New Haven, CT
Allopathic Medical Schools | Private Non-Profit
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Overall, applicants ranked the school in the top 12% of interviews, indicating it is highly regarded. They found the interview very impressive with a low stress level and felt they did well.
⭐ Overall Impressions ▼
SDN Interview Experience Score
9.0
Exceptional
Outstanding interview experience: exceptionally organized, highly professional staff, strong communication, and very low stress.
Based on 512 responses
Score Reference:
9–10 Exceptional
8–8.9 Very Good
7–7.9 Good
6–6.9 Mixed
< 6 Needs Improvement
The SDN Interview Experience Score (SIES) is a composite metric that represents applicants overall impressions of their interview experience, based on multiple factors such as professionalism, facilities, responsiveness, and stress levels.
What was the stress level of the interview?
Most respondents rated their interview as average stress.
How do you rank this school among ALL other schools?
Most respondents rank this school above all other schools.
How did the interview impress you?
Most respondents felt positively about their interview.
Positively (90%)
Negatively (4%)
No change (6%)
How you think you did?
Most respondents thought they performed well at the interview.
Great (43%)
Good (43%)
Average (13%)
Poor (1%)
What are your general comments?
Applicants generally had positive experiences at Yale Medical School, praising the friendly and conversational nature of the interviews, the comprehensive look at the school provided throughout the day, and the overall laid-back atmosphere. Some applicants highlighted the importance of staying with a host for a more in-depth understanding of the school, while others mentioned concerns about New Haven and the interview day's organization.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
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I enjoyed my interview day, and the admissions office staff were also quite kind. We had a session with current students the night before that gave us an opportunity to hear from people in a no-evaluation environment.
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Great!
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I had a very pleasant experience interviewing here. All the students I met here seemed very happy.
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Definitely one of my top choices at this point. Have to wait till March I guess!
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Awesome school!
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They have your entire file (thick 1.5-inch booklet) in front of them. Both my interviewers flipped through them occasionally/regularly for reference. Their admissions committee has fourth year students who have full voting power and also interview (one of my interviewers was a student). Both interviews were fairly conversational, and they try to make feel relaxed. The whole day (non-admissions-related faculty talk, student lunch, tour) provides a very comprehensive look at the school.
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Stay with a host; you will learn a lot more about the school and the students that way!
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I really loved Yale in spite of the shady neighborhoods surrounding it. Total reach school.
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Absolutely loved the school - would most likely attend if accepted.
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So one of my interviewers was this really fascinating psychologist. He was also the most challenging interview, because his format caught me a bit off guard. He basically psychoanalyzed me, and by the end of the interview he had this huge map of data on me, with connecting points, etc. It actually kind of made me interested in psychiatry, as I work in a behavioral oriented lab, because he had such a piercing way of seeing through you. He actually made me realize a lot of things about myself that I never knew, but as he said "This is just what you told me, I didn't do this." It was a challenging interview at first, because it caught me off guard. At the same time, I really enjoyed it a lot, and of all the interviews that I've ever had, I can say that this one was easily the most satisfying in knowing that I accurately represented myself. No wishing that I had done things differently. If I don't get into Yale, I can accept that I just wasn't what they were looking for, but at least I won't worry that if I had done better, I would have gotten in. No regrets baby!
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The interviewers were kind and seemed genuinely interested. There's quite a bit going on around Yale, try and have some fun.
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Yale was great. I am still not sure how I feel about New Haven. They will sell it as a big city with a small town feel, which may be true, but it is no New York or Boston or Los Angeles. You can tell the Yale faculty is very involved and like to work with the students. I was very impressed.
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There's a decent amount of walking so bring comfy shoes to change into if possible. the interviews were pretty relaxed...no healthcare or ethics questions or anything too hard.
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It's a great school and it made a strong case to be my favorite school.
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Both interviews were with faculty, and both were relaxed. The first person had clearly poured over my app, and asked me questions about it in a relaxed way. The other was more focused on selling the school and answering any questions I had about it. I had the feeling that he hadn't read my app as carefully, but the balance worked out fine I think. In any case neither one asked me to justify my app in any way, they seemed to just want to get to know me better.
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Absolutely loved this school; my first choice after interviewing.
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Great experience! Awesome school!
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I had two interviews, one with a student and the other a faculty member. One interview focused on explaining my experiences and how they validated my decision to attend medical school, while the other focused on who I was as a person and how my core values factored into my goal to become a physician.
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Yale is very unique and impressive. Make sure you know what the Yale System is all about. Stay with a host if you can, you'll get a good sense of what Yale is like.
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Brief orientation, a.m. interview, lunch with students, tour, p.m. interview
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Overall, the day was OK. It didnt make me love it any more or less. Its still Yale, an awesome school with a great med program. I had a student interview and a faculty. Both didnt really ask hard questions, mostly about my experiences and why I wanted to go to Yale. The food isnt good, and the tour was really short.
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Wonderful.
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Sucked in transport - don't take the shuttle from JFK ($50 - 70 ONE WAY). Once I was there, Yale rocked. The dorms were right next to the school (library, hospital, lecture, labs) for easy access. The Yale System is great: self-driven learning, reduced pressure, independent planning and time management. Not to mention facilities and faculty are top-notch. Joint degrees are definitely something to consider with a school like Yale.
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Stayed with student host, went to AMAZING lecture with them, showed up at admissions office, faculty interview at 11, fin aid talk, meet and greet with faculty member, lunch with students, tour by student, second interview with faculty member, went home...
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Excellent interview experience.
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Crowded day at the admissions office. Didn't get to learn much of anything new about Yale. It is a great place though.
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Outstanding day. I will be back for Revisit Weekend in April!
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Yale is an excellent place to learn to be a physician. Some of the faculty are a bit snotty, but the med students are cool. They're not shy about telling you that they want their grads to specialize, preferably in surgery.
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Good interviews, nice profs, cool labs, sore feet.
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Like the students, not as impressed with faculty I met or the facilities, did not live up to its reputation when compared to JH, Mayo, Uwash.
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I had the morning session, so the day began with a mini-orientation by Mr. Silverman. I then had my two interviews. The first was with a faculty member and was more structured than I expected (see below). The second was with a student and was less structured but went into lots of detail about me and my AMCAS. We then had a little talk by a former dean, lunch with really cool med students, and the tour. Afterwards, we had an impromptu financial aid session and then headed home.
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Overall, Yale is a sweet school. Its students were the best I've come across so far, but the interview day was a big rushed. One of the students advised coming back for 2nd-look weekend where you get a much better feel for the school and its students. I look forward to it given that interview days are pretty artificial. Hopefully I get in!
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People were warm and friendly. :)
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Positive
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Overall, yale is more associated with its historical value an prestige; had there been more structure to the interview day, i would have gotten a better perspective of the school.
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It was pretty open-ended. Both interviewers began by asking me, ''Tell me about yourself.''
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Generally good. New Haven is not a great city, wished I would have spent more time in NYC.
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I had two interviews, one before and one after lunch/tour. Both were open file and they really do read your file and highlight/make notes about aspects they want you to elaborate on.
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One interviewer asked me questions about issues in which he was interested. So he didn't get to know much about me from the interview. Although, he did most of the talking, we discussed views we had in common. The second interveiwer psychoanalyzed me. He freaked me out at some point but he got to know me thoroughly...hek! I felt I got to know more about me by the end of the interview! The whole experience was very very weird but interesting.
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One of my interviews was challenging, but I definitely left with a better impression of the school than I began wtih.
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Overall, gained a more positive view of the medical school than before based on its very different, yet successful curriculum
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Did not live up to expectations.
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Students love Yale and this really came through during the lunch and tour.
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I had an incredible day at Yale. Basically, my hopes about how great the
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My interviewers were extremely nice, laid-back, very conversational, no difficult questions.
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Incredible.
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The tour was rushed because we were cramming interviews, other than that the interviews were tranquil, conversational (most of the time) a little bit of rapid fire, which is good for the heart.
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School was pretty nice, and the people were all really laid back. Students were pretty cool too. New Haven itself was the only thing I didn't like (see above). Oh, also I was supposed to stay with a student host, but the office never finished setting it up. I even contacted them to confirm weeks in advance and they never got back to me so I had to blow $100 staying at a hotel.
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Morning overview, 2 interviews, financial aid talk then lunch and tour with students.
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My Yale interview experience was quite positive. My interviews were both conversational and my interviewers were incredibly insightful. We discussed issues surrounding the practice of medicine and how medicine can be used as a tool for social justice -- especially in New Haven.
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Great.
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Overall it was a really fun day, generally low stress, and the food at lunch was pretty good!
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I had the best time there. The interviewers made sure I was relaxed, at ease, and were generally supportive. I really enjoyed both of my conversations. One was with a student (MD/PHd) and one was with a faculty member.
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A good day! Dr. Silverman was great to talk to and a lot of fun, and both my interviewers were very friendly. Grace and Veronica in the admissions office were great. Literally TEN students took seven of us on a tour--I guess the second years are training the first years to do it, but it was pretty cool how many showed up. Students are relaxed, happy, and friendly. Great school.
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Overall a very positive experience. Both interviews were relaxed and conversational. The day is well organized.
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I felt nervous, because Yale is my top choice school. I really want a school that will let me continue to be a person, not just a student, and it seems like Yale is the ideal place to do so.
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If you're a self-motivated learner, Yale is your dream school. The people, facilities and concept of the Yale system make this school quite desirable for one to gain admission. My interview experience was quite laid-back, with both my student and faculty interviewers asking fairly standard questions and allowing me a great deal of time to formulate my answers. The students seem genuinely satisfied with their Yale experience, and seem to appreciate the Yale System to its fullest. All in all, the interview is low stress. The real stress is wondering whether you'll be one of the 600 rejected post-interview!
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The school is very laid back for such a prestigious school, and they try to make you feel comfortable. A lot of new facilities have gone up. Many dual degree opportunities. Overall a great school.
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My student interview was better than my faculty interview. it was more detailed and i was able to talk about my motivations more easily.
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Very good
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While I didn't hate Yale, I didn't love it either. I felt that the students weren't especially motivated or intelligent and that some of them had chosen Yale for its name rather than its attributes as a medical school. My first faculty interview was fantastic but my second was unprepared and uninterested in me. New Haven isn't the prettiest place on the East Coast either. All in all, a fairly "blah" experience that has landed Yale near the bottom of my list.
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It couldn't have been better. Everyone was wonderful.
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There were three sets of interviewees and we'd meet in the lounge where the admissions director would answer any questions we had. My first interview was at the VA, so I had to ride a shuttle over there. Then lunch in the cafeteria, then my second interview. This was probably my hardest interview to date. The interviewer wasn't good with eye contact and his questions seemed quite cliche. However, I spoke with some students later and they said that was just how he is, so I was somewhat reassured. Then the tour which was impressive. Afterwards the director spoke with me and it was clear that he was familiar with my application and he hooked me up with a MS4 that shared some of my interests.
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Really nice interview day, students are great. I don't think my interviews went badly, but I hope they went well enough because I would really love to go here!
