How many people interviewed you?
| Response Average | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 2.98 | 261 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| Positively | 200 |
| Negatively | 27 |
| No change | 37 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 3.52 | 262 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 7.87 | 186 |
| Response Avg | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 7.10 | 162 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| In Person | 0 |
| Virtual | 1 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 5 minutes | 0 |
| 10 minutes | 0 |
| 15 minutes | 0 |
| 20 minutes | 11 |
| 25 minutes | 20 |
| 30 minutes | 144 |
| 35 minutes | 27 |
| 40 minutes | 26 |
| 45 minutes | 13 |
| 50 minutes | 7 |
| 55 minutes | 0 |
| 60+ minutes | 17 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| At the school | 224 |
| At a regional location | 34 |
| At another location | 4 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| One-on-one | 162 |
| In a group | 96 |
| Response | # Responders |
|---|---|
| Open file | 76 |
| Closed file | 179 |
| Response Average | # Responders |
|---|---|
| 2.98 | 261 |
"What is the difference between empathy and compassion?"
"What are some qualities of a good physician?"
"Why medicine/What led you here?"
"Why medicine"
"How would you want others to describe you?"
"How would you be an advocate for a patient?"
"What do you think would happen to the Affordable Care Act now? ( talked a lot about Obamacare)"
"Tell me something interesting about yourself that can't be found in your essays (all 3 asked me this)"
"have you done any clinical research"
"Why don't you want to be an engineer? (My dad's an engineer)"
"Why do you want to be a doctor? Why Illinois? Why Chicago?"
"Why should I save a spot for you at UIC? Are you going to come here?"
"So I see you're a musician, what do you love about music?"
"Same ethic questions that other people have mentioned"
"Why MD/PhD?"
"What are your thoughts on defensive medicine?"
"Why the low GPA? Tell me about your most significant research experience (very detailed here, talked for half the time about it). Why medicine and not just PhD (I have a lot of research)? Tell me more about your clinical experience."
"Interview 1: If you sent a patient to multiple specialists but they could not reach a consensus, what would you do? What is your opinion about government mandated HPV vaccinations for elementray school children? How would you demonstrate cultural competence as a physician? (Jokingly) If you were a kitchen appliance, what would you be and why? Most questions came from a script."
"Do you know any Indian people? If you had a day off from school or work what would you do? Will you continue to do the extracurriculars or things you did in college at UIC? Will you continue to do research at UIC?"
"What would you do if parents of a patient refused treatment for their child's club foot because the club foot was a blessing in their culture and treatment would bring shame to the family"
"What does patient advocacy mean to you?"
"why medicine & not grad school? (i have a lot of research experience)"
"What do you think about health care reform?"
"Why UIC? Why do you want to be a doctor? (Actually, all three asked me this.)"
"What was the best and worst part of (one of my particular clinical experiences)?"
"How would you like your patients to describe you?"
"What do you think professionalism means?"
"Describe a hardship of yours."
"tell me about yourself"
"Why UIC"
"Discuss a time when you were faced with an ethical dilemma."
"Why UIC/Chicago? (I am OOS)"
"What is one attribute that you find most important in a physician?"
"What do you think are some issues in health care? What are your weaknesses? What would you do if a female patient only wanted a female physician, but you were an administrator at a clinic (I'm female) with no clinical privileges & the clinic was full of all male physicians? "
"Interviewer 1 (MD) : Why Medicine. Why UIC. What do you think of Pres. Obama's healthcare plan. From here on it became a rather one-sided lecture on the benefits of the public option. (I felt like I blew the interview because of the lecture-like nature of the "interview" - it didn't help that this was my very first med school interview)."
"Faculty: Tell me about yourself. Why UIC? Name some of your strengths and weakness. How would your best friend/parents describe you? What are the top 3 problems facing physicians? Ethical question about an uninsured patient who requests that you pretend he is his brother who has insurance who needs emergency procedure. What would you do if you couldn't be a physician? How do you handle stress?"
"Why UIC? (I'm OOS)"
"What interests you about medicine? Why UIC? Do you have any questions for me?"
"Why medicine? where do you see yourself in 5/10/15 years?"
"Why medicine? Tell me about x,y,z activity."
"Had a medical student interview me. Very relaxed. What is your favorite movie and book?"
"Tell me about yourself. Hypothetical situation about abortion/parental notification. Hypothetical situation about giving a patient the wrong medication but there is no adverse effect - what would you do?"
"Where do you see yourself in 5/10/15 years?"
"How has your view of the medical profession changed since you were a child?"
"Why do you want to be a doctor? What is the most important scientific innovation made in the last 10 years? If a patient was going to die in two months no matter the treatment given what would you do? Why UIC?"
"Interviewer 1: Why do you do research? What makes you want to volunteer? What do you think the biggest issue is in healthcare right now? What specialty do you want to pursue? As a doctor how would you help the uninsured population? (just you) What made you want to become a doctor? Tell me about some medical innovations that have been significant recently."
"Interview 1: (Basic questions) Why Medicine? Why UIC? Where would you travel and why?"
"How would you deal with a stressful situation?"
"Why UIC? Do you know what Socialized Medicine is? Tell me about your volunteer experiences. Can you speak Gujurati?( this question, and other questions were asked about my secondary application)"
"Describe a typical day in your life 15 or 20 years from now."
"tell me about yourself, your family and your life in general up to this point. "
"Tell me about yourself. What are your strengths and weaknesses?"
"Why UIC? Why medicine?"
"MD, faculty: Have you considered other professions? Tell me about your life. Are there other MDs in your family? Why medicine? Tell me about a time when your integrity was questioned."
"see above"
"What specialty are you interested in?"
"What are your strengths/weaknesses? How would your friends describe you? If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? What problems do you think physicians (as a group) encounter? What are the most important issues in this election for you personally?"
"How did you prepare for the rigors of med school/what do you do for stress?"
"If you were a medical student and you made a mistake no one would find out about, would you tell someone the next day?"
"Who is your hero? Why do you want to be doctor?"
"See two above"
"Why medicine? Why UIC? "
"''Why UIC?''"
"What do you think about socialized medicine? "
"How do you cope with stress?"
"How would you solve the healthcare crisis?"
"Tell me about yourself (which progressed into health policy)."
"What's wrong with healthcare, what are some issues facing healthcare"
"Would you come to UIC if the Urban Health Program wasn't here? (I told my interviewer that it was a big draw for me.)"
"What are some problems in medicine?"
"Why UIC? Describe yourself"
"How do I manage stress and frustrations"
"Future problem in medicine?"
"Future of medicine."
"What do you feel are some major issues regarding public health in the future?"
"Three most recent advances in medicine."
"Tell us a little bit about yourself."
"2 of the interviews were pretty pointless...no good questions...the 3rd was great...they two students asked the normal questions about stress and dealing with failure"
"What are you looking for in a school?"
"this was a while ago... i don't really remember..."
"tell me about your research"
"What area of practice do you want to enter?"
"The U.S. healthcare and how do you plan to fix it?"
"why and MD/JD?"
"''How and why would you persuade (a) an obese stranger with no scientific knowledge and (b) a fellow classmate in college to take a biochemistry class?''"
"What do you do when you aren't studying, thinking about being a doctor?"
"What's wrong with our healthcare system?"
"Tell me about your research."
"See interesting question"
"What is wrong with the US health care system? What can be done about it?"
"See above for examples"
"Describe a significant experience which led you toward the medical career. "
"What is angina? How do you treat it? Can you tell me the physiology of how the medication works? (Don't worry, they probably asked me that because I work at a cardiology clinic)"
"Describe various health care systems in the world. What is wrong with American health care?"
"Why do you want to be in an MD/PhD program?"
"Be sure to have some questions==you see three people and they all say : do you have any questions for me?"
"how well do you handle stress?"
"Of all the medical schools you've applied to, where does UIC rank?"
"Tell me about how you decided on medicine. "
"Tell me about yourself?"
"Why do you want to become a doctor"
"Why a doctor and not something else in the medical field (RN, public health, etc)?"
"What motivated you to volunteer in so many different places?"
"Discuss the 3 major healthcare systems (was kind of vague in his approach didn't know what he was looking for at first, but in case anyone cares, looking for US, England, and Canada)."
"Why medicine instead of another career that emphasizes contribution to society? (Asked by student interviewer)"
"Why do you want to become a Dr.?"
"why the university of illinois?"
"What do you like to do in your free time? Hobbies."
"What is your opinion of the state of healthcare in the US?"
"What is your opinion of health care in the US? "
"Do you do research? Explain it."
"what is one big problem facing medicine today?"
"Explain your research."
"How would you fix healthcare?"
"What is a weakness you have?"
"Lots of questions specific to what I'd written in my essays- the only thing they have to look at during the interview is your essays."
"Tell me what you do for fun."
"What do you like to do in your free time or to relieve stress?"
"Tell me about yourself and why you want to go into medicine."
"What kind of doctor do you want to be?"
"tell me about research."
"What is something about you that is not in your file that you'd like me to know?"
"Why University of Illinois?"
"What kind of research do you do?"
"What are you passionate about? How has this affected your desire to become a doctor?"
"Tell me about yourself? "
"Considering that your parents are both doctors, what do they think about you doing rural health?"
"Why Med?"
"what qualities should a physician have? (they jumped rigtht into my application, didn't ask "Tell me about yourself" or anything)"
"How did growing up on a farm shape your outlook on life and contribute to your interest in medicine?"
"Describe your research. (may want to bring a blank sheet of paper and a functioning pen--the guy asked me to draw out diagrams)"
"Besides patient care, what other responsibilities should doctors assume?"
"What are your thoughts on the U.S. healthcare system?"
"Describe a situation where your integrity was challenged?"
"would you really consider coming here? (i attend an ivy league school)"
"What kind of medicine do you want to practice?"
"why do you want to be a doctor"
"Do you read a newspaper? What artistic talents do you have? "
"If you caught a student cheating, what would you do?"
"What academic obstacle have you overcome?"
"In your essay, you talk about compassionate medicine. What does it mean to be a compassionate physician? How will you go about doing this?"
"Your (undergraduate) school is very prestigous in medicine, why do you want to come to UIC?"
"Why medicine? The interviewers only had the AMCAS personal statement. They did not have the MCAT scores either. So 2 of the 3 interviewers had some follow up questions on my personal statement."
"Why did you go to your undergradute college?"
"How would your friends describe you?"
"Why doctor?"
"Why Do yo want to go to UIC"
"questions regarding my personal statement, which is all they had."
"how did your interest in birds come about? from personal statement."
"best and worse trait about you"
"where do you see yourself 10-15 years down the road?"
"Why medical school now? (I'm a nontraditional applicant)"
"why do you want to go into medicine"
"Problems in health care "
"Why should UIC pick you. "
"What is a problem in medicine that you see?"
"Why are you here, why do you want to be a doctor?"
"Do you support to War in IRAQ? (Pick Yes or no) "
"What made you want to become a physician?"
"Tell us a bit about yourself. Then various questions about attending boarding school and majoring in the humanities in college."
"Did you ever consider the field of informatics; it is a burgeoning field in medicine ( I have a background in computers)? "
"How do you plan to finance your medical education?"
"What do you do in your free time?"
"We don't expect you to offer solutions, but what are some current issues in health care that concern you?"
"how has my integrity been tested"
"Talk about a time where you thought you might not succeed, and how you dealt with that."
"Why UIC? What do you do for fun? How many books do you read a year? Would you treat an uninsured child in your clinic if you knew his family could not pay?"
"tell us about yourself"
"Why medicine and not social work or something similar?"
"Why do you want to be involved in the field of medicine?"
"With all the quality medical schools in Chicago, why would you choose UIC?"
"List 3 words that describe you and elaborate on one of them."
"Personal strengths and weaknesses?"
"Why do you want to be a doctor? Why UIC"
"Tell me about yourself."
"Tell me about your volunteer work."
"How will AIDS affect us and why should we do something about it?"
"Who or what have been the greatest influences on your decision to practice medicine?"
"What's your favorite movie?"
"Why medicine?"
"How do you handle stress?"
"What qualities make a good physician?"
"What personal characteristics might hinder your success as a physician"
"How do you de-stress?"
"Why did you choose your college? "
"Tell me about something not in your personal statement."
"Lots of Questions about my personal statement."
"Tell us about yourself."
"How do your relieve your stress?"
"Why do you want to be a doctor?"
"What qualities do you have that would make you a good doctor?"
"Where do you see yourself in 10 years?"
"Lots of questions about the personal statement"
"Why UIC?"
"Why UIC? (Be prepared for this one)"
"What are your hobbies?"
"what are your pet peeves?"
"Was your decision to pursue medicine a lightbulb moment?"
"Tell us about yourself? "
"Why do you want to come to this medical school (UIC)? "
"Getting a PhD requires a lot of time in the lab, do you think you can put in the time?"
"How do you relax?"
"What would you like me to know about you?"
"What got you into the field"
"What are some other goals you have in your life?"
"Why U of I"
"Tell me about yourself"
"Why UIC? Why Chicago?"
"why a doctor and not a nurse"
"Besides X and Y, do you have any more clinical experiences or shadowing experience?"
"Tell me about your research?"
"Obamacare stuff"
"Tell me about your research. What research interests do you have? Why the dual degree? What does translational research mean to you?"
"Interview 2: There has got to be more to you than what is here on your file (great first "question"). What skills did you learn from [insert clinical experience]? Most questions were very specific to my application."
"What do your parents do? Why UIC? What was your favorite class in undergrad?"
"Describe a time your integrity has been tested?"
"Keep an example of how you have demonstrated to be a highly dependable/responsible person."
"What skills can you bring to the university?"
"what makes you qualified to work in a multi-cultural environment?"
"If your best friend in medical school cheated on an exam, would you turn them in? And he asked tons of other ethics related questions."
"Define professionalism as it applies to the medical field."
"What are your plans for the future"
"In light of the recent health care legislation, what would you do as a doctor to improve the health of the 400-500 (as opposed to improving the health of millions) patients that you treat?"
"List two strengths and 2 weaknesses, and tell me how you are going to improve your weaknesses to be a better doctor."
"how would you reduce healthcare cost"
"Define Professionalism"
"Why do you want to attend UIC?"
"Have you given any thought to what type of medicine you want to go into?"
"Is healthcare a right or a privilege?"
"What led you to medicine? What kind of research did you do? If you didn't get into medical school, what would you do next year? "
"Interviewer 2 (M3) : Very chill. Why UIC. Why Medicine. Describe your journey. Than specifics about my response and my file. Also, what does it mean to be professional."
"Alum: 30 minutes of arguing and a few inappropriate questions/comments. What would you do if you don't get in this year? Do you agree with the public option? How would you fix the current healthcare problems? How many are uninsured and underinsured?"
"When did you know you wanted to become a doctor and why?"
"Why do you want to be a doctor? Do you have any questions for me?"
"What interests you academically outside of medicine?"
"How do you deal with stress? How do you do in a team? What are your study habits?"
"What is your favorite novel? What do you do to deal with stress?"
"Do you have any questions about the curriculum?"
"When have you felt like you actually helped somebody?"
"Do you have any questions about UIC?"
