small groups? (Pitt has PBL every other week so be prepared for that). Superpower question. Why medicine? No really, why medicine? What do you think about Pittsburgh? Do you have any questions for me?
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Tell me about your research.
-
Why Pittsburgh?
-
WHat do you do now?
-
How do you feel about working in small groups?
-
Tell me about your research experience. He was more interested in my role in the project, but be prepared to talk about your research in detail.
-
What kind of training do you have to have to be a massage therapist. (my profession)
-
What is your favotire book? - I really didn't have a favorite so I just talked about the most recent one I read.
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How would your friends describe you? (asked by student interviewer)
-
Why med?
-
My first interview was a student interview and she asked your basic questions (why medicine, etc.) My second was a faculty interviewer (who was awesome by the way) and that was a convo. The third is w/ a person from the admissions staff. this one's like 20 minutes and it seemed extremely laid back. No difficult questions. Just what my future plans are, etc...
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How did tennis helkp with your development as a person? (Played tennis for many years)
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Why do you want to practice transplant medicine?
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Why MD/PhD?
-
Student: What do you like to do for fun, What do you feel about clinical research, Do you think doctors should do research. Remember, Pitt is a research school. Even if you haven't done any before, you may be asked about it. They don't expect you to sit in a lab all day, you can go out and do research in the community also.
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What do you see yourself doing in 10-15 years? (ie. how to mesh research and medicine)
-
Tell me about your life. Start at the beginning.
-
Why Pitt Med, why Pittsburgh, etc?
-
Are you a vegetarian?
-
Why do you want to be a doctor? What experiences shaped your reasons? What have you done to test your decision?
-
Tell me about your study abroad.
-
Why medicine? But really, why medicine? Right, but, why not research/teaching/dentistry/etc.?
-
The standards: why medicine, why Pitt, etc. Student questions seemed geared toward assessing your realization of the realities of medicine/medical school and your dedication to patient-directed medicine, while the faculty questions were more personal.
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Faculty interviewer: issues in medicine, why medicine, research experience, tell me about your family, patient/clinical experience.
-
When and how did you decide you wanted to go into medicine?
-
Was the difference between specificity and sensitivity?
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When and why did you decide to become a doctor?
-
Why are you interested in a career in medicine? Why Pitt? What do you think about the US Health Care System compared with that of other countries? Tell me your thoughts on the role of physicians in preventive health and research.
-
Why do you want to be a doctor
-
What do you want to do?
-
What can I tell you about Pitt to make you want to go here?
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What have you liked about Pittsburgh? What don't you like?
-
What role do you typically take in group situations?
-
Why medicine? What was the origin of your interest?
-
Why Medicine? (or variations like why do you want to go into medicine, or become a doctor, etc) You'll want to stress 2 things: people and science, and that you find you want both, and can't give up either in your search for a profession.
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Are you holding acceptances at any other schools? (Both the faculty member and the dean asked me this).
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Where do you see yourself in the future (specialty, research or clinical)?
-
Student: very laid back. What do you like to do for fun? What kind of clubs were you involved in at school?
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Small group experiences, what role did I take?
-
What do you think makes a good doctor?
-
Describe your research.
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How do you see yourself working in small groups, as in problem-based learning?
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All basic questions about my future goals and my interests in medicine. my student interviewer though asked me more general questions about my life and what i had done. the student interviewer only gets your name, your undergrad school, and your hometown, so they basically know nothing. the faculty interviewer gets only your personal statement, so that is a little more intimate, but mine still wanted me to give her a general idea of who i was. the last interviewer, which is the dean of admissions, only talks to you for like 10ish mins and he just wants to grill you to make sure that you have a reason to apply to pitt specifically, and then he'll probably ask you where else youve applied/interviewed/been accepted. be prepared for him cuz hes really direct and quick.
-
What books have you been reading lately?
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How is your day going? What have you done so far? What do you think? (All 4 interviewers asked me this, which I think really says something.)
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Why mediicne? Faculty asks something specific about your PS.
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How did you come to your decision to pursue medicine?
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How did you become interested in medicine?
-
Mostly conversational questions concerning path to medicine and interests/background. nothing out of the ordinary.
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Why do you wish to pursue medicine? (all three interviewers asked me this)
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Tell me about your family (I know, this isn't a question)
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Explain your research to me.
-
Standard student questions: Why medicine? Why Pittsburgh? What are you looking for in a medical school? What are your interests outside school?
-
What are your career goals? What will having an MD AND a PhD allow you to do that having one of these degrees won't? (I'm paraphrasing)
-
Very generic questions, but more chit chat than anything
-
What do you think would be a better way to measure who will make a good resident?
-
When did you decide to become a doctor ?
-
Tell me about yourself? From student What brought you to Pitt? From faculty
-
Where do you see yourself in ten years?
-
Dating question
-
Explain your research.
-
Everything pertained to my amcas application.
-
What do you know about Pittsburgh?
-
Why medicine? Why Pittsburgh?
-
How do you deal with frustrating people/situations? What are you looking for in a school?
-
If doing an MD/PhD was not possible which one would I choose and why?
-
Same
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Tell me about your volunteer work.
-
Tell me about why you have chosen to become a physician
-
Mostly personal info- Questions regarding opinion on curriculum
-
Have you worked in small groups? (Related to their PBL [problem based learning] which they ask about.)
-
What specialty are you interested in?
-
What is the craziest thing you have ever done?
-
What do you do for fun?
-
See above.
-
What are the weaknesses of your application
-
Describe this experience.
-
What makes Pitt the right place for you? Or you right for us?
-
Whats one of your strengths/weaknesses
-
The student interviewers are obligated to ask these two (why medicine? tell me about your extracurricular, lab, other exp.) It's on their sheet that they fill out later.
-
Tell me about yourself?
-
Are you doing any reading for pleasure and if so, what are you reading?
-
What do you like to do for fun
-
What do you like to do for fun?
-
Why Medicine, and what have you done to test this decision?
-
Typical questions- Why MD/PhD, why do you want to be a doctor etc...
-
See above
-
(it's been a while, I can't remember much besides "What brings you to medicine" and "Why Pittsburgh?")
-
The basics...why do you want to go into medicine?
-
Brief summary of your life:
-
Why the Russian major?
-
Tell me more about....(insert application activity here).
-
What are some of your strengths?
-
When did you decide medicine was for you?
-
What do you do outside of school?
-
Why Pitt (asked this 3 times)?
-
When you work in a group with other students, what role do you play?
-
Is UPitt your first choice? You can be honest. It wasn't mine.
-
Tell me about yourself....basically a time to boast...however individuals like myself, who can't boast..and aren't willing to...don't do very well on such questions!
-
What are your strengths and weaknesses?
-
How are you a well-rounded person?
-
What's the last movie you saw?
-
What are your strengths?
-
What's your biggest weakness?
-
Why do you want to be a doctore?
-
Why motivated you ?
-
Nothing special, really. B/c it was closed file, questions weren't too hard. What extracurricular have you done?
-
Why both degrees?
-
Why medicine? Tell me about you background and your motivations. How do you handle stress?
-
What sort of extracurricular activities are you involved in? (required)
-
Strength and weaknesses.
-
Strengths (one of the questions on the "suggested?" list)
-
Why do you want to be a doctor?
-
What do you want me to tell the admissions committee about you?
-
MD faculty interviewer - "Congratulations, you're accepted to the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine." *shake hands* "What, are you surprised?" -- Me: Uhhhh, yeah I guess I am.
-
Tell me more about your childhood?
-
What are your strengths.
-
Why do you want to be a physician?
-
Why do you think problem based learning is for you?
-
Why did you apply here?
-
Why do you want to get both MD and PhD degrees?
-
The interviews were just conversations: the dean asked specific questions though. Why do you want to be a doctor?
-
What would you do to provide health care insurance to those without if you were appointed Secretary of Health?
-
What is your best character trait?
-
Discuss your research project, how independent are you on it...etc.
-
Listed above
What was the most interesting question?
Students said most interesting question asked at University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine discussed a wide range of topics, including future healthcare trends, personal definitions of success, challenges facing medicine, dealing with patient skepticism, and favorite TV shows. While many responses were standard, some students mentioned being asked about their creativity, interests outside of medicine, and specific experiences related to their applications. The interview format may have been MMI based on the variety of questions, with some respondents possibly under a nondisclosure agreement.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
-
Give an example of a time you noticed a lack of compassion during your clinical interactions and detail how that impacted you.
-
None - generally basic questions
-
Very basic questions
-
What healthcare issues are going to be big in the next 5-10 years?
-
Have you come across, either in your studies or independent research or reading time, any advancements in science or healthcare in recent years that's had an impact on public/population health?
-
What are some of the challenges that I think are facing medicine
-
How would you confront a patient that was skeptical or doubtful of science/the healthcare system (i.e. COVID-19 and mask policies)?
-
What is your definition of success
-
Asked me about my thesis research
-
What do you think is the most challenging issue facing healthcare? (she followed this question up with "did you watch the democratic debate last night?)
-
How have your experiences prepared you for medicine?
-
Would you want to go into ___ field?
-
What are some qualities a physician should have?
-
Make me excited about your research.
-
None, they were really standard.
-
What is the worst book you have read?
-
How will your experience with the arts inform your patient care philosophy?
-
Why didn't you go into one of your parents' careers (follow-up to question on my parents' backgrounds).
-
What would you do if you couldn't go to med school?
-
Question 3.
-
I was talking about what I do in my free time and I mentioned I watch Netflix occasionally (of course, alongside building orphanages and helping old ladies cross the road), and my faculty interviewer asked me what my favorite TV shows were and why.
-
What medical specialty are you interested in?
-
How would your friends describe you?
-
Tell me an example of a time you demonstrated creativity
-
Some questions related to my background and interests.
-
Tell me about your experience playing x sport
-
Did you have any trouble finding my office?
-
What field of medicine are you interested in and how positive are you that that is what you want to do?
-
N/a
-
None
-
None, it was very straight forward
-
Nothing really. Be prepared for the usual stuff, about why medicine etc.
-
How are you creative?
-
They were all pretty standard conversation starters.
-
So you worked _____. Why the heck did you do that?
-
NA
-
Are you a steeler fan
-
Who are your role models and why.
-
How do you think creatively?
-
If you could go anywhere and do anything for one weekend vacation, where would you go and what would you do?
-
Why medicine?
-
They were pretty standard.
-
If you could win any award in the world, what would it be?? (student interviewer)
-
Explain your interest in the actual science of medicine.
-
Nothing crazy...
-
Student: give me an example of how you are creative Faculty: what would you do if you didn't get accepted?
-
How would you rate your mechanical skills (playing with tools, etc)? The interviewer asked me this question because a part of my app said I am considering orthopedics as a specialty of choice.
-
Do you think you would have a problem with the Scholarly Project? -mostly related to the fact that I don't have much research background
-
So you think you have enough clinical experience?-
-
What did you dress up as for Halloween? (there was a bit of a lead up to this question, it wasn't completely out of the blue)
-
How do you work in groups and how will that serve you as a physician?
-
What do you think you'll struggle with most as a physician?
-
What qualities in the physicians you shadowed impressed you the most?
-
What personality traits are important for a doctor to have?
-
If you could have dinner with any two or three people, who would they be and why?
-
What do you think about the informational systems in hospitals? (this was part of an overall conversation about the UPMC hospital's switch to electronic files)
-
After answering a question about what I would do if I didn't get in to medical school I was asked: What is the biggest health care issue negatively affecting the quality of life of people today in the US.
-
What do you do that's not related to medicine?
-
Nothing really: Why did you decide to take a year off?
-
What do you think of the pharm companies influencing doctors
-
Tell me something not on your application material that's important.
-
Do you understand the culture of Pittsburgh?
-
Was kind of hoping for more challenging and fun questions, but it didn't happen. How would you define Academic Medicine?
-
Are you creative?
-
If you were any kind of ice cream flavor, what would you be? / What is the coolest thing you have ever done?
-
If you had to pick an ice cream flavor to describe your personality, what would it be?
-
What is your favorite cartoon?
-
Frankie asked me the random questions like What do you like to do? What's your favorite book?
-
All pretty stock questions, nothing special.
-
Who was your best friend and how would you describe her?
-
Cant think of one
-
How would you like me to present you to the admissions committee?
-
I was mostly just asked to explain activities on my AMCAS for my faculty interview. The student interview was a simple conversation for 45 minutes.
-
If you were so happy serving in the military, why are you wanting to get out to go to med school?
-
Tell me more about your siblings.
-
What do you like to do for fun?
-
What do you do for fun? Why did you work so many jobs?
-
What animal would you be and why?
-
Can't think of any right now...
-
Have you heard of the plagiarism case with the Harvard student that was given $500,000 to publish a book? (I told him yes, but didn't see how it connected to medicine... he said that a previous interviewee last week talked about it when they got into a discussion about academic honesty..)
-
None really, what I do for fun?
-
What books do you read?
-
What is the biggest challenge you will face as a physician?
-
If you could have any super power which one would you have?
-
Nothing in particular
-
What's your favorite cartoon
-
Detailed questions about my essay (my main interviewer had really read my application!)
-
It was really low stress...my interviewer was a really nice guy who suggested that we take a walk outside since it was such a nice day. My student interviewer was much younger than me, and she was a first year, on top of that it was her first interview so she was more nervous than I was.
-
My feelings on teaching
-
Nothing too out of the ordinary: Why Pitt? Why medicine? Describe your volunteer work? Tell me about your research? How did you get here (I'm about 10 years older than most applicants)?
-
What do you think about human consciousness?
-
Of the cities around the world in which you've worked, which was your favorite and why?
-
If I could have any superpower, what would it be? (Asked by student interviewer) Also asked a lot of questions about my interests in women's health, research, and how those tied into my faculty interviewer's current work which was awesome!
-
Was there any one moment that really set your heart on medicine?
-
All standard questions.
-
Nothing too interesting. just the common questions.
-
Why did you get into your present line of work? There were a lot of interesting and though provoking questions. Very much a conversation between two adults.
-
How does your family feel about you going to med school. (I have a husband and a child)
-
Nothing out of the ordinary
-
What did you think of Freakonomics?
-
Do you workout?
-
Nothing out of the ordinary...
-
What was the other state that the Senate race was waiting on other than Virginia. I did not know the answer, but it was Montana.
-
What good experiences and bad experiences have you had with doctors treating your sister (my sister has a severe chronic disease) and how will this affect the way you practice medicine?
-
What do I think about HPV vaccine development?
-
Do you always wear black to an interview? (actually, I was wearing black and blue, so it was kind of funny)
-
Why do you want to be a physician instead of a...?
-
I wrote about my father's influence in my PS, and my faculty interviewer spent some time asking about my relationship with the rest of my family and my travel experiences with them.
-
I got asked about what I see myself doing in 10-15 years a lot. But, the most interesting question was the student interviewer who asked me what thing from my application I would like him to emphasize to the admissions committee. I thought that was really cool of him.
-
Describe how you work in small groups.
-
One of my Interviewers went off on a tangent for a few minnutes about how much they liked the new show
-
What sorts of health policy do you see yourself shaping in the future?
-
Nothing really
-
What role do you take on in a group situation and why?
-
How do you deal with confrontation?
-
Tell me something about yourself that you shouldn't (asked by the student interviewer and technically not part of the evaluation).
-
How do you work in groups?
-
Actually, most of my questions were typical.
-
What do you think will be the most difficult aspect of practicing medicine
-
This was my second interview and honestly if I taped my first interview and played it back, it would be fine, just sound interested about your own life and activities and you'll do fine. Plus remember the two inescapable questions: why medicine and why this school
-
Was the difference between specificity and sensitivity?
-
In your experience, have you met any physicians who were disgruntled or unhappy with their choice of profession?
-
Nothing special
-
Tell me your thoughts on the role of physicians in preventive health and research.
-
What do you want to have accomplished by the time you die?
-
What kind of sandwich do you like? Kind of random.
-
I had so many interesting questions. They were: 1. What superpower do you want to have? 2. Would you swim in pool or ocean? 3. Name three people you'd like to have dinner with?
-
Who has been your greatest mentor?
-
How did your grandma die? (I spoke about her in my personal statement)
-
What don't you like about Pittsburgh?
-
What do you think will be the most difficult aspect of medicine faced by future doctors?
-
My faculty interviewer asked me about my brother, who has Down syndrome. I thought it was interesting that she would want to talk about that.
-
None, no surprise questions, very straight forward and to-the-point.
-
Just your typical interview questions - Why medicine? Start from the beginning of when you knew you wanted to go into medicine.
-
"What's your favorite cartoon - why?" I thought it was pretty random. I answered honestly and said the one where Elmer Fudd goes after a Helga-dressed Bugs Bunny singing - "Kill da wabbit ... Kill da waaaabit."
-
Nothing really out of the ordinary.
-
What do you want to be when you grow up?
-
What's your favorite movie, book, cartoon?
-
What is your most creative accomplishment?
-
Nothing too interesting...basic questions and specific ones
-
I wasn't asked anything remotely interesting. Just the same old questions
-
Pretty standard questions--why medicine? when did you know you want to go into medicine? etc.
-
Why medicine?? not really that interesting...
-
(in reference to my interest in global health) how much of your career do you plan to spend working abroad, and what are you reasons?
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What are the biggest problems with healthcare today? How would you change it?
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A couple really fun ones: *If you could have any superpower, which would you choose and why? *What's your favorite cartoon?
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Nothing really. Every question were the typical ones like Why medicine, Why Pitt, What do you like about the city, what extra cirricular.
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How many schools did you apply to? Where have you interviewed already?
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Nothing really.
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What book are you reading?
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What setting do you see yourself practicing in? What is your favorite cartoon?
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What kind of physician do you want to be?
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Do you think you'll be able to "have a life" during medical school?
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What clinical experiences have you had?
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What is the most creative thing you do?
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What is your favorite cartoon
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What did Wittgenstein (philosopher) have to say about pain?
-
Very few solid questions, more chit chat with admission dean
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What do you think would be a better way to measure who will make a good resident?
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What are the major issues facing medical care today and what solution would you advocate?
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What is the most important thing we should know about you?
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In reference to my school's female:male ratio (I'm a girl): What does that do for your dating life?
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Can you adjust to the cold in Pittsburgh since you are from California?
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All questions pertained to my AMCAS application. No ethical scenarios, or questions concerning current issues in health care (e.g. HMOs, PPOs, etc.)
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What is the most creative thing you do? apparently the faculty interviewers are told to asess creativity.
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How will you balance family and medicine?
-
Very standard questions
-
Nothing usualy, we just talked about my life, why medicine, what I liked to do in my free time, and why pittsburgh
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What was the last CD you bought?
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If I was to be the gov. of ? (pick one) state and giving my state of the state address, what would be my issues and what would I do about them?
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If I were elected a US senator, what would be my issues?
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What improvements do you think doctors could make to help patients have more comfortable experiences?
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In addition to asking "why medicine," my interviewer inquired as to what steps I've taken to discover whether or not medicine really is for me.
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In a scale of 1-10, how confident I am about being accepted into Medical School...funny thing was that I am already accepted at two medical schools
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Nothing stands out- it was all very conversational and seemed aimed at getting to know you as a person.
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Do you know that you cannot save life you can only prevent death
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If I were to meet you as a random stranger, what would we talk about?
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Do you think the fact that you lost 80 lbs in the past will serve to help you relate with patients as a doctor?
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None very interesting
-
What is the craziest thing you have ever done?
-
Nothing special.
-
Very relaxed interview...no tricky questions.
-
Student: "What's the craziest thing you've ever done?" Faculty: "How do you think knowledge from your [geriatrics] research could be applied to children?"
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What are some of old movies that you love that you can suggest to me?---I am a huge old movie buff
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What do you think about our curriculum? What attracts you to Pitt?
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How did your background with 2 cultures affect your educational experience?
-
Nothing in particular caught my attention, both my student interview and faculty interview were very relaxed and chill and we talked about a lot of stuff, but all about ME.
-
Nothing really, they have some standard questions that they have to get the answers to
-
No real questions, just asked me to talk about myself
-
We really had a nice discussion. There were no rote questions but a real flowing conversation.
-
Nothing interesting
-
None - pretty standard fare
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What is your biggest fault?
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What was your most memorable EMT experience and why?
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Are you a good cook?