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I had 2 faculty interviews- one with a cardiologist, which was pretty straightforward, and one with a young researcher, which was more intense but also more fun. Neither was extremely stressful, but I was glad that I had practiced responses to all those questions like, "Tell me about yourself," and "What are your biggest strengths and weaknesses."
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It seemed great, I felt I did really well.
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Overall my experience was great. I wanted to warn readers to ignore the negative comments from 4/26 and 3/4. They were both written by someone I know who is currently in medical school and who was rejected from Yale when he applied and who has never gotten over it. Yale's a great school with brand new facilities. The nicest anatomy lab in the country. Happy students and the best match list in the country. Ignore the negative comments of one reject and look at all the other positive impressions of Yale. I don't know anyone who didn't go to Yale for interview and fall in love with it.
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There were a couple of elements that completely tarnished my image of Yale both during and after my interview experience. First, obviously, was a horribly judgemental interviewer. Unfortunately, I feel bad calling her that because I don't think that even she is aware of her own offensive behavior. Nonetheless, it was tough to get over that interview. I should have spoken to the administration about it right away, but by the time the experience sank in, it was really too late to take action (I thought). Since the interview, a number of other things have come to light which have affected my impression of Yale. First, I waited much MUCH longer to hear a decision from Yale than I waited for decisions for other schools that had interviewed me at the same time and after (to the tune of more than a month later). Second, I have been told by several people (including Yale students) that the "Yale System" lends itself to procrastination and shoddy scores on the Board exams. In fact, for the caliber of people Yale is attracting, their pass rates for the Step I and Step II Boards is not very good. Independence and personally motivated work is all well and good, but some guidance and structure are nice as well. If you're the kind of person who needs structure and deadlines to perform optimally and reach your maximum potential, Yale may not be ideal for you. I was told by a couple of preclinical students during my interview visit that they didn't feel like they had worked very hard or learned very much yet. They described their study methods as weeks of vacation followed by cramming prior to the optional exams, followed by panic and a higher level of motivation after receiving their confidential scores on said exams. The rest of my issues with Yale are more subtle negative impressions I have gathered when I call in with questions. My final image of Yale, once my favorite school, is of an institution that feels that YOU, the applicant, should have to bed and grovel for admittance. It feels paternalistic, elitist, and empty, with a great name and lots of money to offer you, but no soul and no instruction on the finer points of what it means to be one who heals.
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Yale is such an over-rated school, and previously, I had friends there who told me that it is really an "Old-Boys Club", and the whole medical school experience was horrible for them, and the residency programs didn't think of the Yale students very highly because of their poor clinical training. Furthermore, getting recommendations from Yale doctors were a very "political" process, depending on your connections and whether you are "the elitist type" (whether or not you are a part of the Old Boys Club). When I arrived at New Haven, the town is undoubtedly bad and depressing (and it was cloudy that day). I interviewed with 2 faculty members who tries to sell me the whole "Yale curriculum" thing, which allowed you to take exams online or none at all (the same curriculum that is leaving the students poorly trained for wards). People in the med school were not friendly, and I got lost a few times. Mr. Silverman struck me as a little weird and a little pretentious. I already got offers from other places, and I had to say that my impression of Yale was very negative. I think Yale will drop further in the USNews Ranking this April (Yale has been dropping consistently for years in ranking). Yale and Stanford, two over-rated medical schools that deserved not to be in the top-10 position.
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Both interviews, the student interview and the faculty interview, were very laid back. I think some of the other interviewees may have had 2 faculty interviews, I'm not sure. The interviews are open file and very conversational. Both interviewers were very fair and took the opportunity to get to know me (very low stress).
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The first interview was nice. I was a little nervous because it was the first one in several months, and I really like the school. The second interviewer hadn't read my file, and he had some trouble coming up with questions, but it was okay.
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My interview day began at 7:45, so it was a bit painful. The info sessions weren't too drawn out. The interviewers are quite knowledgeable about your file, including Mr. Silverman. My first interviewer was very friendly, but the interview ended after 25 minutes, leaving the rest of the time for questions, which was a little much. My second interview was a little more stressful and pushed me a lot about my background (I'm following a very non-traditional route to med school).
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The interview day was relatively short, and I got an ever-so-slight whiff of disorganization (but not too bad). You may have to roam around quite a lot for your interviews, so be prepared for that. Other than that, both of my interviews were very conversational and both seemed intent on making it a stress-free experience. Overall, it was a positive experience and I got a lot of questions answered.
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Overall the day was great. I had a split schedule, so one interview before lunch and one after. The students were cool, and the day was structured well.
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An amazing day. It is an absolutely incredible place. I like Cornell (my undergrad school) but Yale is really like another world. The facilities, faculty, and students are top class. I like that they encourage you to do things other then research with your summers, a lot of students go abroad. I was a little surprised that a high number- over 25% go into research or academic medicine. Seems high. The thesis isn't so bad- only aobut 40% do basic science research for it, the rest do something more interesting. Understand the Yale System though, and have an answer for why you want ot be there. They pick and choose, and I got the impression that the response to this question was a big factor.
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The morning session started at 7:45am. Ouch. I had a great time though. Yale is really laid back, with a flexible curriculum that you can mold to your own interests. The interviewers know you and your application very well, so the interview is basically meant to put a face to the application (and to make sure you're not a weirdo or anything).
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Great facilities. people who are a lot of fun to be around while at the same time being very gifted and intelligent. freedom appeals to me. solid all round experience
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Although interviews are supposed to last an hour, both mine lasted about 45 min because we started a bit late. Great experience throughout the day. I stayed with a student the night before and after - got to go to this cool dinner on the 9th floor on Sunday. Great students. Interviews were also good as a whole - very casual, conversational. New Haven is nice, didn't seem dangerous at all, and I walked around in the early evening some.
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The interview at yale seemed to be a lot more in depth than the one other interview that i had. they really want to get to know you and i think that maybe the interview is weighted more heavily at yale than at other schools. BUT they are concerned that you have a chance to honestly represent yourself. so dont worry about giving them the wrong impression and not getting into the school.
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Great! Lovely! My interviewer said "I don't think this interview can help you. You can only go downhill from here." That kicked off the first interview and everything from then on was a blast! I really REALLY enjoyed my time here.
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I fell in love with Yale! My two interviews were overall good experiences. My first interview was very analytical and I was asked very personal questions in a cut and dry manner. The interviewer had not read my application and simply flipped through the papers to ask me random questions. My second interview was delightful! The interviewer was so familiar with my application he did not bring a hard copy. I was asked a series of typical questions and flip questions. Ex. What is your best/worst quality?
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I thoroughly enjoyed my yale interviewer. the interviewers seemed genuinely interested in getting to know me, and the whole day was relaxed, the students were friendly and full of useful info about living in new haven (as a grad student) spend time talking with the medical students--they seem genuinely happy and they are also very interesting/cool people to meet. this might give you a sense of the med student community.
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Extremely laid-back, non-stressed interview. Felt like a casual convo with someone you meet while waiting at a bus stop or something.
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One student and one faculty interviewer. Conversational.
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I was initially very nervous as this was my first interview, but my interviewers were very conversational and even helped me with some difficult questions.
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Despite logicistal issues, Yale is an amazing school. Their system is unique, and certainly one that appears to work. The independence students are given is great. The interviews I had, with a faculty member and a 4th year student, were entirely conversational, especially with the student-interviewer. It's entirely open-file, so they didn't ask much of anything relating to academic qualifications. The school is very much deserving of its reputation among the top med schools in the US.
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I had the early session, so we had a small group information session with a really nice Dean who went out of his way to answer all of our questions. Then we had two interviews each. My interviews were really relaxed. They wanted to make sure I knew about some of Yale's unique aspects, and wanted to just get to know me better. I truly enjoyed talking with them and felt like they were really interested in me as a person. After the interviews we had lunch with med students, and then a tour. We didn't get to see too much on the tour, but the med students spent a lot of time answering our questions and giving us a good feel for the school.
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I was wait-listed and told that I was in a position where in years past the person in my spot had always gotten in. As the summer wore on, I never got in. My calls were not returned by the Director of Admissions.
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I was absolutely shocked by how awful the organization was for the interview days. If you like to plan ahead, or know where you're supposed to be and when, you won't fit in here. The lack of organization in the Yale system holds true for the entire MSTP program. It's a miracle anything ever gets done! The tour was completely useless; all we saw was the library, no hospital, no dorm. The only redeeming factors here were the students. They were really great and very happy!
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The interviewers were very friendly, it was more of a chat than anything else.
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Wonderful experience, dir. silverman is going to be one of the best med school personel you'll meet in the interview experience. i like my interviewers, they were interesting and respectful. i loved representin' my state school in the west coast (with a "W") among all the Ivy league applicants. it was great!
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It felt more like a conversation than an interview-- laid back, smoothly flowing. I'm not sure how you're supposed to know whether or not you had a good interview-- the questions were all straightforward and just flowed smoothly.
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The first interview was nice. We talked for about 40 minutes in her office. For the second interview, the interviewer gave me a 1hr tour of the hospital, in addition to the 30 minute interview. It was really great.
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Yale was very impressive. The single most exemplary take-away from the interview was the faculty's commitment to collegiality with the students. Example - no office hours. If you ever want to speak to a physician or a professor, you simply drop in and start talking. On the downside, New Haven is not very exciting. It has a small town feel, but not necessarily with regard to the safety. I wouldn't recommend walking around town at night unless you have a Navy Seal team with you.
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This is a great school! Yale is definitely my first choice now.
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The interview day started early at 7:45am and we met in a group with the Director of Admissions who spoke about the school and answered our questions. We watched a video made by the medical students about the school followed by more questions/answers. There were two very relaxed, conversational interviews one with a faculty member and the second with an MD-PhD student. Lunch with the med students was great. They were all happy and enthusiastic. We took a tour of the medical school and saw the outside of the new building set to open soon.
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After this, Yale is my first choice. I don't even feel like going to my other interviews, though that would probably not be the wisest course of action.
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An amazingly laid back small (n=100) student body with an array of interests and backgrounds. I had a really great experience with the student interview; we talked a lot about the pro's and con's of medicine and patient interaction. My faculty interview was more run of the mill.
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Yale plans a good comprehensive day. You get to meet students, talk with faculty, and interview. I felt like they offer a good presentation of the school and are really just searching for students that will thrive in a less traditional atmosphere. It's a great for school for self directed learners
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Absolutely fantastic. My best one yet.
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Living in Boston, I was really concerned about New Haven, namely the safety and the cultural opportunities. I got to Yale a day early and explored, which I highly recommend doing. Spending a day wandering around the city and talking to folks was highly instructive. I also found that there are a lot of cultural opportunities, even in such a small town. Plus, both the medical and the regular campus at Yale take numerous safety measures. The interview day was instructive. We had a general introduction, 2 interviews (mine were a faculty and a student), and then a luncheon and tour. I definitely got the most out of talking to the students who were honest in their appraisal of the Yale System (ie: it's great for them, but doesn't work for everybody). I left thinking that Yale is my top choice.