"What would you do if medical school doesn't work out?"
"How will you deal with the stresses of medical school? "
"Tell me about yourself. What are fears/excitement about coming to medical school?"
"Interviewer 2: Why do you want to be a doctor? Tell me about... from your personal statement. How did you deal with that stress? What are some of your hobbies? Tell me about your research. What specialty are you interested in? What makes a doctor a professional? Is there anything else you would like to tell me about yourself?"
"Interview 2: Why Medicine? Why UIC? What have you done to prepare you for a medical career? Our medical school class is big, how would you handle that?"
"What are your ideas on how to save American healthcare?"
"Where do you see yourself when you grow up? Tell me about playing guitar. Do you think that Quantum Mechanics and Biochemistry can be combined into a single study?(again, questions from my secondary)"
"why UIC? (i got drilled on this one) tell me about your research"
"What do you think about socialized medicine? What is the biggest problem in health care right now? How would you fix health care? Why UIC? How many uninsured people are there in the US? How many underinsured?"
"What will you do if you are not accepted this year?"
"MD, retired faculty: What is your MCAT and GPA. What will you do if you don't get in? (Followed by 10 minute explanation of how I should retake the MCAT [BOGUS]). What is the biggest problem in healthcare? How would you fix it?"
"What are you proudest of?"
"see above"
"What do you do to relieve stress? How will you deal with the stresses of medical school?"
"What are your strengths/weaknesses?"
"What are you looking for in a medical school?"
"Tell me about yourself. Based on the political candidates' campaigns, who do you think has the best health care plan and why? What makes doctors ''professionals'' versus a person that is really good at their job but not a ''professional''?"
"What are some area of health concern you can identify from your hometown?"
"When did you decide that you really wanted to go into medicine and why?"
"What have you learned from your activities in college?"
"Tell me about some medical innovations (come with at least 3-4). "
"Tell me about your school."
"Questions about the health care system and the uninsured population - would you treat uninsured patients?"
"''What do you do when you're stressed?''"
"How would you describe yourself? How would your friends describe you? "
"How would someone else describe you?"
"Describe recent advances in medicine"
"Oral contraceptive question."
"Tell me something about yourself I don't know"
"Tell us about playing rugby?"
"Were do you see the healthcare field going in 5 years and where do you want it to go?"
"Name three innovations in medicine."
"What is the biggest problem affecting healthcare"
"Extra-medical skill-sets."
"What do you do to manage stress?"
"Why medicine? Why now?"
"What would you do if you caught a classmate cheating?"
"what do you do to relax"
"Tell me about some of the jobs you worked during undergraduate."
"Why you did research before applying to med school?"
"Why low grades?"
"''If you saw a classmate of yours cheating on a medical school exam, what, if anything, would you do?''"
"You mentioned that you've encountered some strange things (drug addicts, suicidal teenagers) while spending time in the ER. Can you tell us a little about that?"
"What interests do you have outside of academics and studying?"
"Tell me about your hobbies."
"How do you deal with anxiety?"
"*a variety of questions regarding my extracurricular activities and what they meant to me*"
"How would you address a patient who refused care and turned toward traditional healing practices?"
"What recent movies have you seen? Any suggestions for my husband and I?"
"You have a patient who is a chronic smoker and refuses to quit. How do you address this?"
"If someone came in that was underfed and had diabetes, and was not able to afford proper nutrition or medication, what is your duty as a physician?"
"is our health care system broken? why? how fix?"
"Why Chicago?"
"How do you/ would you deal with stress and stressful situations?"
"What type of physician do you want your patients to think of you as?"
"What are yoou hobbies/like to do for fun or in spare time?"
"What was your research about"
"What do you like to do in your free time to relax and deal with stress?"
"Out of current medical advancements, what will make the most impact in few years down the road? (it was quite worded this way, something like this.)"
"Tell me about a few recent medical technological advancements you've heard about that the general public might be interested in knowing."
"What do you do in your free time? (Asked by 2 interviewers)"
"What makes you a strong candidate?"
"in 10 years what do you see yourself doing?"
"How do you handle stress?"
"What do you like to do for fun and to relieve stress?"
"Can you perform your job as a hemophiliac? Can you be counted on if you are injured?"
"What are your hobbies/what do you do in your free time?"
"What are your top three choices for medical school besides UIC?"
"What do you bring to medicine? to UIC? Also, both faculty interviewers asked me where else I have applied."
"Tell me about yourself."
"What is a current healthcare problem and how would u solve it? If you were interested in doing stem cell research (I said i was) what exactly would I do?"
"What is your first choice for medical school?"
"How would your friends describe you?"
"Why choose our school? "
"Describe a time when you took on a leadership or guidance-type role."
"What kind of doctor do you want to be? (this seemed intentionally open-ended...maybe to see if you'd interpret "kind" as a specialty or if you'd talk about being compassionate or whatever)"
"What would you do if a long-time smoker, age 65, came to you and refused to quit smoking? "
"why not pursue just phd?"
"Why be a doctor?"
"What have you been doing since you graduated (last year)?"
"If not a career in medicine, what other professions have you thought about pursuing? "
"What do you think of stem cell research?"
"If your best friend's 14-year old daughter comes into your office and asks for oral contraceptives, what would you do?"
"If a patient comes to you and has done something you disagree with (i.e. morally) how would you react to them?"
"What do you feel are qualities of a good ____ (former career)? You feel that these are qualities of a good physician (he was very presumptious)? [my reply... ABSOLUTELY]"
"You talk about going to a rural community, can you please elaborate on it? (I mentioned my experience with a rural community for a response to one of the questions on the application)"
"What do you do to relax?"
"you have always been surrounded by your family; if you are placed on a track where you have to spend your first year at Urbana, how will you deal?"
"As a physician, what steps could you personally take at a local/hospital level to make medical care less financially burdensome for uninsured patients/low income patients?"
"what considerations did you take into account when deciding on a career in medicine"
"Medicine is a long career...what are you going to do so you don't get burned-out?"
"What area in medicine are you interested in pursuing (if that is known now)?"
"what questions do you have for me? (i ask a question, he answers) okay, next question? (i had to ask at least 6-7 questions during one interview!)"
"Which campus do you like the most?"
"what do you dislike about a visit to a doctor's office"
"Why should we take you instead of all the other applicants? What do you have to contribute to UIC that is different from all the other applicants?"
"Explain or teach me how to do something that is unrelated to medicine."
"How do you deal with stress?"
"If you caught a student cheating, would you tell on them? (I said that I might not rat out the specific student, but would notify the professor that people are cheating and that the testing conditions should be changed)"
"What would you do after a tough day?"
"What do you do in your free time/ How do you relax/ What do you do for fun?"
"What are your pet peeves?"
"What is the biggest problem facing health care?"
"How would you balance school and Research"
"I want to be an OBGYN, so they asked me why I chose it and how I'd balance it with my family life."
"What are your thoughts on stem cell research?"
"why uic & chicago?"
"Tell me about *blah* experience from my essay"
"question about my research."
"When a patient leaves, what do u want them to remember about you or say about you as a doc to another person as a referrel."
"what are you doing to do with your degrees?"
"Would you be more inclined twoards being an academic clinician? (Based on my research experience)"
"what is the biggest healthcare issue facing us right now?"
"why do you want to work with children "
"What do you do for fun/to relax?"
"Questions about my personal statement. "
"Tell me about your research (I do research at a lab)."
"Why should we accept you?"
"How have your experiences in working in the health field influenced your goals and aspirations? "
"Give me financial incentives/reform to reduce the cost of malpractice insurance for Obstetrics "
"Why did you apply to UIC?"
"What do you do for fun?"
"What are some problems facing physicians today? This was followed up with what would you do to solve some of these problems?"
"What kind of music do you listen to?"
"Why do you want to become a doctor?"
"Are you considering doing research during medical school?"
"How do you plan to spend your last summer vacation before medical school?"
"why medicine"
"How do you feel about the direction Medicine is headed? (yeah, vague as to aspects of research or malpractice insurance or providing health care to everyone, etc)"
"How would you deal with a patient who is non-compliant with his medication?"
"Describe a time when you felt your morals were challenged."
"What clinical experiences have you had?"
"What kind of research were/are you doing?"
"if you could change one thing about yourself what would you change?"
"What are my concerns with the healthcare field?"
"What will you do to take away stress during medical school?"
"What would you do if a woman comes in and asks you to sign a form saying her condition is not pre-existing so she can get insurance coverage? (fraud)"
"Tell us about something you've done unrelated to medicine that has helped someone else."
"Personal statement questions."
"What are your hobbies?"
"Why UIC?"
"What other obstacles have you had in life?"
"What do you think about the current malpractice insurance problem?"
"What do you do in your spare time?"
"What's your favorite bar? (I go to U of I)"
"What non-medical/non-academic activities do you participate in?"
"Will you join any clubs/organizations while you are here?"
"The M3 student asked, "Why would I want you as a classmate?""
"Has your integrity ever been challenged?"
"Such long hours, grueling work, etc, etc. Why Medicine?"
"What do you like to do for fun?"
"Why medicine?"
"Where do you see yourself in 10 years?"
"Why did you attend 4 schools?"
"what is your weakness?"
"Have you read any good books recently?"
"Which of the campuses would you like to attend if given the chance? Why?"
"What is the biggest problem facing the medical field today?"
"What are some characteristics of a good physician?"
"Why do you want to be a doctor?"
"how do you destress?"
"What is your favorite movie?"
"What do you like to do for fun? Hobbies? "
"Who is your model and why?"
"Why do you want to come to UIC?"
"If you don't get in, what will you do instead?"
"What area of medicine do you think you'd like to go into?"
"Why do you like our school?"
"What sort of interests do you have?"
"Others were mostly personalized, they only had my essays though and no other info"
"What is your role in a group"
"At what point in your life did you decide to become a doctor?"
"what will be your greatest challenge"
"Tell us a little bit about yourself."
"what are your strengths and weaknesses (specifically a real weakness not a weakness construed as a strength)?"
"What books have you read lately?"
"What might I change about myself"
"Tell me about your research (MSTP)."
"Tell me about a time when someone questioned your integrity."
"Tell me about your research. Tell me about X paper, Y paper. Why Chicago/UIC? What are you looking for in our MSTP?"
"Interview 3: How would you apply what you learned from [insert clinical experience] to your practice as a physician? Do you know anything about the other campuses? Most questions were very specific to my application."
"How would you deal with a patient who could not speak english? How would you deal with a patient who could not afford their medications? How do you want your patients to describe you?"
"Tell me about your research?"
"What's one thing you would change about yourself?"
"Define professionalism."
"why are you interested in geriatrics? (wrote about this in my ps)"
"Why Chicago?"
"Tell me a little about yourself. Name three positive qualities about you. What qualities would make you a good physician?"
"What do you envision the hardest part of medical school for you will be?"
"What do you know about the health care debate"
"What is my level of cross-cultural understanding?"
"name a time when your integrity was challenged"
"What do you think of the new healthcare plan"
"Describe your working style."
"Describe an instance in which your integrity was questioned."
"Who is your role model? What would your friend say about you? What would you do if there were no need of doctors in the world? "
"Interviewer 3 (PhD): Also very relaxed. Why UIC. Specifics about my research experience (from my file). And, finally, what are some recent, major advancements in the science of medicine. Describe why they are important."
"Student: Tell me about yourself. Why UIC aside from it being in Chicago since there are many other schools here? What do you do in your free time? Tell me about your research activities. "
"What volunteering experience have you had?"
"How is your mother doing? (personal statement question) What is your favorite subject? Do you have any questions for me?"
"What qualities do you possess that will make you stand out as a physician? What is a positive or negative aspect to health care right now? What do you think other physicians or patients will say about you as a doctor?"
"Opinion on Obama's healthcare policies and comparing it with Japan (since I grew up there). "
"How would you define professionalism? Where do you see yourself in ten years?"
"What is my stance on our current healthcare system? What am I going to do to fix it?"
"Describe that state of US Healthcare? What is the number one problem of our health system? What would you do to fix it? What do your parents/siblings do?"
"Do you have any siblings?"
"How do you see yourself working in a group or a team? "
"Were you happy with the outcome of the election? What are your worries about medical school? "
"Interviewer 3: What made you want to go into medicine? Do you have any siblings? What careers do they have? How do your parents feel about your decision to become a doctor? Are there any doctors in your family? Where are your parents from? "
"Interview 3: What's wrong with healthcare? How would you fix healthcare? How many people are uninsured? Underinsured? Do you believe in universal healthcare/socialized medicine? Is healthcare a right or a privilege? "
"Outside of medicine, what are some of your interests? (They said this was to see how I would fit in at the school)"
"Tell me one of your weaknesses. Who are you favorite professors at your undergraduate school (this interviewer knew the whole chemistry faculty at my school, wow..) Why UIC? What questions do you have for me? "
"Why UIC? What makes it different from the other schools in Chicago?"
"what do you do to relieve stress? what do you do for fun? "
"What kind of medicine do you think you would like to pursue? What type of clinical exposure have you had? What are you doing in your year off? Is health care a right or a privilege?"
"What difficulties will you face when you are finished with residency and practicing as a clinician?"
"PhD, faculty: What do you think of the role of women in healthcare? What do you want me to know about yourself? When I go back to the admissions committee, what is the most important thing that they shoud know about you? Are you for or against universal health care and what are the pros and cons associated with it? Where do you see yourself in 2013? Why did you decide to take a year off? "
"What is your greatest weakness, both personally and on your application?"
"see above"
"Where do you see yourself in 10 years? What questions do you have for us?"
"How would you teach ethics? What would you do if you were at a hospital that had a policy of not distributing contraception at all? Why medicine? What would you do if you didn't get in this year?"
"Did you ever resent that your mother was in medical school when you were growing up and having parents on call quite a bit?"
"How would you fix the healthcare system in this country?"
"The Jehovah's Witness question and other questions related to cultural competency"
"Tell me about yourself, starting from the beginning. (que long answer)"
"What challenges do you anticipate in medical school?"
"''Is there any part of the medical curriculum with which you think you'll struggle?''"
"What activities/ hobbies do you enjoy? Do you think you will be able to continue these in medical school? "
"Describe a day in your life, 15 years from now."
"Name one innovation in science/medicine and its effect on medicine."
"Questions about personal statement"
"Give us your best and worst experience with a doctor and why."
"What obstacles do you think you'll face in medical school?"
"Questions about my personal statement."
"What motivated me to apply to school in general"
"What do you feel will be the most challenging aspect of medical school?"
"Insights into what it takes to be a good physician."
"What is the problem with our healthcare system?"
"What do you think about the fact that people cannot pay for life-saving treatments?"
"Will you go here if you get in?"
"why do you want to be a doctor why UIC"
"What led you to become intersted in medicine?"
"The universal healthcare!"
"How can you compete in the law curriculum with an undergrad background in engineering? "
"''Why do you think that there aren't many black male physicians and how does it make you feel?''"
"Can you tell me about a time in your life when you failed at something (or at least FELT that you had)? What happened and how did you handle it?"
"What are qualities that you think a physician should possess?"
"Why UIC?"
"What do you do to relax when you are stressed out? What would you in medical school when you feel like you can't handle the stress?"