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Do you realize that as a doctor you are not saving a life, you are simply delaying death?
-
None really too interesting
-
Do you consider yourself to be a well rounded person?
-
Some weird scenarios, pretty fun though.
-
What other schools have you interviewed at and what did you like about them?
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No interesting questions. Just the questions you'd expect; what do you read, what are your hobbies, what area of medicine are you interested in, etc.
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How did the role in your family prepare you for a career in medicine? (Nothing too interesting or crazy...)
-
Just the basic stuff...
-
What do you hope to get out of Pittsburgh?
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What is a big pain in the butt?
-
If you could write President Bush's State of the Union Address, what three things would you specifically mention?
-
What are the biggest problems in health care and how would you personally help fix them?
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How would you feel working for someone less qualified than yourself?
-
None too interesting. Questions were fairly standard.
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Did you know that pitt is top 10 in research dollars? (asked this about 5 times)
-
If you had 30 seconds to explain to the admission committee why they should select you, what would you say?
-
Nothing too exciting here - all fairly standard Qs (all my interviewers were quite mellow)
-
When you go home to visit your parents, what does your mother make for you to eat?
-
How does what you learned from studying public health in Mexico apply to our healthcare system in the United States?
-
Recommend a film that my husband and I should see and tell me why it's good. (I was a film major).
-
Nothing very interesting was asked.
-
Do you play any instruments?
-
What made you know for sure that medicine was the right career for you?
-
I wasn't asked any direct questions. Very conversational.
-
So I saw a speech the Rendell (PA's governor) gave about health care, malpractice lawsuits, and insurance rates. In light of all these issues, why would anyone want to get into medicine? (Asked by the student interviewer)
-
Nothing all conversational
-
What do you want to do in the future with your MD degree?
-
Do you still have epilepsy?
-
It wasn't an interview as much as it was a discussion. The faculty interviewers questions will be different for everyone because they have your AMCAS personal statement in front of them and will ask questions regarding it.
-
What do you want to accomplish in the next four years besides getting trough medical school?
-
Say you're in PBL and a couple members are not putting in the work. How would you go about rectifying this problem?
-
How would you deal with a peer who was not pulling his weight in PBL group
-
What are some avenues of translational research that will bring currently broad genomics prowess to bear on specific clinical needs, and generally how do the various -genomics fields change medical research paradigms?
-
Nothing particular, pretty conversational
-
Tell me something that your friends may not know about you or may find surprising.
-
Do you know who Job is? - I think she just wanted to know how well read I am.
-
Nothing
-
Nothing crazy. everything based on the conversation at hand
-
What is the biggest problem with healthcare today, just off the top of my head.
-
My greatest strength and greatest weakness in one word...which I found very interesting since its so hard to narrow this down
-
How would you motivate a member of your PBL(problem based learning) group who is not pulling his or her weight and hindering other members of the group?
-
What kind of people do you not get along with?
-
What is your favorite book?
-
Nothing too interesting.
-
How important is located relatively close to your family during school in deciding which med school to attend?
-
Describe your family for me.
-
What was the last book you read?
-
What type of books do you like to read?
-
Will you go back home when you are done with your training?
-
Describe what you're reading right now (I mentioned that I like to read).
-
Standard why md/phd - why both degrees - what specialty would you go into, why pittsburgh - what do you like about the program
-
If you can pick three adjectives to describe yourself, what would they be?
-
What exactly is Postmodernism?
-
The questions were pretty typically. Why do you want to study medince. The most interesting I guess is what do you look for in a medical school...and do we fit that profile.
-
Do you believe the US government should torture suspected terrorists if they have information that might be needed to prevent an imminent attack?
-
What will you enjoy most about medical school? What do you think the most difficult thing will be about medical school?
-
Who do you think was behind the anthrax attacks last year?
-
Tell me about the most interesting family vacation you had...and all my vacations blurred into one, so I couldn't really remember the most fun one.
-
Nothing very interesting. They have a sheet in front of them. The student had only your name and undergrad institution. The faculty interviewer had personal statement and practice vision essays as well
How did you prepare for the interview?
Most applicants prepared for the interview by reviewing interview feedback on SDN, conducting mock interviews, reading the school's website, and reflecting on their application experiences. They also emphasized the importance of practicing common questions, researching the school, and being prepared to ask thoughtful questions during the interview.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
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Reviewing SDN interview feedback
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SDN; huge doc of interview questions on Reddit; mock interviews
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Mock interviews, brainstorming and reflecting on past experiences working in healthcare
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SDN, mock interviews, advise sessions, practice answers.
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A LOT of mock interviews, a LOT of brainstorming and writing down as many possible questions I could think of or came across in my research or encountered in my asynchronous interviews, brainstorming an appropriate example, making a bulleted list on what happened and what insights I wanted to highlight, and rehearsing answering and hitting those points
-
SDN interview feedback threads, researching Pitt, mock interviews, etc.
-
This page! mock interviews, recording myself answering questions
-
Reread app, look up info about the school
-
SDN
-
Mock interviews
-
Mock interviews, read about the school
-
Prepped answers for questions I saw on SDN.
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Looked at SDN, practiced w/ friends
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Read over SDN.
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Reading the school's website, reviewing my application.
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Website
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SDN, read "The Healthcare Handbook," read over my AMCAS and secondaries, practiced interviewing with friends
-
SDN SDN SDN!!
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The school's website and my primary and secondary application. Came up with a solid reason for applying there.
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Read AMCAS app, read SND reviews for Pitt, read Pitt website
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Rehearsed the basics: why medicine, tell me about yourself, why Pitt. Had an interview the week before.
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MSAR, researched school facts online, read interview books, drafted sample answers to questions so would't be caught off guard
-
I didn't, just stayed calm and carried on
-
SDN, read through the entire website, looked up my faculty interviewer 30 minutes prior to the interview
-
I had a mock interview at my undergraduate institution that went very badly.
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Read the MSAR, SDN interview feedback, and website for Pitt. They have a really informative fact book online that was helpful.
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SDN, reviewed AMCAS primary and Pitt secondary
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Reviewed school specific thread.
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Read interview feedback, researched school extensively, practiced common questions
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Interview feedback :) - especially for student interviews, you're likely to get the same questions as those mentioned here; reading Pitt web site and reading about Pitt on SDN. I had specific interests related to the school, so I think that helped. I also paid attention and asked questions during the student tour of the school and the curriculum talk - and based on those, I had more questions for my interviewers. Be prepared to ask good questions!
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Reviewed my amcas and secondary, prepped answers to standard interview Qs, SDN
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SDN, Pitt website.
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Practiced with pre-med adviser, read about the school online, met with a MS2 the day before, paid attention during the tour.
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Reviewed my PS, secondary, and reflected on my activities. Also practiced with friends.
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Sleep
-
Read the website
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Read up on all the programs, options, areas of concentration, PSTP, research opportunities, etc.
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Pitt's website, read over AMCAS and research paper
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SDN Interview Feedback
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SDN, reviewed AMCAS and secondary, read Reid's "The Healing of America", reviewed ethics website (definitely didn't need to though, there were no policy or ethics related questions, all personal)
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The best preparation was getting to know the people there.
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Relaxed and learned as much as possible about the school, keeping track of anything I wanted to know in more detail to ask my interviewers. I walked around the school the day before to get the general vibe of the students and area.
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Read over my application.
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SDN, reread secondary essays
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SDN, I bought 2 books on medical school interviews. One by Jessica Freedman and one by Jeremiah Fleenor. Both were great prep in different ways.
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SDN, school website
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SDN interview feedback, researched school website, the day of the interview was most informative
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SDN :)
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Read about health care reform, read secondary & primary app, familiarized myself with the school's mission & program
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Reviewed school's website, admissions materials, stayed with a current student and asked about the school.
-
SDN, read website, read application
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Re-read my application
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Interview feedback.
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Website, AMCAS, friends who interviewed at Pitt before
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Read AMCAS, student docs, secondary, read up and spoke to students about school.
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SDN, UPitt website... awesome student host!
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Read over a friend's interview materials from last year
-
Stayed with Student Hosts and asked them tons of questions about curriculum, good things about school; Asked lots of questions on student-led tour; Asked even more questions at lunch hour with current students
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SDN, website, reviewed application
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Review their website, sdn,mock interview
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Reread secondary/primary, Pitt website...
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SDN, reviewed primary and secondary, mock interview with career center
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Read the websites, SDN, the usual.
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Sdn, reviewed essays and amcas.
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Looked at other interview feedback questions, reread personal statement and secondary essays, looked at Pitt's website and brochures.
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SDN, school website, essays
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Re-read essays, researched Pitt's website, read the emails from Pitt's admissions office.
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SDN, Introspection
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MSAR, SDN, Read the school's website, Talked to other students, and reviewed application materials.
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This was my first interview, so I did WAY too much to prepare: researched the ENTIRE Pitt website, read Understanding Health Policy, looked over my app and secondary for Pitt
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SDN, read app and school website
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Re-read AMCAS and secondary application, a mock interview and SDN.
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Mock interview, researched web site, SDN
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Looked over my personal statement since that was the only part of my application they had access to, skimmed sdn interview feedback, read a few news stories, and refreshed my memory on topics I'm interested in.
-
Read SDN and relaxed.
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Sdn, school website, talked to student host
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Sdn. review app
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Read my applications, read this site, read pitt's factbook
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Talked with host students the night before
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Reviewed school's website and fact book, my primary and secondary
-
SDN, read AMCAS and secondary, talked over some basic questions - why Pitt, why medicine, why should we accept you - with mentor.
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SDN, primary app (which was beneficial because I was asked about my community service activities and EC's because they really don't know who you are)
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Pitt website/ SDN/ mock interview/ ethics classes/ refreshed recent political and current events topics
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I didn't really.
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SDN, school website, read over AMCAS
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SDN, Pitt website and viewbook, read over secondary and primary
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SDN, read about pitt, healthcare (unnecessary), ethics (unnecessary), AMCAS
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Read MSAR, personal statements from primary and secondary, interview feedback (MUST READ!), and their factbook.
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Read up on the program and all of the little mini-programs, read over application.
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Questions pulled in from all over the place
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Sleep, SDN
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SDN, website, mock interviews, friends asked me questions, reviewed secondary app
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SDN, read Person to Person 2x and quick facts (from the website...there is lots of good stuff in this), also read several health care books and went over common questions.
-
SDN interview feedback, read Bioethics, UPitts curriculum and website
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School website, read my primary and secondary apps, school bulletin
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Read secondaries, school website, went over my file.
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Read the MSAR and mailing. Asked questions of my student host.
-
Read website, AMCAS, reviewed applications, etc.
-
Read over my AMCAS app, SDN, typical interview questions
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SDN, read about Pittsburgh, re-read my application
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Read Person-to-Person and SDN feedback.
-
Reading their viewbook, MSAR and biomedical ethics texts and articles.
-
Looked over school website, read person to person brochure, MSAR, reread AMCAS and essay responses to secondary
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SDN, read over my application, read over website. I did a few general mock interviews.
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I made a list of past questions using SDN interview feedback, read the admissions booklet you get by mail, MSAR, website, asked student host ---- overall preparation didnt matter, very stress-free interview
-
I read school's viewbook, thoroughly read website, Dean's yearly state of university address was very helpful to see where the university is and where it is going.
-
Read my application, talked to a friend who studies at Pitt Med, mock interview
-
Read SDN, read AMCAS app, looked up a lot of information about Pittsburgh so i could justify why I would like to live there.
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SDN Interview feedback, brochure.
-
SDN, mock interview, person to person brochure, reading on ethics/medical field, and re-reading application
-
SDN, prepare rough outline of answers to core questions, researched Pitt
-
Read over my personal statement, my secondary application, and the UPitt website.
-
Drinks with a friend the night before.
-
Read material about the school.
-
SDN, Reviewed primary and secondary applications, Person to person brochure, school's website
-
SDN, Person to Person Brochure, Pitt website, spoke with current students
-
Read through AMCAS, read about school, SDN
-
Just checked out the website, re-read my application
-
Read over my AMCAS application, feedback on SDN, mock interview
-
Re-read personal statement, SDN feedback was very helpful, Pitt website, managed to meet up with some Pitt faculty
-
I read up on my application and SDN.
-
Read over my recent work, exercised to reduce stress, and watched Season 4 of Scrubs.
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Studentdoctor.net, review interview tips, review ethical issues.
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Since this was my first interview, I prepared by going to my school's Career Services website which had a two page summary of what to expect at medical school interviews. I also read through the questions and feedback on this interview feedback system and made a list of questions to read over on the plane. Most importantly though, I read up on what I liked about Pitt (including their area of concentration program, block scheduling, particular research centers I would like to work with, etcetera) so that I could answer the ''Why Pitt'' question knowingly with things that are truly special about Pitt instead of other schools.
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Practiced sample essay questions, read over application (although all they have access to is your personal statement, and thats only for the faculty interview), talked to some students ahead of time
-
Read over secondary.
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SDN, P2P, website, secondaries
-
SDN, AMCAS, secondary
-
SDN, website, friends
-
Visited SDN and read other peoples´ remarks.
-
Person to Person, Student doctor, and Primary and Secondary applications
-
Sdn, mock interviews, read books on socialized medicine - pros and cons
-
Reading Pitt's face-to-face brochure, studentdoctornet. USA-today headlines and current events (although weren't important), personal statement and secondary essays
-
SDN, School Website, UPMC Website, AMCAS application
-
SDN, mock interview, P2P brochure, school website, talked with student host
-
SDN, website, my own application, & p2p brochure
-
SDN, reading over my app, current events, reading their brochure/pamphlet
-
Amcas, SDN, NYtimes.com, Upitt person-to-person brochure
-
Amcas, upitt person to person, secondary
-
SDN, review my amcas essays, mock interview, google the school, read the person to person publication
-
SDN, Pitt's person to person brochure, school's website, USA today
-
Studentdoctor.net, read over person to person, reviewed my application.
-
Read pitt viewbook, reread amcas, reread pitt application, talked to my friend who had already interviewed there
-
Read pitt admissions materials, do mock interview, read over my essays, read about the research of the profs i was meeting (for md/phd part)
-
SDN, website, talking to my student host
-
People-to-People Prospectus, Pitt Med website (including links on Admissions, Special Programs, and Research Opportunities), e-mailed many many current students via the Excel Host-Student chart on the secure prospective student website, and of course good ol' SDN's listed questions - copied and answered all the ones from this year and last!
-
Reviewed AAMC app, school website, wrote some key points out in bullet point to remind myself to address them in the interview. got a good night's sleep and took a yoga class the day before the interview.
-
Read their booklet, website
-
Read SDN feedback, thought about answers for common questions, read about healthcare policy/ethics, talked with Pitt students, thought of possible questions to ask the interviewer
-
SND, my application, website, their brochure
-
SDN.
-
I reviewed Pitt's materials (Person to Person booklet), and my primary and secondary application essays.
-
Website, MSAR, school publication, studentdoc reviews
-
Review over my AMCAS app, Pitt's
-
Information Pitt sent, their website, my primary/secondary, SDN
-
Website, brochure
-
Read about school, reviewed file, practiced standard questions
-
SDN, read school's website
-
Person to Person brochure, website, AMCAS, Interview feedback
-
Looked over my application, thought about what I would want to talk about, how I would answer the inevitable
-
Brochure, website, SDN feedback, went to Pitt for undergrad so didn't need to prepare about the city
-
I read through my AMCAS and supplementary applications, the school website, Pitt's
-
Medstudent host, sdn, website
-
SDN, website, brochures, interview feedback
-
Read SDN, school's website, my AMCAS and 2ndary apps
-
Sdn, person to person brochure, read my primary and secondary applications
-
Person to person brochure, discussions with current MS1's.
-
MSAR, Website, Brochures, Friends
-
I asked my friend that goes to undergrad Pitt to tell me about the school.
-
SDN interview feedback, Person to Person brochure, Pitt website
-
SDN, School website, School Handouts, AMCAS, Seconday essays
-
SDN, read my application, secondary, read the big book
-
1. Admissions P2P Prospectus 2. Scoured all over the Pitt website:(www.medschool.pitt.edu) 3. Followed other links from above website to learn about Pitt and the city in general before visiting. 4. SDN's Interview Feedback :) 5. MSAR's descriptions 6. Map of Pittsburgh 7. Host List - found in the invitation only Admissions site when you click on the Interview tab. This is the same site as the secondary status site. Here, they will allow you to register for an interview, and they have under this INterview Tab, an Excel file with a ton of students willing to host you; it also tells you their main interests, their interests outside of school, where they live with respect to school, pets/no pets, smoking/no smoking, married/single, room-mates or living alone, etc ...
-
Reviewed secondary application, read about the school on the web
-
Read Pitt brochure, SDN, talked with student host
-
SDN, my own application (essays for the secondary app), pitt website, materials given the day of the interview
-
SDN, Pitt website, USA Today, mock interviews
-
Sdn, reviewed app, Pitt website
-
Pitt website, SDN, interview feedback
-
Drank, did work, read UPitt's "person-to-person" magazine
-
Sdn, website
-
Read app/ website etc.
-
Read the web site, read their brochure, reviewed my AMCAS and secondary.
-
Sdn, website, their flyers
-
Sdn, 22 years of life experience, went to classes with my host the day before, worried
-
Read Pitt website and brochures, SDN, stayed with student host
-
SDN, Pitt's website, Pitt's big brochure, Read over my file. Read over this sheet I prepared with things i wanted to talk about. I saw another person with similar notes. This was my second interview so i was less nervous. My mental state was a bit altered as well since i had only One hour of sleep on the plane. I was loaded on caffeine so i was a bit more chattery than my usual.
-
SDN, MSAR, Packets Pitt sent me
-
Read over my application, read studentdoctor.net feedback, looked at the website, read the literature they had sent me.
-
Sdn, upitt website, propaganda mailed from school
-
Talked to fourth-year student, re-read AMCAS and secondary essays,
-
Studied their website, SDN, Interview feedback, my AAMCAS, my secondary. Worried, fretted and stressed.
-
Read SDN, reviewed personal statement, practice interview, read up on some current issues
-
School website, SDN, reviewed all my apps (to prepare for any interview ?'s) and reviewed AMCAS
-
Um. . . i didn't really
-
Read amcas, looked at Pitt's website
-
Reviewed SDN feedback, school website, and AMCAS application
-
SDN, Pitt website, alumni friends, practice questions
-
Read SDN, reviewed my primary and secondary application essays, and read up on faculty who are doing research that interests me.
-
Read this site, look at the school website, go through the forums
-
Talked to people who interviewed there, read SDN interview feedback
-
SDN website, UPitt web site
-
This site, forums, Pitt website, Read over AMCAS...
-
I reviewed all the material I could find on the school and thought about questions I might ask the interviewers. I also looked over lists of standard interview questions and thought briefly about how I might answer them.
-
Read sdn, website, brochure
-
SDN, Pitt website, mock interview
-
Read SDN, Pitt website, their viewbook, reviewed my AMCAS and secondaries, other interviews.
-
Read over my secondary, SDN
-
SDN, talked to the current students, Pitt website, tour booklet
-
I read through my AMCAS application, Pitt secondary, and SDN feedback. As usual, I read a lot about the school on-line.
-
Read interview feedback, school's website
-
Read sdn, look over the pitt catalog
-
Read over the opportunities/curriculum at Pitt, reviewed practice questions, prayed.
-
Talked to my student host, read SDN, read the school Brochure and payed attention to everything everyone said about the school, searched the interests of the faculty I was interviewing with, didn't do a mock interview even though this was my first interview, but did think about my answers to generic questions.
-
School Brochure, SDN, read secondary and AMCAS
-
Read SDN, thought about answers, spent the morning (during the tour) developing opinions and questions
-
I read SDN interview feedback, and I read and re-read the literature and website for UPitt.
-
Read AMCAS, UPitt brochure, talked to student host, read SDN
-
SDN, School Prospectus and website
-
Read sdn, internet, essay
-
Read the UPitt website, studentdoctor.net
-
SDN, Read the Pitt Brochure
-
SDN, brochure, web
-
Read over the brochure, this website, just thought things through.
-
Read through Pitt's website and brochure, did some thinking about what I wanted to convey, etc.
-
SDN, reread AMCAS, looked at school website
-
Let's see... 1) Reviewed my application, especially the personal statement since that's all the faculty member gets. 2) Looked over my research 3) Read SDN interview posts (but only the most recent 10. 4) Got a good night's sleep.