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I had a GREAT day, yale really impressed me. i even liked new haven. do NOT apply to yale if you don't feel you can thrive in a self-motivated environment, because there are no grades or exams in the first two years. also, do NOT apply here if you don't want to do research, there's a thesis requirement. students seemed really cool and friendly. lots from top-tiered undergrad institutions. the day moved yale up to my top choice.
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I really enjoyed my interviews. Both my interviewers were very friendly and engaging. They mostly just asked more in depth questions from things I said on my applications. The lunch was good and the tour was nice, but very short. I was impressed with the Yale system and the amount of freetime the students said they had. It moved Yale to the top of my list.
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Definitely positive, loved it there. Their multicultural affairs office is very supportive and the yale system sounded pretty cool.
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Both my interviewers were researchers who spoke English as a second language, so while it was a relaxed conversation, I sometimes felt that they weren't really interested in discussing clinical medicine.
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It was a cool interview - new haven is yale. its nice cause there are other things that are going on there besides medicine. you are just a part of this massive university. lots of smart people.
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Overall the interview experience was very laid back. I had afternoon interviews. The day started at 10:45am with a rather lengthy talk/introduction with the director of admissions, then we watched an 8 minute video made by the Class of 2004 showing scenes of the school. Next we received detailed directions to our interview sites, then had lunch at Marigold's (nice student cafeteria!), and went on a short tour, and then I had my two consecutive interviews, both lasted about 40 minutes. Both interviewers were very nice and I think they made an effort to make it a relaxed interview. The day ended around 4:30pm.
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My interviews were in the morning, so I had to be at the school pretty early. An admissions person explained the day to us, and gave us very detailed directions about where to go to our interviews. We watched a short video prepared by the students, and then left to interview. One lasted about 35 minutes, the other ran over an hour (mostly because we were having a very good, interesting conversation). Then we had lunch with some of the students (good cafeteria!) and went on the tour. After that the people who had afternoon interviews went on those, but I was done for the day. I used the time to explore the campus - very cool! I felt like it was a cross between a US campus and Oxford or Cambridge. Overall, a very good day.
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Overall, it really was an enjoyable experience. Everyone went out of their way to make you feel welcome!
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Overall, very good. I got waitlisted and eventually withdrew from the waitlist but I think I could've been happy at Yale.
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Both my student and my faculty interviewers were really nice.
💬 Interview Process ▼
Length, number, and type of interviews
🕐
Length:
49 Minutes Average
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Number:
2.1 Interviews Average
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Interview Type (Interaction):
100% One-on-One
0% Group Interview
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File Type:
100% Open-File
0% Closed-File
💻
Interview Modality:
100% Virtual
0% In-Person
YSM-COMP interviews are an average of 49 minutes, with an average of 2.1 interviews. 100% of interviews are one-on-one, 0% are in-person, and 0% are closed-file.
What is one of the specific questions they asked you?
The most commonly asked interview questions at medical schools revolve around topics like ethical challenges, extracurricular activities, personal experiences, skills/traits of doctors, challenges in medical school, research experiences, reasons for pursuing medicine, and fit for the specific institution like Yale. Many respondents also mentioned being asked about their research, family background, volunteer experiences, and moments of happiness or sadness. Some interviews were in an MMI format with nondisclosure agreements, while others focused on traditional interview questions.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
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My research
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Discuss a time you faced an ethical challenge.
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Describe an ethical dilemma you faced
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What extracurricular activity/ volunteer work would you engage in if you go to Yale medical school?
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Tell us about so and so experience on your application
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What are 3 skills/traits that all doctors should possess?
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Why Yale?
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Describe your most challenging experience
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What do you do when you feel overwhelmed?
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Tell me about _____ experience.
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Tell about yourself
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What challenges do you think you will face in med school?
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What did you do in undergraduate?
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What classes have most affected you?
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What volunteer experience do you find most significant?
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Tell me about yourself.
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Interviewer 1 (basic science researcher): Tell me about your basic science research. Tell me about your clinical research. What do your parents do? Where do you see yourself in 15 years? Why Yale? Any Questions for me? Anything else you want to tell me?
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How did I get to [my undergrad] given my background.
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Let's go through your amcas application...ECs and background info.
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What would be your biggest challenge in coming to Yale?
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What do you want to talk about?
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What are the three most important things to go, they dont have to be on your application.
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Explain (points to AMCAS activity) and what you learned from it.
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Why is medical school right for you?
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Tell me about your family life.
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What should I tell the admissions committee about you?
-
Tell me about your family.
-
Tell me about your university. I've never heard of it (said in a most condescending manner).
-
How does your research apply to medicine or how would you translate it?
-
What was your proudest moment?
-
How does your research fit in with your medical vision?
-
Tell me about your research
-
Tell me about X activity that you listed on AMCAS.
-
What are you going to do to change the world?
-
Why medicine?
-
Explain your interest in [activity]
-
What do your parents do for a living?
-
Tell me about...(things from my application)
-
Tell me about your research.
-
Interviewers went through and asked about my activities and life.
-
Tell me about
-
Why medicine? Why Yale? Tell me about your research.
-
What is your dream life in 30 years?
-
What were your happiest and saddest moments?
-
Explain your research.
-
What does a doctor do?
-
Why are you switching careers?
-
What do you do to relax?
-
Name a moment in your life that was very happy.
-
Why medicine? Why Yale?
-
Tell me about (AMCAS activity)
-
Tell me about (amcas activity).
-
Explain your research to me.
-
Explain your research to me?
-
What has been your greatest challenge?
-
Tell me about your family, do you have siblings?
-
How do you feel that your ECs prepared you for medicine?
-
Why Yale? YOU WILL BE ASKED THIS, guaranteed!
-
Tell me about such and such extracurricular.
-
What do you think you know about this place?
-
Why medicine? what will you do if you never get into med school?
-
Why do you want to be a doctor?
-
Why Yale? What about the Yale system appeals to you?
-
Tell me about [experience mentioned in AMCAS]
-
What brought you here? Why Medicine? Why Yale?
-
"Have you competed in powerlifting?"
-
Tell me about your childhood in ----(hometown)?
-
Line-by-line questioning of the anecdotes and phrases in my personal statement
-
Discuss on current/past research
-
Tell me about yourself. Why medicine, why Yale
-
Tell me about your background
-
Why do you want to go into medicine?
-
Are you coping ok with interviewing while still in school?
-
Why Yale, how do you fit into the Yale system?
-
Describe your research experience (straight from app)
-
Tell me about this experience on your personal statement
-
Tell me about how you got to where you are today.
-
What was your favorite class in college?
-
Tell me about your ...
-
Explain all of your research experiences in detail.
-
If you were on an admissions committee, what would you look for in an applicant?
-
Tell me about yourself (your background, research, activities, etc., etc.) from begining to end and the events to brought you here today.
-
Faculty interviewer: research, where do you see yourself, what about the Yale system interests you, why medicine, why did you study what you did at college, etc.
-
What have you done since you graduated from college
-
Tell me more about your research
-
What was your moment of greatest esctasy in your life? Of greatest sadness?
-
See interesting/difficult questions above
-
Why do you think the Yale System is and why do you want to be a part of it?
-
Why are you interested in medicine?
-
Why yale - definately have a better answer besides "The Yale system, like, totally works for me!" think about it more. don't just go for the yale name, it really does not work for some , and it may work for others.
-
How will you fit into the Yale System?
-
Tell me about yourself including family background, high school and college experiences, and what you are doing now.
-
Tell me about... (research, ECs, anything from my app)
What was the most interesting question?
Students said most interesting question asked at Yale School of Medicine discussed a wide range of topics including personal experiences, future aspirations, ethical dilemmas, and societal issues. The interview format may have included an MMI (Multiple Mini Interview) setup, as some responses hinted at nondisclosure agreements.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
-
Tell me about a transition you made in your life.
-
They asked me if i ever came out to my parents ? (related to a secondary)
-
How were your clinical experiences abroad compared to your experiences here in terms of the healthcare systems and the outlooks?
-
What do you do when you are stressed out?
-
What difficulties do you foresee facing as a practicing physician
-
What do you do when you feel overwhelmed?
-
If in a fantasy world, you could anything you wanted to do for 24 hrs, what would you do?
-
What does it mean to be a doctor
-
Specific question about my research
-
See General Comments
-
Describe the perfect day in your life 15 years from now.
-
How did I get to [my undergrad] given my background.
-
What do you want to do in 5 years?
-
Take me through a perfect day in your life ten years from now.
-
What is your favorite color
-
Didnt get very interesting questions. Nothing about the healthcare system or ethics.
-
If you could change one thing about our society, what would it be?
-
What challenges did you face as a student group officer?
-
To discuss my interest in research and why I didn't apply to MD/PhD
-
Explain your experiences and how you decided on medicine.
-
What were the happiest and saddest moments of your life?
-
Do you lift weights?
-
What do you think about the social situation in Germany? (I'm living in Germany)
-
Why do you think we need sleep?
-
How did you find about your undergrad school coming from a foreign country?
-
What are you going to do to change the world?
-
Where do you see yourself in the future?
-
Name three current controversies in the field of medicine that you are interested in, and explain your stance and future considerations regarding the debate.
-
What would stop you from coming to yale?
-
Will you raise your children the same way your parents raised you.
-
What are my father's talents?
-
Who has made everything click in your life?
-
What are your thoughts on socialized medicine?
-
Why shouldn't healthcare be paid for by the government
-
What do you think of the research requirement?
-
Nothing really
-
How has science changed since Aristotle?
-
Flash forward to twenty years from now....Tell me what your day will be like.
-
Who helps physicians the most when treating patients ( I said nurses, he wanted the patient as the answer and then went into how you had to teach and educate eachother)
-
What did you say during your class speech?
-
None really, they were all pretty typical.
-
My interview was really unique. My interviewer told me that he had read my entire application from cover to cover, and then he invited me to talk about whatever I wanted. He told me that he wasn't going to ask me any questions, but rather let me decide what to talk about. He told me I had one hour to talk about whatever I wanted that wasn't already in my application file.
-
What does a doctor do? (The interviewer wanted me to describe all of the things that I thought good doctors did.)
-
What would you put on your epitaph?
-
Nothing out of the ordinary.
-
Start at the beginning and tell me how you got to this interview?
-
What do you do to de-stress?
-
I was asked a number of questions about my research, with the most interesting being: "So what is your hypothesis regarding the function of the protein you're studying" (I'm studying a protein that has an as yet undefined function in the CNS). With regards to the non-research questions, the most interesting was: Would you go back and attend (your college) again knowing what you know now?
-
Did you see any bears while you were in Maine?
-
What aspect of your career are you most disappointed with?
-
My first faculty interviewer asked me very interesting and very difficult questions. For example, "Knowing that failing in medicine can lead directly to the death of a patient, why would you choose to pursue medicine over another discipline, such as health policy or publich health (my other areas of interest)?"
-
What was my favorite movie. This led to a great discussion.
-
What would you do if you didn't get into any medical schools?
-
How to better serve underserved communities
-
What do you like about Yale? They are looking for your admiration of their "Yale Curriculum" thing.
