How many people interviewed you?
| Response Average | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 2.00 | 15 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| Positively | 9 |
| Negatively | 0 |
| No change | 7 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 5.63 | 16 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 6.75 | 16 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 8.60 | 15 |
No responses
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 5 minutes | 0 |
| 10 minutes | 0 |
| 15 minutes | 0 |
| 20 minutes | 2 |
| 25 minutes | 1 |
| 30 minutes | 2 |
| 35 minutes | 3 |
| 40 minutes | 1 |
| 45 minutes | 4 |
| 50 minutes | 2 |
| 55 minutes | 0 |
| 60+ minutes | 1 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| At the school | 14 |
| At a regional location | 0 |
| At another location | 1 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| One-on-one | 10 |
| In a group | 5 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| Open file | 5 |
| Closed file | 8 |
| Response Average | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 2.00 | 15 |
"What is a defining experience you had in optometry?"
"What is my motivation to fitting into the student population"
"How do you deal with stress? Name a stressful situation you encountered and how you overcame it"
"What were your volunteer experiences in undergrad? Did they seem to make a difference?"
"Why Berkeley Optometry?"
"Why optometry, why berkeley, etc."
"Where do you see yourself in 5 years?"
"Why optometry? How did you went about preparing for optometry school?"
"Tell me about yourself and why Berkeley is a good fit for you."
"Why optometry?"
"what can ucbso offer you?"
"Tell me about yourself. "
"Behavioral questions"
"Why Berkeley specifically?"
"Why Berkeley Optometry?"
"Every profession has a downside. In your opinion, what is a negative aspect of optometry?"
"What distinguishes optometry from other healthcare professions?"
"Asked me about stuff in my essay"
"A specific time where you felt stressed? How did you deal with it?"
"What are your plans if you don't get in?"
"Where do you see yourself in 5 years?"
"What do you think optometry's scope will be in the next 15-20 years?"
"Why UCB?"
"why optometry?"
"They basically circled interesting things on my personal statement and asked me to talk about them."
"Asked me about my volunteer experience"
"What is your research about?"
"What do I plan on doing differently in graduate school compared to undergrad?"
"Where do you see optometry in the next 15-20 years?"
"What were my duties in my previous job before I switched into optometry?"
"Did you apply to other schools?"
"Talk about an experience you've had with conflict in a group. How was it resolved?"
"some question about my personal statement"
"You play the piano: Tell us more. They asked a lot of questions about the activities I am involved in. They had my essays in front of them (but nothing else from my application) so they picked things they wanted to know more about."
"Tell us what you know about the berkeley optometry curriculum and tell us how you would handle the work load."
"Describe some of the legislative issues that are currently important in optometry and what they involve."
"Describe your volunteering experience."
"what kind of optometric experiences you have had?"
"How was Costa Rica?"
"The behavioral question"
"What do you do for fun?"
"What TV show I watched"
"In your opinion, is it ever acceptable to get into a romantic relationship with a patient?"
"You're a first-year optometry student. Your grandfather has been diagnosed with a disease that will kill him in 5 years. There's a procedure that can be done to cure him, but there is a 10% mortality rate. He wants to do it, but mom does not want him to. What would you do?"
"Do you know what an autorefractor is? Do you think technology like this will make optometrists obsolete?"
"What are your hobbies?"
"Nothing was particularly interesting. All pretty standard."
"What qualities do you see in your FRIENDS that would make a good optometrist?"
"Do you think its demeaning for optometrists to use advertisements in newspapers and other media to attract patients?"
"Ethical/scenario questions. If your professor gave you a higher grade than what you had actually scored, would you inform your professor? Would you, if you were failing the class? Would you still, if you were on probation? "
"nothing really. they were all based on my essays and my answers from the previous questions."
"How would you deal with children during an eye exam?"
"The behavioral question"
"What sets Berkeley apart from other schools?"