-
I looked at SDN, this website, and looked at their catalog they sent me, and prepared with my flashcards of common questions
-
Read through SDN and read through the schools written materials.
-
Pitt literature, the usual
-
Nothing really, went over my application and thought over some possible questions.
-
Web site, the brochure they sent, sdn feedback
-
Website, literature
-
I ate a Primani Brothers sandwich
-
Read SDN and pitt's website
-
MSAR, Pitt brochure, and Pitt website
-
Talked to friends at Pitt, looked at Pitt's brochre, and read comments on this site
-
SDN, read UPitt brochure, etc
-
SDN, Pitt brochure and kept up with current events.
-
School catalog, website, reviewed my AMCAS and secondary. Talked to current medical studetns.
-
Pitt website etc, read over my application
-
Reading this website reading the Pitt website reviewing my applications
-
Read this site, talked to my student host.
-
Read app materials, SDN, read website, relaxed.
-
Website, here
-
Website, Brochure, feedback, amcas app
-
Read SDN interview feedback. I had previous interviews, so I felt prepared
-
Figured out where and when to show up.
-
I didn't really do any. I read interview feedback and the school's website.
-
Relaxed, talked to people, read information.
-
Read up Pitt's catalog, my secondary, corresponded with Pitt Student Executive Council president.
-
Read UPMC's brochure, reviewed my application.
-
Read SDN, AMCAS
-
Checked a map and showed up!
-
Read this site, read over my application materials, relaxed.
-
Review application, read this
-
Read website, brochure, and SDN interview feedback. Practiced questions with my wife. Found other interview tips at various websites.
-
Interview feedback, SDN, their person-to-person booklet
-
Read the brochure, and these feedbacks
-
SDN, read the school pamphlet (really helps)
-
SDN, read Pitt's literature and my application, knew my strengths and weaknesses well
-
School's website and promotional literature (which they sent me), MSAR
-
Read interview prep books. Kept up with current events. Went over sample questions. Studied Pitt website and brochure. Mock interview.
-
I prepared a lot less for this interview than for others. I just reread the catalogs and look at my own applications the night before. Pulled out my "standard list of questions" for all schools and added some additional "Pitt only questions" for interviewers.
-
Read over my personal statement, watched Snoop Dogg videos on mTV (really).
-
Read sdn website, person to person pamplet, and my application.
-
Went to bed on time
-
This site and reviewed applications
-
This website
-
SDN, Pitt's website, reread my application
-
Interview feedback, look over school brochure
-
Read their literature, sdn, my application
-
Read the website and literature/viewbook.
-
Watched the Super Bowl
-
Read over app & school's website.
-
Read this site, mostly.
-
I looked up information about the school .
-
Read this interview feedback, read viewbook.
-
Read AMCAS, secondary essays, and my own research. I also read my interviewers' stuff, at least the abstracts, but this was not very useful.
-
Looked over app, secondary
-
Interview Feedback (SDN), Read Pitt's brochures, Pitt's Website, reread my secondary app essay
-
Had a mock interview with professors, looked at studentdoctor.net, read the Pitt brochure, and read "Sweaty Palms, the Neglected Art of Being Interviewed". I hightly recommend this book!
-
Talk to people who are in the school, check out their web-site, and read over some questions.
-
This website, pitt brochure
-
Looked at this website, looked over the Pitt brochure, talked about answers to possible questions with friends.
-
Re-read my essays and kept up-to-date on the news.
-
Read over my interviewers' research
-
I read the bulletin, my AMCAS and secondary apps, and some literature on health care
-
Went through this website and read the school's brochure.
-
Read Pitt brochure, reviewed my own application, reviewed common questions
-
Read interview feedback, looked over their website, read over my application.
-
I read interview feedback, reviewed Pitt material and watched Will and Grace the night before.
-
I read this website, the school's website, and read my AMCAS application thoroughly.
-
Read about the school, reviewed my information
-
AMCAS, U Pitt Brochure (A WONDERFUL resource), Secondaries
-
Read their brochures and checked out their website.
-
Read MSAR, U.Pitt website, SDN, newspapers, etc.
-
I overkilled for the interview - read lots of literatiure for the mstp interviews - i didn't prep at all for the med ones - they tell you about the curriculum before you interview so you have some good questions
-
Study research stuff, look at this site, talk with other people. I went a little overboard with my research...Pitt's interview doesn't go all out with the stress level. Faculty is very nice.
-
Read brochure, talked to first and second year medstudents.
-
Read magazines like Time and Newsweek, and looked over some of my research papers and my applications
-
Read feedback on this site, read a book on health care issues, reviewed my application.
-
Hyperventilate.
-
Reading the Pitt brochure, SDN Web site
-
Read my AMCAS application and secondary essays, read feedback on studentdoctor.net
-
Read interview feedback.com
-
Read UPitt brochure, interviewfeedback.com (sorry guys)
What was the most difficult question?
Students said most difficult question asked at University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine discussed a wide range of topics including recent advancements in population health, personal conflicts, impactful research developments, motivations for medicine, failure experiences, and unique qualities. Notably, some respondents mentioned the interview format being MMI with a nondisclosure agreement, while others highlighted standard questions about activities, characteristics, and motivations for pursuing medicine.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
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Can you think of a recent advancement that impacted population health?
-
Tell me about yourself - it’s too broad
-
Tell me a time when you had a conflict with a co-worker/peer?
-
What research development do you know of in the past 5-10 years has made a strong impact to the community/people?
-
Can you describe a time when you failed? How did you handle it or what did you gain from it or how did you grow from it?
-
None. very standard questions
-
None, all very standard!
-
None
-
Has anything especially encouraged or discouraged your motivation for medicine?
-
There were no difficult questions. pretty standard interview
-
The first interview is closed file, so they ask a lot of questions about your activities and characteristics that are sometimes hard to answer
-
What concerns do you have about entering medicine?
-
Why medicine?
-
What sets you apart?
-
There weren't any curveball questions!
-
None, just a conversation.
-
A question about my UG school I didn't know the answer for
-
How will you apply your community organizing background as a physician?
-
Tell me something creative you've done
-
What would you do if you couldn't go to med school
-
For MSTP interview: Have you ever considered doing an MD? Why MD/PhD instead of MD?
-
Question 1.
-
So you want to work with the underserved. How do you justify going $200K in debt, then working for people who won't pay you?
-
What is your greatest weakness? (Ouch, hate that question).
-
Tell me an example of a time you demonstrated creativity
-
NONE!
-
Why did you leave your prior field?
-
Do you have any questions for me?
-
N/a
-
How did that make you feel? (asked a few times throughout... it felt like I was talking to a shrink)
-
None, it was very straight forward
-
None in particular. Very stress-free interviews.
-
Nothing was really difficult. there were few actual questions (my interviewer had prepared a sheet of about 5 actual questions, but the rest of the interview was conversational)
-
None really.
-
Why did you decide to switch careers? (was expected of course)
-
NA
-
No difficult questions. I was worried about getting questions about my GPA, but since both interviews are closed file they don't ask.
-
No difficult questions at all. The questions that people post on here is EXACTLY what you'll hear on interview day
-
What is professionalism?
-
The faculty interview was challenging, because I almost felt like the woman wanted me to lead the interview. It felt more like a conversation, and she didn't always lead with a question, so sometimes, instead of waiting for a question, I would just respond to something she had said. I was not expecting this level of informality, so it was a bit of a challenge to roll with.
-
Give me three words that describe you.
-
All straightforward. No curveballs here.
-
"Why Pitt?" was phrased in an unexpected way, looking for specific detail.
-
All the follow up questions on research took some serious thought
-
How do you feel about learning material with a team?
-
Everything was extremely straight forward. The usual stuff.
-
None were very difficult
-
What would make you come to Pitt?
-
So you think you have enough clinical experience?-
-
My student interviewer asked what I'd been doing lately. I think he was running out of things to ask and responses, and the time was fairly short. So be warned, your student interviewer might not be the most adept.
-
What is the core behind all of your motivations for being a doctor
-
Nothing was very difficult, as most questions were posted on studentdoctor.net in other interview feedback pages.
-
What do you think you'll struggle with most as a physician?
-
Nothing difficult. Very conversational.
-
What makes you unique from other applicants? (This one is always hard to answer)
-
Not difficult, but strange: Are you creative?
-
Was there anything in the clinical setting which surprised you?
-
Nothing really.
-
Can you think of a specific example of a doctor talking above the comprehension level of a patient?
-
The faculty interviewer grilled me on my personal statement.
-
Are you interested in academic medicine?
-
Are you creative?... I didn't really know how to approach it.
-
How would you consider yourself a creative person?
-
What have you gotten out of your college experience besides an education?
-
What are *you* looking for in a medical school? (Note: this is different than "why do you want to go to Pitt", although effectively the answers may be similar). Also, "why not RN, PA?"
-
Didn't really have one... my student interviewer was an MSTP or PSTP so he asked me how I felt about pursing professional research, but wasn't difficult just didn't want to offend him.
-
Again, all the questions you prepared for, ''Why Pitt?'', ''Why Medicine?'', ''What do you do for fun?''
-
How to balance between research and patient interaction?
-
No difficult questions
-
How would you like me to present you to the admissions committee?
-
Why should Pitt choose me.
-
Are you really sure you want to do this, given your age and current career?
-
How well are you, a non-science major, prepared for medical school compared to a science major?
-
Did I have any additional clinical experience other than working as an EMT? (I was hoping working as an EMT would be enough.)
-
What other schools applied to, and i stand with them.
-
What motivates you?
-
What would you do if you were in a small group with a very abrasive person? Why would you do this?
-
In what way are you creative?
-
None really, all pretty standard.
-
None.
-
Nothing
-
Having volunteered in a hospice, how do you deal with bonding with patients and then seeing those same patiends pass away?
-
Nothing was too difficult.
-
Was there any one experience that pushed you to medicine?
-
None really
-
Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
-
''do you have any questions for me'' (was a little underprepared, and was asked this four times by one guy)
-
Nothing really out of the ordinary
-
How I felt about the Honors/Pass/Fail system in regards to studying very hard and missing the honors mark by a point
-
Are you interested in teaching?
-
None. The questions were all easy.
-
You've had a lot more experience than the average applicant; don't you think that will make it hard to relate to them?
-
What are some of your strengths? What are some of your weaknesses?
-
No questions were particularly difficult. I think the question I was most unsure about how to answer was what other schools I had interviews at/applied to. I had one other interview scheduled at this point, but I wanted to make sure each interviewer who asked (all three) knew Pitt was high on my list! I also got lots of questions about my research experience, questions about any volunteer experiences, outside interests, and desire for the type of location I wanted to attend medical school at. They definitely try to sell Pittsburgh as a great city, so be prepared to either A. know what parts of Pittsburgh you do like or B. be able to show that even though you don't like Pittsburgh as a city, that wouldn't keep you away from the med school!
-
I don't remember any intentionally dificult questions. It was very conversational; I didn't feel like they were interested in watching me perform under pressure--just wanted to get to know me.
-
Tell me about your research.
-
Again, nothing too difficult
-
Why do you want to come to Pittsburgh when you are coming from a much better location?
-
Are you sure you want to go to med school? (because I am a non-traditional student, and have had a break in my education, plus a few gray hairs)
-
What are you plans if you don't get into medical school this time around?
-
What will you miss about being a CNA (Certified Nursing Assistant) whenever you become a doctor?
-
How have you tested your commitment to medicine?
-
Why do you go to the school you do?
-
My interview was more just a conversation... we talked about whatever came up
-
Nothing was really difficult. It was conversational.
-
So why are you here? what other schools that you have applied have problem based learning?
-
If you had to choose between medicine and research, which would it be and why?
-
Why are you here? (it kind of caught me off guard, especially since it was my first question)
-
What is your favorite book? (difficult to narrow it down)
-
Nothing was difficult. pitt is very conversational, and i was hardly asked any questions aside from the first, just to get the conversation started.
-
One prof pointed out my lack in clinical experience and i had to recover from that one with other community service things that i had done
-
What is the most creative thing you have done recently?
-
Have you met any disgruntled physicians during your shadowing experiences? How did you respond to them? What effect did they have on you?
-
Are you a democrat?
-
Nothing difficult
-
Have you done anything recent to test your commitment to medicine?
-
They were all easy
-
Discuss an experience where you disagreed with an authority.
-
Same as above.
-
Same
-
The interview was very laid-back. No curveballs.
-
Who is your role model?
-
Was the difference between specificity and sensitivity?
-
Have you considered the length and difficulty of residency? What are your thoughts on that?
-
With all of your clinical experiences, what do you know about and are you prepared for medical school, residency, fellowship?
-
What do you think about the US Health Care System compared with that of other countries?
-
How do you think you'll fit in here?
-
I suppose those interesting questions could have been hard but my faculty interviewer made me feel very at ease and comfortable so nothing was really hard.
-
Why not M.D./Ph.D?
-
Do you think you really made a difference in the life of the inner-city child you were tutoring during your Alternative Spring Break? (Was a reasonable question during the interview, but as a stand-alone, this question is difficult.)
-
Same as above
-
To be honest - I was not asked any of those questions that interviewing students dread answering - NO moral/ethical questions, NO defend your position on abortion, etc.
-
Nothing really difficult
-
No difficult questions.
-
Comment on the difference between the health care systems in the U.S. and Canada.
-
How do you feel about academic medicine? (Research, basically) Even if you haven't done any research you will have to do some clinical research while at Pitt. Just keep that in mind.
-
None really, they can't grill you on your application because it's closed-file.
-
How do you like the city? (a question only the most skillful of liers could answer positively)
-
Same as before.
-
Nothing really
-
Same.
-
I guess the most difficult in content, but not asked in a scary way: If your best friend was one station ahead of you on a lab practical exam, and you saw him repeatedly looking ahead like he was cheating off the person in front of him, what would you do?"
-
What do you do with your friends?
-
Pretty standard questions, nothing difficult.
-
No really difficult questions, just usual application, how you got to medicine stuff...
-
What experiences have you had working in small-group settings? What do you think are the pros and cons of working in a small group of peers? Why do you think working with small groups will help you learn?
-
No real difficult questions. The interview was very straightforward to get to know who you are. Probably the hardest was "how would your friends describe you."
-
None. They were very straight forward and were mainly from my app & AMCAS
-
Questions about my research
-
Name something wrong with our health care system and suggest a solution.
-
What kind of role do you play on a team and what kind of people do you prefer on a team?
-
What type of problem I'd like to study in the Women's Health AOC
-
?
-
What do you like to do for fun the most? (It was hard to tell if she wanted no ECs or one from ECs)
-
A question about my family (which I wrote about in my app) that came as a surprise.
-
2 strengths and 2 weaknesses
-
No question was especially difficult, but the interviews clearly wanted to know who I was and what had driven my desire to become a physician.
-
What is wrong with medicine and what would you do to fix it? (student question)
-
Nothing too difficult!
-
Same, since it was the only one I hadnt heard
-
See above.
-
Very standard questions
-
None really, everyone was extremely relaxed and happy there
-
What do you think of the fact that doctors who are on payroll with the cholesterol drug companies are also the ones that recommeded that the acceptable cholesterol levels be lowered from 200 to 190?
-
From a student interviewer for the MD/PhD part: "The student interviewers have a lot of say in the admissions committee. Do you want me to go to the committee and fight for you?" I thought this was a tough one because even though I was really interested in the school I obviously didn't want to give a guarantee that I would go there since there is still a lot of time before the interview season ends. But as you can see the most difficult question wasn't really difficult.
-
Probably the same one; I'd heard everything else before.
-
Can you tell me about a time when you confronted a real dilemma in your volunteer work?
-
Describe your study habits to me. I could either lie and pretend as if I'm super-student, or I could use this opportunity to tell the truth. I chose the latter, and I am glad to be asked this question instead of the typical "what are your weaknesses" question.
-
Tell me everything you want me to know about yourself (this was asked during the student interview, because they have no knowledge or background about you, aside from your name and state of residency)
-
Detailed questions about my research
-
None were difficult.
-
None very difficult
-
No tough questions.
-
So, how do you plan on managing a career with other life responsibilities? (not meant in a bad way, it just came up)
-
Student: "What was the last favorite book you read?" - I don't know! Too busy filling out med school apps! No, I actually didn't answer it like that. Faculty: "Tell me about little aspect X of your research." (I did the project 3 yrs ago).
-
Most questions were fairly straight forward.
-
What schools have you been accepted to?
-
What would you do if you couldnt do medicine (pretty standard, you see)
-
So, do you think pitt is the place for you?
-
See above
-
Don't recall
-
Why Pittsburgh?
-
How do you feel about male gynecologists not being hired in private practices since women now prefer to go to a woman doctor for their gynecological care?
-
None, very conversational
-
How have you tested your desire to enter medicine?
-
Is there anything not on your application that you want me to tell the admissions committee? What happened freshman year?
-
Nothing too difficult, very conversational
-
What makes you absolutely, positively sure that you want to be a doctor?
-
If you get accepted into a UC school and Pitt, would you come to Pitt? (i'm from california)
-
My faculty interviewer asked me about health care insurance.
-
All pretty standard questions.
-
Again, the normal med school interview questions.
-
Where do you see medicine in ten years?
-
A current event that I hadn't heard of . . (Low pressure, though)
-
Of those three things lets take one - Education - what 4 policies would you implement to improve it's current situation?
-
Probably the above
-
Nothing too difficult. This site helped me prepare well.
-
What do you look for in a medical school? (By no means hard, normally, but I tripped in this part of the conversation)
-
Why would you pick pitt over some other top school? this was difficult because 1. pitt is not a top school and 2. i wouldn't pick pitt over a real top school
-
What would you do if you weren't pursuinf medicine?
-
Nothing really difficult...probably the standard "What will be your greatest challenge as a doctor" question
-
Why Pitt? (i know, it's not too difficult, but i was asked it 3 times and didn't have a great answer)
-
Nothing really difficult. Which of your extracurricular activities are most important to you and why?
-
Do you think that the character Denzel Washington played in "John Q" was right in what he did? Why or why not?
-
Tell me about an ethical dilemma you faced while working abroad.
-
Nothing.
-
What other schools did you apply to? Why would you come out to Pitt?
-
Strengths and weaknesses?
-
So tell me about yourself
-
Tell me something about yourself that I could not find out from your application. (Basically had to continuing elaborating on this question for about 1.5 hours)
-
None - they just really want to get to know you and be friendly
-
Did you always want to be a health professional? How frustrating was it to get the grades you did early in college?
-
Why do you want to be a doctor? Of course, you probably are ready for that one.
-
Nothing, really.
-
None really. I was asked a question or two about my research that I could not answer, but outside of research-specific questions, I just got the normal "Why both degrees..." etc.
-
What are your strengths/weaknesses(required)
-
Name a weakness.
-
If you could have any two books you wanted for eternity, what would they be?
-
What's the most significant activity in college?
-
...well what do you think is preventing major change in the health care area today? (I was talking about problems with managed care and the lack of health insurance and how I'd like to change it if I was given the chance)
-
What makes you different from everybody else?
-
What do you want me to tell the admissions committee about you?
-
Just the typical stuff, why MD/PhD, why Pittsburgh, what other schools did you apply to...
-
Describe your family for me....just because this is such a vague question
-
Tell me about yourself (just too vague to answer really well)
-
What is the biggest problem with American Healthcare today?
-
What topic do you like besides science, for some reason my mind went blank on that.
-
None of the questions were extremely difficult.
-
What is your biggest weakness?
-
Name one of your strengths (this was a required question - my interviewer told me that).
-
What other schools are you applying to?
-
What would you do to reduce rising health-care costs?
-
Nothing relaly - all were 100% conversational and relaxed, you could have total control of the direction of the conversation if you wanted.
-
Mostly easy questions
-
When talking about a film "Why do you think the director employed that specific effect?"
-
Nothing really too difficult
-
How would you solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict?
-
What is your greatest strength? Your greatest weakness?
-
What would you do with your life if you couldn't work in a healthcare profession? (It's hard to pick some other job after detailing your love of the medical field.)
-
How will I prevent myself from becoming a "jaded" doctor...and when I explained, he said, "I'll come back in ten years and see how jaded you are!"