-
Tell me about your trip to such and such place. (This question stemmed not from something on my application, but something I mentioned during the interview. It led an entire discussion on travel abroad.)
-
What do doctors do?
-
How would you fix healthcare
-
Nothing - all were related to my application (though my first interviewer really seemed to have taken the time to go through my application thoroughly and prepare interesting questions beforehand)
-
Standard qus
-
One of my interviewers, a psychiatrist, had two pages of notes about things I had written in my AMCAS and 2ndary. As soon as I sat down he explained the format of the interview, which had flexible time limits set for each set of questions. This was a bit intimidating at first, but his background and in-depth dissection of my personal statement led to an extremely interesting and insightful interview.
-
Standard issue. why medicine etc.
-
How will an engineering background benefit your study of medicine?
-
If there was one thing that I should think of when I think of you, what would it be?
-
Has anyone ever offered you steroids?
-
What two questions will the committee ask me and what should I tell them?
-
About my family
-
"In simple-man's terms, what is Hip-Hop?" This was an offshoot of my involvement a hip-hop artist.
-
Why is malaria prevalent in sub-Saharan Africa? (I had talked about malaria in my personal statement)
-
What do you think about national healthcare? (I've studied this and mentioned it in my essays)
-
There has been a change recently with patients reading up on the internet and coming to doctors wanting specific treatments that sometimes you may not feel fit the patient's needed treatment. How will you deal with this as a doctor?
-
How do your parents feel about you becoming a doctor?
-
Tell me the one thing about yourself that you want the Admissions Committee to know.
-
One interviewer asked me about my essay in a very interesting fashion, it was line-by-line. ie. you said, and I quote "..." please tell me about that.
-
What do you think of President Bush's lack of travel outside the country prior to being elected President?
-
What was your favorite class and why?
-
How will you change medicine? Note: Schools like Yale want to know how you will add to their list of distinguished alumni. Go to the bookstore and look at the banners of Yale's distinguished alums - that's what they want to see more of.
-
None
-
What would you do with a patient who did not listen to your recommendations (ie someone with respiratory problems who would not quit smoking)?
-
Nothing - questions were typical but always led to side conversations about me, my background, experiences, challenges, and successes. It was completely conversational; very laid back, very getting-to-know-you. My take is that the school genuinely wants to get to know you. The interviewers are there to figure out what kind of person you are so the admissions committee can decide whether you would be successful in Yale's unique program.
-
We only got through what I've done and why medicine.
-
What turned you on to medicine?
-
Could you live in New Haven? Have you heard about the dangers?
-
Descibe a situation in your life/event/circumstance that you are very proud of.
-
How do you think people who are not as involved or active as you view the world?
-
When I look in the mirror what do I see inside myself?
-
The questions were typical. They just looked over my application and asked about different activities
-
Do you have any recent experiences that seemed to have reaffirmed your choice of profession?
-
How would you feel if you had patients that repeatedly refused to comply with your directions?
-
How do you want to be remembered at the end of your life?
-
What was your biggest academic failure?
-
My faculty interviewer asked what I would do if for someone reason I could not go into medicine. My student interviewer asked what fears/anxieties I had about going to medical school. They both asked me why I wanted to go to Yale (even though I'd already addressed that issue in the essay for the secondary).
-
Nothing really.
How did you prepare for the interview?
Most applicants prepared for the interview by reading their application, utilizing Student Doctor Network (SDN) resources, reviewing the school's website, and practicing mock interviews. It was common for them to focus on understanding the unique aspects of the Yale system, researching current medical issues, and being prepared to discuss their application thoroughly during the interview.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
-
Read my application; SDN
-
Mock interviews and application review
-
Read sdn
-
From SDN, Yale website, 100 things about Yale booklet, student host
-
SDN, Yale website, asking my student host and his friends questions
-
SDN Interview Feedback, made collection of questions and answers, practiced, read all parts of Yale website
-
Reviewed my AMCAS and secondary
-
Studied school website.
-
Read up on the University and its system.
-
Met with alums from my undergrad school who go to Yale now. The usual - online, reading current events articles.
-
Yale website, SDN, AMCAS app
-
Sdn, school website,
-
SDN, school's website
-
Read up on the school, compiled questions and reasons why I wanted to go to Yale.
-
This website, my application
-
SDN
-
SDN, read website, talk to students
-
I read some of the SDN reviews.
-
Sdn, school website, mock interview.
-
Read website and secondary essay.
-
Read school website. Checked this database.
-
SDN, practiced questions with friends, reflected on the ''Yale system'' and how it was good for me.
-
24/7 Yale Viewbook, played around YSM website, SDN feedback, talking to the students there (I stayed with a MS1)
-
AMCAS, Yale website, secondary essays, articles, going over sample questions
-
Read Yale 24/7, website, some politics stuff, ethics stuff, etc
-
Read the website, Yale 24-7.
-
SDN, friend at medical school, read website, EtOH, sleep.
-
SDN, re-read application, read about Yale system
-
Read my Yale application, prepared question for Yale interviewees
-
Yale Med web site. Learn all you can about the Yale System, because it's the focal point of every interview.
-
Read the website. The interviewers want you to say ''I love the Yale system!''
-
By this time, I didn't have to, but I started prep with practicing monolog descriptions of each research experience I'd had and what was interesting about them. This helped tremendously, as I used at least two of these monologues at every interview.
-
Yale guide
-
AMCAS, Yale website
-
Showerd and shaved
-
Prepare my answer for: why do you want to be a doctor? I just answered naturally for everything else.
-
Read this website, personal statement, secondary application and AMCAS
-
Amcas; read sdn interview feedback; school website
-
Read SDN, reread AMCAS and secondary application, read online viewbook.
-
Read the Yale website and reviewed SDN.
-
SDN, mock interview, re-read AMCAS
-
Usual, SDN, amcas, etc
-
Looked over my AMCAS application, read Yale's online viewbook.
-
SDN, yale website, interview self help books
-
SDN, Yale Website
-
SDN, Yale's website
-
SDN, website
-
SDN, looked over secondary and Yale's website.
-
Practiced
-
I read student doctor.net... thats it.
-
Reading forums, reading Yale 24/7; Yale guide to Careers, etc.
-
Spoke to first year student and alumni, this website, read 24/7, read The Yale Guide to Careers in Medicine & the Health Professions
-
Read SDN, read up on current medical issues, mock interviews
-
Read my AMCAS and secondary applications. Read USnews.com's description of the school. Did some research on healthcare issues and current events.
-
Read my application, read SDN and interview feedback, practiced answering potential interview questions the morning of the interview.
-
Researched the school, listened to music
-
SDN feedback, read the website
-
Looked over yale admissions book, courses etc. read interview feedback at student doctor.
-
This website, Yale website, asking questions to Yale students during lunch
-
Read SDN feedback, Yale application, 24/7 from Yale Admissions office
-
Read website, read amcas
-
Read up on the curriculum, facilities, & research opportunities.
-
This site, yale materials
-
I looked over their website and read these interview reports.
-
Read their website, cnn.com
-
Studied Yale website, perused interview feedback, and reviewed my AMCAS and essays
-
Read my application, read Yale's website
-
Read interview feedback, talked to friends
-
Read 24/7, Secondaries, yale website, MSAR, mock interviews.
-
Reread AAMCAS, secondaries, this website.
-
I prepared by reading the curriculum information on the website and talking to Yale alumni. Based on these sources of information, I wrote down a list of further questions about Yale that I planned to ask my interviewers and tour guides. I also read over my own application and prepared myself to sew together a couple of years' worth of disparate experiences into a comprehensive story that explained my interest in medicine. However, I had assumed - based on the knowledge that Yale interviews are open-file - that my interviewer would be prepared to discuss my application. Unfortunately, one of my interviewers had "not had a chance" to open my file, and did not even know my name.
-
Read up on their new things, namely the new biomedical research building they are trying to build (and it has nothing to do with medical school education, by the way, unless if you are MSTP).
-
Yale website, SDN interview feedback, read over my essay and AMCAS application
-
Read their catalog, their website, my application.
-
Read over my AMCAS and secondary apps, this website, 24/7 website, talked to friends at the school
-
Read SDN, looked at the Yale website, read over my secondary
-
Sdn, 24/7 viewbook, yale website, read amcas and my yale app
-
SDN, yale 24/7 website, looked over amcas + 2ndary
-
SDN, this was number 6 so I was pretty much in a rhythm
-
Drank heavily the night before. Good thing my friends reminded me to go home. So glad I woke up on time.
-
Sdn, school web site.
-
SDN, read over my application, read over the Yale Curriculum
-
Read yale's 24/7 viewbook, application, interview feedback and tips
-
Prospectus, SDN, their website, other students
-
Reviewed Application
-
Read interview feedback surveys, read school website
-
Practicing, SDN, health care convos w/ friends, Yale 24-7 booklet.
-
Reviewed my app, looked stuff up on the website.
-
StudentDoctor network, talking to current students, read personal essay and supplementary essays, MSAR 2004-05
-
Reviewed my application, read the Yale 24/7 online brochure, practiced being interviewed.
-
Read about Yale system
-
Read over the Yale website, read interview feedback
-
Re-read my application
-
Read my apps, Yale website (esp the 24/6 viewbook), talked to students
-
Read everything on the website, read the big blue book they sent you. get to know the reason for the Yale System and why it wuld be good for you. remember you should be mature, intelligent, and independent. now tell them, show them that you are.
-
I read interview feedback, the YSM website, and my application materials.
-
Interview feedback, read my application, read about the school.
-
Read the viewbook and my application.
-
Re-read 24/7 viewbook and this website.
-
Read the online informational viewbook. Looked over interview feedback on this website.
-
Read brochure, AMCAS, secondary, and interview feedback. Talked to friends who've gone through this process.
-
Read interview feedback
-
Read my personal statement and school website
-
Deep, cleansing breaths. And thoroughly reading the Yale website and talking with YSM students beforehand.
-
Read over their website TONS (they have a unique curriculum and 'yale system' you should know thoroughly before interviewing), read over my app/essays
-
Read admissions viewbook online, read SDN feedback, reviewed my application
-
Read these feedback, about the "Yale system", AMCAS, etc.
-
Looked over the website
-
I'm on autopilot now.
-
Read my app and some facts about yale
-
24-7 Viewbook, AAMCAS app, and secondary app
-
Looked over my application (AMCAS and secondary), read interview feedback, read over my research notes, and thought of answers to commonly asked questions.
-
Read the materials they sent me (24/7), SDN feedback
-
The Yale viewbook is an awesome way to get to know the Yale System. I also reread my secondary.
-
I read interviewfeedback.com and looked at Yale's website to make sure I was familiar with the Yale system. I also reread my AMCAS and Yale secondary essays.
-
Just brought my confidence.
What was the most difficult question?