"If you have two medications to treat the same health condition, how would you choose which one to prescribe?"
"What is the problem with our health care system? What needs to be done?"
"How do you want your patients to see you?"
"Tell me about your hobbies and interests."
"Tell me about your research."
"where will you be in ten years?"
"A question about my undergraduate institution."
"What are your concerns/worries as you enter medical school?"
"How will you handle your stress while in medical school?"
"What do you think are some major ethical problems facing medicine right now? "
"What is a problem in the healthcare system? How would you change it?"
"Why did I decide on my major in undergrad?"
"What would you do to help the uninsured? do you think we should go to socialized medicine? what are problems with each kind?"
"Tell me about your experience abroad and the diversity you encountered?"
"What will you do to improve the US healthcare system?"
"Why do you want to go to UIC? Why, straight up, do you want to be a doctor? (med student asked latter, can you tell)"
"What specialty do you think you want to practice?(Asked by all 3 interviewers)"
"Why do you think UIC might be a good fit for you?"
"Why do you want to be a doctor?"
"Why do you want to become a doctor now?Why the switch? (I am an engineer.)"
"What are your plans if you do not get into med school this year?"
"It takes compassion and empathy to be a physician. Can you give me examples of when you have demonstrated these characteristics?"
"Questions about what life was like growing up in rural community."
"Describe one event in your life that was like a turning point showing you that medicine is the profession you want to be in."
"If you had to choose a medical field to follow today, what would you choose?"
"What is a medical advancement in the last 10 years that will have a significant impact on your career as a physician?"
"Talk about my background and things I learned while travelling"
"Problems in medicine?"
"What do you think is the main problem in healthcare today?"
"Tell me more about your traveling, research, and publishing."
"If you do not get into medical school this year, what will you do? (Say that you will be back next year with a stronger resume)"
"What's a good book you've read recently and a good movie you've seen recently?"
"There were questions basically pertaining to my application."
"why did you have to take physics 2 for engineers three separate times? (oops!)"
"When you're working in a group, what kind of worker are you?"
"What is a personality characteristic of yours that is negative?"
"What do you think will be your biggest obstacle getting adjusted to medical school? How do you think your husband will react to the lack of time you will have with him when you go to medical school? "
"What is be biggest problem with healthcare today?"
"Have you ever considered studying anything other than medicine? When and why?"
"Tell me about your role with ____ (organization)? All of the interview questions came directly from my ps and supplemental questions... make sure you know YOUR words inside out and that you are able to convey them in an interesting yet concise manner (remember you only have about 25 minutes!)."
"Asked me about why I picked the university I attended for undergraduate studies, and also wanted me to elaborate on the physicians I have shadowed."
"Name one thing you wish you could change about yourself."
"What are your hobbies? "
"How do you think you will handle the stress of medical school based on your prior experiences with stressful situations?"
"LOTS of questions about hobbies (prepare to answer question after question about your hobby--at least have 1 good thing to say about a hobby)"
"Medicine is time consuming...how are you going to handle your personal life (spouse, children) and professional life?"
"Tell me what you do in your spare time."
"How did you deal with your mother's illness?"
"how many uninsured are in this country?"
"Why medicine?...nothing unusual. but i did hear that a few kids got the "what would you do if you saw a student cheating" question."
"isn't math an abstract entity and science concrete? why on earth would you like math AND science if they're two different things? (he wouldn't let me answer)"
"A bunch of stuff specific to my application (study abroad, previous career, research)"
"What do you think are the most important issues facing medicine today?"
"How would your friends describe you?"
"Describe your research experience."
"What are some negative aspects to being a physician?"
"Why medicine? "
"Most questions were based on my personal statement. What was interesting was that second interviewer asked me only one question. Rest of the time he was answering my questions. I felt bad about it in the end because it was like me asking him questions rather than him asking me questions."
"Tell me about your research"
"What are your thoughts on universal health care?"
"Where do you see yourself in 10 years?"
"Hobbies?"
"What are current issues in Health care and how would you deal with them"
"Are you familiar with a consortium to address the problem of the uninsured? (directed question due to my background)"
"describe difficult leadership experience."
"Why medicine."
"what speciality would you like to pursue."
"What do you do in your spare time/ or to relax/relieve stress."
"why should we pick you?"
"How was your experience in Mexico? (Again, based on my personal statement)"
"what do you do in your free time"
"Where/what do you invision yourself practicing?"
"What do you perceive will be the most difficult thing for you during you first year of medical school. "
"What speacialty have you considered? Why? Have there been any role-models in this specialty that influenced you?"
"Tell us about your family."
""I dont care about health policy/research or whatever people do on the Hill, I am a real doc on the front lines practicing on people" (Well it was not really a question as you can see)."
"Describe yourself in three words."
"What was the last good book you read?"
"How do you plan to balance your family life and work/education in the future."
"How do your parents feel about your decision to become a physician?"
"What qualities do you see in yourself that would make you a good physician?"
"Give an example of a time you felt you truly impacted someone's life."
"Describe one strength and one weakness in your personality. Tell us more about your clinical experience."
"how being a nontraditional applicant will create challenges in med school"
"What qualities do you think a physician should have?"
"If you could eat dinner with any 3 people, dead or alive, who would your choose and why?"
"What are your pet peeves?"
"What do you like to do for fun?"
"Tell me a time when you significantly impacted someone else's life. "
"where do you see yourself as a doctor in 10 years, what would you do if you didn't get in this year?"
"What books have I read recently?"
"What are some aspects of a good physician?"
"Which newspaper do you read regularly?"
"What do you see as a major problem in the field of medicine?"
"What do you want us to relay to the admissions committee about you?"
"What undergraduate class do you think will help you most in med school?"
"What do you do in your spare time?"
"Are you involved in any more extra-curricular activities?"
"Why do you want to quit your career as a software developer to be a doctor?"
"What extracurricular activity is the most significant which you've done."
"You mention problems in health care and ethical dilemmas in your AMCAS, can you elaborate on some of those?"
"What is the biggest problem in the medical field today and how would you solve it?"
"Who did I consider to be my hero?"
"Why are you here today?"
"What was your hardest and favorite college courses?"
"I didn't get these questions but others did: "If money didn't matter, what school would you go to?" "Why do you want to go to UIC?""
"Would you be ok with the weather in Chicago? "
"Be ready for a panel interview if you are going to rockford to interview. "
"Tell us about your experience in Bolivia."
"why uic"
"Where do you see yourself in 10-15 years?"
"what do you do for fun?"
"If you could not be a doctor, or anything in the sciences, what field would you pursue?"
"Name a time when your integrity was challenged."
"Name 3 qualities that you feel you possess that are necessary for a good doctor. "
"What kind of specialty do you want to go into?"
"Do you think you want to specialize? If so, what do you want to specialize in?"
"where do you see yourself as a doctor in 10 years?"
"What makes you angry?"
"Do you prefer a career in research or would you rather be more of a practitioner? "
"Why do you want to come to UIC?"
"Specific questions pertaining to my resarch"
"How did you like your undergrad experience? Why did you choose that school?"
"An ethical scenario about how to respond to a physician being upset with you."
"What question do you want to be asked?"
"How have you dealt with a stressful situation"
"A lot of a physician's life has to do with mentorship. Teach me how to do something."
"A lot of ethical questions, but they chose from a list"
"What is your favorite fairy tale? And why?"
"what will you do if you get into medical school and you find yourself failing the first year"
"nothing really"
"What about the money?"
"Just regular questions. Nothing was really special"
"What do you like about Chicago/what have you seen in the city (b/c I had visited previously)?"
"If you knew a colleague was abusing drugs, what would you do?"
"What does translational research mean to you?"
"If you were a kitchen appliance, what would you be and why?"
"What kind of car do you drive? Did you buy it? Was it new or used when you bought it? How does it drive/ How do you drive on the highway?"
"If medications A and B were available, with A being the most effective and expensive, what would you do if your patient couldnt afford medication A?"
"What is one of your weaknesses?"
"do you want to go into medicine because of your parents? (parents are docs)"
"If a person wanted a physician of a specific gender that was not available in that field at the time, what would you do?"
"What qualities do you want your patients to see in you as a physician?"
"(I'm a double major) How do you feel your academic pursuits outside of science will help you academically in the future?"
"How would you deal with a difficult roomate"
"Do you think healthcare bill would be a success? (Note: My interview was just one day after health care bill was passed)"
"In light of the recent health care legislation, what would you do as a doctor to improve the health of the 400-500 (as opposed to improving the health of millions) patients that you treat?"
"What is your emotional intelligence? (do you have realistic expectations for yourself and others?)"
"What would you do if you saw a classmate make a nonessential mistake"
"So why is HIV such a problem in Africa? (This was asked since we were talking about my NGO work in East Africa.) What do you think about healthcare? (About which he meant: healthcare reform.)"
"What would you do if there were no need of doctors in the world? "
"Interviewer 3 : Recent Advancements in medicine."
"Ethical question about uninsured paient"
"How will you pay for medical school?"
"What is your favorite subject?"
"Nothing really unexpected/interesting..."
"If your best friend was here and you were not, what will he or she say about you?"
"Tell me about your best friend. "
"A lot of questions about my activities, hobbies and life experiences. Everything was conversational and relaxed."
"Would you attend a different campus? (UIC has multiple campuses for 2-4 yrs)"
"When have you felt like you actually helped somebody?"
"What does professionalism mean?"
"What is the most difficult problem you ever had to solve in school? Note: I am an engineering major, so this question is specific to one of my secondary responses. "
"If a patient was going to die in two months no matter the treatment given what would you do?"
"As a doctor how would you help the uninsured population, singlehandedly?"
"Our medical school class is big, how would you handle that?"
"Tell us about yourself (they said I could say whatever I wanted, so I started with where and how I grew up and ended with hobbies and my college experience)"
"Do you think that Quantum Mechanics and Biochemistry can be combined into a single study?"
"If you were queen of the country and you could do anything you want, how would you improve the health care system without raising taxes?"
"where do you see yourself in 15 years ? give hour by hour details. "
"Nothing. I felt like everything was pretty standard."
"How would you like your patient's to describe you?"
"Tell me about a time when your integrity was challenged."
"Why do you like solving problems?"
"why are there still disparities in healthcare and what can be done to solve them?"
"How would a friend describe you?"
"How would you describe professionalism?"
"What are three recent break-throughs in medicine?"
"How do you teach ethics? (not me personally, just in general)"
"Did you having cancer and your father having cancer pique your interest in medicine?"
"I didn't really get any interesting questions; they were mostly the standard ''why medicine'' type questions."
"If you were a doctor and the 16 year old daughter of your family friend asked you for birth control pills, would you prescribe them to her?"
"If you had a patient who was a Jehovah's Witness and the patriarch of the family told you (the physician) that he did not want his wife (the patient) to know that she was going to die if she didn't receive the treatment that their religion would not allow, what would you do?"
"Have you ever had at time where your integrity was questioned and how did you respond? "
"If you could meet any historical figure, which one would it be?"
"Do you watch any medical TV shows? Which ones?"
"What do you think is the biggest problem in healthcare right now?"
"How would you fix our health system?"
"Tell me something about you that I don't know."
"As an uninsured individual going into medicine how has that affected your impression of the US healthcare system?"
"Tell me a story about where you work."
"It layman's terms tell me three major innovations in medicine. "
"What is your favorite cocktail drink?"
"How would your best friends describe you?"
"What do you see in the future for medicine?"
"What do you see is the biggest problem affecting health care?"
"What are three recent important advances in medicine?"
"Where do you think the future of medicine is going?"
"How many bottles of shampoo are consumed in US hotels every year? (thought process...not a number)"
"Nothing special... Pretty standard questions"
"what do you think the greatest scientific technology out there right now?"
"What would you do if you encountered a poor lecturer?"
"What type of books do you like to read?"
"Why did you apply late? What if you don't get in this year?"
"why an MD/JD?"
"1. ''What do you know about HMO's and PPO's.'' 2. ''As a doctor who is a Christian, how would you face a situation that challenged your values or beliefs, such as working in an abortion clinic.'' 3. ''How would you deal with a poverty-stricken patient who needed a critical lab test but didn't have insurance or the funds to do so?''"
"How important do you think a school/the institution is in determining the ultimate success of its students?"
"Who is your role model?"
"Can you say something for me in Spanish? (I'm a Spanish major)"
"What would you do if a woman who had no insurance and an adenoma came to you?"
"If i took a course in English before I moved here from India"
"What made you change your mind and pursue medicine? (from teaching)"
"If you didn't get that result in your research, how would you continue."
"How do you think a doctor can play a role in health education?"
"Can you show me right now how to take blood pressure? ( I'm a medical assistant)"
"A patient comes in asking for a prescription for a relative without insurance. What do you/how do you handle the situation?"
"What is the most significant technological advancement from the past decade?"
"What would you specifically do to change health care?"
"Why medicine? What you do if you are not accepted? Tell me about a leadership experience. What kind of qualities should a pt. be looking for? What is a book you read recently? Why is communication really important in medicine? What would you like to specialize in? "
"what my criticisms of the medical field are"
"A question about my current research."
"Will you come here? What can I say to convince you to come here? Who are we competing with? "
"Did someone tell you to take your MCAT again (I had a low score the first time!)?"
"What do you think America should do about our healthcare system. "
"What in the past decade has changed the face of medicine? (besides a technological development)"
"A specific question pertaining to my personal statement."
"none"
"Why am I interested in life-long learning (came up out of general conversation with an interviewer)"
"A few well-prepared questions about my PS."
"What will you do to improve today's healthcare system?"
"Straight up, no emotional bs that you'd put on an application, why do you want to be a doctor?"
"[All of my questions listed are paraphrased] What do you think you ultimately want from a medical school? (Asked by the physician interviewer) And a personal one from the admissions counselor was the most poignant/emotional"
"I moved to U.S when i was in H.S., so one of the questions i was asked was: How did you blend in with the crazy American H.S. kids? "
"What do you think of the possibility of disease eradication via genetic manipulation?"
"what type of health-care systems are found in the western world?"
"i was not asked any questions i hadn't heard before, it was routine"
"How would you tell someone who was just diagnosed with a disability, could you identify?"
"Do you plan to instill your ethical standards in your son, and how? (I have a four-month-old.)"
"What do you like to do for fun and how are you going to incorporate this in your life as a doctor"
"What are the advantages and disadvantages of starting medical school at this time in your life?"
"As a physician to a pregnant couple, would you or wouldn't you tell them that their unborn child has a developmental problem? If you would tell them, how would you break the news?"
"How would you fix healthcare?"
"How much was entering medical school my idea? What are my real motivations for becoming a physician?"
"What are you most concerned about in starting medical school? (The M2 asked me this and when I told him, he reassured me that I need not worry about it.)"
"If a good friend asked if she could cheat off of you on an exam, what would you tell her? How would you deal with the situation?"
"How would you handle the difficulties of US's privitized health insurance in general, and underinsurance in particular."
"Tell me about a time when your integrity was challenged and what you did about it."
"What would you do if a long-time smoker, age 65, came to you and refused to quit smoking? "
""Describe a situation when you were unsuccessful as a leader.""