-
Wanted me to explain what was wrong with the health care system today. As soon as I started going into detail he cut me off to tell me his answer (this goes for the entire interview with faculty member)
-
None. What do you do for fun? Why medicine? Why Pitt? Rest were conversational like "how many are in your family", etc.
What impressed you positively?
Applicants were overwhelmingly impressed by the relaxed and conversational interview style, along with the genuine interest shown in their success by both interviewers and staff. They appreciated the friendliness and welcoming atmosphere of everyone they encountered, the state-of-the-art facilities, the extensive clinical opportunities, the emphasis on collaboration among students, the focus on research, the flexibility of the curriculum, and the enthusiasm of the students for the school and the city of Pittsburgh.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
-
I loved how relaxed and conversational the interviews were. Both interviewers showed a genuine interest in seeing me succeed.
-
How personable everyone was; genuinely felt like talking to people I knew
-
How chill the interview was
-
The faculty and student interviewers were super nice. Student interview was much more chillax than faculty interview.
-
I felt the interviewers made a solid effort to help put me at ease and make me more comfortable during the interview.
-
The intro session
-
How conversational the interview was. I got almost no standard interview-style questions.
-
Super chill; student interviewer was super chill
-
Everyone was so nice! Very relaxed considering the caliber of the school!
-
The attitude of everyone from Pitt Med
-
Lots of varied clinical exposure
-
The facilities and people are wonderful
-
There were only a few formal questions asked during the interview. Most of it was very conversational, and I felt like I could control the conversation just as much as the interviewer.
-
The interview day was really well organized, the medical center is really impressive
-
Everyone at the school truly loved it there. Students, faculty, everyone- you really could tell. I also like the way their curriculum is set up, and how students are involved in adjusting it over time.
-
Tons of resources
-
Seems like a cool city to be in.
-
The facilities and the resources available to students.
-
It was great! Definitely my top choice after the interview!
-
Everyone was *extremely* kind and welcoming
-
The curriculum was really cool! Definitely a lot of ways to customize your education with electives, etc. Plus the Scholarly Research project doesn't just have to be wet lab stuff.
-
Urban atmosphere and how happy the students were to be there.
-
So many research opportunities, very easy-going students
-
How in depth my interviewer had read my application, and how conversational the interview was.
-
How much people loved Pitt (school and city), amount of mentorship and help from faulty/upper classmen, emphasis on collaboration/non-competition among students (everything pass/fail)
-
The hospital is gorgeous, the curriculum is great.
-
Everything!!! The faculty are SO NICE and all the students seem to be genuinely happy.
-
Everything.
-
Everyone at the school, the students, admission office staff, and interviewers, were very friendly. The overall interview day was very stress free.
-
The curriculum is cool - you can really tailor it to your interests with mini-electives, areas of concentration, etc. The UPMC hospitals seemed fantastic. All the faculty I met were really outstanding and seemed to love teaching and working with med students.
-
The students and facilities
-
Wonderful faculty interviewer. Strong support for research ventures. Very livable, friendly city.
-
Facilities, WISER simulation, strength of both research and clinical training, research availability, student community//support
-
How truly, sincerely nice and open everyone was; the city of Pittsburgh seems like a really nice place to live; the student lead tour was great (probably the most informative and interesting med school tour I've been on); WISER simulation center; clinical and research opportunities (lots of clinical electives in the 4th year and research is supported very well); CSTP program; the fact that Pitt cares about students having a life.
-
Friendliness of everyone I met, simulation center
-
The people, the opportunities, the facility, the culture, the curriculum, the city... It is all great.
-
The UPMC system is amazing! There are so many clinical opportunities immediately on campus, but they also have international hospitals and hospitals throughout the nation for students to take advantage of.
-
The grandness of UPMC
-
Just about everything
-
Ranking
-
The Oakland area, the massive medical complex, and the quality of the students.
-
Great research opportunities, great clinical experience at UPMC
-
The facilities were really impressive. Tour guide was friendly. Both student interviewer and faculty interviewer were chill.
-
Extremely friendly staff and students. Program is centered around patient care, students will be able to take patient histories and interact with real patients midway through the first year. Orientation week consists of going out into the community and seeing the state of health care in different parts of the area. Patient centric curriculum = Big plus for me.
-
The quality of the people and the fact that the school takes the quality of interpersonal relationships very seriously.
-
Pittsburgh is much nicer than I expected. And, the hospital system is impressive to say the least.
-
Everything: campus, public bus (being from nyc this is important and it seemed like it would suffice), affiliated hospitals and clinics, the HAPPY students etc.
-
UPMC facilities are beautiful. New sim center. Lots of construction in the UPMC system (=money!). Student housing on Darragh Street is nice and very convenient.
-
Everything
-
How welcoming every last person was from the students to the doctors to the admissions staff
-
The WISER center was very cool. They are getting new 3G human models. Fancy.
-
The facilities were amazing & the students were very engaging, diverse, smart, & happy,
-
Friendliness that felt more genuine than other schools I'd been to; students seemed really happy and not competitive (with each other or even with themselves); AOCs; mini-electives; opportunity to take 6 credits of courses at undergrad (eg language); incredible research opportunities; about half students non-traditional (so am I); diverse academic strengths - both in my interests and in fields I may become interested in in the future; the easiness of living in Pittsburgh!
-
WISER center, friendliness of everyone involved in the process, the blatant emphasis on research
-
Continental breakfast. Pretty good bagel.
-
Everything- the facilities (especially the WISER lab), the student involvement, the city itself
-
The WISER (sim-lab) was pretty awesome.
-
Nice facilities, good research opportunities, friendly students. Location is good, and having the undergrad nearby is nice. Tons of nice hospitals, and decent living options nearby.
-
The simulation center (we saw a simulation in progress), student enthusiasm and willingness to answer questions. Sporting facilities. The organ-system-based curriculum. Student tours were in groups of four, and guides would point out interview locations for later in the afternoon.
-
The hospital facilities, the schools curric
-
The students are so down to earth and the facilities are amazing (read: humongous).
-
Students, vast resources of the school, ridiculously awesome faculty and facilities.
-
The place is amazing. Everything is centered around teaching, and they are all about innovation. The WISER center is incredible. The clinical education at Pitt is unmatchable, with such an extensive network of hospitals and patient populations to work with.
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Simulation center is the 5th biggest in the country, and the students utilize it extensively (200 hrs required); Happiness of students (They have a life!); Diversity of students (about 50% are non-trad; about 25% go abroad summer after M1 with funding from school); Willingness of the school to raise good physicians (it's obvious from all the money the school spends on students and teaching facilities and responsiveness to feedback); UPMC is the biggest hospital system in the country, and UPitt students are the sole med students to roam this system! Awesome!
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The vast amount of opportunities available. Advisory dean relationship, Small group learning opportunities
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The curriculum integration
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WISER (simulation center), responsiveness of administration to student feedback, rich hospital network, many many opportunities in research and overseas work, scholarly project to focus and apply knowledge in one area is very cool!
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WISER center, required thesis, the snow. :)
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WISER, conversational style interview
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The people were great! You have 2 - one hour interviews so you have plenty of opportunities to present yourself. Also, at the end of the day they offered optional sessions and the History of Medicine discussion was awesome.
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Faculty and staff are incredibly friendly; students seem genuinely happy; WISER is just amazing.
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The simulation center, the breadth of the clinical facilities, the quality of the clinical training, the positive attitude of the students, the emphasis on research, the interviewers' friendliness.
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Pittsburgh. There's a lot to do and a very rich culture. Much better than I expected. The students were all very very friendly and happy to be there.
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The cities of Pittsburgh and Oakland, where the campus is located, are surprisingly nice. The hospitals ans facilities were state of the art. The admissions staff and students were very nice. The anatomy lab had a good amount of space.
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WISER center, friendly students and admissions office, PBL emphasis, UPMC hospital, great opportunities available for Pitt students
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Everything...everyone seemed happy to be there and genuinely liked the school.
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Everything; the students were happy and down to earth and the location is nice.
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WISER simulation center is amazing. The academic environment appears to be based on cooperation, not competitiveness. Also, all lectures are podcasted if you miss class or decide you would rather listen to lecture in 1.5X speed.
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Everything about the school: the med students, the WISER facilities, the anatomy lab...
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The simulation lab, the quality of applicants, the campus, everything.
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The students, the number of institutes in upmc, wiser
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The opportunities for research and travel abound. The student affairs office is helpful and interested. - I was impressed
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Tour of facilities, discussions with students
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WISER center and other facilities are great!
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Students and faculty were very happy. Focus on creativity and diversity. Only PBLs have mandatory attendance. Great art and indie scenes, public transport in Pittsburgh. WISER!
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The facilities!
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WISER center, student-friendliness, city of Pittsburgh, research opportunities
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The opportunity to see all of the facilities, to meet with many students and to see how happy they were at pitt, the general school spirit in oakland, the cheap 28x airport transportation, the expanse of UPMC, the simulators
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The student body-- they were very friendly.
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The friendliness of the school. The facilities. Especially the WISER facilities.
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Pittsburgh was a much nicer city than I thought it would be. The simulation center was cool, and everyone was sooooo extremely friendly.
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Research funding (ranked 6th in NIH)!
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Just how friendly and respectiveful all of my interviewers are. My faculty interviewer especially impresses me and I can tell she actively try to make her interviewee comfortable.
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The teaching facilities and the hospital are absolutely fantastic, better than just about anywhere. The students seem pretty happy there and the housing situation is also excellent. The curriculum is a good mix of PBL and traditional teaching. Thesis requirement provides nice research emphasis. The sim facility is really cool.
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Eh...
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The facilities are amazing. The students are really friendly and helpful.
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The interviewers were soooo nice and down-to-earth. The definition of conversational interviews. The admissions staff was also very friendly. Students were very enthusiastic about the school. Tons were eager to answer questions; seemed extra excited by prospective students.
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The people. Everyone was very nice and enthusiastic about the school. The medical students seemed very happy. The WISER center was pretty amazing.
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Students think very positive about the school and very friendly. Nice anatomy lab and wiser center.
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The location was so much better than I though it would be! The view of the downtown at night is completely amazing and so is the waterfront!!
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Interest level of the admissions members and faculty in the prospective students.
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WISER of course. The location of the school. The hospital system. And I even liked the city of Pittsburgh.
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WISER center is amazing, the apartments where most MS1 students live is nice with a great location
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WISER center, my faculty interviewer who really wanted to get to know me well
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WISER center
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Students and faculty seemed amazingly friendly and happy, vastness of UPMC, amazing resources such as WISER center.
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The WISER center, UPMC umbrella gives you lots of opportunities.
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WISER facility, student satisfaction, faculty interaction, great opportunities
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The WISER center was very impressive. Also, the sheer number of hospitals within a close proximity of the medical school was impressive.
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EVERYTHING! Simulation lab is fabulous. Curriculum incorporates a substantial amount of PBL which really appeals to me. Massive hospital system all located within a couple of miles. Students seem happy and, well, quite normal. Other applicants were also incredibly friendly and pretty cool. I am in love with pitt.
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Facilities were top notch and people were extremely friendly.
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Faculty seemed very friendly and open, students seemed genuinely happy, large medical center with a lot of options (especially for research)
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How friendly everyone was and how all the med students work together versus compete with each other. Also, the hospital facilities, especially WISER, are amazing.
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Interest in student's success, B-WISER is AWESOME, the curriculum, everyone was nice
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Students are really nice and seem to be very tight....everything seems to be tailored to the MD student
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WISER center; low-key, closed file interviews, very conversational...mostly questions about reasons and motivation for medicine, going to Pitt, research and extracurriculars that I've done
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Pittsburgh is a good blend of urban and small town. Everyone was very friendly, the students seemed very happy to be at Pitt, and the WISER center is great.
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Honesty of interviewers, enthusiasm of staff and students
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The simulation center, extensive hospital facilities, Pittsburgh is a charming city (just wish it was closer to home).
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The facilities, and the enthusiasm of the faculty and students.
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The people (students, faculty and other staff) are incredibly nice
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WISER center, student-focused school, early clinical experience, PBL
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Everyone was very friendly, hospital is very high-tech and fancy, student interviewer was enthusiastic
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Seems like a great school with great facilities
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Pittsburgh as a city is really nice and has a lot of things to do. The facilities were excellent and the students I met were really friendly and had only good things to say about the program.
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WISER center, library has lots of electronic subscriptions, everyone was very friendly and enthusiastic
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The school is SUPERB! It runs the gamut from excellent clinical exposure to cutting edge research.
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Scope of facilities and opportunities.
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Pittsburgh seemed like a hospitable city. The senior admissions staff was very accommodating, my faculty interviewer was very friendly and forthcoming about the school. Its a great medical center.
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Everyone was really friendly and seemed to want us to have a good time instead of being stressed out pickles. The WISER center was also amazing (including pediatric and labor and delivery simulations plus possible expansions). I was impressed that medical students are allowed to learn how to do central lines since at some schools that isn't the case (and that they can practice on mannequins before doing it on people!) I was also really impressed by the vastness of Pitt's med system including the Magee Women's Hospital and the new Pitt dorm for medical students (at least the pictures/idea of it and how cheap it is). I also really like how the curriculum includes a scholarly project with options for global health participation, but I'm not sure that should be required from students who aren't research/community health oriented (However, if you're not, why go to such a strong research oriented school?)
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Students seem genuinely happy. They really like the curriculum (Pitt students only take one science class at a time, and its very condensed, i.e. all you do the first 3 weeks is anatomy, but then you're done with it for the year) Also, the PBL supplements the lectures very well, and they seem to like that. Facilities were perfectly fine. Pittsburgh seems like a very nice city, very liveable, safe, affordable, etc. And the school is very close to downtown. The hospital complex is pretty impressive. They seem to own the entire city. And the WISER center is incredible.
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Great research, great faculty.
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The facilities, WISER, the faculty support for students.
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The WISER center was cool, Pittsburgh seemed like a nicer city than I thought it would be, the students (the few that we met) were pretty friendly
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The dummy simulations....so awesome. The people were really cool and helpful.
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The simulation department.
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The ample opportunity available to do research. Also, Pitt Med is geared towards keeping their students satisfied. The fourth year students seemed real cool, but some of the first year students seemed weird.
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The wiser center, my student hosts, the assistant director of admissions was a jolt of positive energy.
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The quality of the facilities, the WISER center!, library system, hospital affiliations and availability
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The facilities and the close proximity of all the hospitals and housing options
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The facilities, Pittsburgh and the cost of living, the research opportunities.
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The area. Wiser lab. friendly people. how much research they do. the new med student residence
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How nice the students and staff all are, WISER!, the amount of research and the number of opportunities to do stuff, paula davis on the admissions staff (she's awesome!)
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Wiser Center and Pittsburgh
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Amazing facilities ranked 7th for NIH funding. LOTS of money for students, really nice down to earth students, cstp and pstp program covers full tuition and an extra year of research and/or obtaining a Msc degree
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The friendliness of everyone and how many medical centers are in the city.
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The facilities are great. The WISER center is amazing. Also, you're only taught one major science class at a time. That's really nice. A lot of schools will teach you Anatomy and Physiology at the same time, but not at Pitt
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The facilities and the students' overall attitude. Everyone at Pitt is extremely friendly.
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The facilities were great, and the student interviewer was awesome
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The student and faculty member that i met with for the md portion were so amazing and encouraging. i really like the area of pittsburgh.
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I loved the school. Pittsburgh is so pretty and all the students seem to be very happy and well adjusted. They all have more going on than just studying.
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How nice people really are at Pitt. That may sound like a cheesy thing to say as an impression to some, but seriously - you will see what I mean if/when you come here. Students, faculty, staff - they're such warm-hearted people, and brilliant too. =)
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WISER simulation labs, the number and quality of hospitals, the flexibility of fourth year in terms of electives, the friendliness and personability of the med students
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Nice and friendly faculty and students
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The school is really focused on taking action when students aren't satisfied. I haven't seen (yet) another school so focused on student satisfaction.
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The WISER center is awesome. The students were really friendly, especially my excellent hostess.
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WISER is incredible. The city seems to have a lot of culture/activities. Undergraduate campus provides lots of other things to do as well.
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The atmosphere was generally cooperative, warm, and welcoming. The admissions staff, faculty, and students seemed genuinely interested in us.
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The WISER center is amazing, and such a cool idea! I also liked that the clinical experience starts at the end of the first year. Visiting the anatomy lab was great. The most important thing for me was that everyone we met on tour and during lunch with the second year students was enthusiastic, relaxed, and at the same time really excited about being a student there. They all seem to like each other and have good things to say about the school and the faculty.
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U Pitt was amazing. Situated in the heart of downtown, the medical center spans over the Oakland area and provides state-of-the art facilities, including the WISER simulation center. Also, everyone was so friendly and helpful. The city is remarkable- really affordable and vibrant. I had a great experience.
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I absolelty feel in LOVE with the camus, the adminstrators and the students. Pitt is by far my number one choice now!
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Admissions dean seemed to hit it off nicely with me. Pitt is the ONLY med school in the town and seems to own half the city
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Pittsburgh is a really beautiful city
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The Wiser simulation center--quality Emergency Med program. Pittsburgh is great. good solid top 15 school.
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The simulation center(s) and the display of
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The students are terrific. Pitt has great facilities.
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The facilities are amazing. I don't think anyone who visits can be unimpressed with WISER. The faculty interview was very informative. The food in the hospital cafeteria was great and cheap (you get a meal ticket for $5, and it actually buys a lot of food).
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WISER simulation center, facilities, general mood and friendliness of students and admissions staff
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Simulation lab
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What didn't? I thought the facilities were superb, from the WISER center to the fact almost all of Oakland is owned and operated by UPMC. Excellent clinical opportunities, and superior career potential for any type of specialty. The students were genuinely happy, honest and forthcoming about how great their school was. I came to Pitt wondering if I would a good fit for the curriculum, which was my main concern, and I walked away feeling like I fully understood how they're organized. The day was long, but necessary given the fact that they want you really check you out and get to know you. I also thought Pittsburgh is a beautiful little town. Very family oriented, so if you're single, good luck in trying to meet somebody.
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Students and faculty were very laid back; my med student interviewer was so chill and honest. My faculty interviewer was incredibly nice as well. I walked through the anatomy lab while they were doing a lobotomy on cadavers ... that was awesome.
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WISER simulation center
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SimLab, Anatomy Lab, Opportunities are abundant.
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The school is very high tech. They tried to sell Pittsburgh as a city, PBL, and WISER (advanced simulation lab). Everyone was extremely nice. The med students seemed to enjoy the school a lot.
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The hospital system does more transplants per year than any other hospital system in the world. Also, they have a whole floor of a hospital dedicated to simulated teaching on dummies.
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The facilities, the people, the city, the philosophy...everything.
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Everyone was extremely friendly (except for one of my interviewers) and the school definately seems to cater and care about its students. The facilities are amazing!!!! The Assistant Dean is super friendly!
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People at Pitt are just so DAMN nice. I'm from Florida, and so I see a lot of stuck up rich people, and we also get a lot of excessively rich snowbirds from NY who love mistreating everyone in their path - and in Pittsburgh in general, although they dislike being labeled "mid-west", they are very much extremely amiable and trust-worthy people. I had random strangers go out of their way to walk me down 5 to 10 city blocks to make sure I got where I needed to go, I also had a med-student meet me on Saturday after my interview and drove me around on his own time and gas for abour 4 hours all over the city ... he said, to repay him, to do the same for someone else in the future because someone did it for him a few years back as well. More than that, the excitement of the students and the faculty is contagious. They really love their school and they're so psyched about their philosophy of Person-to-Person, and their new organ-systems approach to teaching, as well as science block scheduling: that is - you only take 1 science course at a time, and the rest is Medical Interviewing, Ethics, Clinical Exposure, etc etc. Also, insomuch as the tour - the WISER Center is way cool! They even have a dummy there that can mimick childbirth under varying fetal positions and rates of contraction, not to mention dummies with all sorts of trauma and respiratory conditions - they can simulate a tychypnic patient even, or practice tracheotomies when the patient's jaw and mouth become too stiff to open.
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The facilities are very nice. The faculty seemed very interested in the students, and for research oriented people this is a very good school. All students are required to do a mentored scholarly project of their choice, meaning research.