"N/A"
"Name how optometry is different from other healthcare fields. (I was only given three minutes to answer this question during the MMI portion, and the interviewers didn't interact with me at all..)"
"They asked a lot about my ESSAY. Know yours well!"
"Talk about a time when you failed."
"Where do you see yourself in 5 years?"
"The essay questions were actually the hardest. (chose one of two and make a clear argument: change the presidential election process (yes/no), ban hate speech (yes/no))"
"see above"
"How would you distinguish yourself among your peers?"
"same as above."
"Nothing difficult. It was mainly a conversation."
"Looked through SDN"
"Took questions from SDN and answered them on a word doc Looked over my essays"
"Looking at SDN questions and coming up with answers typed up in a google doc"
"student doctor network, re-reading my optomcas personal statement + experiences, talking to my optometrist about the future of optometry, BREATHING and making sure I was confident and not nervous"
"SDN, reading sample MMI questions"
"Spoke to current students, read other feedback on SDN, did research into current events of optometry."
"SDN, read my essay, read about the school"
"researched questions on SDN, reread my personal statement over and over"
"SDN and answering questions out loud to myself on long car rides. The latter was quite helpful because answering out loud is harder than answering in your head. And interviewing out loud is harder yet, so it's good prep."
"sdn questions, practiced questions out loud, mock interviews with friends"
"SDN interview questions, reading the UCBSO website to know about the school, and practiced with a friend for an hour"
"Reviewed the application essays, scoured the SDN forums for past questions, and searched the optometry site thoroughly "
"interview questions from SDN"
"I didn't."
"The organization of the whole day The friendliness of everyone there"
"The introductory presentation given by the dean, the organization of the entire day, and the mock class given"
"I was surprised at how organized the day was. 115 students, 4 color groupss, 4 subgroups within the colors, all who had different schedules.. it was all very crazy but the timing worked very well. The campus is also very pretty: other grad school campuses are nearby, berkeley has alot of good restaurants, and SF is really fun too!"
"The school shut down to give us interview day. There were plenty of student volunteers and faculty that wanted to partake in the experience."
"Students really seem to like the program, the campus is beautiful."
"the enthusiasm and friendliness of all the students and the staff"
"The food was yummy! And the day was very well organized and everyone was really nice."
"there were more volunteers than actual interviewees (which were 128?!). they were very accommodating."
"the enthusiasm of the students/faculty/staff"
"The enthusiasm of the students. "
"students' enthusiasm and their closeness to each other"
"The students positive attitudes and enthusiasm."
"I felt as if my interviewers were not as responsive, causing me to freeze from time to time"
"MMI interviewers were stone-faced"
"Buildings were slightly old, but not too big of a deal"
"How they crammed so many students into one small room during the intro and conclusion of the day. I was definitely stressed seeing all the competition right next to me, knowing that 50 of us in that room weren't going to get accepted 0__0."
"The one set of interviewers from the MMI had a really stern, upset look on their face. It was the only interview portion that made me nervous and stutter. The other MMI interviewers were far more welcoming with positive body language to make me feel comfortable."
"Rain, but it was not their fault."
"The building is kind of old, but my interviewer said they were trying to update it, so hopefully that won't be an issue anymore."
"the very long day (but it goes by faster than you think)"
"Long day. And the snacks were not very healthy. (but one the plus side, they had snacks!)"
"the student interviewer did not pay attention to me when the other interviewer (faculty member) asked the questions. he zoned out and didn't seem like he cared. i thought that was disrespectful."
"the LONG day! the lecture halls were not designed to seat 100+ people at a time."
"At the time, the facilities were under renovation. So building was unappealing on the inside. Interview day was longer than it needed to be. "
"long interview day with alot of activities"
"Not much personal attention because of the 121 of us. They apparently don't have a lot of money."