"Do you ever see yourself working with health policy in the government?"
"Who is your favorite author/what do you read?"
"Do you feel that you know 100% what is the life of a physician like?"
"What are you going to do about the 45 million?"
"What is one strength that you feel you possess that will make you a better doctor?"
"What is the most influential book you've ever read? What is the most recent book you've read?"
"Who is the one person who has motivated you the most?"
"Describe your involvement in Amensty International"
"How would you feel if the health care system was changed to something similiar to Canada vs. ours now?"
"If you don't get into medical school, what would you do?"
"How did growing up on a farm shape your outlook on life and contribute to your interest in medicine?"
"what does a school's attitudes on diversity reflect on its character?"
"How are you going to deal with the emotional toll of dealing with sick patients?"
"How did you decide between allopathic and osteopathic schools (a question specific to my personal statement)?"
"Describe a situation where your integrity was challenged?"
"medical student interview was all ethics questions, so be prepared for those, like: if you're are physician and your friend's niece comes to you for birth control, what do you do? "
"what do you think is the meaning of life?"
"Do you think healthcare is a right or a priveledge? I say right, interviewer says, "So you think we should amend the constitution to say that all Americans have the right to all healthcare? "
"Can you think of a situation in which you felt you truly helped somebody?"
"What's your pet peeve?"
"Name one word that describes yourself."
"Do you think you will be satsified with the size of the indian community here? ( I interviewed at rockford and am of Indian descent). "
"None really"
"How would you manage time for volunteering if you want to do serious research?"
"What would you change about healthcare (everything was quite standard."
"If you had a friend who had a fourteen year old daughter and she came to you for birth control, what would you do?"
"What do you think about stem cell research?"
"No interesting questions."
"Did you have any role models that you have used to pattern yourself after? (based on my desire to do research)"
"What are my feelings about the current health practices in the US. (they weren't looking for a solution, just what i thought)"
"How would you change the healthcare system to address the needs of the uninsured?"
"As far as the questions were concerned, nothing was that difficult. I honestly do not remember them, but if you look at other postings you will get a rough idea. "
"typical med school questions were asked, nothing out of the ordinary"
"How will you balance your personal and professional lives as a physician? Do you think this will be a problem for you?"
"well, they didn't read much of my essays... looking for some who interviews the afternoon of March 23... trying to find out the name of the panel interviewers........ HELP"
"If the teen daughter of your friend came to you asking for stuff on sex, what would you do"
"Do you know what cretinism is?"
"How was your experience in Mexico? (This was based on a very early activity that I wrote about in my personal statement); it was surprising because I had also mentioned many others things following that, which were more recent."
"Tell us about yourself?"
"What draws you to Chicago for medical school?"
"All questions were repeats of what I had seen on this site. Every single one!"
"How do you think the trend towards legislating morality affects the practice of medicine? (long question, this is a paraphrase) "
"Are you familiar with the theory of Evolution? If so, have you ever thought about what medicine is doing to the theory."
"What do you think about the "economic incentives" of going into medicine? (This was taken from my personal statement)"
"Do you think medicine is a right or a priviledge?"
"Tell us about your family."
"Why I think people choose certain specialties (radiology vs. derm vs. ER etc)"
"Use three words to describe yourself."
"Do you see yourself more on the cognitive side of medicine or the procedural side?"
"Did you ever consider the field of informatics; it is a burgeoning field in medicine?"
"Where do you see yourself in 10 years?"
"Considering the growing obesity problem in the U.S., what kind of programs would you implement to address this problem and why?"
"why medicine"
"What would you do if a patient's insurance did not cover a test you wanted to run?"
"If you could eat dinner with any 3 people, dead or alive, who would your choose and why?"
"Describe the ideal day."
"If you were working in the ER and had a patient that kept talking to you about their problems/venting for an excessive amount of time, how would you handle it?"
"One of the doctors was French/Canadian so he asked me some questions in French which I thought was pretty cool. (since he read that I spoke french)"
"What's the biggest problem you see with adolescents? (not necessarily just a health related problem)"
"If there was a patient that needed a CAT scan but their insurance company wouldn't pay for it, what would you do?"
"How I would apply the philosophy of the book I was reading to medical school - have had a number of interviews and haven't had anything similar asked."
"They were all pretty straight forward questions. Perhaps the most interesting question was what the last book I read was."
"Imagine you are the President of the U.S.; how do you plan to pay for nationalized healthcare?"
"Tell us about something you've done unrelated to medicine that has helped someone else."
"What undergraduate class do you think will help you most in med school?"
"Tell me about an instance when you impacted someone other than a family member."
"What would someone who doesn't like you say about you?"
"How will AIDS affect us (US & world wide) and what should we do about it?"
"None really, pretty basic stuff"
"What would be the most difficult thing about being a doctor?"
"Where do you see yourself in 10 years? What will be your biggest challenge in med school and how will you face it?"
"With limited resources, how should we go about rationing healthcare?"
"How many languages do you speak?"
"How would I approach an overachieving med student who was abnoxious and hard to get along with?"
"What personal characteristics might hinder your success as a physician"
"How would you encourage medical students to practice in underserved areas in the future?"
"What makes you mad?"
"Nothing interesting at all really, just standard questions."
"What types of things do you think you will be able to offer the medical community besides excellent patient care?"
"What was a situation in which your integrity was challenged?"
"Describe yourself?"
"how do you motivate yourself"
"What are some problems with the public health system today? How can they be solved?"
"what do you do for fun?"
"Have you ever had a negative experience with one of your physicians, and how did that affect your decision to go into medicine?"
"You've mentioned your pets, can you tell us about them?"
"How would you solve the problem of medically underserved geographic locations? (The Rural Medicine program at Rockford is particularly prominent)"
"None."
"Do you think we should pay for organ donations?"
"you said you see yourself with a family in 10 years... how do you plan to deal with the stresses of a family and being a doctor."
"Describe your typical afternoon."
"A survey was conducted among current Physicians. What factor do you think contributed the most to their happiness with their careers?"
"Tell me three characteristics of a good doctor."
"what would you improve about yourself to become a better physician?"
"How would your friends describe you? (I said outgoing) Why would they describe you as outgoing?"
"How would you solve the problem of uninsured people?"
"None. All were pretty basic questions."
"What do you plan to do with an MD/PhD?"
"What do you think about the situation in Afghanistan, specifically that the US is dropping bombs while giving aid."
"During an MMI, the interviewer asked me if I was privileged. He then asked me if I was willing to give up my spot to someone less privileged than me."
"None, it was straightforward"
"Nothing"
"How would you be an advocate for a patient?"
"What does professionalism mean to you? ( I expected the question from past responses, but still stumbled a little)"
"many ethical questions"
"Why do you want to do research in medical school? Then he proceeded to lecture me about why I shouldn't do research and how i shouldn't do anything but focus on my classes...very weird antagonizing guy"
"Who are you?"
"What might I change about myself"
"Specific questions about my research, how it is related to human health (MSTP)."
"A friend's daughter comes to you asking for a prescription for birth control. What would you do? (after I answered, the interviewer then asked follow-up questions based on my answer)"
"How would you apply what you learned from [insert clinical experience] to your practice as a physician?"
"Pick a disease that you could live with for one week (an incurable/chronic one; not flu or colds) and why? wHAT MADE YOU PICK THAT DISEASE? What are the symptoms? What are the drugs used for that disease? mechanism of action? How could I tell you had that disease (from looking at you)"
"Describe a time your integrity has been tested?"
"" What is one way to lower the costs of healthcare? "- I was a bit confused as to whether she meant for patients or for the government as a whole..."
"If you work for a hospital/practice that only allows 15 mins for office visits and you have a patient that requires additional time (~15 more mins), would you void the hospital's/practice's policy to address that person's needs or would you treat the illness as best you could and tell them to come back?"
"what makes you qualified to work in a multi-cultural environment?"
"All the ethical questions."
"When was there a time your integrity was challenged? What are three things someone who doesn't like you would say about you?"
"Name a time when your integrity was challenged."
"How would you avoid litigation"
"How will healthcare bill effect the current practice of many physicians?"
"What does professionalism mean to you?"
"healthcare questions-reducing cost, physcian's salary"
"Define Professionalism"
"Discuss a time when you were faced with an ethical dilemma."
"Tell me about yourself- start anywhere and end anywhere."
"What would you do if a female patient only wanted a female physician, but you were an administrator at a clinic with no clinical privileges & the clinic was full of all male physicians? "
"Interviewer 1: What I think of the public option. A word of advice, don't flip-flop. If you pick a side stick with it. I think the best option is to understand both sides and discuss the pros/cons of each."
"How would you fix the current healthcare option? (surprisingly agreed with the interviewer despite the rough beginning I guess at least it ended on a good note)"
"What do you think about Obama's health care plan? Spent 15 minutes disagreeing with my interviewer about it. Just hold your ground and make intelligent arguments and that's all they want!"
"Opinion on Obama's healthcare policies and comparing it with Japan (since I grew up there). "
"What would your worst enemy say about you? (This question threw me off a bit but I ended up laughing with my interviewer.)"
"na"
"Hypothetical situation about abortion/parental notification."
"How many people in the US are under-insured?"
"In your opinion, what are three essential qualities of a physician?"
"If a patient was going to die in two months no matter the treatment given what would you do?"
"What makes a doctor a professional? What are some recent medical innovations?"
"Nothing too tricky"
"Do you think that Quantum Mechanics and Biochemistry can be combined into a single study?"
"I was given a scenario of two men who needed a liver. One was a heavy drinker and the other an upstanding citizen. The heavy drinker was at the top of the transplant list. I was asked who should get the liver."
"compare the two political candidates. (this was not a hard question but the interviewer accused me of liking obama more and proceeded to tell me why mccain was better and how the electoral system wont count his vote because Illonois is a Democratic state.) How would you give everyone universal coverage without raising taxes? "
"Nothing really. The more aggressive interviewer caught me off guard right at the start, but I managed to comeback and defend my views, I think."
"What is your biggest strength and weakness?"
"What do you think of the role of women in healthcare?"
"What was the hardest decision you have ever made? What are some current issues in medical ethics? "
"How would you describe professionalism?"
"Three questions asking in the following order: Why UIC? Why UIC if you got into another Chicago-area school? Why UIC if you got into Northwestern? "
"What is the difference between being a ''professional'' in the ''profession'' of medicine versus just a regular job that you are good at?"
"What are some of the frustrations your mother experiences in her practice? (my mother is a rural FP)"
"Do you believe there is a problem with the healthcare system in this country and, if so, how would you fix it?"
"What do you think is the best way to solve the healthcare issue?"
"What responsibility to doctors have to be culturally competent in their encounters with people outside of the hospital setting?"
"What would you do to change the state of malpractice insurance in the state of Illinois? (wtf?)"
"Name three recent advancements in medicine."
"''What else do you need to tell me to make this happen for you?''"
"What do you think a trait of bad doctors?"
"If you were queen of the country, how would you fix the lack of insurance problem without raising taxes?"
"How would you solve the problem of the millions of uninsured in this country?"
"What do you think of pharmacists that refuse to refill oral contraceptive Rxs?"
"A 14 year old girl has diabetes (and a bunch of other medical issues) How would you solve that kind of problem? (She was looking for a big picture answer, I thought she was talking about the specific situation)"
"none really...although on the first question of ''how did you arrive at this point'' (ie, of deciding medicine)...i was very nervous...so i paused for 2-3 seconds before answering, hope they dont hold it against me. everything else was fine though"
"Nothing was too difficult."
"A patient comes in who cant afford treatment or prescriptions, what do you do. They dont qualify for medicare/it doesnt cover enough ( I thought I was prepared for this question but interviewer kept prodding me by making the situation increasingly difficult.)"
"How would you solve the controversy associated with the HPV vaccination"
"What qualities do you feel make a good physician?"
"as a doctor, how would you deal with those aspects of a practice that require knowledge outside of medical knowledge."
"None."
"What are three recent important advances in medicine?"
"Are you prepared to deal with death and dying?"
"Nothing out of the ordinary. "
"i guess see above, since we went into a lot of detail on the 3 answers i provided."
"ethical questions about the what you notice the attending do"
"What are three things your friends would say about you?"
"N/A"
"Do you know social medicine?"
"why did you have such low grades?"
"There weren't any difficult or crazy questions, but rather questions that just surprised me and I hadn't thought of before, such as, ''What are some of your pet peeves?'' Since this was my very first interview, I was still jittery."
"Comment on proffessionalism and what it how professionalism in medicine is different than in other careers?"
"Basic stuff."
"Suppose your best friend's 14-year old daughter comes to you asking for contraceptives. How do you handle it? Do you tell your friend? (NOTE: one thing I didn't know was that the hypocratic oath doesn't apply to minors! keep that in mind if they hit you with this one)"
"Same as the most interesting."
"What about UIC interests you?"
"If you have unlimited resources, where would you start to address the problems with research funding and health care."
"How do you motivate a patient to make changes?"
"Name a specific time where you let someone down and another time when someone let you down. It can't be a family member for either cases. How did you go about it?"
"Nothing too bad - most of the questions were either get to know you style, based on my application, or hypothetical."
"Explain stem cells to me. Where else can you find stem cells other than the blastula?"
"What does an MD/PhD have that a straight MD or PhD doesn't?"
"What would your best friend say s/he likes least about you?"
"re: medicare spending on life-saving treatments for elder with other terminal illness and dimentia...very interesting question, but suprised me. "
"Inappropriate questions about my GPA, MCAT, other things, etc after we were told this was a closed-file interview where the school was trying to get to know us based on essays only. "
"What is the most beautiful sounding instrument?"
"What would you do if you had a child patient with parents that are Jehovah's Witnesses and the child needed a blood transfusion? (They wanted me to know the legalities of this...) "
"How is a doctor a professional?"
"What did your parents do for a living? Because neither of my parents worked. When I told the interviewer that he gave me a funny look."
"How many people are uninsured?"
"Tell about a time when your integrity was questioned/challenged?"
"Describe how you can contribute to this school?"
"Tell me about the different types of healthcare system in the western world."
"Discuss the three major healthcare systems that exist in the world (looking for US, Britain, and Canada)."
"What do you consider your greatest strength and your greatest weakness? (Asked by the student interviewer)"
"Apart from common yet essential qualities such as being compassionate, knowledgeable etc., what other intrinsic qualities do you think builds a strong physician? Do you possess any of those qualities? "
"explain to us why you switched majors from History to microbiology."
"how would you combat the healthcare problems facing the US?"
"=o"
"See most interesting"
"None -- they were really quite benign!"
"How would you go about improving the US Health System?"
"General questions about universal healthcare vs. socialized medicine"
"What are two novel scientific discoveries that would be interest to the general public?"
"Why do you want to go to U of I"
"Why this school, no matter what I said, they were very critical. I guess I can't BS that well. Will take a crash study."
"Talk about what I noticed from travelling in (country where my parents are from) over 4 years ago....what is the government like, who is the leader...etc"
"What are some problems with medicine today? (After I talked about two, anything else?)"
"What do you think is the source of the problem that 45 million people in the U.S. are currently uninsured?"
