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Overall, applicants ranked the school in the top 47% of interviews, indicating it is moderately regarded. They found the interview generally impressive with a low stress level and felt they did okay.
Generally favorable experience overall, applicants reported positive interactions with some minor issues noted.
Based on 136 responses
Score Reference:
9–10 Exceptional8–8.9 Very Good7–7.9 Good6–6.9 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 average stress.
How do you rank this school among ALL other schools?
Most respondents rank this school as average compared to other schools.
How did the interview impress you?
Most respondents felt positively about their interview.
Positively (78%)
Negatively (9%)
No change (13%)
How you think you did?
Most respondents thought they performed well at the interview.
Great (21%)
Good (54%)
Average (25%)
What are your general comments?
Applicants generally found the interview day long but low-stress, with friendly interviewers and a positive atmosphere. They appreciated the facilities, food, and enthusiasm of the staff, advising future applicants to relax and enjoy the experience.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
Go in calm and relaxed. You have no way of knowing everything they will ask and be okay with that.
It's a LONG day with a lot of activities and tasks for you to complete. It was nice not having to talk your mouth the entire day given some of the breaks though.
Don’t stress too much. Prepare for Traditional and MMI but just try your best, it was pretty fair. Nothing like Tell Me about this experience or why you got a low MCAT/B- in physics kinda deal
The best meal I've had along the interview trail - most places just gave us a boxed lunch. The staff was all very kind, and the dean's presentation was very impressive and covered a lot of material. I appreciated that they took the time to help us try on white coats
I liked my interviewer a lot. Very kind and professional. The faculty in teh group sessionse/info sessions/etc. after were just not enthusiastic and didn't seem excited to be there.
SHSU-COM-COMP interviews are an average of 47 minutes, with an average of 2.9 interviews. 81% of interviews are one-on-one, 94% are in-person, and 92% are closed-file. Of the in-person interviews, 100% are held at the school.
What is one of the specific questions they asked you?
The most commonly asked interview questions at medical schools include inquiries about the role of physicians and AI in the clinic, the use of AI in diagnosis, personal preferences like dinner companions, reasons for choosing osteopathic medicine at a specific school, handling medical errors, overcoming challenges, the importance of education in medicine, and qualities of a good doctor. Some respondents mentioned being asked questions in an MMI format, indicating a structured interview with scenarios, and some may have been subject to a nondisclosure agreement regarding specific questions asked during the interview.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
Students said most interesting question asked at Sam Houston State University College of Osteopathic Medicine discussed various topics such as standing up for unpopular beliefs, the role of physicians with AI, the impact of movies, obstacles for doctors, the future of healthcare, and ethical scenarios like lying or dishonesty. Some responses hinted at a Group Interview format being intriguing, while others mentioned an Essay prompt on enforcing a commitment to rural care for med students. It appears that the interview process may have been an MMI format, possibly involving nondisclosure agreements given the non-specific responses provided by the respondents.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
Essay prompt asking if a commitment to a program for rural care for med students should be enforced? In traditional, what is one question I haven’t asked that you’d like to address?
Many applicants prepared for the interview by reviewing their secondary essays, researching the school's mission and curriculum, practicing common interview questions, and seeking guidance from resources like SDN, Dr. Gray's books and YouTube videos. Some also engaged in mock interviews and sought feedback from mentors or peers to prepare effectively.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
Dr. Gray’s book, podcasts, youtube but knowing you’re self and your experiences is much more helpful.
Looked up the mission of the school on the website, learning more about the curriculum and campus. however the official website really doesn't provide too much resources to be honest. It seems pretty bare.
This was my 6th interview so i didn't really prepare too hard, just read over my personal statement and also thought about some reasons why i like Sam specifically
Students said the most difficult question asked at Sam Houston State University College of Osteopathic Medicine discussed scenario-based and follow-up questions related to medical ethics and AI usage, as well as the impact of surroundings. Some respondents mentioned a non-disclosure agreement or an MMI format, where questions varied from essay writing to group activities involving picture organization.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
A follow up question to the AI question, if there was a case of malpractice with a doctor, who would be at fault. and who should pay for the use of AI in medicine, the patient? and how does this affect the care the patient receives?
I thought the essay and group interview were tough. Group interview involved organizing pictures and you had to figure out that it was based on how zoomed out it was and organize it from most zoomed out to most zoomed in
We had a part of the interview where we had to write an answer to a prompt in one of those bluebooks they provided us. I had not written essays by hand in years so it was a little stressful because my hand was cramping up lol but thequestion was not too bad, it was something like do you think physicians should be held to a higher standard of their own health by not having them smoke etc and isay the rate determining step to this was not finding an answer to the question but rather just writing it all down by hand
Applicants were positively impressed by the welcoming and organized nature of the interview process, the friendliness and diversity of the students and staff, the quality of facilities, and the overall positive atmosphere of the campus. Some applicants also appreciated the proximity to nature and outdoor activities, the interactive group activities during the interview, and the enthusiastic faculty members.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
The campus was nice a beautiful. Though some construction blocked some parts of campus and the SHSU COM sign (so no good interview day pictures.) The quality of the faculty and staff were great.