"Just advertise yourself"
"The essay question is really not that deep"
"MMIs are not as stressful as I thought"
"How to prepare for an MMI. I've never interacted with anyone like that before, where you're given a max of 4 minutes to answer a question and the interviewer doesn't interact and just blinks at you until you're done talking. I felt like I was rambling in a monologue"
"How awkward the first MMI would be. You have 3 minutes to read a prompt in front of a door. You open the door, sit, and have 4 minutes to answer. You leave when you are done answering even if 4 mins isn't up yet."
"Nothing really"
"how many times I'd have to go up and down stairs (I highly recommend wearing comfortable shoes!)"
"What I'd be asked, of course. I was nervous initially, but the conversation was pretty low-key. I felt better as it went on."
"how long the day would feel-- I would have brought more snacks"
"The interview is semi- open/closed file. The interviewers have your essays in front of them, but have not seen your transcript/LOR's ."
"interview is semi-open/closed file"
"YELLOW group... oh yeah... give our group a round of applause because we had to wait until the end of the day to get our interviews."
"this was the best interview day experience I had"
"Berkeley is an amazing program!"
"Berkeley's interview was definitely the most stressful interview I had, with a group project, essay, traditional interview, and MMIs. BUT it makes it all the more glorious when you get accepted. Key is --don't be nervous/stressed! You made the first cut to the interview, now just be confident :)"
"The school itself has not seen much remodeling since they first opened, so the equipment is much older. The Berkeley education is unparalleled and they are clinically superior with the almost 100% board passing rate. You start vision science courses immediately and see about 2500 patients by the time you're done. The pros outweigh the cons!"
"I was very impressed with Berkeley after Interview Day. I was so nervous and stressed since it was my first interview, but everyone at the school made me feel very comfortable and relaxed. I felt that there wasn't a competitive atmosphere at Cal and that the students were very laid-back and friendly."
"Don't let the name of the school or the overwhelming number of interviewees stress you. The fact that the school has selected you to come to the interview means that they really like a lot about you in your application. They just want to know more about YOU. The secret to success for me has been to be genuine and honest in my answers and most importantly, be myself. "
"The school is located in a lively town/campus. However, I was left with no change in my opinion about the optometry program. Beware of a long day. "
"over all it was a nice experience, very laid back. i just wish that the day would be alot shorter than it was. too many students occupying a small space at one time...it would be nicer if they cut the group in half and conducted the interview in two saturdays."
"I took a tour then ate, wrote an essay, student panel, had a mock class and finally the interview. VERY LONG but worth it. "
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| Student | 13 |
| Faculty member | 1 |
| Admissions staff | 0 |
| Other | 0 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| Enthusiastic | 13 |
| Neutral | 0 |
| Discouraging | 0 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 6.36 | 14 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| In state | 12 |
| Out of state | 3 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 0-1 hour | 4 |
| 2-3 hours | 4 |
| 4-6 hours | 3 |
| 7+ hours | 3 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| Airplane | 7 |
| Automobile | 4 |
| Train or subway | 1 |
| Other | 2 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| < $100 | 3 |
| $101-$200 | 4 |
| $201-$300 | 2 |
| $301-$400 | 1 |
| $401-$500 | 0 |
| $501+ | 2 |
SFO
Oakland
none. I walked.
OAK
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| At school facility | 0 |
| With students at the school | 0 |
| Friends or family | 5 |
| Hotel | 4 |
| Home | 1 |
| Other | 0 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 8.69 | 13 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 7.94 | 16 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 8.27 | 15 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 8.50 | 12 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 8.83 | 12 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 8.30 | 10 |
"Nothing really. Did a great job."
"N/A, great job donw"
"Maybe use a bigger room for interview day? Cramming 115 applicants and 30+ current students/faculty was probably a fire hazard, and also added to the stress level of the interview."
"Nothing. For such a large interview group, the interview day was conducted with as most organization as possible."
We help students become doctors. TM
What is one of the specific questions they asked you (question 1)?