"see most interesting Q"
"If you were made king of the U.S., with all the power of the president and Congress, how would you fix the problem of 45 million people uninsured .... without raising taxes?"
"What would you do if you did not get accepted to any medical school (i.e. what else would you consider as a career path...simply saying apply again next year was not sufficient)"
"What to do with the 45 million uninsured? "
""How would your university be different if you had never attended it?""
"Name a situation when you were in a group and things didn't work out as you planned and how did you handle it."
"What direction do you see the medical field headed- (using government,medicare,medicaid, health insurance topics)?- I forget how it was worded, but it was somewhat complicated."
"If your 14-year-old niece comes to you (assuming you are an OB/GYN or Pediatrician) and tells you that she needs oral contraceptives, how would you handle that situation? Would you tell her parents that she came to see you?"
"What can you do, personally, to help the uninsured?"
"If your best friend's 14-year old daughter comes into your office and asks for oral contraceptives, what would you do?"
"What do you do when a class gets boring? They really drilled me on this question. I guess it's a question I set myself up for when I said in my personal statement that "I jokingly tell people I want to be a doctor because I never want to get bored with my career" but seriously, can't these people take a joke?"
"There were no really "difficult" questions. Do you see yourself in more of a clinical or acamdemic research setting and why? "
"How do you think you would set up a rural practice and what would be important factors in your decision?"
"None really"
"it got as tough as the question above."
"As a physician, what steps could you personally take at a local/hospital level to make medical care less financially burdensome for uninsured patients/low income patients?"
"How would you handle a manic patient who refused every form of treatment prescribed under your care? (asking about the approach you would take)"
"nothing i couldn't answer"
"Describe a situation that questioned your integrity."
"Nothing too difficult...very friendly, conversational interview."
"how many uninsured are in this country today? it wasn't that hard, but i couldn't remember the figure.. i said around 40 million, my interviewer said it was 45 million so i was basically right."
"What would you do if a woman came in with a breast lump that needed immediate surgery, but her new insurance wouldn't cover the surgery because she claimed to have no pre-existing conditions. She asks you to sign a paper which states that this wasn't a pre-existing condition (even though it obviously had to have been) so that she can get coverage and have insurance cover the life saving surgery. What do you do?"
"What do you think should be done to provide health care to the 45 million people that are presently uninsured?"
"How will being a Hindu influence your practice as a physician?"
"Where do you see healthcare in 5-10 years? (It was difficult because it was so vague that I basically just sputtered off a bunch of healthcare issues)"
"None really. They just wanted to know me more."
"What other schools did you apply? (I didn't really want to say, but I did)"
"The name of my biochemistry professor? (I couldn't remeber)"
"No difficult questions."
"What was the most challenging experience you have had up to this point. I wasn't asked this question but I heard that they asked the following: Would you turn in a fellow student that you saw cheating in a test? Hint: The answer is "yes". I may seem like your being a tattle-tail but you have to keep in mind that it is a "ethics" question. IE its testing your ability to make hard but ethical question. The basis for turning in a cheater would be that this person is obtaining their degree under false pretences and my be a hazard/danger to patients in the future (as they may not know the relevant material)"
"What would I do if i saw a student cheating on a test. (I was just honest which if they were looking for the 'school' answer....they didn't get it."
"One of the interviewers asked me whether or not I was familiar with the development of a consortium of top industry performers to deal with the problems of the uninsured. The question really wasn't difficult, I was just unfamiliar with the subject. Although my background is in Health Policy and Management I am not familiar with the consortium."
"tell me about a stressful leadership experience"
"What have been your best and worst experiences with medicine? (I listed a couple but it did not seem to satisfy the interviewers and they kept on pushing for more and more personal family information.)"
"what would you do if you were told that medical school would Never be an option for you."
"none really all were the one that the other student mentioned"
"If the teen daughter of your friend came to you asking for stuff on sex, what would you do"
"what can you do about our present healthcare sitution?"
"Why would you not go into academic medicine? (Based on a discussion that we were having)."
"Tell us about a time you helped someone? Tell us about a time you helped someone and it negatively impacted them?"
"have you ever thought about how medicine relates to the darwinian concept of evolution."
"If there were not politicians, how would health care change?"
"Tell me about yourself. (Seriously, I dont like open ended questions.)"
"How do you deal with a stubburn patient who just won't take their meds?"
"Why do you think there are many people in the US who do not seek medical care? "
"Tell us about a time when you have had to adjust to something completely unexpected, and how did you do it?"
"What will be the hardest thing for you to do in medical school?"
"What do you see being the most challenging thing you will face as a physician?"
"How do I feel about the War in IRAQ "
"What do you picture yourself doing in 10 - 15 years."
"What made you come back to wanting to be a physician (I'm a non-trad applicant)"
"How do you plan to deal with family life and your demanding lifestyle."
"If someone was cheating off your exam, what would you do?"
"Where do you see the health care system going?"
"Give an example of a time you felt you truly impacted someone's life."
"Describe a time that you made a sacrifice for someone else?"
"how my integrity has been tested"
"What stresses you out?"
"How would you deal with a patient who is non-compliant with his medication?"
"None were particularly difficult although many questions were unrelated so I found it difficult to switch gears quickly."
"If you don't get in, would you reapply next year? How many times would you reapply? Would you apply to a Foreign Medical School?"
"If a patient of yours needed a procedure but the insurance company refused to cover the cost, what would you do?"
"None really, they were all pretty straight forward. "
"Other than the philosophy question, the questions were pretty standard."
"see most interesting question"
"List 3 words that describe you and elaborate on one of them."
"none were really difficult"
"What angers you?"
"See above."
"What do you think about the current problems we are having with medical malpractice insurance?"
"How will you handle the time committment of medicine and still do all the things you want to do?"
"What makes you mad/frustrated?"
"If there was a procedure that you could do on a patient, but for some reason (insurance, for example) you could not do it on the patient, what would you do? "
"Why did you choose medicine over a career in public health? (I had expressed some interest in the developing world)"
"Why should UIC accept you?"
"none"
"Nothing too bad... What difficulties do physicians face today and how would you deal with them"
"What is the biggest problem facing healthcare today?"
"If you owned your own clinic and had 15 patients, but could only provide quality health care to 10 patients, what would you do?"
"Are you sure that the high cost of education and high cost of malpractice insurance won't deter you from entering medicine?"
"What do you think will be the most difficult aspect of medical school for you?"
"Probably the one above...but nothing really that I would consider difficult."
"none really....why uic, why medicine..."
"very obscure current events that were an attempt at conversation but were very akward"
"same as above"
"What one thing would you change about yourself if you could?"
"What are some qualities a good physician should have?"
"What qualities do you possess that would make you a good physician?"
"My thoughts about euthanasia...."
"Tell me a time when your integrity was challenged and how you dealt with the situation."
"None were really difficult . . . I was asked an ethical question that was related to a situation I brought up in my personal statement"
"same"
"the one above. but another one was-- name an instance where you were asked to do something wrong or illegal."
"Describe a situation in which your integrity was challenged?"
"None were too diffcult. "
"The questions were simple and fair."
"above"
"How would you approach a subject in medical school that you hated, but had to learn?"
"Describe a situation in which your integrity was challenged? How did you deal with it?"
"You say that you want to take care of people and help people. How would you feel about taking care of a patient who was a murderer? (i later learned that this was relevant because the university has a contract to care for the sick prisoners from Illinois Dept of Corrections.)"
"You so passionately stated in your essay that you'd like to further MRI technology, do you think you can do it? (it was hard to answer, without sounding cocky)"
"If you had a child who needed treatment, but the parents wanted to take him to a shaman what would you do?"
"Talked to current students and read online"
"Sdn, talking to other students, website review"
"SDN, Mock interviews, practice, researched school"
"SDN, read over application, practiced"
"SDN, school website"
"Practice interviews"
"SDN and school website"
"looked up info on the school"
"SDN and website for school"
"SDN, review of file"
"Read the website, Primary, Secondary, Feedback Questions"
"Reviewed their website, my application materials, SDN, and research of my interviewers. Came prepared with questions."
"Read SDN and UIC's website"
"SDN interview feedback, reviewed my primary and secondary apps, reviewed my research."
"Studied SDN feedback, application essays, and UIC website."
"SND, reviewed application"
"sdn feedback, mock interview with friend"
"SDN website, mock interviews, went through school's website extensively"
"Re-read all of my submitted essays and practiced all of the questions on SDN."
"-LOTS of practice in mirror & mock interviews with fam & friends -wrote down answers (bullet points) to "typical questions" -reviewed my ps, amcas, etc"
"SDN, talking to students, review personal statement and secondaries."
"Reading this SDN Interview Feedback page and practiced with my friends. And researching the school."
"Read this forum, practiced with family and friends"
"SDN, website, mock interviews"
"Read over my personal statement, secondary essays and recent UIC Interview feedbacks on SDN"
"Read interview feedback on here, thought about hwo I would answer the questions, read information on the schools website. The interviewers only have access to your personal statement and essays from the secondary application, so I reread those."
"SDN, read through my personal statements and essays, looked through the school website."
"sdn interview feedback, reviewed amcas"
"SDN, talking to medical students"
"Reviewed the website, my application materials, and practice questions from the web."
"Mock Interview, reviewed personal statement and secondary applications"
"SDN interview feedback, talking with a friend who had already interviewed"
"SDN, mock interview, read about health care"
"Read the last 2 years worth of questions from this site (this helped). Practiced interviewing with family."
"SDN, interview feedback, read up on current US healthcare issues, learned about healthcare systems in other countries, "
"SDN Interview Feedback, read up on health care debate issues, UIC website"
"SDN! : )"
"SDN, Cato Institute website (policy think tank), mock interview, self-reflection"
"SDN, Amcas personal statement, secondaries, I researched recent medical innovations as well as current ethical issues in medicine but I was not asked about these"
"Mock interview, re-reading all my essays, making sure I can talk about my research, volunteering experiences. "
"Read SDN feedback, reread AMCAS and UIC secondary applications, researched health care problems and issues in US, etc. Overall, I felt like I was over-prepared. "
"SDN, read several books on US health care policy, reviewed AMCAS/secondary applications, reviewed UIC website"
"read about UIC online"
"SDN, Re-read AMCAS personal statement and UIC secondary essays"
"School's website, read over my secondaries and personal statement, SDN Interview Feeback"
"SDN, reviewed my secondary application and AMCAS application"
"SDN interview thread, researched politics, healthcare, ethics, innovations."
"AMCAS, Secondary App, Compared the political candidates healthcare plans (not that it matters anymore because Obama is the MAN!), Studied the US healthcare system, SDN questions (from these forums). "
"Read on SDN, looked up the websites for the various campus locations, checked their residency match stats."
"Read through SDN interview feed back, researched questions I was no clear of, read my secondary application, read over my whole primary. "
"Read through previous questions on SDN, reviewed my secondary and AMCAS application."
"SND. AMCAS. online research."
"Re-read my personal statement, my old research notes, all supplemental essay materials, read two books on health care policy (LeBow and Bodenheimer), interview feedback on SDN (prepared a list of 60+ possible questions), and read many times over the website info."
"SDN, reviewed AMCAS and secondary app"
"SDN, looked at UICs webpage, previous interviews, AMCAS personal statement, 2ndary."
"AMCAS, self-reflection"
"sdn, website, amcas, secondaries, healthcare issues"
"SDN, school website, interview feedback, re-read secondary essays and personal statement"
"I read my AMCAS, read about the school, did mock interviews."
"SDN, UIC web site"
"Read feedback on SDN, researched medical innovations and health care, familiarized myself with political stances on health care, reread personal statement and supplementary applications"
"website, SDN"
"Read SDN, went back over my AMCAS and supplemental applications."
"sdn interview feedback, school website, healthcare websites"
"SDN was so incredibly helpful! I copy and pasted every question from people's posts from 2007 and went over all of them. Looked at NYT and CNN archives online for articles related to the health field, looked at the school's website very thoroughly, watched sicko and read up about the health care system in America and several other countries... took about 1-2 weeks to prepare"
"Reread AMCAS, SDN, secondary"
"read over secondary essays, SDN"
"Reviewed AMCAS and Secondary. Did NOT review or rehearse interview questions; prefer real-time answers."
"SDN, school website, read over my AMCAS and supplemental apps. "
"StudentDoctor, school website, read over application, other interview"
"Read newspapers and online resources, SDN, looked at recent medical journals"
"SDN, Life"
"SDN, Wik, Sicko(VERY useful btw!) read their '02-'04 student manual on their website"
"read SDN, reread my AMCAS essay, wikied some healthcare topics and the PBS.org website"
"Read SDN, read up on US/Canada/UK healthcare systems (didn't need it though), read about current health care issues"
"Read SDN (right on with most questions), read UIC's site, read medically related news"
"SDN, school website, pbs.org has a great site comparing healthcare in US/UK/ Canada"
"read about ethical issues in medicine, look at sdn postings, talked to current medical schools"
"SDN, kept up on news in medicine, previous interview, mock interviews"
"This site, secondary essays, AMCAS essays"
"SDN, previous interview, perused the school website"
"SDN, School website (which lacked detail), Health Policy sites (needed), Bioethics site (not needed)"
"read the posts on SDN, read my essays, and read about healthcare and insurance"
"read books, mock interview...other med school interviews"
"SDN mostly. I've already had quite a few interviews, so I was ready for most questions."
"SDN, read over app, went over health care issues (i read that a lot of ppl here ask them but i didn't get any)"
"SDN, secondary essays, personal statement"
"Read up on current events & health-related issues, browsed feedback from SDN"
"School's website, my essays, SDN."
"SDN, the past interview experiences. "
"researched the interviewers, read the newspaper, considered answers to potential questions"
"Used studentdoctor.net :-), Used Wikipedia to look up various health care issues, Read over my AMCAS and supplementary essays, Thought of many questions to ask my interviewers (Remember you have 3 interviews that will each ask you if you have questions!), Slept well the night before, ate a hearty breakfast, etc.... "
"I read my essays. Although the interview was closed-file, the interviewers did have the essays (AMCAS and secondary that I wrote). I also read SDN and outlined some answers to typical med school interview questions."
" sdn, read application...etc."
"went over AMCAS and secondary essays; read through SDN feedback (this was key)"
"SDN; brushed up on current events, medical ethical issues, and healthcare systems; read over my personal statement"
"SDN, other interview resources"
"Not much, like to play it by ear. Just reviewed my AMCAS and supplemental essays."
"Review personal statement, application, SDN"
"Review primary & secondary applications and referred to website."
"SDN,read primary and secondary essays, read about health care"
"Read SDN, primary, secondary apps, and about UIC."
"SDN (obvi), read over my secondary, and looked over the school's website for things I would be interested in doing."
"reviewed applications, read SDN, looked over school's website"
"SDN baby, school website, Dress to Impress!"
"SDN, review essays"
"SDN, AMCAS, Secondaries"
"Read over application essays and PS- the interviewers have access to these. Did some research on "
"Read over SD posts, read secondaries and AMCAS, researched health issues online"
"Read up about insurance issues, read my 2nd app "
"did research on ethical issues; insurance and healthcare systems in US, UK, and Canada; current events; looked through PS and secondaries"
"SDN, AAMCAS, Secondary essays, UIC catalogue"
"read student doctor.net and caught up on current events"
"Reviewed application, school website and brochure, SDN"
"Website, SDN."