Students said most difficult question asked at Yale School of Medicine discussed a wide range of topics including behavioral scenarios, personal weaknesses, research interests, challenges in medicine, and future career aspirations. While some mentioned specific questions like bioengineering research and weaknesses, others highlighted the importance of elaborating on their application and fit for the program, with a few instances of unexpected or challenging queries related to personal experiences and ethical dilemmas.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
-
I think the scenario questions need some thought (they might have a list of questions that they could select)
-
Tell me about a time someone came to you with a problem that didn't seem like a big deal
-
I happen to interview with a psychiatrist, so questions about my brother's depression were a bit difficult to answer.
-
What are some of the most interesting Bioengineering research you've come across recently? (related to my major and research)
-
What are 3 of your weaknesses?
-
What do you do when you feel overwhelmed?
-
Where do you see the biotech industry going?
-
Why shouldn't we accept you?
-
What does it mean to be a doctor
-
What challenges do you think you will face as a physician?
-
See General Comments
-
No difficult questions really, it was very relaxed.
-
How did I get to [my undergrad] given my background.
-
How to go about setting up an experiment related to my research.
-
When you look in the mirror, what do you like and not like about yourself.
-
What is the ONE important lesson you have learned from all your clinical experiences?
-
Explain your research to me like I was a molecular biologist, (it was Mol Bio research)
-
What do you think will be your biggest challenge in becoming a doctor?
-
None difficult. Most questions were directed at elaborating the application. Know how to explain your research elegantly and succintly.
-
None really
-
What is your weakness? I replied that it was time management with the good number of things I did, and then I was told, ''That is a nice politically, correct answer, but what is your real weakness?'' Also, what other schools did you apply to? Also, why didn't you stay with a student host?
-
If there were one reason for us to not accept you, what would it be? (Damn, what a hard question.)
-
Why did you select disadvantaged status?
-
How would you apply your current (basic science) research to medicine?
-
What is the greatest challenge you have faced?
-
What would you do if you medical school didn't work out?
-
None-just the standard questions.
-
How has all your activities prepared you for a career in medicine?
-
What is the greatest impact you plan on having in the medical field? how would you go about doing this?
-
Nothing particularly difficult.
-
When did you know you wanted to do medicine? Why did you decide to do medicine?
-
You didn't seem very involved in this activity, why did you put it on your application?
-
None were too difficult
-
N/A
-
What challenges do we face over the next 30 years in terms of health care policy?
-
Where else are you applying? (named and asked about specific schools)
-
Are you sure you want to leave California for the East Coast?
-
Nothing really
-
Predict how medicine will change in 30 years.
-
If Yale didn't accept you, why do you think that would be?
-
Tell me how you would fix the health care system.
-
What are several medical discoveries that you believe have revolutionized medicine today? What are their limits?
-
None really.
-
How are your siblings dealing with the recent death in your family?
-
Why should we pick you?
-
Nothing objectively difficult at all. The only thing I thought was slightly tough was making a convincing argument as to why I'm a good fit for Yale given that they have a focus on research, and I haven't done any.
-
None were too bad. They will ask you why you want to go to Yale.
-
What do you think about the thesis requirement?
-
Where do you see yourself in ten years?
-
Explain your research to me.
-
None, really.
-
If you could do your undergrad experience again, what would you do differently.
-
See above.
-
None. They were all questions about my life.
-
Do you think that the clinical experience you've had has adequately prepared you for being a doctor? (He never seemed to believe me.)
-
I can't remember anything really difficult! They just want you to elaborate on your file.
-
None really- pretty conversational
-
"So, tell me about yourself," by an interviewer who had not read my application and was generally unprepared for the interview.
-
If you got into Harvard or Johns Hopkins, will you come to Yale? My answer is "no", because I didn't want to lie, and the interviewer seemed a little pissed but still tried to be nice and accommodating.
-
On of your recommenders said this about you - why do you think she said that?
-
What is the point of medical research?
-
Nothing particularly difficult
-
See above
-
Tell me about yourself...that question is so open ended
-
What challenges do you think that you will face as a physician personally? What challenges do you forsee with medicine in general?
-
You've accomplished many things in your undergraduate career. What do you feel is your weakness?
-
Did not try to make questions difficult. it was more making coversation.
-
Nothing - mostly all basic stuff directly from my application.
-
Hmmmm, by this time i had all the kinks worked out b/c i had one previous interview.
-
How much can you lift IN KILOGRAMS?
-
What would you want to be put on your epitaph when you die?
-
One interviewer went line-by-line through my personal statement asking for background info/more context for some of my anecdotes
-
"What something that prevents US Health Care from delivering optimally for underserved communities?" Wasn't out of left field or anything, also somewhat crafted from my application.
-
What is one thing you are proud of and one thing you are not proud of, and why?
-
Technology has made it possible to perform a wide array of medical procedures. Would you be willing to go to all lengths for your patients? (Specifically, would you help a pregnant patient change the sex of her child?)
-
What do you think about the Yale system?
-
Did you consider doing thesis work as an undergraduate? Why not?
-
None were really difficult
-
None
-
Nothing in particular, maybe why you would like to come to New Haven.
-
I wasn't asked any particularly difficult question.
-
No difficult questions.
-
What will you do if medicine doesn't work out?
-
What can YOU contribute to Yale?
-
Nothing really difficult.
-
Again, nothing, because the conversation just flowed rather easily and was based on my applications.
-
Almost no questions asked
-
Give me a selfish reason why you want to pursue medicine.
-
So, why would Yale not take you?
-
What would I write on my epitath?
-
What's your unique factor that means we should take you over other applicants?
-
Tell me about your self...that question is so open ended it sucks
-
What if you fail?
-
Describe the significance of your research using layman's terms. What else do you know about medicine besides what you know from volunteer work?
-
What do you think are the weakest aspects of your application?
-
List some ways that you will not fit into the Yale System.
-
Nothing really. In general, it was a very laid back interview.
-
I didn't encounter anything I hadn't already prepared for. Yale was my 10th interview of 12.
What impressed you positively?
Applicants were overwhelmingly impressed by the positive and enthusiastic atmosphere at Yale, noting the happiness and friendliness of the students and faculty, the exceptional facilities including the anatomy labs, and the supportive and flexible educational environment. They also highlighted the unique Yale System, the opportunities for research and interdisciplinary studies, and the strong sense of community and cooperation among students.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
-
I think their interviews are more objective because of the sandwich structure (free format - behavioral question - ending)
-
I thought my interviewers were very kind and genuine people who worked hard to set the tone of conversations instead of evaluations
-
The interviewers were incredibly engaged, interesting, and informative; we had an amazing conversation
-
Everything about Yale is impressive. The financial aid package is particularly jaw-dropping
-
The happiness of the school environment really, the intense resources available for research, the association with an amazing university, the fact that it actually has one of the biggest combined hospital systems in the country (the total Yale-New Haven hospital system), the student hosting was a great experience (got to talk to a lot of students that way), the down time during the interview process allowed us to talk to the admissions dean and get a better idea of the school in general.
-
Opportunities/flexibility for students, research focus, laid back nature of students due to Yale system, everything
-
Friendliness of the staff, enthusiasm of the students
-
Friendliness of students and faculty members
-
The faculty, students, and facilities.
-
How happy everyone is. Director of Admissions Mr. Silverman is one of the most garrulous and friendliest people I have ever met.
-
Very friendly students, faculty, diverse student body, great pre-clinical curriculum
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Incredible opportunities available, anatomy lab, overall atmosphere, very friendly, great system, tour guide was very helpful, really made you feel at home
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Yale students seem incredibly happy; the anatomy lab is amazing
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The interviewers, the History of Medicine Library!
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New Haven seems better than its reputation. You can take any classes at Yale while enrolled at the medical school, and you can take a tuition free 5th year.
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Everyone at Yale is so proud to be a Yalie. They all love it.
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The facilities are amazing...the library is so gorgeous! the students seem relaxed because of the no grade system. they gave you a voucher for lunch so you can get a lot of food. there was food all day at the admissions lounge too (coffee, pastries, fruits, yogurt, cereal bars)
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Students enthusiasm for their school, cohesiveness of student body, flexibility of schedule
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The students and the buildings. The tour was very good.
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The school is very student-centric - faculty are very available and the administration is very responsive to student concerns.
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The teaching facilities, particularly the anatomy lab, are truly outstanding. Location right next to undergrad is nice. The library and hospital complex are all conveniently situated and the former is very, very nice. The Yale System is amazing, and really encourages students to cooperate and do research. Admissions staff was very friendly supportive. New Haven was not as bad as I had been lead to believe.
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Everything. Love love love the school!
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How cohesive the faculty and students were as a group. There seems to be a mutual respect and ease between everyone.
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How incredibly friendly and cohesive the first year class was. The Analyn Center...the best anatomy facility I've seen (though Vandy's wasn't finished when I interviewed..). Dean Silverman is a very warm and funny guy who LOVES to talk and already knows so much about you!
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Facilities, surgical anatomy lab, financial aid, enthusiastic students
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The school is impressive. Gorgeous buildings, decent weather. The students I talked with were very nice, although they were not especially enthusiastic. I also really loved the Yale System. The anatomy lab is pretty awesome too.
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The facilities, the student body, the kindess of the faculty, the interesting lectures.
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The relaxed atmosphere of the visit. The students loved the school, were easy to get along with, and not overly stressed.
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The Yale System is great, if you think you can handle the freedom
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The campus was beautiful, the people, everything really...I loved it there
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Awesome facilities! The Anlyan Center has the sweetest anatomy labs in the country. The Amistad Research Building just opened up (we toured it), and it's dedicated to the Yale Stem Cell Program and other state-of-the-art interdisciplinary research. Not to mention the school just bought an entire pharmaceutical complex (Yale West Campus, is what they're calling it).
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The first interviewer was the type of personality I would like to have as a doctor. The students were nice, and Director Silverman seemed approachable.
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Unbelievable amount of money that the university is investing in the school of medicine. YSM is in the middle of a $1 billion expansion project. The anatomy labs are the best in the country. The 75-year-old curriculum of P/F and a scholarly thesis is being mimicked by just about every other top medical school in the country now. The fact that you can easily add on a joint degree with so little red tape, or have the freedom and flexibility to enroll in any course in any school of the university free of charge is amazing. The culture and history at Yale are very, very rich. The historical library and the handsome granite dome of Sterling Hall immediately give off this impression. The students are by far the most satisfied and content I've met on the interview trail. Their residency match list is spectacular, with huge percentages of the class continuing at Harvard, UCSF, or Johns Hopkins PGY programs.
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The buildings were beautiful the people in the admissions office were nice
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Very nice administrators. Very relaxed students. Awsome labs.
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Liked the students I interacted with.
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The students were kind, well-rounded, and intelligent. Plus, the anatomy lab was lovely!
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The students are tremendously enthusiastic. Their zeal for Yale is infectious. Also, Yale's program is very self-directed, so the students seem to engage a full array of diverse interests. This all apparently comes at no cost to their educational experience given that their match list is ridiculous (ask for, they'll gladly give it).
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Student happiness, satisfaction.
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Facilities, friendly environment, Dean Silverman was kinda cool,
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All faculty, including Phd, are required to teach; the director of admissions was really down to earth and quite informative; lots of opportunities to apply yourself as a med student in other capacities, ie. international.