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WISER center, students were very open in their opinions, the facilities we saw seemed nice and updated
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WISER center/early clinical practice, the interviewers, outdoors stuff
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Everyone was very nice. The WISER center, which is their simulation lab, was AMAZING. The students were really nice and helpful, even if the ones that weren't part of the tour. One student offered to walk me to my interview site.
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Laid back, friendly faculty/students; Pittsburgh is a cute city with a neighborhood-like atmosphere, I actually really liked it
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The students - every single person I met was very encouraging, and they all spoke very highly of their experiences thus far at Pitt. Also, I really like the block curriculum.
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WISER center was awesome, the students seemed really cool and diverse. My two interviewers were people I could connect with. The fact that Pitt is a medical city, the proximity of the gym to the med school, the escalators in the med school (they're neato), the other students in the interview were very friendly
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The associate dean of admissions was the most jovial, light-hearted, easy-to-talk-to person I have met so far in the interview process. Simulation lab was very interesting. The usually painful financial aid talk wasn't so bad.
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The number of healthcare facilities owned by U. Pitt--it pretty much owns everything in that region!
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The medical students seemed to be a good group & they were enjoying themselves. The simulation center is pretty cool.
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The facilities and the medical center
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The medical center is huge! The are several hospitals clustered together. And Pittsburgh is beautiful, which surprised me.
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EVERYTHING. its by far the best school ive been to yet (ive interviewed at 8 schools). just read other sdn posts----they're all accurate. the school is incredible.
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Everything. The area around the school was a lot nicer than I expected and the school itself is so nice. The facilities and hospitals are wonderful and the people are so friendly. I met tons of students that I could se myself becoming friends with.
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So many things! My student host and her friends were all really fun and nice, clearly enjoying each other's company and happy to be at Pitt. I went out to dinner with several of them, and they were all eager to answer any questions I had. Everyone says Pittsburgh doesn't deserve the bad rap it sometimes gets. On the day of the interview, we started with a two hour tour of the place. The WISER center is phenomenal. How great an idea is it to practice on fake patients first! The other really great part of the tour was that when we got to the gross anatomy lab, the first years were all still in class! The whole tour went in and just mingled with the class for a good 20 minutes, who were all enthusiastic and friendly and happy to talk to us. It was so cool to see all the cadavers. After the tour were a few info sessions, followed by lunch--I should use lunch as an opportunity to say that I was very impressed by my fellow interviewees. I can totally see them as my future classmates, and I'd be really happy about it. Ok, so after lunch were my interviews, which were just great. I had four of them (student, faculty, director of diversity affairs, dean of admissions), and they were all so conversational and interesting that we accidentally ran well over our alotted time in two of them! When the faculty member and I ran over so I was late to #3, she walked me to that interviewer's office, and when we had trouble finding it, she stayed on the search with me until we did. When that one ran over too, she called ahead to let #4 know that's why I was late. All four interviewers started by asking me how my day was going. They were sincerely interested in how my Pitt experience was treating me, plus it was a totally natural way to start a conversation. After all the interviews, I showed up in the admiss office only to find out that there was some random ice cream sundae buffet three floors down! Several of us went dashing down the escalator together, laughing, and got ice cream: what a great end to a great day. A few nonspecific other positive impressions: I love the curriculum: a great combination of structured lecture and PBL, so it's the best of both worlds. All the students say that they're very cooperative with one another: they're always sharing successful study techniques, pointing out which cadaver is good to see what on, emailing charts they made, etc etc. The people at Pitt were truly the most impressive thing. From the students to the staff to the faculty to the other interviewees, everyone was friendly, enthusiastic and warm. Love it.
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The facilities were superb. All the hospitals were linked some how. The WISER Sim center is awesome, absolutely the best in the world.
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Facilities are second to none and probably the best orthopedics department in the country. Lots of research money and opportunities. Students seemed to like it.
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EVERYTHING. Pittsburgh is dedicated to always improving, and the facilities are amazing. WISER is incredible, and there are so many hospitals that med students have access to, right next to the medical school. This was the first school I've gone to where they took us into the anatomy lab while they were dissecting, which was an eye-opening experience. I thought I might get grossed out, but instead I was fascinated!
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Facilities are very impressive; med program is very very community based and cooperative environment; students ALL say they are "happy"; rankings are high; lots of research opportunities for students
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The resources and facilities available to the students are amazing. Seven hospitals in the area that attract patients from all over the nation and international patients. The simulated patients are incredible. Practically all the students I met were extremely happy where they were.
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The WISER simulation center. I can't wait to (hopefully) be working in there. They have an outstanding record of success on their boards and the match. There is a HUGE hospital system associated with the school.
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Everyone I met at the med school (faculty, staff, and students) were extremely friendly, enthusiastic, and welcoming. The environment was cooperative, not competitive. The Wieser simulation lab was amaaaazing.
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The facilities are phenomenal. The students were enthusiastic, the staff impressive. This school is doing a lot of things right.
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They had excellent facilities, great hospitals surrounding the school as part of the UPMC system. the people were wonderful and i really felt i got a good glimpse of the diversity of individuals that make up pitt's med school
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Facilities look brand new. Lots of money at school (building new facilities all over the place). Medical school is next to undergrad campus. Their clinical skills lab is absolutely one-of-a-kind amazing. Solid research experiences available to students. UPMC serves a very large community of people.
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The day was well organized. I got to meet a lot of students who were very friendly and informative. The school is very impressive.
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SIM lab, endless opportunities, lots of hospitals, my faculty interview's passion for what he does, ventilation system in the gross lab!
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Nearly EVERYTHING! The school really blew me away with: 1) the research!! The people who are doing what I'm interested in doing are really amazing. 2) the organization of its MSTP, and the involvement of the MSTP administrators (they seem not only dedicated to their students, but also make great efforts to stay apprised of each students research and general happiness. The students I met were all very positive about how the Program is run.) 3) its curriculum (longitudinal clinical clerkships during grad. years, a good balance of lecture and PBL); 4) its students (all seemed very bright, well-balanced, and honestly very happy with life at Pitt.); 5) its facilities (they have pretty much anything you could want there -- no need to send samples out -- and they are actively building more) 6) the hospitalS (UPMC is the only hospital system serving Pittsburgh, so they have a ton of opportunities) 7) its strength in history of science/medicine, bioethics, etc. (and the opportunity to take these undergrad. classes) 8) the city -- this is the thing that I was most worried about in checking out the school. But I found Pittsburgh to have a very comfortable, small-town (albeit not bustling) feel to it.
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Facilities, top academics available
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*How down to earth and intelligent students were *The extent that the administration listens to student concerns, and you meet with the dean at the end of the interview day. *The WISER center-- didn't think it would be cool as cool as it was but WOW!
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WISER simulation lab, extremely friendly students.
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The facilities are great. The school runs a massive hospital system that is pretty much all connected to the school directly or with tunnels and skyways. The simulation lab is the best around with 25 simulation mannequins and 10 simulation rooms. The school's committment to constantly improving the curriculum.
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Pitt has an incredible simulation lab with more mannequins than any other institution in the country. Pitt has a huge, modern medical center comprising many different hospitals. Most importantly though, everybody at the school was extremely friendly and helpful. They stress their focus on treating students well and respecting them as real people--my visit certainly confirmed this.
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Simulation lab, current med students kicked ass, thoughtfulness of curriculum design, and opportunities to do research in the regular md program.
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Awesome SimMan lab, just incredible. A really well done tour, showed the best of the medical school
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Pitt seems to have very good clinical affiliations. The area is just a med school surrounded by like a million hospitals, it's the hub of where medicine is practiced in Western PA. It is also research-intensive, lots of opportunities there. Admissions staff were very friendly and the students were too (the few we met). The simulation lab is really amazing - I haven't seen anything like it anywhere else!
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1) school has 16 simulated mannequins (mad cool), called sim-mans, AND a sim-baby. pitt has a separate department that's responsible for its maintenance and how they are employed to teach students. GW only had one and Mt. Sinai only had two. first and second years don't really get a chance to use it as much, but the sim-mans are a staple for the students' third and fourth year education. the sim-mans + regular clinical rotations in the third and fourth year means the students get tons of clinical exposure and really learn their stuff. 2) being in an underserved urban community, their are ample amounts of clinical exposure for the students which begins in the first year. 3) Pass/Fail grading system with no internal ranking among the students means that the students are not competitive and they tend to work together a lot. 4) Pittsburgh is a pretty cool town as well. city provides all of the cultural opportunities of a big city, but has a small town friendliness about it (I live in NYC). 5) students do WELL above the national average on the USMLE and Pitt's match list is pretty darn good. 6) Pitt is the hub of medicine for the western part of pennsylvania, so med students get exposed to all sorts of cases --> great clinical exposure
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The students all seemed happy with their choice. The WISER facility with the simulation options was the largest I've seen. The faculty seemed genuinly interested in working with students and their ideas.
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Teaching facilities are pretty cool and there seem to be all of programs to help students explore their interests (i.e., flexibility in combined degree programs, fellowships, etc.). Also, there are many many hospitals afffiliated with Pitt, which is always a benefit. Also, compared to California, Pittsburgh is an incredibly affordable city to live in.
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The tour...this school's facilities were AMAZING
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The facilities at pitt are awesome! the students and staff really seem to be enjoying themselves and are extremely helpful the sim lab is great with about 16 sims to practice on
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Both of my interviewers were great - easy to talk to and great conversation.
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I liked the old town feeling of the city, the amount of effort and money they are putting into the school and their programs to make this a better school, the new Hillman cancer institute, the simulation lab was really cool, the fact that they will have a third biomedical science tower pretty soon which will house a neurodegenerative institute along with a lot of imaging and structural biology facilities, how friendly everyone was (the faculty and student interviers, random students and PIs we met with). Overall, I really liked the school and I was quite surprised about that too. Went in thinking Pitt would be my safety school, but I actually ended up liking it a lot
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See above.
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The hospital buildings are really pleasant inside. The simulation lab is amazing. I quite like the city of Pittsburgh, which combines the best features of big cities and small towns.
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The faculty was incredibly friendly and knowledgable about their school. The students were friendly and seemed quite happy and, for lack of a better description, NORMAL. My interviewers were engaging, pleasant and did a great job of conveying the school's interest in me as a person, not just a set of numbers. The campus and facilities are very impressive, and the town seems like a great place to live. I also appreciated the continental breakfast, although I was too paranoid about my suit to consume anything other than apple juice.
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The nice, welcoming, personal, and trusting environment cherished by faculty, staff, administrators, and students. My faculty interviewer treated me with a lot of respect, and was very positive!
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I mentioned to Dean Curtiss that I would like to contact a certain group of non-trad students and he e-mailed me the list before I got home from the interview.
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The people were wonderful, the students truly love the school. I just had a wonderful feeling
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Pittsburgh is a great school in a nice city, and all of the students really seem to like going there. Great facilities and lots of research money.
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The genuine interest of my faculty interviewer.
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Simulation center, enthusiastic students
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Everyone at Pitt is incredibly nice! They must put something in the water, because every admissions staff member, faculty member, and student was nothing but helpful and had great things to say about the school. The curriculum seems very effective, I like that they want everyone to do some sort of research during med school. And the simulation lab is awesome!
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Everyone was very friendly. Curriculum seems well thought-out.
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This school is GREAT!! I liked Pittsburgh and the faculty and admissions office people were so nice. I felt that everyone was really happy they had a chance to meet us. UPMC is huge.
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Everything. Pitt Med is fantastic. The clincal and research strengths really work well together here to make for an outstanding medical school and hospital system.
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Everything honestly. The school REALLY cares about you as a student, they are incredibly welcoming and informative. The tour was great, little long though. My interviewers were SOOOOOO nice and welcoming. I honestly felt as if I was talking to an old friend, it was so casual, both faculty and student interviews.
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The program is absolutely outstanding. There are doctors practicing in every specialty that a student could be interested in. Students are trained to communicate well in Problem Based Learning Groups, respond well in the simulation lab and practice well on clinical rotations at one of the finest hospitals in the country. The students seemed well rounded and bright without having medical school be their only focus in life.
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Great facilities, very good interviewers, very cooperative and low-stress student body
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The LENGTHY tour...they actually took time to show us A LOT and there was no rush and it was extensive so long, but WORTHWHILE. Also, the fact that one interview is done by a student is very impressive. Actually feels like a campus instead of one big building because there are so many hospitals and buildings all interconnected.
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Everyone seemed happy to be there and really gung ho about thier school and the opportunities it provides, the city seemed like it could defenitely be cool, the other interviewees were pretty laid back and seemed down to earth which is nice
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The student-faculty interaction and opportunities available to students. 3rd years get to second assist on surgery during their rotation!
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The academics were pretty outstanding.
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Simulation lab. Quite unique to UPitt but gimicky. The anatomy lab was nice and everything looked new. All the buildings are connected so you wouldn't need to leave once you are inside one of the building.
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Pittsburgh is a nice city, and the simulation lab is awesome.
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The UPitt area of town is pretty nice and cozy. The 1st year students did not seem overly stressed out even though they were in the midst of a few exams. Very clean anatomy labs. Pittsburgh is EXTREMELY cheap!
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The new simulation lab is awesome. They have the most sim. bodies in the country (16) and they really seem to have a great program going to get students to use them in a helpful way. The faculty was really nice and the students were all very friendly and spoke very highly of the school. Also, Pittsburgh seems like a great place to live despite it's reputation.
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Simulation lab (Wiser program).
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People: students, factuly and staff all seemed to be very happy and excited about being at Pitt. Simulation lab was amazing! Curriculum: how PBL works, grading and block system. Many hospitals right next to the medical school.
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Simulation lab, satisfaction of the students, cheap living expenses
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The true satisfaction of the students. The advanced technology of the school and the simulation labs.
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The simulation lab is absolutely amazing!!!
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Simulation labs, people, and pittsburgh
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Everything. you gotta love pitt
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Curriculum
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The simulation lab was nice. Also, the anatomy labs didn't smell. There's also a NICE new gym across the street from the med school.
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Cool and nice students and staff. How nice my faculty and student interviewers are!
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The simulation lab is awesome. Creepy, but awesome. The instructors give you the notes for class in a syllabus. I liked that alot.
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The facilities, student/faculty enthusiam
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The simulation lab, the students, and people. Pitt is doing some great things!
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Caring environment, community-like feel between students and faculty, the many facilities available, state-of-the-art equipment. Cost of living in Pittsburgh is pretty nice.
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I had a fantastic faculty interview. We had the same medical interests; she was very down-to-earth. The student interview went very well also. Everyone was extremely easy to talk to. The tour was long but I was impressed with their facilities. Most of the hospitals are interconnected. Plus it's in a pretty good area of Pittsburgh.
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The new athletics/recreational facility is amazing. the anatomy and the simulation labs were also very nice. the students, in general, seem to love the place. housing is also very affordable, and there seem to be enough activities to participate in outside of med school.
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Enthusiastic students and faculty, excellent hospital system, tons of activities in Pittsburgh
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The simulation lab, PBL, how happy the students are!
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The simulation facilities, the friendly atmosphere
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Very open and positive environment. Even met some second years at Starbucks who were not involved with the interview process, and they had many good things to say about the school. Their patient simulation facility was pretty amazing - you get to practice many critical skills as a med student that would be hard to come by in a clinical setting. Pitt is a beautiful city too, and most of the medical facilities are connected. With so many medical centers and only one medical school, Pitt offers many more opportunities involving students than most other schools!!! Two thumbs up.
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The simulation lab, the students, the library, Oakland
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Students and fellow interviewees...the students there are cool
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The laid back lax atmosphere
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The medical center encompasses a lot of different hospitals and is a great place for any specialty. Also, the atmosphere of Pittsburgh is really cool, and it's an affordable place to live.
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Facilities: namely the GA and histology labs, the simulated patient area, sheer number of teaching hospitals in the area; admissions office staff was very friendly; pittsburgh itself is much prettier than one would expect (when looking from above... see below for more on this); curriculum/grading (they have a History of Medicine faculty member who is very interesting); very obvious committment to making this a "big-dog" school; the quality/normalness of the students and the other applicants
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The friendliness of everyone involved. All the students seemed happy there. The great facilities (especially the simulations lab. Way cool robot patients). The curriculum (Pass/Fail, block system). The city (not too big, not too small. Seems like there would be plenty of stuff to do).
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How happy and interested the students were and how new the medical facilities were--the anatomy lab is so nice =). I also liked how the curriculum is structured.
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All the staff, students and faculty were very nice and approachable
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The student interviewer was great! He made sure that I was calm and all of the questions were the "get to know you" type. The 15 minute interview with the admissions member was very informal. She was very informative.
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Emphasis on research; laid-back students; low cost of living in Pittsburgh
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The facilities and the curriculum
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The students seem to really love Pitt, the city, the school, and the things that are happening there.
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Curriculum, all the students seem happy
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My faculty interviewer was great. Although he kind of put me on the spot at first, the conversation we had was very enjoyable. He not only took the time to really get to know me, but also shared a great deal of insight about medicine and life in general (He was a 77 yr. old retired Doc...really had alot of inspiring things to say). I also liked the Curriculum and the campus.
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How nice everyone was, students were really cool and got along, faculty was great; curriculum is new and does a good mix of PBL and traditional stuff
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The interviewer was very nice. He walked me to the cafe to show me where i could get some coffee. UPMC is impressive as well.
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The new weightroom right across the street from the dental school.
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Everyone was really nice & the program seems good.
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(1) The town itself. Pittsburgh is a friendly place, unlike most big cities. (2) The curriculum, which is half problem-based and half lecture. (3) The students, who seem to get along and hang out a lot together. Some are usually found at the bars in Squirrel Hill or ShadySide on Saturday night, so if you are there you might want to head over.
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The number of hospitals associated with the school and their reputation.
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Great facilities, no doubt about that. Solid curriculum, great location, great hospital.
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The curriculum is flexible and focused on how to best provide the massive quantity of information in a manageable format. the curriculum also allows for a great deal of active synthesis of material to help students learn to use the information they are learning, not just recite it. the student body is made up of all sorts of people who appear to be really happy at Pitt. Pittsburgh itself is a really nice city with lots to offer both in the city and just outside. A healthy place to be a student
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What didn't? I knew little of the school and less of the city. The schools' financial and material resources are both significant. I really liked all of the students and faculty that I met. I have interviewed at three schools so far (good schools!) and Pitt did by far the best sales job on me! They also scheduled comparatively long periods of time between interviews, and I ended up talking to the faculty guys for over an hour each. Each one was also appropriate to my fields of interest. The fairly progressive and integrated curriculum also was attractive. The city seems fine.. clean by our standards, and relatively low-crime. There are good, cheap college eats available in Oakland. In short, the effort that the institution and the MDPhD office are putting into elevating the status of their already-quite good program is impressive.
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The students absolutely LOVE it there, cheap rent, great faculty
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The city is full of character and the people are extremely friendly.
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The city. I didn't know Pitt is such a beautiful city.
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Students are very happy
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My interviewer.
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The importance they give to students.
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The campus was nice, the area was affordable, the people were great.
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The genuinely friendly and happy everyone was that I came in contact with
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Everybody was very courteous and I was very well recieved.
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How much the students love their school. Every one of them was more than willing to talk about the school and it made a wonderful impression on me.
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The students were very happy. My student interview.
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The curriculum and the anatomy lab.
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Everyone was friendly. The students, staff, and faculty were trying to sell the school to me. They came across as if they were honored to have me interested in their school rather than vice versa.
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The facility is great and the students are very friendly.
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The happiness of the students
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The facilities are great, Pittsburgh is beautiful, my faculty interviewer and I really clicked, and the admissions director is very outgoing.
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The students were really happy.
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The friendly students and the surrounding area- take time to walk around Oakland, Shadyside, etc!
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The town of pittsburgh - i was raelly surprised that it was a cool city and there was stuff to do - the students loved the school and the facilities were nice.
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Students are SOO happy. I had a twisted notion of the city and Pittsburgh is actually very beautiful. The school has a ton of money. I was very impressed by both the research resource and the clinical resource. Overall it was very positive.
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A ton of things. Happy students, sat in on PBL class, great teaching hospitals, location...
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The students
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The city itself was quite beautiful
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How utterly impossible it is to fail; the number and proximity of the hospitals.