"I did a practice interview with some faculty members at my school and then reviewed materials on SDN, secondary and primary applications."
"Looked over AMCAS personal statement, 2nd essays, and read up on recent medical sociology, tech advancements and a little on the school."
"I didn't really prepare formally. I just ran off the excitement of finally being at the interview for a chance to become what I know is right for myself. I didn't want my responses to seem rehearsed, and so they weren't. I just gave instinctual, "gut" answers. "
"Visited a pre-med advisor Went through personal application and the history of the school thoroughly. That was sufficient, the interviews were pretty laid back. "
"sdn, reviewed secondaries."
"SDN feedback, read school website, curriculum"
"obsess over SDN, my secondary application essay questions, AMCAS, talk to doctors about their views on the state of healthcare in the country"
"SDN, AMCAS and secondary applications"
"read over my AMCAS and secondary apps, school website, SDN"
"looked at website and my essays"
"Didn't really prepare for the interview."
"Secondary application, medical school website, mock interviews"
"SDN, website, read own file"
"read UIC website, my seconary, amcas, etc"
"SDN, read about UIC (especially the Chicago campus), other interviews."
"SDN, reviewed my essays, researched current issues in healtcare"
"Browsed UIC website (looked at all 4 campuses, memorized some recent stats/news about UIC, looked over my AMCAS/2ary, browsed SDN interview feedbacks"
"SDN, read over essays"
"Didn't really"
"AMCAS, supplemental application, SDN, student website, websites about ethics and health care."
"By going to other med school interviews. (This was my last one.)"
"Other medical school interviews"
"This website, reviewing many possible questions, school website, other medical school interviewing websites."
"Reviewed AMCAS application, secondary application, especially PS and essays, reviewed school's website and this site"
"SDN, reviewed my AMCAS and secondary applications, reviewed healthcare and bioethics books."
"Read over school's bulletin espescially focusing on their mission and vision statements, in addition to curriculum and facilities available."
"By reading this website, the school website, and interview stuff at the AMCAS and Princeton Review websites."
"UIC website(s), talking to people who have interviewed at UIC in the past, SDN and mock interviews."
"Reviewed all the information regarding the UIC RMED Program and made sure to look at SDN. However, since this program is so different from UIC's general curriculum, there is no set way to prepare for the interview. Made up random interview questions regarding rural health."
"SDN, reread apps, read paper"
"sdn, rehearsing answers to basic questions, like "why UIC, why you wanna be a doc" (but i didn't get asked either of those)."
"Read through UIC's website, look at previous SDN respondents and researched medical ethics and current issues."
"i read my secondary and my amcas statement...i also went home the night before and had dinner with my parents (ive discovered that TGI Fridays is my lucky place to eat before interviews --wont say what i eat, that stays a secret)"
"read my applications, this website, mock interview"
"SDN interview feedback, UIC website, bioethics and healthcare websites, practiced answering questions aloud, e-mailed questions to current UIC medical students (friends)"
"SDN, course website (not immediately apparent, but if you search, there is a ton of information - school catalogue, LCME report, M1/M2 websites, etc)"
"read overapp. sdn. amcas. website. chill out.."
"SDN, UIC catalog"
"standard"
"nothing really"
"Thought of why I'd want to go to UIC, looked at website"
"SDN, school website, application"
"SDN and UIC website"
"SDN, U of I homepage"
"Read SDN"
"Read the feedback. Thought about the obvious questions like: a) Why medicine? b) Why UIC?"
"SDN, they have a gigantic catalog online that I read through"
"Looked over school's website and catalogue and reviewed questions on sdn."
"sdn, school's site, mock interviews"
"Reviewed secondary application, UIC website, SDN."
"read SDN (thanks this was a big stress reliever!), reveiewed personal statement,read catalog "
"SDN, talking with other students and counselors"
"SDN, school's website"
"studentdoctor.net, school website & publications"
"Prepared answers to 10 common questions, read up about UIC on their website, SDN."
"Looked at other interview feedback experiences, read over my essay since that is all they have access to."
"student doctor.net read my essays.. talk to old students"
"this website, amcas"
"reviewed amcas essay, school brochures, etc"
"Read the questions on this website, talked to UIC med students that I knew, reread my personal statement, read through UIC Catalog"
"re-read my applications"
"re-read my apps"
"I didn't"
"SDN, UIC Website, Read up on health care"
"Read interview feedback, ate doughnuts for breakfast...mmmm....doughnuts....."
"Read UIC web site and Studentdoctor.net"
"Read this website, talked to others with previous interview experience, looked up some stuff about healthcare on the web, asked others about current health care issues (such as the unequal distribution of it)."
"read through my AMCAS, SDN, read UIC handbook and website, interview practice, talking to other students"
"SDN, reviewing personal statement"
"read application over"
"Read the school catalog, reviewed this site, prepared bullet point outline for potential questions."
"Read this site, skimmed the online catalog"
"I read this site and the UIC website."
"Reviewed my personal statement, read through UIC handbook and interview feedback on this webpage"
"SDN, read over my personal statement"
"SDN, read the school's catalog, reread my personal statement and AMCAS application"
"*reviewed the online catalogue of UIC (all 200+pages)reviewed this website, read through the pre-med section at mommd.com (highly recommended advice for all, but especially female applicants, read up on managed care, stayed up to date on the news, mock interview, read through interview materials provided by pre-health advising office, wrote outline for main points I wanted to communicate during interview and answers to commonly asked questions."
"this site"
"SDN, read some of the catalogue (that thing is enormous). Reviewed my personal statement."
"REad the UIC website, reread my AMCAS application"
"Read SDN, ethics websites, talked to fellow interviewees."
"Periodicals, UIC website, books, UW bioethics site."
"read the UIC website, looked over personal statement"
"student doctor network, mymedline, mock interview"
"read the website, read up on health care issues, and read about medical ethics scenarios"
"Read through the catalogue online."
"Website & AMCAS app"
"SDN, UIC's website"
"SDN, reviewed AMCAS, school's website"
"UIC Website, Interview Feedback, Personal Statement"
"SDN, read school's website, brushed up on hot topics in medicine, mock interview"
"Read personal statement, read interview feedback website, UIC website"
"Read SDN, AMCAS (interviwers only have your personal statement), practiced interviewing, read over school website"
"school web site & catalog, SDN, review personal info and potential questions."
"Read website and AMCAS info."
"SDN"
"Read over the school's coursebook that i requested in advance in the mail."
"Read MSAR, website, sdn. Mock interview. "
"sdn, read up on health care issues, read ps, relaxed"
"re-read personal statement, SDN interview feedback, and looked at website."
"SDN, read my secondary, READ YOUR PERSONAL STATEMENT...that is all the interviewers have seen"
"Read about the school, looked over my applications and this website."
"Read Interview Feedback, spoke to UIC students."
"SDN and read UIC website"
"SDN feedback on this school is key. Look at the past questions they ask and prepare from those...you will be surprised how many they repeat!"
"read about the school, read my personal statement, visited SDN.."
"feedback and personal statement"
"this site, re-read application, read their brochure, practiced questions"
"looked at the website, went over interview notes, relaxed"
"re-read application; spoke to UIC alumni"
"Read the website, re-read my application, and RELAXED."
"SDN, looked over their website"
"Read the UIC course catalogue, viewed SDN interview feedback, re-read personal statement"
"reread my essay"
"Reviewed why I would want to go there and looked at their online information."
"Read up on info. on UIC (what kinds of advantages its curriculum offers). Did a mock interview, went over questions, . . ."
"Read their website, went over my application"
"Just read the student bulletin online--- knew the curriculum. knew what i liked about the school."
"You name it, I did it."
"Reviewed personal statement, read up on the UIC web-site. "
"I searched the school's website. I read AAMC's Medical School Admission Requirements. I reviewed my personal essay."
"Interviewfeedback.com, mock interview with 2pre-med advisors, discussed potential questions w/freinds"
"Talked with friends, this site."
"Interviewfeedback.com, school's web-site and m1 handbook - availabel on-line."
"Read Website."
"Went over my research, talked to current students."
"Looked at their website"
"The people. Everyone is so incredibly nice, warm, and authentic."
"Friendly staff"
"Faculty made every effort to make you feel comfortable"
"The faculty is absolutely amazing and so kind."
"Their curriculum and the JUMP simulation center"
"Lots of time to talk with students who were overall happy and encouraging"
"How friendly all of the staff and students were"
"I like how UIC Med is connected with everything in the medical district, feels awesome"
"The faculty was very friendly and open. Students didn't seem very stressed out."
"the friendliness of the students and stuff- felt very much like a family- also they gave us a tour of many areas"
"the food we had at lunch was awesome, my fellow interviewers were really awesome. I didn't like the school at all really."
"I was really happy with the facilities at the Chicago campus and with the educational opportunities. Unfortunately I didn't get the Chicago campus, which makes the school fall in my personal rankings."
"the city"
"All of the students and administrators were very sweet (I interviewed at Urbana)"
"Clinical preparation, closeness of all the students, location, research opportunities, number of hospitals available for rotations, how organized the interview day was, and the general atmosphere."
"Everyone I met."
"M4 electives can be taken at any accredited medical school. Catered lunch from Burrito Beach. Someone takes you to the interviews and shows you back to the waiting room."
"VERY laid back. It was the best first interview to have."
"The students seem really chill and not overly stressed. The staff was SUPER helpful and I love the traditional feel of the campus :)"
"strong sense of comradery amongst students at the peoria campus"
"Everyone I met was incredibly friendly"
"i interviewed at rockford campus. pros: -tight-knit, friendly school -profs & administrators really care about students -m1 & m2 students spend less time in lecture, compared to other sites -students seemed happy about being in rockford, even the ones that originally wanted chi -get more hands-on clinical experience, work directly under attendings"
"The campus is beautiful, has an antique look to it. Also, the admissions staff is very friendly and walked all of us to our interviews. Lecture capture."
"The current medical students and the location"
"The location is second to none. The IMD is FAB-U-LOUS."
"Reasons to attend urbana campus, intimate learning community"
"Overall the interview was very laid back. No tension at all."
"I was interviewed by an M4 and two professors, one who was retired. All three expressed a great interest in the future of the school. The student said he would not have gone to any other school, not even University of Chicago, where his wife attended medical school. Everybody was happy to be there, and that really made a great impression on me."
"The students seem to do very well on their exams, and go on to competitive residencies. Also get a ton of clinical experience sine there are so many hospitals associated with UIC."
"the atmosphere of the interview and the attitudes taken to medical education"
"The friendly attitude of the staff and students."
"Location (Chicago is amazing), organization of interview day (very well-structured), student interviewers, description of dual degree and Urban Med programs by the admissions dean"
"Students seemed really happy, but this was at Rockford, and I would prefer to be in Chicago. Great community."
"The opportunities at this school. The clinical training. The diversity of the class. That the lectures can be streamed."
"Diversity of the student body, the research building, student center, friendliness of everyone affiliated with the school on my interview day, how laid back two of my interviewers were, the openness of the MS interviewer and tour guide about the school, early clinical experience and location of course!"
"The admissions committee is very nice and friendly. UIC was my first medical school interview, and they made me feel very comfortable during the interview so I wasn't worried that they would grill me."
"The students seem somewhat happy."
"The faculty were super nice! You are always told where and when to go places and are even escorted there as well! : )"
"VERY friendly staff and organized interview process. "
"The interview was geared towards knowing you as an individual, the interviewers were very nice and it made me comfortable."
"The student tour guide was very enthusiastic about the school and seemed happy to be there. The admissions staff and interviewers were very friendly. It was my first interview so I was pretty nervous at first but they did a good job of keeping the interviewees relaxed. The gym looked sweet, and everything was close to the medical campus. "
"I found almost everything about the school to be perfect for me. Anatomy lab, gym, clinical opportunities, academic atmosphere, friendliness of students, etc. "
"Gym was nice"
"The anatomy lab, the gym, the clinical skills facilities, the clinical opportunities available in Chicago "
"The students talked very highly about their clinical experiences and opportunities. Its about a 30 minute walk from the loop which is an incredible location."
"Board scores are the highest of any campus and above the national average"
"The school's inviting and warm atmosphere, small town feel (Rockford), tightly-knit and helpful student body, new construction and renovation projects being undertaken to expand the school, decent cost of living in the area, early clinical exposure, suitable facilities."
"The anatomy lab is on the top floor of the building and it has windows. The students seemed happy. The gym was really nice."
"Very conversational and laid back interviews, they did not mention grades or MCAT at all, they just wanted to get to know you."
"The school has basically every degree program imaginable and every option for students to be involved with things they enjoy. Whether it's an MBA, JD, MPH, PhD or even a PhD in a non-science field, the school has EVERYTHING including non-profit clinics throughout the city. The Chicago location is AWESOME. The students are also pretty sweet. "
"All of the students I met (my interview was in Peoria) really seemed to enjoy the campus. I like the fact that they're partnered with OSF because it's such a good-sized hospital for central Illinois. It seemed like the students got a fair amount of opportunity to participate in procedures during third and fourth year because there isn't an overabundance of residents."
"The admissions interviewers on the whole were very friendly and did a nice job of putting me at ease. I felt good that the interviewers were interested in holding a good conversation with me intstead of having me speak the whole time. "
"The admin people were very nice and the professors seemed very laid back."
"all the classes are held in a central location. the anatomy lab was nice. the hospital is across the street."
"How the students (all MS4s) emphasized about how well they were being prepared for their residencies compared to other schools. Most students seemed happy with the school, but didn't get to really meet any other than the ones who were supposed to interview or be tour guides. "
"Friendliness, diversity, location"
"The school was very pretty and nostalgic of undergrad at UIUC. The medical campus is unlike any other due to the large amount of hospitals in that area. Clinicals start during your 1st year, as the medical campus is such a large and awesome resource to the students. "
"Students really seemed to like the school and were excited to become doctors"
"the early exposure to clinical medicine"
"Students at the Peoria campus LOVE their school. The dean was very nice and everything was very laid back and conversational. The Peoria site has a clinical skills lab where they have patient simulators, which I believe can only be found in Peoria. "
"The students and faculty really tried to sell the school."
"Laid-back non-competitive student body, great location, research."
"The interviewers were very nice and genuinely interested in your point of view and you as a person. Also, there were plenty of opportunities to talk to current students - during the interview (one of the interviewers is a current student), during the tour, and during lunch."
"Students are very close-knit, faculty are very interested in the students and really go out of their way, class schedule reported by students was 8-12 daily."
"While the facilities were obviously old, it wasn't as bad as I expected. They also appear to be committed to ensuring the curriculum is up-to-date (I had previously thought that their traditional, lecture-based teaching methods hadn't been updated since the 80s). They place a lot of emphasis on clinical experience and skills (which I like), and they have relationships with a lot of hospitals. There are also plenty of research opportunities (both formal and informal) if you're looking to do research."
"Sadly, not really anything"
"The students and faculty seemed very happy there. The students are supportive of each other. Looks like a very nurturing environment."