The faculty seem to really like being there. They treated us all like we were already students at the institution. It was very comfortable talking with them. I felt right at home. Also, I really love the Hogwarts theme that they have going on with the learning communities.
Applicants were commonly unimpressed by the lack of transparency and enthusiasm from the faculty and staff, as well as the disorganization and unaccredited status of the school. Suggestions included improving communication during interviews, enhancing campus facilities, and addressing accreditation concerns promptly.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
The school is new so its curriculum and certain aspects of the student experience are evolving, but the staff and students were very honest about this the entire time.
The med students on the panel didn't introduce themselves properly with where they were from, undergrad, and backgrounds. Just their names really. And even after the open questions from the interviewees, I felt like it didn't provide much insight into the student life other than surface things like clubs and schedules etc.
Some of the group interviews were conducted in the lobby, and it was actually very hard to talk loudly or hear the other candidates sometimes.
Having 4 interviews in one. Serving spaghetti when we had formal attire on. Also reapplicants had an advantage in the group activity since they reuse it. Traditional interview felt rushed with only 15 minutes to answer multiple questions.
They done goofed by being one of the only schools to require in-person interviews and would have made a way better impression by hiding the campus behind a virtual screen. Conroe, Texas on its own is bad enough, the campus itself is like a dilapidated shack that looks like somebody bought a condemned office building and tried running a sketchy side-business out of it. The school at the time of this review is unaccredited, which in and of itself isn't necessarily a deal-breaker; new schools have to go through a long and daunting accreditation process. However, a serious red flag is that even with their most senior class on the cusp of graduation, they haven't even been able to gain provisional accreditation so they can apply to residency. And they were, for some inexplicable reason, PROUD of this. The administration is clearly a disorganized mess, and most of the interviewers seemed like they didn't want to be there. Okay campus on paper, super scuffed in person.
After the interview, we went to deans presentation, Q&A panel, etc. and the faculty were not enthusiastic, seemed like they didn't want to be there, etc. They avoided admission/acceptance/timeline questions as well. Felt they weren't too excited to be there.
The interviewers were instructed by the school to ask specific questions. After my response, they were not allowed to discuss that question and immediately went on to the next question. It wasn't until all of the prompts were read that we were able to have a normal discussion.
Applicants commonly wished they had known ahead of time about the number of people they would meet at the interview, the importance of comfortable footwear, the different types of interviews involved, the relaxed atmosphere of the interview, the need to check technical equipment in advance, and not to stress too much about the group activity.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
Talk to students being interviewed before hand. you may end up working alongside them on an activity.
I wish I knew how many people I would meet at the in person interview, I feel like you have to be memorable to a LOT of people, staff, doctors, med students.
I would not recommend wearing high heels unless you are very comfortable walking around in them. The campus has a lot of stairs and they give you a full campus tour where you have to walk up and down many flights of stairs. Not enjoyable.
As of November 2024, they have four main interviews. (These are not in order)
1. Group interview with a current medical student
2. Group project supervised by a faculty member
3. Individual traditional interview
4. Individual MMI interview
Do not book a flixbus all the way on the other side of Houston from the school in Conroe if that bus leaves in an hour because you will either miss it or like me, barely make it onto the bus hallelujah
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 suggest that the admissions office improve communication with clear expectations, especially regarding the "teamwork" aspect, and provide a more transparent timeline throughout the application process.
The "teamwork" portion was a bit confusing and hard to know what it is you want to see from us.
Most interviewees traveled by automobile to the interview.
✈️
6% Airplane
🚗
72% Automobile
🚆
6% Train or Subway
🚲
17% Other
Hotels Recommended by Other Interviewees
Most interviewees stayed at the Springhill Suites Marriott The Woodlands (average ranking 10/10), with some staying at Hyatt Regency Conroe (average rating 10/10). (Top 3 displayed)
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Springhill Suites Marriott The Woodlands
10/10
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Hyatt Regency Conroe
10/10
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Comfort Inn
9/10
What was the cost and time spent traveling?
Cost: Low Cost to High Cost
What is your in-state status?
Most respondents are in state students.
Where did you stay?
Most respondents stayed either Other or at another housing option.
Who was the tour given by?
Tours were most commonly given by a Student
Admissions staff (16%)
Other (5%)
Student (79%)
How did the tour guide seem?
Most tour guides were enthusiastic about the school.
Enthusiastic (89%)
Neutral (11%)
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