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Everyone seemed happy to be there.
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I liked New Haven much more than I thought I would. Also the anatomy labs were great.
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The suits of the other applicants :)
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The brand new anatomy labs
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The fact that they tried to alleviate any stress as much as possible. Also, every staff/faculty member and all the students were so happy to be there.
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Everybody was nice and very helpful. Also, the lack of weekly quizes and a grading system, all of which lead to a less stressful and noncompetitive environment.
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Facilities and New Haven in general
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The lack of rankings among students to facilitate cooperative learning among the students, and the overall happiness of the current students.
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School is pretty, has history
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The students are amazingly happy. Also, the anatomy lab is unbelievable. Hospitals / facilities are very concentrated. New Haven wasn't as bad as I was expecting.
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Facilities are incredible, students and factuly are very happy/collegial.
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Great facilities
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Everything... complete lack of competitiveness (but people still work really hard b/c they want to), anatomy and histology labs (computerized, no need for microscopes in first year), great board scores and residency matching, New Haven's diversity, admissions committee's caring, clinical experience from day 1, flexibility in schedule
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Cultural surroundings, architecture of campus, friendly group of people.
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Anatomy lab
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Everything, the students are wonderful, the interviewer REALLY know your file and it is an incredible experience- very personal. The research opportunities are super.
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Absolutely everything. I enjoyed my interviews and listening to my interviewers' respective views on Yale and the profession of medicine. My student hosts were friendly and informative and interacted well with each other.
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Everything!
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How happy the students were b/c of the Yale System. I also really liked their anatomy lab; it doesn't smell and they have what they call "surgical anatomy." Each anatomy lesson is based on a surgical procedure; it's really cool. I also liked that they get Jewish Holidays off.
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Everyone I talked to seemed genuinely enthusiastic about the school and its programs, and coming from a state school with a bunch of people from Harvard there, I was pretty nervous, but everyone was very friendly and welcoming.
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How amazing the school is--the great facilities, supportive faculty, and just an overall wonderful place to live. I even liked New Haven.
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Dr. Silverman is hilarious. Since it was halloween, he wore a stripey witch's hat with fake orange hair coming out of it on and off throughout the day. Both of my interviewers were very friendly. Students seemed laid back and happy to be there. I love the Yale System: I think it's a great curriculum for me: very self-directed and respectful. Anatomy lab runs from Sept to Feb and corresponds with what you're learning in class, plus the individual labs are case based, so for example you learn about the lung while discussing a patient with a pneumothorax.
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Facilities are very nice particularly anatomy labs. Students are very happy it seems. The interviews were not very stressful. Everyone is very friendly.
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I loved the students I met! Most were first year and second year students, but they all seemed very involved both in their classes and in their extracurriculars. They stressed that faculty are very responsive to student feedback.
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The facilities and the happiness of the students are the two most impressive facets of the Yale interview process. Their new lecture hall building, complete with state-of-the-art anatomy labs are extremely exciting as well.
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Students are unusually happy. They do great in residency match. Hospital is close to undergrad campus so there's great access to dual degree opportunities. Brand new lecture halls, research towers, anatomy labs, ect.
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New Haven seems like an ok place to live. I thought it would be smaller, more boring. I could live there.
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Amazing facilities, great student host
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Yale has A LOT of money. Their buildings and facilities are quite nice. My first faculty interview was probably the most interesting and nicest interview I had. If he had been the only person I met, Yale would have been my top choice.
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Everything, the facilities are great but the students are incredible. They are bright and interesting to talk to.
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The students seemed very happy and laid-back. The anatomy labs are first rate and brand new. The trust that the faculty puts in the students to do the work is impressive. They are very proud of the thesis requirement and are committed to empowering the students to meet their own expectations, however high they may be.
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The students are really happy and tight, the campus is pretty and the med school building is nice, the student dorm is really nice (I'd be willing to overlook the unisex bathrooms), the flexible curriculum!!! The library and anatomy labs are also amazing--I couldn't even tell I was in the anatomy lab because they have special cadaver covers that suck the air from the room, keeping it odor free. The school also integrates technology quite well; there were laptops above the cadavers for student use! I also liked that students have a lot of afternoon time free during the week.
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I love Yale! On tours, all medical students tell you the are happy and not stressed-out by competition, but this is really true at Yale. The Yale System is incredible and the students are really diverse, intellectually curious, and committed to being excellent doctors.
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They know almost everything in your file by heart. They took time to actually find out who I was!
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How happy the students were and how good it was to be a medical student at Yale.
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I was impressed and overwhelmed by the obvious wealth of the medical school and by the resulting technological sophistication of the tools and facilities. Also, my first interviewer, a 4th year student on the admissions committee, was awesome - well-rounded, articulate, curious, warm, encouraging, and just generally exciting to talk to.
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Absolutely nothing besides the name "Yale".
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I was extremely impressed with Yale. The Yale System is amazing - it really gives students the opportunity to pursue other interests and get involved during med school. The people at Yale seem extremely committed to service and the community. They have endless opportunities to get involved and put your skills to use. The students seem very happy - the Yale System seems to foster a very noncompetitive environment. There are tons of opportunities for research and international experiences. The thesis requirement seems rather flexible, you can do basic science or clinical research. The tuition free 5th yr is awesome - you can get funded to do a variety of different things.
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The students were not so outgoing, but they were very helpful. One of the students who led the tour gave me a ride to the shuttle station.
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Great new building, anatomy lab. I also like the curriculum a lot. It gives you a lot of freedom to follow whatever interests you.
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The students seem very happy and the Yale community seems to have a lot to offer (which kind of makes up for the location).
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The anatomy labs! club med party the night before (students throw one every thrusday), how close students were to faculty, how positively everyone spoke of the school, even random students i ran into on campus, how nice the dorms are, how excited/appreciative everyone was to be there
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The students were hella cool and really enjoyed being there.
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The facilities are amazing. The new labs and everything are the nicest I have seen. It is Yale, so pretty much everyone is well-known in their field. The students seem really happy, the administration is really responsive to students. I like the level of interaction with the rest of the school- other grad programs and undergrad as well.
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Nice new facility (anatomy lab). They kept the financial aid session short and sweet.
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The atmosphere is truly laid back. The students are doing incredible things and have a huge amount of freedom in how they spend their time.
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Where to begin? Yale has an amazing undergraduate campus, "Old Yale". The med school is very nice, brand new anatomy lab w/ computers. Awesome set of 1st year students - there is a strong, palpable sense of fellowship among the students, and the Yale System fosters this amazing non-competitive environment. Also, the admissions staff is very pleasant and helpful.
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Everything...most of all the faculty and admissions staff. you can tell that yale is very concerned with their students. the director of admissions spends much time with the interviewees even though i know that he probably has a lot of other work to do. we were allowed to stay in the waiting area whenever he had some down time. since many of us had different schedules there were students hanging around in their office practically all day. new haven has history and what's all this that i hear about it being dangerous?? at least i didnt get any catcalls or lascivious stares while i was walking back to my hotel. anyway, what what i was saying is that yale is great for students. they listen to you, support you, and give you real opportunities.
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Everything. The kids has a keg in the hall when I was there. Everyone was incredibly nice. The library rocked. The students LOVED to be there. This is the ultimate low stress school and ROCKS with placing people in residencies like other top 10 schools. This place has some sweet combined degree programs and Yale Law combo takes the cake.
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The students were friendly and the staff was very welcoming. The environment was a very relaxed comfortable environment. The students were compromised of an ecclectic mix.
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The school of medicine has a lot of history, small, close-knit community of students and very involved faculty. very positive atmosphere. also, the anatomy labs hardly smell!
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Yale's relaxed atmosphere. Students appeared to be genuinely having FUN. Faculty seemed mighty down-to-earth and respectful of students! Flexibility is great.
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Everything. I really really fell in love with the school.
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The students' genuinely friendly attitude. They all seemed to have very good rapport with one another and they were eager to talk about their experiences at Yale.
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The interview day was extremely well-organized. Dean Silverman himself gave introductory remarks and even showed us a video prepared by medical students about Yale. Everyone I met at the admissions office was extremely eager to help and to make sure I felt comfortable. It was a good experience. Yale also has a great campus with excellent new facilities.
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Autonomy students have; Yale-at-large means you can take any class at Yale and don't have to pay for it; 5th year option (for research or a dual degree), the "grading" scheme
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I really like the effort they put into making you aware of what kind of school they were and trying to answer all of your questions.
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New Haven is MUCH nicer than I expected it to be, plenty of night life, and if that's not enough for you, NYC is just a short train ride away.
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Yale System allows remarkable flexibility
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Love the undergrad campus and gym (which med students have access to) love the yale system and the new facility coming up.
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The students were very enthusted about the school; the faculty was very sympathetic and warm; the new med school building looks awesome.
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The new facilities and the attitude students had towards the school.
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The interviewers were very personable, down-to-earth, realistic, and not at all pompous. The facilities are also very nice, as is the medical center. The student tour was the best I've seen so far, because the student's were interested in engaging the applicants and generating and answering good, important questions (more than just, Where do you guys live? and What do you like the least about Yale?)
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My first interviewer was especially friendly and enthusiastic about the school and my educational goals. In fact everyone (faculty, students, administrators) was exceptionally friendly.
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The new facilities to open next year!!
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The number one thing is the enthusiasm of the student body. They honestly, genuinely *love* Yale. The curriculum is awesome, but the students were what closed the deal for me.
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The students.
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The school seems to be a very encouraging academic and social environment
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The students are incredibly laid back. They are building fantastic research and learning facilities. OPTIONAL EXAMS!! Need I say more? Really nice dorms, great food, awesome faculty. I really loved this school
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The enthusiasm the students had for the curriculum and for the other students (the words "spark" and "electricity" came up when talking about classmates). Also, the Yale System is really fascinating and exciting.
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Uh, it's YALE! the facilities were great, the campus is beautiful, the curriculum is really amazing, diverse student body.
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The friendliness of everyone, including the director of admissions. Also the very detailed directions to the interviews!
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How laidback everyone was and how all the students seemed to love it there. It definitely won me over, besides the whole Yale System.
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The Yale System with such emphasis on taking responsibility for your own learning and the combination of lectures and problem based learning.
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The university itself. its a juggarnaut, but a friendly one.
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The facilities were really nice, especially the new anaomy lab
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Friendly!
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Students are very friendly, very very relaxed, and seem proud of their school as a place you can learn, but also have fun. Faculty seems quite proud of the Yale System. Description of new building that will be ready within 6 months--it will be huge and high tech.
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The atmosphere among the students. They seemed very friendly, happy, and proud of their school.
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The amazing organization...they gave really detailed directions on how to get to your interviews from the admissions office and kept track of you if an interview went long.
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The students there were so happy and relaxed. It was the first med school I visited and it the stress level totally wasn't what I expected at all.
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Kindness of interviewers.
What impressed you negatively?