"The students were real upbeat and real intelligent. I was really positively impressed by the school and everyone there. "
"location"
"The students and staff are very friendly; the school has carved out a nice little area for itself in downtown Chicago."
"The friendliness of the admission's staff. "
"Location of the school, how happy the students seem, the clinical mentorship program"
"The clinical experiences, students really well prepared for clerkships and residencies."
"The school emphasizes early patient exposure with plenty of clinical education. Also, the cultural diversity is impressive."
"Clinical experience, non-competitive student body, faculty listens to student complaints about curriculum, diversity"
"The students I encountered and the faculty. I interviewed in Peoria so each class is only about 50 ppl. Seems like everyone knows everyone, and I loved that sense of community."
"The diversity of the student body and how important it is to the school. You have the opportunity to do rotations in a variety of area hospitals. Graduate student housing is literally down the street from the school."
"The enthusiasm everyone showed. I am very excited about al the clinical experience that is emphasized early-on."
"Strong commitment to urban medicine, exceedingly diverse student body and very proud to be so. Very student run, the school makes an effort to listen to what the students have to say. Lunch was great."
"The friendly nature of the school, its staff and students and that each person was honest about the positive and negatives of the school"
"Emphasis on clinical exposure, very early in first year. Lots of opportunities for clerkships in a variety of locations in the Chicagoland area"
"Students were very helpful, day was well coordinated, interviewers were refreshingly friendly and humorous."
"The interviewers were very friendly and informative."
"Faculty interviewers seemed very open and amicable. The Medical District had a lot to offer professionally. Little Italy was nice."
"The students at the Peoria campus were very happy and encouraging about coming to that campus. I was told that the student there are the happiest and do the best on their boards, compared to all of the other locations."
"The facilities are pretty good - the clinical exposure 3rd and 4th year sounds top-notch. The view from the anatomy lab was a nice change from the typical basement dungeon labs I've seen at other schools. "
"chicago's a great place, very very many hospitals around to rotate in"
"clinical experience starting from M1"
"(Interviewed at Peoria, afternoon session) The enthusiasm of the student host & faculty. Volunteer faculty - meaning faculty are there because they want to teach. The support network for students also seems excellent. Interviewers were very nice and the interview session was itself was very low stress."
"Small student/faculty ratio, staff seems easily accessible and invovled."
"The medical loop, the lunch, the interviews were very organized"
"The staff's dedication to the students, these people really love their students, and have personal relationships with them "
"The faculty and students seem very chill and laid back and there is definitely an air of camaraderie instead of competition. Chicago is definitely THE place to study medicine and is rich in culture and diversity. Lunch was delicious, I didn't think they'd give us pizza :-)! The facilities are just fine to me, even though some people think they are a little ''dated''."
"They gave us a lot of information and the stdent guides stayed with us as we waited for our interviews to answer questions and describe their experiences. The interviewers tried to make me comfortable."
"the faculty interviewers/staff really sold the school."
"The location. Chi-Town is a vibrant city and UIC:Chicago puts you squarely in the thick of it."
"All of the interviewers were incredibly laid back and very friendly. One of them decided that he didn't feel like asking questions, instead he wanted me to ask him questions. Another interviewer ended up talking about herself half the time."
"The students and faculty seemed very friendly"
"The students, they were down to earth and nice in general."
"The enthusiasm, diversity of the research and investigators; plus they are expanding-recruiting new researchers, getting new grants/funding and seem to be quite collaborative with local medical schools. The students were down to earth, welcoming, and diverse (with a wide array of interests and talents)."
"My interview was in the Rockford campus. 1. Very friendly students. 2. One-on-one attention from faculty. 3. Direct patient contact early in educational curriculum. 4. 8am-12pm class schedule."
"The culture of the city was unbeatable. The staff were amazingly friendly. The diversity of the students!! The early exposure to patient care in a very diverse patient population. "
"The location - Chicago and the Illinois Medical District. The number of opportunities for service, clinical rotations, diversity, and student activities."
"The students who I talked to (around 4-5) genuinely seemed to enjoy the school, atmosphere, and people, and said that they worked hard but also had plenty of time to do things that they loved. There are also a lot of opportunities for M1's to get clinical experience from the get-go."
"The facilities were very nice, and the location of the medical school was optimal. It was in a good area and right off the El, so transportation would be very easy."
"location in the ill. med district"
"one of my interviewers was very hard, but i liked the challenge. another interviewer was living out the medical career path I hope to have. "
"Students at UIC are laid-back and friendly. The old buildings have some charm. Seems like an adequate place to pursue your MD."
"The attitude that students interviewing early in the cycle are likely to be admitted."
"There are a ton of community outreach programs that UIC partcipates in. UIC also really listens to the students so when there's an issue (like having too much lecture time all at once, having anatomy too early in the year, etc), the school takes action to make the curriculum better. The schedule was just recently changed to make the first year easier to adjust to. The professors are also supposedly very accessible in case you have questions about lecture material. The Dean of Admissios was also pleasantly nice! "
"The laid-back/community feel of the school. The students really seem to support each other. The anatomy lab is NOT in the basement! (There are windows in there!) "
"the people seemed very enthusiastic about the school, everyone was relaxed and nice, and the admissions staff was also very supportive in terms of calming people down"
"The faculty was really welcoming and supportive of their students. All of the students that I talked to seem to love UIC. The students were also very close with one another. "
"the student rec, which you share with undergrads but is still nice. Brand new, and thats all the tour guide focused on. Its nice, but people are not going to go there for the rec center..."
"Everyone was so enthusiastic about the school, and the interviewers tried to make you feel at ease (for the most part). Great clinical opportunities, you can't beat the location, and everyone answered questions honestly - both the good and the bad."
"I loved the school. UIC seems like it is up and coming among medical schools in the US. If NU and UChicago weren't in such proximity, I'd venture to say UIC would be ranked a lot higher. The hospital seems like it is great - I'm sure one would see a lot of diverse pathology here. The students were cool. There are sooo many opportunities for leadership, research, clinical experience, etc. The research program is extremely strong at UIC - it seems like more and more money is being poured into UIC's research developlemt. The new research building is awesome as is the new Outpatient Center."
"Because I heard so many complaints about the facility, I made sure not to have any big expectations upon my arrival, but it was not as bad as I had imagined. Lecture halls were not much different from ones I was used to and actually felt more or less like home. Student lounges were somewhat of a nice surprise and extraordinary, and I really love the atmosphere."
"The staff and students were very friendly and my student interview and school showed the type of people I could expect to go to class with. They seem very helpful and like all, the new gym was pretty nice."
"The kindness of all administration involved first and foremost. The new research building was nice. The lecture hall was much better than the ones I'm used to. The school's eagerness to provide opportunities to students' individual needs(something I thought might not exist at a state school)"
"The faculty and students of the college with whom we interacted - they were extremely nice. Also the quality of students interviewing."
"the old school feel of the campus, red brick buildings, etc... plus the school is basically in downtown chicago, lots of diversity when doing clinical rotations"
"How friendly and welcoming everyone was? they tried to keep the process as stress-free as possible. This was at Chicago so I am unaware of all the regional campus interviews."
"everyone was very friendly, saw diversity in the racial mix of my fellow interviewees"
"Attitude of students and facilities"
"The school really seems to be one that takes to heart the adage that they're not only interviewing us, but we're interviewing them. They did their best to make the day flow easily and with very minimal stress, from escorting you to interviews if need be, to giving an overview of all the things you would normally be expected to know on your own (coursework, campuses, etc.). "
"The enthusiasm of the staff/faculty members"
"The gym is sweet. Diverse students and the focus on independent learning. Also, clinical exposure to med students seems great."
"The programs the school offers, the surrounding city and the faculty and students. The students seemed like they work together. "
"Tuition"
"Site itself is beautiful"
"the school was a lot nicer than I thought. i heard it was run down, but I was impressed, i thought certain buildings were quite beautiful. nice new gym. laid back interviews for the most part. pizza for lunch, diversity of students"
"Friendliness of faculty and students. We were told that we were all being strongly considered and our invitation for interview was a good sign because they don't like to waste our time. Facilities were nicer than expected, and location is fantastic! Great new gym too."
"How laid back all the students were, the emphasis on research"
"Everyone was upbeat and interested in helping me gain admittance to UIC."
"The location of the school and the fact that the current students seemed happy to be there."
"I interviewed at the Rockford campus and was impressed with the more personal feel as opposed to the Chicago campus, the students all said they were happy with their choice of school."
"I toured at the Chicago campus, and was impressed by the fact that the students took the initiative to change the curriculum regarding the testing schedule. Also, I was amazed by how friendly everybody was, from the admissions staff to the interviewers to random students. The medical students seemed down to earth and satisfied with the medical education they were receiving. This place is modest when it comes to boasting about their curriculum and facilities on their website, but when you tour, you will find that they, too, have a new and amazing fitness center. The anatomy lab is on the top floor, and is well-lit. The grading is honors, pass, fail, and everybody can pass if they do the work. In addition, they have an excellent standardized pt. program that is videotaped, so you learn clinical skills early on. of Also, I love the fact that UIC is situated in the heart of Chicago proper, and you will having amazing clinical experiences during the 3rd and 4th years. Finally, to quote one of my interviewers, this place is a "smorgasbord" in regards to the opportunities that abound, from earning dual degrees like MD/MPH, MD/MBA, and MD/PhD to finding research opportunities after M1. They also have a UMed program, which offers courses specifically for the health concerns in an urban population."
"i was able to select faculty members with which to interview"
"How interested the woman was during my first interview and how well she got to know me and how she was able to realate her life to my expereinces. "
"The students were very happy with their location (interview was in Peoria). They said that their Step 1 and Step 2 scores are higher than any of the other U of I locations. Also, they said they get alot of 1-1 time with their faculty and staff, and physicians during rotations."
"How nice everybody was and how small the class size is (only 45 students!)"
"The large number of various hospitals in the vicinity."
"How happy the students were with the faculty. Evidently the dean had stayed extra hours one night so that students could study for am exam a little longer in the facility's library."
"There are no residents at the Rockford campus, so when you're doing rotations you work directly with attendings."
"Regional Dean and the Assistant Dean were incredibly friendly. They actually sat down with us in a boardroom-type setting. Students commented several times about how receptive the faculty and staff are to changes. They seem to really listen to students."
"Very welcoming people. I knew the recruiter. Generally everyone was very nice."
"How much everyone loved the school"
"It was in Rockford, so i liked the fact that the class is only 40 students, and that there are no residents filtering med students from attendings. Rockford is really cheap."
"The interviewers were all very interesting and personable--and the lunch was delicious too. Seriously, though, I also really liked the fact that the cadaver lab is on the top floor of the med school building. It has large windows and lots of natural sunlight--much nicer than every other one I've seen that are tucked away in a dark corner of the basement."
"i really like how the school places the med students with a preceptor and has early exposure to the clinical setting. the people seem friendly. "
"the staff is super friendly and willing to take care of you while in med school. "
"Definitely the diversity of the school, both the students and the patient populations that the students are exposed to during rotations. The way that UIC respects minority and underserved populations convinced me to want to go here (because these goals align with mine)."
"Students were real. "
"the diversity of students -- the interview i had before UIC was in Wisconsin.. where there was not much diversity at all. big campus. relatively close to downtown chicago. affordable."
"The Dean met with the group at the beginning of the day and we had a good q & a"
"it was cheap, one adcom person was really nice. the day went smoothly"
"The price, my interviewers were great, the students we met seemed nice and normal, clinical exposure"
"Low cost, very diverse, more exams during M1 than M2, patient exposure during first and second years"
"students seemed happy to be there, community outreach programs, free housing available (Peoria campus)"
"Great network of hospitals. 3rd and 4th years are able to see a diverse demographic of patients by working hospitals that range from large indegin hospitals such as Cook County to small private hospitals to University hospitals. The anatomy lab is on the top floor with a view of the Chicago skyline. Brand new research facility. Chicago is a great city."
"Rockford is small, but the air is CLEAN (i'm from LA, so I appreciate the clean air)"
"The students were very sincere and nice to talk to. The Peoria campus is very small so that students can really get a lot of attention and also apparently has the highest board scores and best residency matches compared to other campuses. The hospitals in the area seem top notch. "
"Lot of things. They have new research facility going up. You can do your rotations at any other medical schools in Chicago area or elsewhere (I think it is true of most medical schools though). They seem to have cutting edge research facilities. I didn't understand why they are not ranked in top 50 research schools though. They told me that they were going into privately funded research now since the state funding has been decreasing constantly. I liked the attitude of the interviewer. I know medicine is a buyer's market (that is medical schools have the upperhand), but they made me feel that they were trying to sell the school to me rather than me trying to sell myself to them. They had lot of good volunteer opportunities in many minority communities around Chicago. They didn't seem to have an organized program for international medical experience. But then I have seen very few schools that do have organized program for international medical experience. Students have to take the initiative for such experiences at most schools."
"The applicants really wanted to go to this school."
"The medical students are very happy and very excited about the school. They were willing to answer any questions and were very honest."
"everyone was very nice."
"The interviewers were friendly and incredibly easy to talk to. They genuinely appeared interested in me as a person. I liked the campus but I am biased because I'm from Chicago. "
"Really liked the interviewer, REALLY liked the student tour guide, impressed with research oppurtunities open to students and support programs"
"other interviewees, the student giving the tour and the conversation at lunch, as well as the lunch itself, it wasn't a bag lunch. Also how friendly the people were interviewing me."
"The interviewers appeared to be interested in my comments and often nodded in agreement when I addressed a particular question."
"Location is in the center of Chicago. "
"students and curriculum"
"Enjoyed being interviewed by 2 MDs and a 4th year. Had an opportunity to ask a few questions to them, which was refreshing. Friendly staff and students in Rockford. Good diversity and great clinical facilities in Chicago. Also very convenient to the subway stop in Chicago. "
"the lay back atmosphere of the entire day. should not be stressed about the interview."
"nothing really.... look like every school i saw. maybe the cadaver"
"nice resident halls and student center. close to L train station"
"kindness of people, wealth of research resources, the small med school class sizes"
"Every student I met was in love with the school, the faculty members were very personable; gross anatomy lab is on the top floor of the building- the tour guide said that it was very well ventilated and had windows all around so it's not as dingy."
"Student tour and having lunch with the students."
"tour, students had lunch with us and were so nice, met a professor who was very approachable "
"Students loved all the hands-on dissections (half of them are interested in surgery as a specialty) and enjoyed the rigorous schedule. That is not something that I particularly want but I was impressed with the hardworking students."
"I left UIC knowing it was my top choice. The admissions staff was the nicest I have every come across. There are tremendous research opportunities including a scholars program. The rotations and early clinical exposure are amazing. Chicago is wonderful. The facilities were better than expected (there are even reclining chairs in the M1 lecture room)."
"The interviewers, nice looking anatomy lab, good lunch "
"The different research opportunities available and the amount of diversity in chicago. "
"The interviewers were really nice, the people were welcoming and laid-back, the whole process was pretty efficient."
"UIC Rockford is very small and therefore students get a lot of personal attention and help."
