How did the interview impress you?

Positively

What was the stress level of the interview?

1 out of 10

How you think you did?

10 out of 10

How do you rank this school among ALL other schools?

10 out of 10

How long was the interview?

55 minutes

Where did the interview take place?

At the school

How many people interviewed you?

2

What was the style of the interview?

One-on-one

What type of interview was it?

Open file

What is one of the specific questions they asked you (question 1)?

"My first interviewer asked me about my wife. We are newlyweds, and he said that many times newlyweds end up divorced because of the rigors of med school. He asked me how I would deal with that. I thought it was a little forward for him to ask that, but answered frankly because I figured Loma Linda was just trying to push me to see how I'd react to stress." Report Response | I was asked this question too

What is one of the specific questions they asked you (question 2)?

"The second interviewer asked me about my medical past, because I had a serious illness in my history that interfered with my academics. I was pleasantly surprised that this interviewer was a specialist in the field of medicine pertaining most closely to my illness. It would not at all surprise me to find out that Loma Linda did this intentionally to see if I was making up excuses or if I was legit. If you wrote something exceptional about your past, expect them to call you on it and be prepared to tell the whole story and the whole truth." Report Response | I was asked this question too

What is one of the specific questions they asked you (question 3)?

"They asked me what my job selling Cutco Cutlery taught me about being a physician. No matter what job you worked in the past, be prepared to connect it to medicine. I am uncertain whether "It didn't teach me anything about medicine" is a fair answer or not; I would be honest rather than lie to look good. It is a Christian school and your honesty may very well be viewed as commendable." Report Response | I was asked this question too

What was the most interesting question?

"The most interesting question they asked me (and here I reveal a bit of arrogance) was an entreaty to discuss my religious conversion from an atheist evolutionist to a Christian creationist. Both interviewers seemed very excited by this. I am a recent convert to Seventh-day Adventism, and I think part of the excitement was over seeing a fellow believer come to the faith and part was trying to figure out if I was faking it to make my application look good or if I was sincere. We discussed the information that brought me to the faith in detail, especially in my first interview, and that seemed to satisfy both interviewers." Report Response | I was asked this question too

What was the most difficult question?

"The most difficult question was honestly the one about what I learned of medicine from my Cutco job. At first I thought maybe the honest answer was "Nothing," but then I thought about it and realized I did do a lot of communicating with people as part of a sale-oriented job, and I discussed this angle. My interviewer seemed satisfied with that answer. I should note I did NOT try to bloviate or stretch the importance of this job out of proportion; I think they were looking to see if I could think on my toes, not lie through my teeth or distort the truth." Report Response | I was asked this question too

How did you prepare for the interview?

"Honestly? By reading the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. I had several different students at Loma Linda tell me that was the #1 best thing to do to prepare for the interview. I started out doing it because I heard it as a recommendation, but ended up sticking with it because of the incredible sense of calm that came over me as I read the gospel, especially while reading Luke's gospel (the story of the Good Samaritan is in Luke, so be sure to read that one if nothing else since Loma Linda's foudning principle is making man whole, based on the parable of the Good Samaritan and Jesus' ministry on earth). I didn't read any "How to" books. The only answer I rehearsed at all was the standard: Why do you want to be a doctor? And humorously that was never asked. Which isn't to say they won't ask you it; I am a bit of a non-traditional applicant, so I suspect I got a bit of a non-traditional interview. But for you other non-trads out there, I was not given a cold shoulder. Quite the contrary, both of my interviewers seemed very interested to talk with me." Report Response

What impressed you positively?

"My interviewer praying with me. That is the #1 most gracious, hospitable thing any interviewer can do for their interviewee on the day of the interview. More than food, water, shelter, or good will offerings, the comfort and peace of mind brought to me by the fact that my interviewer was a human being who shared with me a common belief was what made my day at Loma Linda excellent. Dr. Church, if you ever read this, you were outstanding to me, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart!" Report Response

What impressed you negatively?

"I did not like the question about my marital integrity. I felt it was inappropriate, and I even got the impression that my interviewer thought so too, but that he was obligated to ask it. In the future, Loma Linda could certainly find a nicer way of stating the question and getting the same information. In my mind there is a fine line between stressing a candidate to see how they perform and stomping on toes until they break. That being said, I *was* forced to stop and think by that caliber of a question, and my answer was straight from the heart." Report Response

What did you wish you had known ahead of time?

"Nothing. I think the interview went the best it could possibly have gone. Occasionally I get a twinge of "well, maybe if I had known who my interviewers were in advance..." but then I realize I would have just spent time talking about THEM, when the point of the interview is to talk about YOURSELF. As such, I would have done myself a disservice had I known who was interviewing me in advance. I'm glad things went as they did." Report Response

What are your general comments?

"All things considered, the interview was very casual and low-stress with the exception of one or two questions. I've given LLU a 10/10 on everything except enviromental friendliness in their interview materials. There is no N/A or "This is a cheesy question" options, and the default was a 1/10, so I didn't want to give that. But a 10/10 would have been materials printed on recycled planktonic detritus sustainably dredged from the sea of Japan and imported on solar-powered ocean barges. What a baloney category on which to rate an interview! The 5/10 is because Loma Linda's interview material was printed on paper, in a paper folder, with straight up black ink. Nothing ostentatiously fancy, no absurd amount of tuition money wasted on pointlessly green materials, just a standard format." Report Response

Who was the tour given by?

Student

How did the tourguide seem?

Enthusiastic

How do you rank the facilities?

10 out of 10

What is your in-state status?

Out of state

What was your total time spent traveling?

7+ hours

What was your primary mode of travel?

Airplane

What airport did you use?

Ontario

Where did you stay?

Friends or family

On what date did the interview take place?

11/23/2008

How do you rank this school among other schools to which you've applied?

10 out of 10

What is your ranking of this school's location?

10 out of 10

What is your ranking of this area's cultural life?

10 out of 10

How is the responsiveness of the admissions office?

10 out of 10

How is the friendliness of the admissions office?

10 out of 10

How eco-friendly are the school's application materials and interview process?

5 out of 10

What are your suggestions for the admissions office?

"I don't really have any. The interviews were both relatively laid back and conversational. I suppose" Report Response