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Medical students that did not seem to be stressed out, down-to-earth faculty, great surgery research
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Everyone was EXTREMELY friendly--the faculty, the administration, the current students, and the other applicants. The interviews were really low-stress and the interviewers were easy to talk to.
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The curriculum.
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Tons of clinical exposure, great administration, curriculum
What impressed you negatively?
Applicants commonly expressed negative impressions about various aspects of the interview experience at the medical school. Feedback included concerns about lengthy and rushed interview days, outdated facilities, unenthusiastic faculty and staff, lack of student interaction, lack of diversity, disorganization, and a mixed perception of the city of Pittsburgh itself. Suggestions included improving the tour experience, enhancing student engagement, addressing facility updates, better showcasing research opportunities, and providing more information on financial aid.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
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Nothing
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The interview lasted the entire day which was nerve racking, but they wanted to add breaks for us so it’s understandable
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Concluding session was improvised and rushed. Everything else was aight though.
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The team exercise facilitator REALLY struggled with operating Zoom.
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I think that the group session at the end was too short.
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While the faculty interview went great, I didn't really vibe well with the student that interviewed me. This was probably just unique to my experience. Also, I don't really see how the group activity could give an accurate representation of how we work together with others.
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I felt (and later met other interviewees who felt similarly) that many of the students we met were from Pitt's undergrad assurance program or were otherwise from the area. While the students weren't not excited, they seemed somehow a bit more subdued than many students I've met at schools of similar caliber.
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My interviewer was nice but showed very little emotion. it was hard to gauge if I was impressing her
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It seems like the school is still figuring out how to develop a modern curriculum that works well for the students and prepares them well for boards.
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Some of the students seemed a little pretentious, like they were better than us because they were already Pitt students
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Nothing, this school is great.
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No decisions until 1/31
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Facilities seemed a bit out-dated. Not many students came to talk to us during lunch/throughout the day, so I had a hard time gauging how happy students at Pitt were.
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Nothing tbh.
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Nothing. Someone else on here said that you need a first author publication to get in but that's sooooo false. I asked everyone I met here and they said that was definitely not true.
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My interviewer told me "we don't want candidates who don't have first author papers" (which I don't)
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The location -- the buildings are all basically tan and gray, really depressing-looking, especially on the outside. Also only 3 students turned up to the student lunch.
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Anatomy lab kinda felt dark and old.
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Seemed like everything in the immediate area was centered on the medical field
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The faculty and staff involved in the non-interview portions of the day seemed a little...unenthusiastic. I'm sure this was largely a by product of exhaustion by this point in the interview season, but it certainly didn't help sell me on the school.
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Didn't get enough of a chance to see classrooms and hospital areas
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The facilities are old, the people were rather lackluster and seemed almost bored. Pittsburgh isn't the greatest city. The airport is over an hour from the school.
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Nothing about the medical school or the program - the city wasn't really my favorite but that can't really be helped
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Nothing.
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My only complaint is that it was tough to carry on conversations with some of the students I met, which is not at all a problem I had at other interviews. Granted, it could have been me - maybe we just didn't click. And I'm sure these experiences aren't representative of the Pitt students as a whole.
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Student tour guide and student interviewer seemed kind of lethargic. Maybe I caught them at a bad time?
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Nothing really - except for the fact I was told by Pitt students that 1st year PBL can be hit or miss depending on who'd in the group with you because not everyone makes a good effort to prepare (because of p/f). However, all the students I talked to raved about the second year small group discussions with specialists in each field.
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Weak lunch left me hungry
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That is a giant hill you will need to climb...but if nothing else, it's good cardio.
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I found nothing that really made me not want to attend.
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People in Pittsburgh are crazy into football (I'm not a big sports fan)
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Location, Facilities, Students seemed depressed
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The towering ridgelines around the river valley that Pittsburgh sits in made me claustrophobic to be outside.
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People were so nerdy they were socially awkward, Pittsburgh as a city I found depressing, did not get a good vibe.
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Nothing really. Heard that Pittsburgh isn't the greatest city, but didn't get to explore it much so I couldn't judge for myself.
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The med school sits atop a large hill. Running late to lecture would = running up a big hill and arriving out of breath and sweaty = insult to injury. Loved everything else :)
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Nothing really. If anything, the food was not that great.
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My interviewer told me what I should have done before applying to medical school, but followed that up with why I'd be great for medical school and as a physician--then went on to explain what I should tell the admissions committee to get accepted to the school (which is odd considering the interviewer is really the only connection to the committee). It was a little discouraging.
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The first year students are stuffed in an old looking lecture hall in a basement. My tour guide likened it to a subtle version of hazing. The first year small group rooms are also outdated. The second years are updated to much newer lecture halls and have really nice small group rooms.
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Block-style classes (only one at a time very intense for a few weeks); Pittsburgh doesn't seem like a huge or very diverse city (went to school in NYC) - although this was also one of the things I liked; some of the facilities seemed a little old, but this didn't appear to impact the curriculum (the curriculum was definitely dynamic and not stagnant).
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Lack of emphasis on unique aspects of curriculum (from the talk it seemed like pitt did everything just like everyone else)
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Nearly everything besides breakfast. The facilities seemed dingy, way too much time was spent sitting around in the admissions office, the whole day felt unorganized, the students seemed arrogant and did not seem to interact well with each other, faculty interviewer had an open file but told me she didn't read it, the WISER center (supposedly the shining light of Pitt) did not blow me away, faculty member presenting the curriculum did not know much about the curriculum... I could go on and on. I did not feel welcomed or impressed.
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7 students/cadaver in anatomy lab is more than I expected.
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They interview nearly 1100 people for ~150 spots. The interviews don't seem to matter much; the interviewers are not on the adcom and are not your advocates, they just submit a report. Most people are WLed after interview, a few are accepted, and some are rejected. My interviewer was also very strange, and kept looking around the room while I was talking.
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Nothing, really. Pittsburgh was somewhat hilly, but I enjoy that.
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Nothing really...except the WISER center had kind of an off day so we didnt get to see it in action
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The weather (cold). And while Pittsburgh is a pretty place in general, Oakland (the area where the school is) dominated with really tall med school/hospital buildings
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If anything, the exterior of the buildings could use updating, but inside it's amazing.
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Nothing really... Although the anatomy lab can be fancier.
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Nothing much
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Traffic going into and out of the city during rush hour ;)
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Tuition! Yikes!
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The economy of Pittsburgh is supported only by the medical center, it seemed like. I think Pittsburgh is trying to reinvent itself, but it just seemed dreary to me. Although their sports teams are great.
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My faculty interview was a little far away
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I had a hard time hearing the tour guide...
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While our tourguide was really nice and helpful, the tour was kind of a dud because our group was so large ~15.
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Nothing really!
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Hoagies...omg, heart disease on a bun! jk
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Nothing in particular.
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The students that met us for lunch (they spent a lot of the time talking about partying and getting drunk on the weekends)
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Nothing, really.
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I wish I had been interviewd by an MD instead of a PhD. The PhD was nice but I would've felt more in my element with an MD.
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The city
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Some of the facilities are old- anatomy lab, lecture halls, etc. I lost my nametag and it was raining...haha
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Faculty interview was a bit stressful.
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Not much really.
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Scaife Hall is kind of slummy inside; the city is so hilly
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No extensive tour of the hospital; amount of walking required to second interview (however, the interviewer was so great that the long haul over there was well worth it!)
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The facilities seemed kind of shabby.
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My student interview was short (30 min)
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Nothing at all.
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My faculty interviewer was quite abrasive and seemed intent on finding out if I could deal with living in Pittsburgh. Not a fan of the grading system, and the competitive environment has a rep for being something of a shark tank. They're pretty cheap with your lunch budget. Had difficulty getting a student host even though I contacted people within plenty of time.
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Pittsburgh isn't the greatest. The anatomy lab seemed awfully crowded.
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The admissions staff that gave the tour were terrible. They were not well spoken and everything seemed so rehearsed. Awful impression of the place through them. Also, because of this, the only student you meet is the one who interviews you! BAD!!!! as a result, didn't meet or see anyone I could be friends with.
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The facilities were pretty shabby. Kind of a suprise/turn off, but loved the school either way.
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Pittsburgh isn't the greatest place in the world, but it isn't bad either. It is very different than what I am used to.
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Buildings are a little old.
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The anatomy lab looked a bit old as did the rest of the building, but the lab had amazing displays of aborted twins and all sorts of body parts. it was awesome
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The quiet life of Pittsburgh
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Lecture halls seemed a little dingy. It also rained the entire trip. I thought my faculty interviewer was a little self-absorbed.
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Tour was poor, lecture halls were old, anatomy lab seemed ancient
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The lecture halls are old and without power outlets, windows, new seats, etc.
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Kind of provincial in many ways
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Nothing negatively impressed me, although some current students said they wished the lecture hall was a bit nicer looking. I thought it seemed fine though.
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Just felt like there was something missing. Also, could not understand several of my interviews due to think accents, made the conversation awkard. My last convo with the adcom was not good...he just talked and I could not even respond to him he was talking so much.
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Anatomy lab looked kind of drab and gloomy, lecture halls equally gloomy
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The medical school itself seemed a bit old (especially the lecture hall).
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Admissions overview and curriculum discussion were pretty weak, could have gotten, and did get, all of this info online
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Area around campus was not great. Most students live either directly on campus or few miles away. Pittsburgh is not a tier I (or even tier II) city. Also, the facilities appear to be a little old and run down--classrooms are oldish looking for such a well funded program
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Dont really like the area too much, but that wouldnt hinder me from going here
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Nothing really.
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Some facilities seemed older
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The interviews were rather fast paced. You go to studnet then faculty than admissions officer one after another. I had no time to relax or even get a drink! By the end of the 2.5 hours, I was pretty worn out.
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I reserved a cab the night before. The next morning I was informed that my order was placed but that none of the cabs were responding to it. The hills are not a bad thing, honestly it's not that bad. However, if you drive in I would get there before the sun sets. The roads in Pitt are hilly (read as 45-60 degree inclines) and it may be frustrating if you are not used to driving there.
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Interview group was large (15, and my interview the day before was only 4). The class size is pretty big. Interview with student was a little awkward, so I felt like I spent most of the time trying to make him feel comfortable as opposed to the other way around.
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Pittsburgh is a different kind of city but I think I could get used to living there.
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Nothing really
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Med students didn't show up for lunch (they had a class, it turned out)
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It's in Pittsburgh
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Not a lot of diversity in the city.
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The classrooms have no windows, students and faculty seem ambivalent about Pitt's version of PBL - curriculum is very PBL heavy. The admissions tour should have been given by a student, rather than by admissions staff.
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Inaccessibility of some resources (but was due to students taking exams).
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The tour guide was drab and disinterested. The weather was a bit cold and wet, but I suppose that's to be expected.
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I didn't like the fact that med students don't get to use the WISER center until 3rd year. I also didn't like the fact that parking seems expensive on campus but yet my student interviewer said not having a car was a real hindrance. I did like the fact that the bus system is free for Pitt students including the ride to the airport (Although recent news looks like this may be changing :-() Since I like to travel a lot, a cheap way to the airport is a total plus! I also didn't like the fact that there wasn't much time for conversations with Pitt med students. While we had lunch in the cafeteria, there were only two med students present for a group of 14 my day. Since they sat next to each other in the middle of the long table, only those people around them were really able to interact with them/ask detailed follow-up questions. So, other than my student interviewer conversation (which was helpful but obviously a bit restricted especially since I was nervous), I didn't really get a vibe about student life at Pitt med. I also thought a handout or something summarizing the tour beforehand would have been really helpful. While our tour guide was nice, she couldn't really answer questions about student life at Pitt. Plus, the tour was really rushed and with so many buildings, I just remember the library and the maze of hallways plus viewing Pittsburgh from the top of some research building. A guided tour with a map or summary at the beginning would have been more helpful! Also, with this in mind, bring comfy shoes to change into! I did and was sooooo glad since my faculty interview was across campus from both the student interview and admissions dean interview afterwards.
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Theres a mandatory ''scholarly project'' (research) that you have to do to graduate. The school did seem a bit research oriented compared to others, but their clinical stuff is great too (WISER center). Also, it seems like they have a lot of class. The campus isn't beautiful, but the city seems cool.
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Where were the students? The only student I encountered all day was my student interviewer. Is there a reason they don't want students to talk to the interviewees??
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I interviewed during finals week so many of the students seemed very stressed out.
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My faculty interviewer was not friendly - not mean, but not friendly, just really bored and apathetic. He basically wrote down everything I said, never really bothering to look at me or show any emotion.
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Pittsburgh didn't seem that great.
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The tour was given by a staff member who could not answer any of our questions. The only medical students we met were those who interviewed us. The interviews took place outside of the building and you had to find your person.
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Some of their students seemed very nerdy and competitive. Also, I am not a big fan of Pitt Med's campus.
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First it was cold (28), the tour was long, and rushed, with a staff member instead of a student, the discussion about their curriculum was only 20 minutes, and their was no presentation or information given about financial aid, or cost of tutition.
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The hill!
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I was the only Pittsburgh native applicant on that particular interview day- eveyone else was from out of state
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The tour was a bit longer than strictly necessary.
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The traffic. the hills
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How hard they tried to sell the school- i mean yeah, pittsburgh's not exactly the coolest city out there but the dvd they played for us was a bit over the top... when they were showing us the skyline of pittsburgh with the rising music, i remember thinking it didn't really look like what i had seen driving through to get to the school...!
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The tour guide. zero enthusiasm...but I guess if you're giving tours 4 days a week, it would get annoying.
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My last interviewer didn't seem to enjoy my southern roots. She implied a few times that she didn't think I would come to upitt if i was accepted because i was from the south (nc).
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The hills between every building.
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The tour was really, really long, and I felt like we didn't see much. We were just walking through hallways. The tour guide didn't seem very enthusiastic. Also, it was a big interview group, so we always had to take 2 elevators, and we used the elevators A LOT
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The tour seemed sort of rushed, as if they were trying to show us everything as fast as possible
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I think that there are other schools that have more cellular/molecular neurobiology research going on... i didn't find anyone who specifically matches my research interests
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It was a little bit cold and drizzly - but that's not a real complaint!!! haha But I actually like the cold. So go figure!
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Somewhat of a lack of racial and ethnic diversity in pittsburgh
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The tour was a bit boring, i find it better when students give the tour
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The tour was pretty long and disorienting, but some students may have enjoyed it. There was a lot of state-of-the-art technology available.
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Bad weather. I know, shouldnt be a factor but it is.
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Lots of class time.
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A whirlwind tour of the med school facilities, in my opinion, missed a lot of important and interesting areas.
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Trying too hard to sell Pittsburgh.
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The library tour was bit excessive and the history of medicine presentation was a bit dry....
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Nothing!
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Pitt is REAAlLY out there, man its far away from anything else!
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My interviewers were terrible. I was truely unsatisfied by the level of the conversations--they didn't even begin to scrape the surface of getting at who I am.
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The students (specifically, those who had matriculated from my undergraduate institution).
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I had some trouble navigating through the buildings between interviews.
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I was hoping to really like the school, since my parents live nearby and my sister will be in Oakland for the next four years. Somehow, I felt a little let down because the atmosphere wasn't as warm and welcoming as I was expecting, and the students that I met, while very nice, just didn't seem the kind of people I could be very close with. I'm not sure how to explain it, I just got a gut feeling that I didn't really fit in. Maybe I was just sleep deprived and tired (I hope that's the case, since I still consider Pitt one of my top choices). Also, it was a little scary how hard they tried to sell Pittsburgh as a city, during the tour, during the lunch with students, and they even showed a short video about it before the interviews.
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Too long of a tour, especially since it didn't show anything useful except during the WISER and library visits
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Parking availability and having to sprint to my second interview that was in another building, approximately one mile away.
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Nothing except that darn HILL!!! Up, down, up, down, up, down. I'm sore from having to go back and forth in between interviewing and touring, but if I end up going there, I'll be getting a righteous workout, for sure.
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The guide could have been more enthusiastic ... but that really doesn't take away how amazing the facilities are
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My faculty interview was about a mile away from the school
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The neutral attitude of the tour guide.
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THE HILLS!!!!!!
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Only the hill that the school is on!
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None
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One of my interviewers (but he seems to be the exception rather than the norm) - he had a very dry personality.
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I was hoping that Pitt would record lectures online for their students to go back and review later on since it's impossible to always be there everyday. They've begun to audio-record some science lectures, but otherwise, I just enjoy being able to go online, and watch lecture again. Also - a few second years (MS-2's) were a little annoyed that they were guinea pigs for new curriculum changes, but that change was minor, and in my opinion, that student was honestly just venting about some frustration she had, since her mom was very sick around that time.
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Traffic in and out of Pittsburgh during rush hour is DC quality--as in terrible.
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The whole day was very rushed, so our curriculum talk was cut short. i wish we could have spent more time with faculty and administration rather than a 2 hour tour with an admissions staff member
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My interview group, the city itself...
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Honestly, nothing. The only thing I can come up with is it's cold & there are a lot of hills. But honestly, those weren't big deals. WEAR COMFORTABLE SHOES!!
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The school doesn't do audio or video of the lectures, although this year's MS1 are doing their own audio
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Most of Pittsburgh is pretty sketchy, but the immediate area around the school is actually pretty nice.
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Pittsburgh...gloom and doom
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Many, many things. All the literature they give you about the school sounds like it was written by some cheesy marketing firm. Overall the school comes across like it is trying to hard to relate to it's students. Too much emphasis on how doctors must fit into the pittsburgh model: very empathetic, team oriented, etc. Overall, just seemed very pedantic. Student interviewer idea might work better if they had 4th years interview instead of 1st and 2nd years. Faculty interviewer came in 20 minutes late and seemed exhausted the whole time we talked. The tour is really long and after you leave the simulation lab, everything else you see is standard hospital stuff. Very boring.
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Tour guides could have been a little bit more enthusiastic/fun--however, one tour guide was a 4th year who was doing his rotations and may had been working on too little sleep.
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The classrooms are pretty dingy - like the basement of my high school. No audio/visual recording of lectures. The dean of admissions behaved strangely when I met with him.
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Not much ... the school is up a big hill.
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Nothing really. i would have liked to hear more about their dual degree programs.
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The first year lecture hall gets really crowded with all of the students in there and there isn't much leg room. It rained and apparently it snows there in the winter.
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Walking up hills is no fun, but I can hardly blame that on Pitt itself :-).
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I'm not looking for this in a school but this school isn't a typical college campus. It doesn't have grass fields and nice architectural buildings that i am used to from Cal. The hill may discourage some people but I'm quite accustome to them from my college and home town. My visit also showed me my competitions. Everyone were very high calliber and I dont know how i feel about my chances against these great applicants.
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Campus is right in the middle of the city, Pitt is kind of in the middle of nowhere.
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The Dean of Admissions or his assistant meets with you for 15 minutes to answer any questions. He was pretty abrasive during mine, basically pooh-poohing my questions. It made me feel pretty uncomfortable and not confident about the rest of my interview.
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Heard complaints of pittsburgh, but i grew up there and personally really enjoy the city...
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Not much. The only bad thing I heard about Pitt was that the administration was a bit disorganized.
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Their cadaver/student ratio was higher than I thought it would be (1:6)
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The city isn't the greatest.
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Wasn't that fascinated with Pittsburgh.
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Nothing really. i don't really like pittsburgh too much, if only pitt wasn't in pittsburgh it would be perfect.
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One of my interviewers was very antagonistic. Pittsburgh was only ok.
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The school seems obsessed with their rankings. My only problem with the interview day was having to search for my faculty interview.
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Too large of a tour group, the guide was not a student, didn't see much of the hospital, COST! The guy who talked about curriculum was hardly articulate, and talked too long.
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If Pitt. were located in or closer to a large city, it would be the ideal place to be. Although I have not spent much time there, I got the impression that many things (music, nightlife, etc.) were somewhat limited. However, the people in Pittsburgh whom I encountered were all extremely nice, and I'm sure one could find her or his niche after a while. Another negative: spouses who are not students are not given free gym memberships.
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Although Pittsburgh is nice to live in, seems a bit boring
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*The ladies who quietly heckled our tour guide while she pointed things out on the landscape. I don't think the tour guide heard though.
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The long talk about the curriculum (about 45 minutes)
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The weather and the almost claustrophobic feeling of the city.
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Nothing struck me negatively. I'm really positive on this school.