"Everyone was incredibly friendly"
"everything BUT the interview. Although I interviewed at ROCKFORD and the campus was isolated."
"The students and faculty were great. They answered any questions and were very accomadating."
"That the interview was just their way of getting to know me and that they seemed genuinely interested in what I had done before applying to med school."
"The resources the school and affiliated hospitals possess."
"The interviewers as well as all the other candidates were really friendly. No one was out to get me, and the people who were interviewed before me were forthcoming with information."
"The student's board scores ranked second in IL behind Northwestern. "
"I was impressed by the wide range of research and work-abroad opportunities available to students! I was impressed by the fact that just about every student I talked to seemed happy about his/her experience at UIC!"
"EVERYONE was very nice- (the Dean was on holiday break but I already met him and I know he is extremely personable and warm) the admissions counselors and student tour guides were very welcoming and informative. I was impressed that the students had such vibrant personalities and that the interview was purposely low-stress and just an opportunity to get to know you better."
"the interviewers were really interested in my motivations for medicine"
"The students and faculty at the Peoria campus were great."
"The interviewers were friendly, they had an information presentation about the school."
"Reputation of the school, teaching hospitals, facilities (they have EVERYTHING), admissions staff was friendly and efficient."
"3 of my 4 interviewers were former engineers and I'm an engineering grad so I felt we really connected. The interview was my most painless. I also felt like the school was really solid on fundamentals, but also down to earth."
"good support system for Latino students at least"
"the medical students were very enthusiastic when they spoke with us and told us the real deal with the school "
"the resources available to the students"
"The students had a lot of good stuff to say about the school."
"The interview was very laid back and quick. All the questions were straight forward and pretty standard."
"low cost, great affiliated hospitals, windows in the anatomy lab"
"Students seemed laid-back, approachable and well educated. Cost. "
"Current students there who interacted with us were down to earth, intelligent, funny, and friendly."
"The interviewers were really nice. It seemed like they wanted me to feel comfortable during the interview. There was also a lot of time for the prospective students to talk with current students, who were very eager to help answer any questions."
"Quality of teaching. Location within major medical district. Broad clinical opportunties. High degree of support for away rotations (4th year only requirement is the internal med Sub-I)"
"Students seemed happy, positive atmosphere, good match lists and you gotta love Chicago."
"I found out about the many minority programs at UIC"
"The clinical rotations available. Student tour guides were very friendly & helpful."
"Everyone was very friendly and helpful."
"Seems like a solid school for a good price."
"Facilities were decent, students seemed relatively happy, Cook County hospital is literally next door, Chicago is a fabulous town. The interviewers gave me some good insights after I answered my questions, i.e. they told me what they thought about the questions they asked me after I answered for myself. "
"Friendly students. Good campus shuttle service. Strength of UIC in a number of subspecialties. "
"The students are really friendly. The program seems difficult, but M4s say they are well-prepared for residency. Also, the longitudinal primary care program is really cool. You also have the flexibility of choosing the primary doctor you would like to work with. Chicago is a great city."
"The Rockford campus, small community based, not as competitive as Chicago campus, early clinical exposure."
"COST!!!! Peoria students can have FREE housing at apartments within walking distance of the school. Peoria is not as bad as I thought. Students appear happy and everyone knows each other very well. Students are well prepared for Step 1 and 2."
"The price of the school is good if you are in state compared to most medical schools."
"The number of research opportunities for med students. UIC is building a new research building to be used in 2004. "
"I like the clinical exposure that students get here. It seems like the M3's and M4's get a lot of patient responsibility. The patient population is also very diverse and largely underserved."
"MD/MPH program at the rockford campus. Also, the Rockford campus is one of only 11 US medschools affiliated with the World Health Organization! wow."
"The longitudinal medicine program starting from your M2 years continuing all the way till graduation. The friendly students, faculty, and staff! The small college atmosphere and cooperative atmosphere at Rockford."
"early clinical exposure"
"the early exposure to clinical experiences, the small-group learning, self-directed learning"
"students were pretty excited about their school. everyone we saw was really friendly. the anatomy labs were pretty nice."
"location; current students' positive attitude; "
"The anatomy labs are NOT in the basement, like every other school. There's actually ventilation here. And, we actually got to see a cadaver."
"One of my interviewers said some of the students from this location had placed in top residencies (ex - out east, California)"
"How laid-back the campus seemed (it is Rockford, after all, and not Chicago)."
"the faculty and students seemed nice, the cost compared to other schools"
"The information provided during the tour by the M4's, they were very positive about the school and were up front about the amount of work involved but also talked a lot about all the clinical opportunities available. "
"The enthusiasm of the medical school students I talked to during the lunch and tour."
"The lunch"
"the students we interacted with really did seem to like the clinical training. they were m4s so they kept saying how they were given so much responsibility. some of their students also said how 'other' med schools in the chicago area don't accept public aid patients so they don't get to see patients. Also, with the patient population the patients actually want you to work on them-- wheareas in other private hospitals... patients sometimes won't let med students touch em."
"The friendliness of the students and seeing a cadaver(sp?)"
"Kind students. Decent facilities. Urban location. Extremely diverse student body. "
"Great complimentary lunch!"
"nothing really"
"Everything!"
"Not a bad school, despite all the red-tape and virtually no attention given to students."
"The friendliness of the students. The residencies that graduates got into. Sensed a very cooperative environment. The clinical experience seemed second to none with a university hospital, a VA, a county hospital, and ~10 community hospitals each serving very different patient populations."
"Flexibility of program structure. You can do PhD work first or MD work first. Friendliness of the director and staff."
"The Chicago campus was in a pretty clean area."
"Negative experience with one of the MMI interviewers"
"Didn't have someone handing out name tags"
"The med school is only one building in Rockford"
"They didn't have a vegan option for lunch even though I requested it twice through email (upon them asking), so I didn't get to eat anything all day."
"Had to walk around outside in 40 degree weather"
"Buildings seemed a little outdated"
"Atmosphere, the actual med students were pretty great (Super friendly and nice). However, the other interviewees were a bit off (I did not like how they showed everyone's alma matter) and the people managing the actual interview day don't really know how to make the whole thing feel relaxed (Uncomfortable seating, feels like they are always watching you etc...)"
"The tour was led by two first-year students who had only been on campus for 5 weeks... They didn't really seem to know where they were going or what to show us. One was very enthusiastic though."
"No tour of any of the hospitals. The admission committee still gives you admission via snail mail."
"none really- i was very stressed with the first interviewer (student) but the other 2 made up for it"
"Pretty much everything...I couldn't find the room where we were supposed to meet, I had to ask the woman cleaning the bathroom (she was super nice), no one showed up to talk to us until 15 mins after we were told the day would start, the interviewers were late getting there, my first interviewer pretty much attacked me the whole time and was very negative (im not sure if he was acting or something like that but I did not appreciate that treatment), the facilities were old and run down, student lounge was in the basement, deans talk was uninspiring to say the least, seems like they were almost forced into designing a more up to date curriculum. Yuck."
"My admissions committee interview was really intimidating and stressful, which I thought was unnecessary and made me think twice about if I really want to attend that school."
"the lunch options"
"They didn't really know much about the curriculum changes from what I could tell. They also didn't really talk much about any student organizations or give a tour of the facilities. Wish we could have learned more about the curriculum or other resources that the school has to offer."
"Older facilities. However, I was told renovations should be complete by 2016 and I doubt it will affect the quality of the education."
"Everyone says the buildings are old. I actually like the old look to the outside of buildings. I don't mind the old looks on the inside of the buildings. But I don't like how the heating system is old too, so I was walking through some parts that felt like a sauna and some that felt like a cool box. But this is not a big deal, and all the research buildings are nice and shiny."
"3rd interview began immediately after 2nd. No financial aid session. Final decision only given through snail mail."
"An interviewer answered a phone call and burned ou tthe remiangin time; The facilities are mad old, outdated and the school needs revamping. Also the tour they took us on did not show us the facilities or labs or lectures."
"The interviewers were so excited about UIC that I felt like they had more time to talk than I did."
"There does not seem to be a good support program for USMLE preparation."
"-rockford sucks"
"The Dean was late to his portion of the presentation so they had to flip the tour with his section of the day. The problem is that because they made the change so late, our tour was significantly shortened which irritated me as our medical tour guides gave really great advice throughout."
"They kept talking about the facilities being older. Personally, I didn't notice this (to me older building does not = old facilities), but the fact that they kept mentioning it made me feel uneasy..."
"My student interviewer didnt show up and my tour guide who was also another interviewer had to interview me."
"Like at other interviews, I was afraid that my interviewers would forget important detials before they got to wirte their evaluations because they interviewed one or two other applicants within 5-10 minutes of me, and I noticed that one interviewer did not even write anything down before he took the next applicant."
"The UIC buildings were kind of run down. Not a huge deal - but it was freezing outside and some rooms were warm, and other were blazing hot."
"The building"
"The Dean's welcome message."
"The town itself. It's very rural and kind of in the middle of nowhere. "
"The buildings/classrooms are a bit old. But, it's downtown chicago (I think that's to be expected)."
"Nothing really, I knew what the facilities were like beforehand and don't think that's an adequate reason to base a decision on the school. Sure it's great to have new facilities, but UIC actually reminded me of parts of my HS and undergrad institution. Older buildings don't bother me as long as the school offers modern accommodations such as lectures online. "
"I interviewed at Rockford; the student tour guide did not seem to know much about the school or other campuses, and so the tour ended up being really short."
"The admissions office was unresponsive to my requests to change my interview date. My interviewers did not seems to have any interest in talking with me, and either were more interested in talking about themselves or nothing at all!"
"We got out a little later than expected and I almost missed my bus back to school. : ("
"Facilities were older, as to be expected, and the tour was lackluster because it was the first one and we had like 20 people led by one guide who had trouble fitting us all in elevators and then not talking loud enough... etc."
"I interviewed at the Peoria campus and it seemed like their focus in mainly on their students getting the best scores on board exams. That's what the students praise about the school as well, the fact that they do better on board exams than even the Chicago campus. There are also lots of lecture hours. What I am looking for is a campus where you get clinical training as early as possible and the Rockford campus offers this so I hope I get to choose where I'm posted. otherwise it is a very good school. "
"The campus is huge and has too many students. Close to 200 in each class. The lecture hall was a little run down. "
"We had a substitute speaker during the dean's presentation who was a very nervous, inarticulate speaker. Still everything else about the interview day was perfect."
"The interview day seemed a bit haphazard. No one was there to greet us when most of us wandered in. There was no signage regarding the interview. The tour was an entire group of ~30 interviewees--should have been smaller."
"The only negative aspect of the Rockford site is that you are not there your first year. Students in the Rockford track spend the first year in Urbana-Champaign, and then transfer to Rockford for years 2, 3, and 4. As for the campus, the area, the people, the facilities, the curriculum -- there is nothing negative to be said about any of them. "
"Some of the facilities are old."
"Food wasn't that great."
"The building was kind of shabby, but that's not a huge deal. I don't like the idea of moving after the first year (unless you choose the Chicago campus where they do all four years). There didn't seem to be a lot of technology integrated into the education system."
"I felt like the students who were apart of the admissions staff were not as interested as ones I have met during my experiences volunteering."
"The students don't really attend class and don't seem to have much interaction with each other."
"the students did not seem very happy or act as a cohesive group."
"The buildings. Very very old, but then again so is most of Chicago. The anatomy lab was shown to us, and it reeked of preservatives and chemicals used in histology, but then again that is sort of to be expected."
"Some of the facilities seemed dated"
"My second interviewer had to be 95 years old. He had two pairs of glasses and at times, I swore he fell asleep during the interview. Because of his age, he only asked about 2 questions, and spent the other time trying to get out his rants about certain topics. This took a large amount of time because of his old age. I was concerned as to why this man was interviewing at all. Does faculty not wish to interview their potential med students?"
"Regional campuses are really rural and most people match into midwest residencies"
"older facilies, large class size"
"The facility is a little bit out-dated and there was lots of down time during the interview day."
"The facilities weren't as nice as some of the other schools I interviewed with."
"The facilities."
"The tour was really uninformative - they showed us a hallway in the hospital, the gym, a classroom, and the student center (which felt like a tunnel). I really wish they had shown us labs and more of the hospital."
"First year in Champaign/Urbana, small campus, a little outdated, but they just got a donation and are building more soon."
"While two of the interviewers were very nice and asked basic interview questions (tell me about your research, how did you get interested in medicine, have you had any healthcare experience, tell me about a time when you helped someone, etc), the third interviewer was rather abrupt and asked questions that some people would probably find adversarial or even inappropriate. He wasn't intentionally mean, but I couldn't tell if his questions and responses were meant to evaluate me as a person or merely judge how I would respond to a stressful Q&A session. The questions were initially benign and demographic in nature (how old are you, what do your parents do, do you have any siblings, have you applied to medical school in past, etc). They then moved to the classic ''what would you do to fix healthcare in the United States.'' At this point, however, the conversation basically became political and it was easy to tell that he was very much in favor of a universal or socialized healthcare system. I tried not to completely agree or disagree with him, but I didn't want to start a political debate either. I just hope that I wasn't given a negative assessment because I didn't always agree with his politics (by the way, if you're a hardcore conservative, God help you if you get this interviewer)."
"The tour guides were not happy. Supposedly, the administration is extremely understaffed."
"Before I arrived I read on SDN that the facilities weren't the best so I came in expecting it to be worse than it was. It was my first interview and tour so I don't really have anything to compare it to so to me it wasn't that bad."
"The interview itself. It was a panel interview in a tiny room. It was really very uncomfortable and one interviewer kept asking me incredibly hard questions that I stumbled through."
"facilities are very old, no one goes to class, M1 is overloaded with too many classes (unnecessarily hard)"
"Facilities are a bit old and need updating."
"We were supposed to get an introduction from the dean, but did not. "
"Price to attend as an out of state resident."
"Nothing really - the classes are large lectures, though. "
"The tour was average. The guide showed us some facilities but didn't give us an idea of the type of teaching technology they used."
"Overall, people seemed a bit standoffish, I visited the Rockford campus last semester and the atmosphere was a little warmer, I expected it to be this way though"
"The school is small, literally just one building but that's not a big deal for me...students graduate very well prepared according to their Step scores and residency placements"
"That we didn't get to see the library on the tour but saw the gym. It was nice but not a top priority to me. They have a co-op note taking service that you can buy into (about $100) in case you miss lecture. Most schools have lecture available via video or audio for free for their students. Also, the 1st year seems very lecture heavy and there's no ''formal'' PBL."
"Although they have a great gym, I wish we cuold have seen more dorms, libraries, etc. And nothing on financial aid (just a packet)"
" It was a bit disorganized though I understand it was the first day of interview season. My first interviewer, an M2, didnt show up because she didnt know she had me at the time. Had to wait around over 1.5 hrs while everyone else went through 2 interviews b4 I had mine, my 2nd interviewer left so I had a replacement interviewer and then i had to stay late to make up my missed 1st interview."
"that some of the interviewers were late, which shortened the interview sessions toward the latter part of the day"
"Seemed like the first 2 years at UI-Chicago are not that great, but it
What is one of the specific questions they asked you (question 1)?