Applicants were most commonly concerned about the safety and environment of New Haven, expressing discomfort with certain areas of the town and feeling unsafe at times. They also noted disorganization in the interview process, limited exposure to hospital facilities during tours, and a lack of personal touch from the school outside the admissions office. Suggestions included providing better guidance on safety in the area, improving organization during interviews, and enhancing the personal touch and warmth of interactions beyond the admissions office.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
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Nothing
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Too much downtime - i had so much free time that i went back to my dorm and took a nap
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Absolutely nothing! I might sound like I am being paid by the school to say these things but trust me this place is awesome!
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As a big city person, I'm still ambivalent about New Haven.
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They tried selling us New Haven, but it still seems meh.
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Nothing.
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New Haven's not the ideal town/city.
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Location: New Haven is a little scary.
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Weather, environment felt a bit unsafe, some horror stories about that told by some helpful passerbys.
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A majority of first year students live in dorms above the admissions office
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Overall, satisfied.
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I had to take a shuttle to an outlying hospital for one of my interviews, and they were scheduled so close together that it was a physical impossibility to be on time. As a result I missed 90% of the tour (the admission office warned my interviewers beforehand though).
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Nothing :)
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Its cold in the winter.
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The faculty member that interviewed me was a little awkward.
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Food is expensive.
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Even though there are many housing options, many are dorms. New Haven is expensive.
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Nothing...well, perhaps the price of food in the school cafeteria. But there are so many little booths outside with foods like pho, curry, etc. I don't think I'll complain if I go there.
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The cost of food and drinks around the undergrad campus.
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The town of New Haven...it's not exactly the most happenin' place and I've been warned to stay away from certain areas of N.H.
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The day was really haphazard. DIdnt get a financial aid talk. Got a lame tour, but students who werent very enthusiastic. My first interview, i got there, and his secretary said the admissions office didnt inform him about the interview, so i had to go back to office. I expected a little more from them. `
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The difficulty of transportation to New Haven. The lack of cultural life in New Haven.
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The second one was a little arrogant, but things turned out alright. Too many people for the admissions office to handle in one day; well, at least they accommodated the large number of requests by applicants to have an interview on Presidents Day; I can't blame them for that.
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It was BITTER cold. I mean sub-zero wind chill cold. I was a little disappointed by the fact that the tour did not really take us around the inside of Y-NH Hospital.
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One of my interviewers seemed disgusted that I went to a public university. I could smell the old money on some of the students.
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New Haven. The girl I was staying with gave me a map of the area and crossed off about 1/2 of it saying they were ''bad'' areas and dangerous for someone wearing a suit to walk in. I was accosted by two beggars on the short walk back to her appartment, and unlike NYC, there are not so many people around that one feels safe everywhere. Also, everyone made a big deal about a sandwitch shop where students like to go during the evening. It was a SANDWITCH shop!
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Both of my interviewers couldn't understand life w/o things being handed to you. Could not identify with my work in Asia working in high poverty areas as it was very clear they thought they were born to be at Yale...
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I had a morning interview, so the day went well for me on the whole, but the afternoon was a bit disorganized (ie we had to remind the admissions director to set us up with a fin aid talk so we could leave). But the admissions staff was really friendly.
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Nothing: i liked the school a lot.
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Nothing really,
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Like another student noted in one of the feedbacks below, most of the students didnt have it hard in life; also, we didn't get to talk to many students, and the tour was rushed.
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Everything else, weather, facilities, faculty
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New haven is a slow town
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Everything was positive :)
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I just want to get accepted into med school!! In my situation, I don't have the luxury to be too picky.
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The old average age of incoming first years (25 i think)
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Being somewhat psychoanalyzed during one of my interviews.
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Most of the interview. One of the interviewers was a pompous a*%. The student that gave the tour said you don't have to work very hard as no one is ranked against others. Students at lunch were all nice. Was not as impressed as I thought given its ranking.
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Not much. City isn't huge, but it's not desperately lagging.
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Not the best neighborhood
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Nothing, although the thesis requirement and the amount of self-direction might be a bit scary
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Really COLD.
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New Haven. Part of it was pretty nice, but when I went out at night to look at the area around the medical school I swear I was about to be mugged on several occasions. I wouldn't recommend for those who don't want to walk around at night with a crowbar under their jackets.
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About half the first year class lives in a dorm that also houses the admissions office and many classrooms-other than that nothing
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The weather gets a little too cold for my taste
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I really don't like New Haven Airport, and traveling to New Haven is really long and difficult. The bathrooms in the dorms are CO-ed. The weather is cold and gloomy. Yale is the only attraction in New Haven; there is nothing else there.
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Nothing at all. I loved Yale.
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New Haven. And the research requirement is more substantial than I realized, but still certainly wouldn't be a dealbreaker.
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Not too much. I like New Haven, not everyone will.
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Only my worry that I won't get in!
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I would say the cliche "New Haven", but it's really not as bad as everyone makes it out to be. Sure, it's not ideal, but with so many shops downtown, it's not unbearable. There's quite little to comment upon in terms of negative impressions with the exception that they interview around 800 students and accept 200, so it leaves you quite worried about gaining an acceptance offer. One true negative impression about the interview process is that they do not show you the inside of the hospital facilities, something that, although I was prepared to not be shown given the feedback here, was still disappointing.
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Dorm living isn't my favorite. Have to walk a couple blocks to get to stores and undergrad.
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The students. Some of them were very nice and very motivated. However, during lunch, I sat next to an obnoxious md-phd student. That annoyed me. Snobbiness was in the air. During the student-led tour, the students gave me a horrible impression of the "Yale" curriculum. Mostly, they emphasized how easy it was. The school likes to point out that their curriculum is for really motivated students, but I did not get this from the students. It seems like it's for really lazy students, in fact. Also, no hard numbers were given for their board scores. I'm not saying all students are bad there, I think about half are great, but I think about half are not very motivated. I was left thinking, who let them in to med school??? Also, one student said the required thesis is "nothing to worry about." They seemed to minimize everything about their program. To summarize, their students basically told me that Yale is easy. Not exactly a good selling point. I did really enjoy talkint to the director of admission. He is fantastic. I don't think Yale has a bad program, but they certainly need to get their students to give the proper impression of it.
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The tour guides were a little over the top. only got to meet first year students who didn't seem to have much perspective.
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Quite a few things, unfortunately. First, the admissions office seemed disorganized. Second, many of the other interviewees were from Ivy League schools, which isn't nescessarily a bad thing. However, they were especially pretentious. I had a similar feeling about the students, who seems unfriendly and disinterested in their academic work. Finally, my second faculty interview had no clue what he was doing; he was new to the interviewing thing and really hadn't looked over my file well.
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It was snowing.
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New Haven isn't the safest city...other than that, nothing! !
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The Yale campus vs New Haven (I dont know if Yale helps the community as much as they say they do)
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Dean Silverman was very kind and personable and endearing, but I just didn't feel much personal touch outside the Office of Admissions. There was something cold about the school, something lacking in the way of character and personality. Also, I stayed with some students of the Public Health school, and they had a very negative impression of the medical students. It seemed that there was a slightly contentious relationship between the med students and students in other programs. Additionally, one of my interviewers was very passive-aggressive and unprofessional, and she made several comments about my family background that I found cutting and personally offensive. She showed up late to the interview, reported that she had been too busy to read my file, yawned repeatedly while I was talking and answering her questions, took a phonecall during the interview, and related everything I said back to her own life. She also had a very patronizing, holier-than-thou attitude, and I felt that I was on the defensive during the entire encounter. She seemed to be very interested in any problems with my rather large family and probed hard for negative issues. After telling her that my family had adopted children from Russia, she told me disdainfully that she thought the reason affluent white American families adopted from Russia was that they "wanted little white babies who looked just like themselves because they are afraid of having biracial families." She herself, she said, was adopting from Korea. She looked at a picture of my siblings, and when I gave her a questioning look about the way in which she scrutinized it, she told me she was looking for any signs/symptoms of disease or syndromes. She added that she thought it was so funny that people wanted Eastern European babies so much when they were so much more likely than Asian babies to have congenital defects and other health issues. In my opinion (and, of course, keep in mind that I am now biased by the surprise, confusion and hurt I felt at her hands), she continued the interview in a self-congratulatory tone, clearly feeling herself to exist on a higher, more enlightened plane than my backwards, bumpkin family and myself. I felt like from the beginning of the interview she put me in the box of a WASPY, cheesy, simple-minded girl who, although very nice, was just not Yale caliber. Did I mention that she had not read my application and was completely unprepared for the interview?
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The location, the arrogance, and the inadequate pre-clinical and clinical trainings I heard about. The interviewers were not very sincere.
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New Haven is kind of hard to get to. I flew into Hartford and took the shuttle there, and everyone said that was the best way to go, but it wasn't terribly convenient.
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Not much
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New haven is very small, yale undergrads are slightly obnoxious, the cafe is expensive
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The facilities were ok, but not amazing.
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Not much. My chances of getting in? The dorm isn't great, but then again I never liked dorm living.
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Frigid weather outside.
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A little ghetto compared to other cities in the northeast but that also offers opportunity for community outreach.
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We didn't get to tour the hospital at all - as far as I got was the cafeteria. Also, I had to wait a bit for my interviewers to see me, but nothing too bad.
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Nothing. Honestly, I came here not expecting much and ended up thinking how IMPRESSED I was with Yale. I really LOVED it here. The only regret I have is there is not more PBL.
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New Haven is a descent size, yet apparently crime is high (one of my interviewers even confirmed it).
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3rd and 4th years sometimes do rotations in other small-towns around the state
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New Haven is not the metropolis that I seek.
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My faculty interviewer seemed a little removed.
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Nothing really. Everything was agreeable, even the weather!
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New Haven doesn't seem like a very fun place to be, but it is a good thing that NYC is relatively nearby(an hour and a half by train)
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I had major issues with trying to stay in Harkness. It's too much to type, but I would not trust the staff in the dorm to do their jobs properly. I ended up having to walk through New Haven at 9pm looking for a hotel.
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TERRIBLY DISORGANIZED! The administrator is quite possibly the most scatterbrained, ditzy person I've ever met. Also, don't expect anyone to escort you between interviews. They hand you a map and a schedule, and you're on your own!
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Weather
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Nothing really. too bad we had to pay to stay at the dorms.
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New England is horridly frigid during the winter: it takes time to adjust to it if you're from a warmer part of the country.
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The video we watched was very amateurish. If they added some voiceovers or some interviews it would be better. As is, it's about as exciting as a wet rag.
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New Haven.
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I'm from California, so the snow storm the day I got there was a downer.
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Is the school moving to a 5 year model?
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Everything was great
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New Haven. But then again, I went expecting much, much worse. My interviewer admitted to having been mugged and robbed (more than once), but said that the University prioritized student safety.
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I really wish we could have seen the hospital. parts of new haven are sketchy, but i think every town has its sketchy parts.
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Didn't get to see the hospital.
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I guess the facilities, they were ok.
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New Haven may have improved a lot recently, but it's still not a big city like New York.
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The interview was kinda disorganized, but nothing to stop considering a school for.
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The financial aid lady
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Tour was very short--we did not get to see dorms, hospital, etc. The area doesn't seem too exciting.