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Curriculum presentation was scattered, confusing, and too detailed. it was freezing.
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All of the student's eating lunch with us were male, didn't show much for female participation at the school
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Pittsburgh seems sort of gloomy and dreary with not much to do. It was gray, raining, and cold on my interview day. Students seem nice, but a bit nerdy. The other applicants...a lot of them were kinda aloof and/or conceited. Not really a fun group of people who I would want to spend 4 years of my life with.
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1) the interview day was a bit long. Regular interviewees get three interviews (one with a faculty member, one with a student and a closing interview with an admissions director). If you are a minority applicant, like me, you get one (two) more, which is with the director in the office of minority affairs (OMA). the office of minority affairs director also had a student who spoke with me about Pitt before the OMA interview. even though this was to be purely informational, I still felt like I was under scrutiny because you want to portray your best impression to everyone, and plus, you don't know if they report back to the admissions committee too. Thus five interviews total if you're a minority applicant, and three interviews if you're a regular applicant. kind of a long day. i was exhausted when I returned to my hotel. 2) ignore the other applicants who brag that its their 106th interview that they've been on. they need to chill out. 3) i don't know if i'm a fan of the PBL part of their curriculum. i'm still on the fence with this one.
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The classrooms are small and ugly. Paying close to 20$ for parking.
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I wasn't too impressed with the city of Pittsburgh. Also, some of the students seemed to be under a lot of stress and weren't necessarily too happy (but I did meet a number of students who were the exact opposite).
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The city of pittsburgh is dreary for me...coming from a big city, it is hard to imagine myself living there
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My student host studied ALL WEEKEND and made hardly no effort to talk about the school, people or city (my interview was a Monday and I flew in and stayed with a host the preceeding Sat. & Sun.) Thank goodness I have a friend living in Pittsburgh who rescued me and showed me around all weekend! My second interviewer didn't even know he was scheduled to interview me - disorganization on the staff's part- (but improvised well), and there weren't that many opportunities to meet students throughout the day (tours were by staff)
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I'm, from a big city with lots of night life, so I guess Pitt compared to where I come from had less night life... but it's such a big deal
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Interview needs a little more access to the students. Lunch was about 15 interviewers and one 3rd-years. I was seated at the other end of the table, and never really had a chance to talk to either of them.
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Absolutely nothing.
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Class diversity isn't the best, but it's decent. There were no other minorities interviewing on the same date, and only 4 females and about 12-15 males.
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It was very tightly scheduled so that some session were rushed.
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Financial aid and new curriculum
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The pouring rain that flooded the entire city. Nothing about the school, though.
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I don't like living in big cities, so I was a little turned off by the urban environment.
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Very hoighty toighty about rankings, a lot of flourescent lights
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Only two current students went to lunch with about 20 of us... so it was a little hard to talk one on one with them. However, the student interview was casual, and I got all of my questions answered there.
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Seriously, nothing.
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Getting stuck in an elevator for an hour with 15 other really high powered applicants but it was an experience.
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Very LOW diversity....kinda unfortunate.
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Well i had to switch faculty interviewers at the last moment and that was kind of a hassle, but that was simple miscommunication and it wasnt really negative, just slightly annoying
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I'm not sure if I like Pittsburgh, the city
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The students seemed really nerdy.
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No student housing, no central campus, lot's of hill climbing (great workout though! The place is a maze though when you go to your faculty interview. For a school that does so much research, why don't they emphasize their research more? I got the impression that their students didn't do much research there (which can't be true). They also have poor international opportunities (or so my student interviewer said, that really crushed me). Didn't get much chance to speak to the student rep at lunch and my student interviewer is an MS1 and didn't know much.
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The tour was given by someone in admissions and she hurried along without talking much about what we were seeing. All of the interviewees were there early but the admissions staff wasn't there till just after 8, so don't bother getting there early!
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Although the school claims to be diverse, it really does not seem to be the case.
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Tuition is ~ $ 36,000 for the out-of-state, but I think it's worth it.
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They don't make a decision until March
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Parking, traffic, Pittsburgh in general.
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New MSTP dean's interview- too casual which made it slightly awkward
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Really very little. even the cafeteria was good.
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A lot of the med school facilities are old
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How long the interview day was.
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The weather was bad but what can you do? The university owned apartments were really big and expensive by my standards. I would have to work up to living there by myself since I heard 2 bedrooms are scarce.
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We don't find out anything until march
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The tour was not the best, and the structure of the day could have been a little better.
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They did not address financial aid AT ALL. I had to ask the Dean about it, who, to his credit, told me quite honestly that "institutional aid sucks".
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How far it is from Philadelphia.
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Not all of the facilities are quite up-to-date - some seem pretty old. tuition is steep. parking, apparently, is terrible - but the bus is free for students.
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Tuition is somewhat steep (~35k), housing/parking is not very available close by, scholarships rare
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They won't let you know your interview schedule before hand so you don't know when you get done. Some people get done at 5 and others are done by 5:30
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The tour was very long!
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Cost - it's an expensive school. But that's what student loans are for, right? I personally think they're worth the money for the reasons mentioned above. My student interviewer seemed to have been pulled from class a minute before the interview. He didn't seem to want to be there, nor did he take any notes (was a little worried about that). My faculty interview was amazing though - best ever! Hope that makes up for the student one.
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Not much was negative.
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Faculty interviewer was very arrogant, though the interviews are closed file, they get our PS, which of course my interviewer did not read. took a lot of restraint for me to keep from telling him to get over him/herself.
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STudent Interviewer did not seem interested.
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The fact that we have to wait until March to find out if we're in.
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Cost - it's bloody expensive to go here... you'll be $225K in debt probably; pittsburgh as a city is dirty - it's hard to explain, but it just is.
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Pittsburgh wasn't as beautiful as the Admissions Office had made it out to be in the catalogs. The price of tuition is also really steep and the Office of Financial Aid doesn't bargain.
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The student I ate lunch with was not someone I would want to be classmates with - but he seemed the exception.
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My faculty interview was a waste of my time and from his behavior, it was evident it was a waste of his time as well! He was completely not interested in interviewing me. I arrived 10 minutes early as I was told that he appreciates timeliness. Then he proceeded to remain in his office for 15 minutes after the start time of my interview. I know docs are very busy people, but I made the effort to spend my time and hard earned money to get to Pitt and it was very frustrating to sit there patiently for 15 minutes while I was supposed to be interviewed! What shocked me the most was how uninterested he was in getting to know me!! The only information that the interviewers are given is your personal statement. Based on my personal statement, he asked me what I would do if I didn't get into medical school? I wish I had said "That's not even an issue because I know that I'm going to medical school this year." Instead I said "I'll keep trying till I get in." If anyone from admissions is reading this site, I hope that you can find individuals who are enthusiastic about getting to know their interviewees. Please do not waste our time and money by inviting us for interviews without any intention of accomplishing your goal of getting to know us better. The worst part of the whole process was to visit the school and fall in love with it! It was upseting to realize that I didn't even have a chance at admission because my interviewer spent 15 minutes of his time "getting to know me." Oh well! Maybe it wasn't meant to be! Hopefully, future interviewees won't have to deal with such dilemmas! Good luck!
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Lack of diverse patient population in Pittsburgh
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Tuition
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Some of the facilities were not very impressive. The lecture room we saw was equiped with nothing but an overhead.
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Scaife Hall is showing its age
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Weather, but that isn't the school's fault.
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Nothing really - they take really good care of you ; I wish they were ranked higher - they seem underrated
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My host wasn't the most charming of fellows. Also, Pittsburgh isn't a great town either.
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-15 degree windchill
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Facilities aren't that great from what I saw.
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The day is longer than it needs to be. There were not enough 3rd-year students to eat lunch with, but that wasn't a big deal.
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The faculty interview seemed bored of interviewing students. The faculty interviewer didn't read my aplicattion.
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Snowing like hell froze over.
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The community is not as diverse as some other cities
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Maybe the weather in Pitt is a little on the dreary side. Perhaps a student or faculty member should give the tour...
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The faculty responsible for the curriculum presentation didn't make it, kinda disappointing
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There was no talk about financial aid. I thought there would atleast be a little bit of info.
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The curriculum talk was too detailed and long. I thought it wasn't as necessarily.
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The city. tour of the school wasn't impressive either. didn't get to see the hospitals. cafeteria sux
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Breakfast.
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Due to some scheduling confusion, we did not receive the curriculum seminar.
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Parking is a costly issue there, and it's not even an urban medical school. Everyone is just like "oh, I just ride the bus", but that's a big turn off to me. Also, for the MD/PhD second look they were totally not cool about me bringing my long-term (6 year) g/f. I'd have to pay her way to come out and find something for her to do during the official "bandquet"?! People kept telling me how "family friendly" the school and city were, but what's with this? Also, there was no tour of any of the medical facilities, such as any of the nearby hospitals. We did get to see the anatomy lab, classroom, library, and some research labs though.
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I felt the tour could have shown a bit more of what the med school was like
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The facilities are showing their age. Scaife Hall is an old building -- no way around it. The facilites are not "bad" per se, just aging and less than I've seen at some other facilities. This fact did not deter my interest in the school, however.
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My faculty interview
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I didn't get a guided tour of the hospital, but I think that this was due to the poor weather conditions.
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The school's parking is $3.00 a day, so if you drive a car to school it may get pretty expensive.
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They don't let you know about admissions unitl late February.
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The PBL format- but others might like that. Can't tell how electronically up-to-date the school is, I asked about it but couldn't get a straight answer; parking is BAD for med students too!
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It was great - but it was also my first visit
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Nothing in particular
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Parking situation
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The buildings looked a little old and outdated. My student interviewer left early in our interview because he got paged by the hospital...it was kinda awkward.
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That they took us into the anatomy labs while the students were working. I thought that was incredibly disrespectful to the families and the deceased who had very graciously donated their bodies to have a bunch of interviewees being thrown into the lab just to chat with students.
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The Oakland area of Pittsburgh is kind of dingy. The students at Pitt were a mixed bag.
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Not much student housing nearby, although Pittsburgh housing costs are low.
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Seeing a cadaver, who was literally chopped into pieces as well as being dissected and reeking of formaldehyde, right before lunch...ew!
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My interviewers. The student was not interested in anything I had to say & was falling asleep. The MD was only interested in telling me his story & his research.
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Pittsburgh
What did you wish you had known ahead of time?
Applicants commonly shared that they wished they had known ahead of time about the relaxed and low-stress nature of the interviews, the amount of walking involved during the tour, the casual atmosphere of the day, and the emphasis on student questions during the tour. Suggestions included wearing comfortable shoes, bringing a change of shoes for the tour, and not stressing about the interview day.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
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How little questions would be asked by each interviewer. I did more than was necessary when preparing.
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Take a deep breath, relax, and don’t worry. It’s just a conversation!
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How relaxed it was going to be!
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To chill
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Team activity was very short, only 10 minutes, really nothing to worry about!
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Nothing
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The tour is a straight up hike and they do not give you much time to change shoes so show up in the shoes you want to wear on the tour
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There are two group activities. neither of them are difficult
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The tour is a LOT of walking, you also may have to walk pretty far to get to your faculty interview as you have to go to their office rather than them coming to the admissions office area
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Nothing, pretty straight forward. People make a big deal about the walking tour, it really isn't that much. I would not suggest wearing heels, but other than that, don't be concerned.
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I wish they would have sent a better itinerary.
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The student tour guides write up a report about you after the tour, so make sure to ask lots of questions and express your interest in the school during the tour! Also, the day is REALLY long since there are two team activities in addition to the two interviews.
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How long the interview day would be and how many activities they had planned for us.
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Bring comfortable shoes to your interview for the tour!
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In addition to the two standard interviews (one student, closed and one faculty, open w/o grades and MCAT) there was a 4-person group discussion and a 6-person PBL session
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The school of medicine is on top of a hill with a really high incline!! And interview locations are all over the campus, not just in the same building.
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There are 2 group sessions, 1 is evaluated as part of the interview.
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Student interviewer who is blind to folder, group discussion
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That Pittsburgh is a pretty cool city! Wish I'd had more allotted time for sightseeing in my travel schedule.
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Amount of walking outside (very hilly area, hard in heels)
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NA
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How LAID BACK and CHILL it was. I kind of already knew it was going to be chill but they really do mean it's chill when they say it.
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I wish I had known that my faculty interviewer would be well-connected to the Neurosurgery Department.
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These are NOT stress interviews. They're super chill. The student interviewer only gets your name, undergrad, and hometown. The faculty interviewer gets your whole file except your GPA/MCAT. They both just seemed like they wanted to get to know me...no ethical questions, traps, etc. I've also heard that they waitlist 75-90% of their applicants, although one current student told me she got in off the waitlist.
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That the interview is really low stress and interviewers are really friendly
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Student interviewer kind of gave up asking questions midway during interview and (I guess) expected me just to ask him questions for the remainder. Also that they wait list 90%+ of their interviewees. ):
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Not to worry about it- very low stress. Just be able to address creativity, the rest is extremely straightforward. Also, you don't need to spend hours researching the school, the activities prior to the interview give you a good feel for the curriculum, some of the programs, and the feel of the school.
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I kind of knew this - but the hill the school is on is really huge! Be prepared for some hill climbing. Plus, be aware that your interview may be in a different building from the one most of the interview program is.
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DO NOT STRESS both of my interviews slid into chit chat. In you can small talk and naturally show your personality you are fine
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How fantastic this place is...
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I wish I had known how laid back it would be. I was more nervous than I needed to be.
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To have more questions prepared for the interviewer and to emphasize how much I want to go to Pitt EVEN MORE
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How hot it was inside the buildings
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That my faculty interviewer didn't go to UPitt and had no idea what programs were available to students.
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The bus takes about an hour from the airport (28X)
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Book a hotel far in advanced or stay with a student host.
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That it would be as low stress as everyone on here says it is. My stomach was in knots for the first couple hours of the day, but by the time interviews rolled around (after the tour, curriculum description, and lunch) I was not nervous at all.
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Pittsburgh is a sports crazy town. You cannot go anywhere without running into sports commentary in some form. While following football is not necessary, it helps to have some knowledge of the sport, especially given the amount of sports medicine that is practiced at Pitt.
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That my interviewer would ask me a million different ways why I hadn't done research (because the interviewer does, and obviously loves it).
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I knew that Pittsbugh is hilly and that was good to know!
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How hot it was going to be. Also wear comfortable shoes and make sure you can go up and down hills in your clothes (read: no excessively tailored skirts).
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Scaife is on top of a monstrous hill.
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My 29X bus broke down. That wasn't any fun. Also, my outgoing flight to a stopover terminal was canceled due to weather so I had to pay an extra $140 to get a direct flight home.
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I heard from several different students throughout the day that the school puts a decent amount of emphasis and pressure on students to do research. If you're interested in research, definitely mention it. Also, that the curriculum is block style - one course at a time (i.e. different from most undergraduate curric styles)
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Our "tour of the facilities" mostly meant "walking around outside in the cold and venturing into the basketball stadium at one point"
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Pittsburgh can have a lot of traffic.
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You can bring comfortable shoes and change into them for the tour without risking your interviewers seeing them.
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Just how big the UPMC hospital system is.
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Nothing really... how awesome Pittsburgh was? lol
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How relaxed it would all be. And how steep those hills really are (bring comfortable shoes, ladies)
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Having a student host is the next best thing to getting an interview. They prep you for interview like it's their business. =D Everyone should stay with a student host.
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How much traffic in the morning there is if you stayed outside of the city.
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That the Permanti Brothers in Oakland is NOT the right one to go to... Apparently the Strip District is where it is at.
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The 28X bus to the airport takes almost an hour!
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That the students were spankin' new 1st years; I'd assumed they were MS3s or MS4s who'd done this before.
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They don't validate parking and it was super expensive... Take the bus!
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Your schedule is booked solid until your last interview, so be prepared.
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That Pittsburgh is not "the pits."
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It's about 45min-1hour from the airport. The cheapest way to get to the school is to take the 28X public bus for $2.60...but it only runs once every 30 min.
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How cold it would be.
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That Pittsburgh is a really underrated city. It seemed like a really fun place to live.
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Nothing, it was very stress-free.
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I wish I had thought of a specifid example to the difficult question I posted above. He asked me that in response to a conceptual goal I had and he caught me off guard.
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That I was in the wrong building for my faculty interview!
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Even though they say bring walking shoes, no one changes into sneakers, so wear nice shoes that you can walk in and prepare for rain. The 28x takes a detour route down Fifth, not Forbes.
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2 hour walking tour! Wear comfortable shoes!
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How long the tour would be (~2 hours).
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The airport bus only comes every 30 minutes
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Again, the amount of walking...
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Bring flat shoes for the tour! It is SUPER hilly.
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It's terribly windy here.
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How hilly the city was.
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Interviewers only have primary essay, not secondary essays
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Shadyside Inn is VERY FAR from the actual site of interview. It's an excellent hotel, but it's just far and you do need to take a shuttle to get to the interviews.
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The students don't really seem to go out much and are really in to computer games, engineering, etc.
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Downtown Pittsburgh isn't really the place to go at night.
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It was much hillier than I thought.
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That the place has so many hills. but it didnt really affect anything
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Can't think of anything. I researched the schools I applied to pretty heavily when I began applying.
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My faculty interview was WAY on the other side of the undergrad campus. I wish they had given me better directions and more time to get there. I was almost late.
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The student you stay with may live far from campus; I had to walk quite a few blocks in the snow to get to the bus stop
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That the M1 who would be interviewing me hadn't interviewed anyone else before and didn't really know that much about the school
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I wish I would have thought of some good questions to ask back to my interviewers.
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Even though it is a good school, the interview day was stressful because of all the walking up and down hills and having to find your interviewer. Ladies bring some flats discreetly tucked in your bag for the tour.
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The 28x flyer bus goes from the airport to the medical school/nearby hotels. It's cheap ($2.25, bring exact change), but it takes a LONG time. It takes an hour or so for it to go in either direction. Remember to factor that into your travel schedule.
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I didn't realize the medical school doesn't have its own building, it is actually located in a building that is part of and connected to all of the hospitals. You literally walk through the hospitals to get to the admissions office and throughout the whole tour. Definitely not the school for someone who is looking for a campus.
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No surprises, but it was a lot less stressful than I thought it'd be
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Nothing.
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The hills really are bad like everyone esle
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Wear comfortable shoes for the morning tour. You'll need them.
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Apparently people move to Pittsburgh but nobody ever wants to move out...ever.
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Wear comfortable shoes for the tour!
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Nothing...I researched a lot of things about the school.
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Nothing was really unexpected
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PSTP and CSTP programs are cool
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That you can take a bus to the airport for like 2 bucks instead of a stupid shuttle for 20
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When I told friends that I was going to Pittsburgh they all told me it was a dreary place full of steel factories and that wasn't the case at all. And it was too cold.
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Hotel discounts for Pitt Med interviewees
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That everyone would be so nice and cool.
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More information about the special project and degree of PBL.
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The day is LONG! 8am to 4pm....the buildings were all different temperatures, so I constantly had to put on my coat, take off my coat, put on my suit jacket, take off my suit jacket, and was often sweating like crazy!
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Not to stress out so much. I was freaking out about the interview the night before since it was my first. In reality, I was well prepared and shouldn't have stressed out so much! They really are just conversations. Plus, I wish I would have known that afterwards I didn't need to worry about my responses to individual questions - I got in so obviously I did something right!!! :-)
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Of the 900 students they interview, they'll extend acceptances to almost half. Closed file interviews.
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I get the feeling students have a lot of required class time, thought it's hard to say since there were no students present to ask.
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Hills weren't that bad. most people didn't bring a change of shoes and were still fine.
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Leaders in transplants and the dummy simulation is awesome.
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They provide funding to do research and volunteer work abroad. Girls make sure to wear flat shoes because you will do a tremendous amount of walking.
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That their policy for over 30 students is changing in terms of financial aid. It used to be that if you were over 30, you did not have to provide parent's financial aid info, but now you do.
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About the Clinical Scientist Training Program and all of the other opportunities for research during medical school
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I already knew to bring a change of shoes for the tour, so nothing really...
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That there were going to be so many Ivy Leaguers there.