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The tour was really short, and we didn't see any of their hospital facilities.
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I didn't really get to see much of the classrooms and labs on the tour, but went back later for an unofficial tour.
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The facilities at the school. But they are building a huge new building that should be fantastic.
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Facilities.
What did you wish you had known ahead of time?
Applicants commonly wished they had known that Yale's interview process includes structured questions, with a significant focus on reviewing their application files. Many also suggested being prepared for a lot of downtime, interacting with the Director of Admissions, Richard Silverman, and having questions ready for him.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
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Nothing
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They had three-four structured questions per interviewer, and the rest was about your file
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No real need to look up ACA stuff or ethical questions
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I didn't, but you better not arrive late. Also, Tweed-NH Airport is tiny (only flies to Philly) and delays are frequent. Finally, there is a ton of downtime so be ready for that.
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I did a lot of research, so nothing, really.
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That you can keep your luggage there and they provide ponchos.
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That I had to stand at the center of the room before I said I wanted to go to Yale for it to work :) (see library traditions)
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Their anatomy lab is great. I wish I had found a way to spend more tim ein the lab.
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There's a free shuttle (orange line) from the train station to the med school that runs every 20 minutes.
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Nothing, I was very well prepared.
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That I would be getting my folder with info on interview location and interview name 5 min before my first interview!
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Nothing. I felt well prepared.
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Do NOT fly into Tweed/New Haven airport, it's more expensive and you think it'll save you time but it really doesn't! My flights going into and out of Tweed were both canceled and then delayed; I had to wait 11 extra hours total. Tweed has one gate, one flight in and out of New Haven and one vending machine that is currently broken...it sucks.
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Nothing.
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I had done my research, so I was pretty prepared
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Know what the Yale System does, what the purpose is, and how you fit into that equation.
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They really prepare for your interview at Yale, as in, they read your application very thoroughly. If you did research, be prepared for questions on your research
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Yale offers many opportunities to conduct research outside of MD / PhD...like a master's in Health Science program.
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You won't discover much about Yale during the interview day if there are many other applicants. So you should go to second look if admitted.
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That the Yale System has really been around since 1931, and is not a recent creation.
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New Haven is almost certainly the basis for the city in Grand Theft Auto III. Nuff said.
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Not to wear high heals. No matter how attractive. Lots of running between buildings.
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Facilities were not as impressive as some other top schools I interviewed at, wouldn't have wasted the time touring the day before.
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That the Yale interview (esp my first one) would be so structured. Though he was friendly and made it relatively conversational, there was a three page list of questions he went through, which was very unlike most of my other interviews.
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New Haven is way better than people give it credit for. I had some of the best Italian food in my life on their famous Wooster Street. Also, New Haven is really a college town, so when people compare it to NY, Boston, D.C. or the other major east coast urban areas, they fail to grasp this point. Once you take it on that level, it's great! Plus, it's close enough to most of the areas that you can visit on the weekends any time you want (and let's face - you're in med school - you ain't going every night of the week).
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For the later interviews be prepared to be leaving pretty late, finished my last interview around 4.30pm. Also, your interviews read your file thoroughly so be prepared to expantiate on activities
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Although interviews are scheduled ahead of time, there is a significant time gap between interviews; for example, some people had interviews that were 3-4 hours apart. there was nothing during that free time that was scheduled for us, so we were basically sitting around the waiting room reading magazines or talking to whoever was there. also, the interviews weren't all close to the admissions department; some students had to take school shuttles across campus. all that free time we had could have been used for a session on financial aid, or opportunities to talk to current students, etc.
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The Director of Admissions, Mr. Silverman talks alot, and will pick on you if he so chooses.
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That Yale is overrated
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How stress-free the interview experience was. It would have saved me the annoying pre-interview anxiety.
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You can take a tuition-free 5th year to travel, take other classes, or a variety of other things.
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That 90% of the people I would run into...well, shall we say didn't exactly have it hard in life, if you know what I mean.
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Richard Silverman asks questions about you from your file during the orientation session.
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How relaxed and nice everybody is.
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Nothing really
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That Yale doesn't have a grading system.
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New Haven isn't as bad as everyone makes it out to be- good bar scene, rich culture- its like a little college town in a big city
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How beautiful the main campus is.
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That you can take any course on campus, so cool
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Bring lots of warm clothes. Coming from the West Coast, I wasn't used to the cold weather.
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There aren't any textbooks that are assigned- they just give you suggestions about what you might want to buy.
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I wish I had had another interview before this one...it's my dream school but was my first interview.
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That they have such a focus on research and writing a thesis--I knew it existed but didn't realize how important it was.
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Relax. These are not difficult interviews.
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The undergrad campus is beautiful- everyone who interviews should make a point to see it just to take in the gothic architecture. New Haven seems like a nice place to live- great restaurants, fun bars, and all sorts of theater/art/music events.
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I did quite a bit of research into the school, so I found few surprises during my visit.
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Have a lot of questions because you spend a lot of time with Dean Silverman.
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More about the facilities
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New Haven is a dump.
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It's hard to find a taxi in New Haven. You have to call one and it takes about 20 minutes.
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Nothing really....the "5th year cost-free" option only applies to people who want to do research, not to those who want to do a combined MD-MPH in five years (or any other combined degree program). Also, Dean Silverman keeps a roster of all the interviewees for the day along with some special "notes" from your application; don't be shocked if he kind of hints at what's in your application (extracurricular-wise, not grades or MCAT) in front of other applicants.
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Yale Inc. is in the process of investing $500 million into the medical school to make it the top biomedical research institution in the country.
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This place is really over-rated.
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That New Haven isn't nearly as bad as everyone says - the area around Yale actually seemed very nice.
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So many Yale students go into pediatrics!
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Prepare questions for Richard Silverman beforehand because, as other people have said, you spend quite a chunk of time with him.
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As cold as DC is, new haven is COLDER, they interview 800 people for 100 spots!
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That the interviews were 60 mins.
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They did not provide cots for student hosts, so I had to sleep on the floor.
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There ARE some student hosts available. They are in high demand so get on it early. Harkness for 45 bucks a night seems a little steep.
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That quals are administered online, and that Deans interview applicants. Also, that we were going to have 31 applicants during our interviewing day.
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How sweet it was at Yale.
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You may be walking several blocks in between interviews and interviews are back to back. Many streets in New Haven are also one ways. It is helpful to have a directional map when navigating.
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More of the history, the schedule (classes start at 9am), the students are very active in extracurricular pursuits
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When all of these people say, "you spend a lot of time with Richard Silverman" they mean it. Seriously, think of things to ask him. I wish I had.
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You can request to be hosted by first year students through the Office of Multicultural Affairs
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The Hartford airport food options suck. also, there's nowhere to eat before the security checkpoint.
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There is completely no structure in the Yale system, so if you need that, don't come here.
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Research thesis is required (I like that though)
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How cold New Haven is in Feburary.
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That we would spend a lot of time with the dean of admissions. I should have used that time to interact with him, but I just said little.
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The "Yale System" is not at all PBL, like Harvard. They consider Yale to have a very traditional, lecture-based curriculum.
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Yale offers regional interviews at selected locations.
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Nothing, really. I went to Yale for my undergrad so I knew my way around the city. Stay at the Colony, because it's the closest hotel to the medical school.
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Acela trains break down.
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How laid back the school is and has an incredibly diverse student body.
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We wouldn't get to see the hospital. the incredible amount of time/energy devoted to community service.
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If you get there too early the elevator doesn't work without a key
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How cold it was.
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Definaetly all about positive feedback. they were cool about it.
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How hard it was to get a cab in New Haven
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If they say 7:45, they are giving you time to spare--we didn't start till eight-thirty or so
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You spend a lot of time with the Director of Admissions, Richard Silverman, but he is very friendly, nice, and helpful!
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That New Haven has a high violent crime rate. My interviewer told me he has been mugged twice, but that the situation is definately improving. They have a free 24-hour shuttle that will take you anywhere.
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That it was actually pleasant to talk to the other interviewees. I found this was true pretty much everywhere I went.
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How one side of the dorms faces the highway, and how the bathroom door bangs--I only cat-napped one hour the night before my interview!
🤝 Campus and Facilities ▼
How do you rank the facilities?
Most respondents rank the facilities as above average.
How would you rate the Location and Cultural Life?
0 = Low, 10 = High
How is the friendliness of the admissions office?
Most respondents said the admissions office was friendly.
How is the responsiveness of the admissions office?
Most respondents said the admissions office was responsive.
What are your suggestions for the admissions office?
Applicants commonly suggested making the interview day shorter if there are long periods of waiting, providing short bios and pictures of interviewers, allowing time to meet with the Dean of Admissions, improving sustainability of information packets, and allowing more time for lunch breaks. Overall, applicants found the admissions office to be accommodating and comfortable during the process.
Top 5 Responses: (Click below to see additional responses)
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Make the interview day shorter if we don't have anything to do for most of it!
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I thought it would be a good idea if a short bio and picture of our interviewers were given to us with our interview packets so we can learn a few things about the person who is about to interview us.
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Give us time to meet with Dean of Admissions
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The information packets were amazing, but those books are definitely not eco-friendly!
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Give us more time to eat lunch! We only got 10 minutes...
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There aren't many I can think of. The admissions office made the process very comfortable.
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They where great!
📍 Travel and Logistics ▼
Airports Used
✈️
HVN
19% interviewees used HVN (HVN), with 11% using BDL (BDL) and 11% using BOS (BOS) and 11% using LGA (LGA) and 7% using JFK (JFK) and 7% using Bradley (Bradley) and 4% using bdl (bdl) and 4% using Hartford, CT (Hartford, CT) and 4% using Newark (subway, metro north, $30) (Newark (subway, metro north, $30)) and 4% using Hartford (Bradley) (Hartford (Bradley)) and 4% using Used Greyhound Bus! (Used Greyhound Bus!) and 4% using Hartford (Hartford) and 4% using New Haven (New Haven) and 4% using Tweed (Tweed) and 4% using none (none).
What was your primary mode of transportation?
Most interviewees traveled by airplane to the interview.
✈️
45% Airplane
🚗
19% Automobile
🚆
32% Train or Subway
🚲
4% Other
Hotels Recommended by Other Interviewees
Most interviewees stayed at the Courtyard Mariott at Yale (average ranking 5.3/10), with some staying at Marriot Courtyard (average rating 9/10). (Top 3 displayed)
🏨
Courtyard Mariott at Yale
5.3/10
🏨
Marriot Courtyard
9/10
🏨
Marriot
8/10
What was the cost and time spent traveling?
Cost: Low Cost to High Cost
What is your in-state status?
Most respondents are out of state students.
Where did you stay?
Most respondents stayed either Hotel or at a hotel.
Who was the tour given by?
Tours were most commonly given by a Student
Admissions staff (1%)
Faculty member (2%)
Student (98%)
How did the tour guide seem?
Most tour guides were enthusiastic about the school.
Discouraging (1%)
Enthusiastic (94%)
Neutral (4%)
All Responses
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