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There's a lot of research that goes on here; it's in the NIH top ten and it's been there for some time now... the hill's not as bad as people make it out to be but it's still not fun to walk up and down, especially if you're wearing heels
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Not to wear heels. Hills galore = blisters at the end of the day.
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Awesome culture here and a pretty BIG city is actually in Pittsburgh..it really isn't some rundown steel town. It was a great city!
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The student hosting is better than staying at a hotel.
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There are a lot of different summer opportunites at Pitt. Also, you don't have to do standard research, i.e, in a lab.
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Well, the tour is a lot of walking, and you're allowed to change shoes for it (i hadn't brought any other shoes, but my heels were comfortable) also, the airport is a good hour busride from the campus, which i hadn't really thought about before...
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Well, i knew this, but totally bring tennis shoes for the tour. the admissions person even told us we could change shoes at the start of the tour. i would have died in my heels.
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They tell you to schedule your flight after 6:00pm but pretty much everyone was done around 3:00pm so we just hung out at the airport.
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I'd heard students complain about not being able to access lecture slides/lecture audio, and the Admin went out of its way this year to fix those student concerns. New students can now access PPT slides with streaming audio via the web, and Summative Exams have been canceled apparently (Summative =like a semester exam of many modules). So now - individual exams are more important to stay on top of, but you dont make it or break it on ONE single test either.
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It's a long day- be well-rested, and bring gum or breath mints because interviews aren't until after lunch. Your interview with the admissions committee member is often the last one, and you're wiped out, so remember to pace yourself.
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Nothing. Really organized and the admissions office told me exactly what to expect.
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TONS of walking, ladies wear flats.
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How awesome the WISER center is.
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Despite (or perhaps because of?) their emphasis on patient care, Pitt is a spectacularly successful research institution.
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BRING AN UMBRELLA!
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I had to walk approximately 1 mile to my faculty interview.
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There is no financial aid presentation. The schedule is different for different people, with some rushing from one end of campus to the other to get to their faculty interview right after the student interview; while others, like me, have 30 min breaks in between with very little to do. Also, Pitt puts a lot of emphasis on research - all of their merit scholarships are for the CSTP and PSTP. Oh, and the interview portion of the day is after lunch, so bring floss, mints, and stain remover.
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That you could bring a change of shoes for the tour
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Ladies, do not wear heels!!! A lot of walking on hills.
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Nothing about the school, but I should have insisted on having a NONsmoking room at the hotel in which I stayed. Oh, and I wasn't aware that Allegheny County has the 2nd oldest population in the country. I guess it would behoove one to do an elective on geriatrics if they up going here.
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The hill is not that bad people. besides, you could get to the places of your interviews through buildings, which reduce the
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How lay-back everyone (students, faaculties, and admissions staff) is.
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Its easier to take the bus/shuttle from your student host's house than to drive there because of the $18 price of parking (forget exact amt but it was outrageous)
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That Pittsburgh is a very vibrant city whose steel-mills have been replaced by biotech giants and start-ups. You'd think the city is 350,000 coal-coughing people living in underground caves - but the architecture is often gothic and colonial, with many examples of Prairie-Home style mansions all over. It is also VERY safe to walk around in at night, and DIRT cheap to live in VERY comfortably. The apartments and rentable homes are inexpensive and quite frankly gorgeous - and you have opposite poles - some old steel mill ruins have been turned into high-tech industrial lofts, and many older homes have been remodeled and re-stored with great care and with high-tech amenities like ethernet, natural gas, wood/laminate flooring etc. The student who showed me around was paying $940 for a 2 BR/2.5 BA - and it was so replete with architectural details, beautiful colors, and inviting decor inside - and everything manageable within a student budget. Some sections of town are obviously more oriented toward blue-collar types, as in any city, but still, I couldn't find an area I found scary to walk around in. I went to UF for a couple of years, and rent is actually on par if not cheaper - and anyone familiar with Gville's crappy but cheap apartments should appreciate that. It is cold, but no where near as crummy as NYC or Boston. I was also told that it barely snows whenever it does.
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Parking on campus is very expensive. I parked in the O'Hara garage, and parking was $14 for 8 hours. Parking in the BST garage is a bit more expensive unless you pull in and pull out during the day.
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They kill you on parking. It's $18.75 (cash only) for the day, which they don't tell you ahead of time. They do say it's a little cheaper if you take your car out and pull it back in, but that's kind of hard to do during the interview day.
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Have exact change for the bus
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Nothing really. The new things that I learned, such as the WISER center & various clinics, just made me even more excited about the school.
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That Pittsburgh is so much different then I envisioned it.
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That Pittsburgh really isn't nice, but some districts around the med school are. And anyone who complains about the hill is REALLY out of shape...
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How new-agey the school thinks it is. That you should be prepared to lead the conversations in your interviews.
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The 10 min interview with the dean is very casual--no need to stress because he just wants to ask a few questions and see your face.
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I wish that they had had a student give the tour. The woman was the wife of a 1st year medical student & couldn't really answer too many questions.
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Should have worn more comfortable shoes.. The faculty interview was far and the timing was very close to the other interview. I ended up running down a very steep hill in heels. Not very comfortable...
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The tour makes you walk all over creation. I thought I had comfortable shoes, but by the end, my feet hurt.
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I guess that little hill was bad with luggage in the rain but I was expecting so much worse from all the complaining I've heard. Come out west and see some real mountains!
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If you want continental breakfast (donuts, bagels, coffee, juice) get there a little early. I showed up right at 8 and didn't really have time to eat.
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WISER Sim Center = very high tech dummies that students use to learn many procedures. So instead of practicing on people, you get to practice on a dummy that can talk and breath and has a pulse.
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LOTS of walking on the long tour.
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Had heard reports there was no student housing, which is not true. approximately 40% of students live in student housing, which from a couple students reviews were very nice and affordable
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Nothing; I wasn't there long.
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The hill. Everyone says the hill is bad. But it is *bad*. I'm in good shape and I was winded walking up it. The ground floor of a building is the "L" floor on one side of a building, and the 7th floor on the other side, because of the terrain.
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It was much less stressful than I had expected (this was my first med school interview)
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Interview ended in early afternoon. Could've caught an earlier flight out.
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Nothing. i knew ahead of time that the tour is really long, so be prepared to walk. also, you talk to a lot of people, so be prepared to be "on"
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How awesome the facilities were at Pitt (especially clinical skills lab). New Dean wants to produce more academic physicians and they are changing their curriculum to have a scholarly project requirement.
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The SDN feedback was more useful than I thought it would be...
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The day would be so long. Starts at 8 am, two hour tour!
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I would definitely suggest knowing the names of several faculty whose work interests you before your interview day. The "why do you think our school would be a good match for you?" question involved a follow up question of "with whom would you want to rotate?"
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When the interview would be over which is pretty early for BS/MD
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I knew it would be cold but wished I had spent the money I don't have on pants to match my suit.
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None
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I already knew a great deal about the place, so I didn't feel like I was missing any critical information.
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Pitt is on a huge hill.
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I read another interview that said wear flats - Ladies, this is almost a must!
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That the day would be jam-packed..I went from one interview to the next to the next. And the tour is LOOOOOONG. Too bad for us girls w/ uncomfortable heels!
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That i was going to have five interviews that day.
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Others have said it but the tour is LONG. We walked/stood for 2 hours. It's really easy to change shoes if you bring them. You also have to pay alot for parking. The day was over for everyone by 4.
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It is nearly impossible to park near the medical school. Scaife Hall (the main admissions bldg.) is on top of a hill in a SF-type fashion, and driving conditions are pretty treacherous. Also, you essentially have three interviews: the first is an hour-long interview with a student and is totally closed file; the second is with one of the deans of admissions and lasts for about 15 min (the dean with whom I interviewed asked me how many schools I applied to, what type of medicine [academic, private, etc...] I was attracted to, and he wanted to gauge my interest in Pitt); the third interview, which is an hour long, is with a faculty member who has your AMCAS personal statement and nothing else.
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I wish I had known how much I would LOVE this school...then again maybe not because I would've been nervous!
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Nothing, the 2 hour tour is mostly inside actually, only about 15 minutes are outside so no need for a really heavy coat unless you want to sweat it out in the hospitals. all the hospitals are connected with land bridges
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They have a really cool simulation facility.
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The weather will be so nice that I wouldn't have to pack so many warm clothes and coat. But I heard that will change pretty soon.
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If you stay at the Best Western by the school, do be sure to get a room as high up as you can. There's a Panera next to the hotel, and if trucks are delivering stuff at night, it can be very noisy.
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Prepare for a LOT of walking -- don't just bring flats, bring comfortable flats. Look out for hills, the campus is full of them. Your interviews are in the afternoon. I was done by 3:15, as was everyone else with me that day.
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No surprises here.
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The structure of the interview date wasn't clear to me. The faculty interviewer had my personal statement, but my student did not. It was much easier to establish a conversation with my faculty member, but it went okay with the students. Also, by the end, you have a meeting with the Dean of Admissions, and she wants to know if you are dying to go to their school or not. She asked only one, but yet very important question: How do you see Pitt as the option for your medical education?
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There is an expectation that the interviewee will have some opinions and insights on the advantages/disadvantages of curriculum types.
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Its freezing in pittsburgh
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That it was going to warm that day
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How laid back everyone is... I would have been A LOT less nervous
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There's no need to be nervous.
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Pittsburgh is COLD in the winter...dress very very warm.
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That the elevator would jam for an hour but I don't hold that against the school. That kind of stuff just happens sometimes.
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Bring an umbrella since I was drenched walking to one of the hospitals for my interview
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Extra curricular activities available in Pittsburgh.
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Day ended earlier than expected.
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You are also interviewed by either the Associate Dean or Assistant Dean. They can be more tough and not as super-nice, but just stay calm and show them why you want to be a doctor.
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They have a two hour tour, and they mean it, it didnt last a second shorter. you're gonna be walking around the whole campus and while its interesting it gets long, if you can imagine. that seems to be a big part of the day, so be ready for it.
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Lots of sitting around waiting time
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The amount of local hospitals that the students have access to is unbelievable.
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Bring sneakers for the tour. You'll need it. The shuttle to Wyndham garden is $5 roundtrip for students. Last shuttle of the day leaves airport at 10PM and hotel at 7PM. Use expedia to buy ticket and book hotel to save
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That Pittsburgh was a nice city
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That I should have prepared better questions for the admissions committee member with whom I had a 15 minute interview
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The Pittsburgh area freeways can be a bit confusing, so just be patient. Also, I had no idea how cool the simulation lab was and now I wish all schools had them!
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Nothing really.
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How casual and fun all the interviewers were.
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The tour was very long
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That the tour is very long! I should have worn comfortable shoes!
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You can't exit from the main part of the BMT parking garage. You have to go down a bunch of levels to go out a different exit. I made a fool of myself trying to go out the main exit.
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Pittsburgh is really a nice little city
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Not to be stressed
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Get there at 8:30 am - I got there too early and sat around. They serve breakfast too. You'll be walking alot on the tour too. Don't take the bus to travel - either fly or drive.
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That pitt has the immense simulation facilities.
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I wish I'd known that attending classes was no big deal. I would've tried to sit in on a first year class.
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That the day does not start until 8:30AM, and my day was done much earlier than expected. My information asked me to arrive by 8AM, and not to schedule a flight until after 6PM.
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They don't validate parking, so find somewhere cheap to park, or stay with a med student the night before. Also, bring something to read. My interviewer was busy at the clinic and was 45 minutes late.
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How much I was going to like it.
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They ask you to get there at 8.00, but they don't start until closer to 8.45 or 9.00. don't get there at 7.30 like a few of us did.
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I didn't realize that it would be so casual and easy.
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That I really didn't need to stress about the interviews.
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I drove, but for those flying there is a shuttle that costs like $3 or so - look into it - it's a lot less than a cab ride!
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Pitt doesn't cater much to foreign study.
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That the "person to person" approach talked about in the booklet (which i totally bought into) is a total crock of **** - at least that's the impression i got.
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TRAFFIC SUCKS IN PITTSBURG
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That the curriculum is fairly heavy on PBL.
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Beware the weather - any of you interviewing much after September, CHECK THE WEATHER REPORTS! in mid-Sept it was already 50s in the morning, so in a month it could be much colder. also, from the airport take the 28X flyer (it's a public bus) to the oakland area. it's $2.25 (exact change needed), it's rather slow since it's not a direct route, but it's a helluva lot cheaper than a taxi. just make enough time to get back to the airport from the school (it's a goooood hour bus ride).
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There is a shuttle from the airport for $2-3. I paid $50 for a rental car. Doh!
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My faculty interviewer was a new faculty member to Pitt. He had actually been there for four months, so he couldn't answer most of my questions. It would have been nice to have a couple more general, broader questions about the medical school experience available to show my interest.
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Go in the side entrance of the Scaife garage even if the front says it's full!
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I wish that they would have just not sent me an invitation to interview. I see this experience as a waste of my hard earned money. I hope the admissions faculty will put forth more of an effort to pair up interviewees with interviewers who are willing to take the time to seriously get to know their candidates.
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That they dont validate parking
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No where to park in Oakland
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All the buildings connect, and it's like a maze....VERY easy to get lost so ask for directions in advance or for an escort!
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Directions around Pittsburgh and to Scaife Hall.
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Not to worry - this was a really great 1st interview to have b/c it is sooo low stress
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Pittsburgh's curriculum is very interesting.
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Interviews aren't til the afternoon, which is a bit annoying but you can't really do anything about it. Also, it was snowing which made it tough to walk up the huge hill to the school in dress shoes.
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That I wasn't as polished as I could have been, but that probably did not hurt me. Prepare, people!
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No place to park .
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That it would snow this much. i dunno how long it'll take to get home.
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No need to read faculty research before going. Maybe just check the general research interests, but don't bother reading.
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How cheap the cost of living in Pittsburgh is relative to other cities... Its also funny to hear the way picture Pittsburgh (old, dirty, steel, etc..) and how far it is from the truth.
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Bring gloves...it's freezing! Make sure you bring a shoulder bag or something because you will get A TON of papers.
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That the day would be so long.
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My interview day's schedule ended at 2. If i had known that, I would've gotten an earlier bus ride out of pitt, or gotten a later bus and planned to do something in the city. If you're not flying, maybe call a couple days ahead and plan your bus/car trip accordingly.
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That I was going to be interviewing with the Director of Minority Affairs after already having my faculy and student interviews.
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Nothing really
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How to get out of the city of Pittsburgh by car without getting lost
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I'm from Pittsburgh, so I think I had most of it covered
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That the place where the interview day starts is on the 11th floor in a room that is very hard to find if you don't know where to go. When you go up the elevators, take a left into the museum (10 feet away), then go through the museum until you reach room. I went took a right initially to the cafeteria.
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You can walk to the med school from most of the hotels listed on the U Pitt website (I stayed at Hampton Inn).
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That I was going to play in a soccer game with my host's team.
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?
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No stress
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How beautiful Pittsburgh is and how happy students are. The student hosts are super super nice. The dinner was great.
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Not to mess around driving during rush hour
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That Pittsburgh is really hilly!
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A good deal of time is spent with the other ~15 interviewing applicants, so be prepared for casual conversations too (in other words ... relax!)
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That I would be doing a brief interview with the Dean of the school, who had read my entire AMCAS and supplementary applications.
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Get there a day early to find where you can park & where you are going.
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That the day was so long.
🤝 Campus and Facilities ▼
How do you rank the facilities?
Most respondents rank the facilities as above average.
How would you rate the Location and Cultural Life?
0 = Low, 10 = High
How is the friendliness of the admissions office?
Most respondents said the admissions office was friendly.
How is the responsiveness of the admissions office?
Most respondents said the admissions office was responsive.
What are your suggestions for the admissions office?
Applicants commonly suggested having M2 or M3 students conduct interviews for a better insight into the school, releasing admissions decisions on a rolling basis, providing a more detailed interview schedule in advance, making interview locations easier to find, and offering more vegetarian-friendly meal options during the interview day.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
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Have M2 or M3s do the student interviews. I don’t think the M1s knew enough about the school to answer questions,
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None
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Release admissions decisions on a rolling basis!
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I would recommend a better itinerary to have before the interview day. There was a good amount of down time as well which prolonged the day.
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Maybe send out the exact interview schedule to applicants earlier
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Interview locations are hard to find.
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Specify address of Scaife Hall and make it clear that it is the Scaife Hall at the University of Pittsburgh (For the MSTP UPitt - CMU joint program, there's a Scaife Hall at CMU too and a girl on my interview date accidentally went there instead of the one at Pitt so she arrived late)
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I have none.
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They did everything quite efficiently and smoothly! Probably the most informative finaid presentation to date out of my interviews.
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Nothing! The interview day was just perfect!
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No major suggestions. Best interview day I went on out of 14+ schools.
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Interact more with the interviewees, other than just handing out name-tags and copying pictures.
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Breakfast consisted primarily of sugary pastries. A more balanced meal would have been preferred.
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Encourage tour guides to try to spend lots of time inside the facilities. It was hot this day!
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Maybe a shorter tour, but the entire day was enjoyable.
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Everything was great and very well organized. Only (small) complaint is maybe having more vegetarian
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Nothing really. The weather was pretty gross, but that's Pittsburgh for you.
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Awesome job with interview day. Best tour ever.
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None. I really like the updates and information about the school. It is nice to know there is some
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Pitt is super fast in all of it's communications (i.e. secondary to invite time is legendarily short
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More vegetarian friendly lunch options. :)
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I think they are doing a great job. Friendlist office I have come across.
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Did a great job with notifications and with answering questions. Although you did mention the lots o
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While I appreciated a break from sandwiches, tacos for the lunch is not exactly suit food.
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Keep up the good work.
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While the letters were VERY nice, they aren't very eco-friendly. The tour day was well run though!
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Let us girls know that the tour is long, outside, and it's hilly! Also, if the second interview is f
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As another poster noted, it is very difficult to find housing with students this early.
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It's a bit diffcult to obtain student host if you are the first batch whom are interviewed.
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Liz or Lisa (the short, blonde sassy lady who gave the curriculum talk) didn't get to give her talk
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Nothing.
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Get students to give the tour so that we can ask them questions! The adms staff is actually respondi
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Ditch the admissions staff for the tour and use medical students. If every other school does it, so
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If possible, have a medical student give the facility tour.
📍 Travel and Logistics ▼
Airports Used
✈️
PIT
63% interviewees used PIT (PIT), with 8% using Pittsburgh International (Pittsburgh International) and 7% using Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh) and 6% using pit (pit) and 3% using Pittsburgh International Airport (Pittsburgh International Airport) and 2% using PGH (PGH) and 2% using pitt (pitt) and 1% using Pit (Pit) and 1% using Pitt (Pitt) and 1% using Pittsburgh (took 28x port authority for $2.60 to o (Pittsburgh (took 28x port authority for $2.60 to o) and 1% using JetBlue (JetBlue) and 1% using Pittsbugh International Airport (Pittsbugh International Airport) and 1% using Pitt International (Pitt International) and 1% using Pittsburgh Airport (Pittsburgh Airport) and 1% using Pittsburgh international (Pittsburgh international) and 1% using Pittsburgh Airport? (Pittsburgh Airport?) and 1% using RST (RST) and 1% using (California) to Pittsburgh (LAX).
What was your primary mode of transportation?
Most interviewees traveled by airplane to the interview.
✈️
66% Airplane
🚗
29% Automobile
🚆
4% Train or Subway
🚲
1% Other
Hotels Recommended by Other Interviewees
Most interviewees stayed at the Hampton Inn (average ranking 8.8/10), with some staying at Holiday Inn Select (average rating 8.8/10). (Top 3 displayed)
🏨
Hampton Inn
8.8/10
🏨
Holiday Inn Select
8.8/10
🏨
Shadyside Inn
8.5/10
What was the cost and time spent traveling?
Cost: Low Cost to High Cost
What is your in-state status?
Most respondents are out of state students.
Where did you stay?
Most respondents stayed either Hotel or at a hotel.
Who was the tour given by?
Tours were most commonly given by Admissions staff personnel
Admissions staff (63%)
Faculty member (1%)
Other (2%)
Student (34%)
How did the tour guide seem?
Most tour guides were enthusiastic about the school.
Discouraging (0%)
Enthusiastic (76%)
Neutral (24%)
All Responses
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No responses found.
| Application Cycle ▿ | Impression | Performance | Interview Location |
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