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August 19, 2019

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Allopathic Medical School Interview Styles: From Traditional to New Approaches

Allopathic Medical School Interview Styles

Your interview is the next and hopefully final step in your journey to medical school acceptance. Are you ready for it? Before prepping for your interview, you’ll need to know what type of interview you’ll be having. There are four main types of medical school interviews that you can expect at an allopathic med school:

  1. Traditional
  2. MMI (Multiple Mini Interview)
  3. Hybrid
  4. PBL (Problem-Based Learning)

Traditional medical school interview

The traditional interview has been in use the longest and typically includes a one-on-one interview, lasting anywhere from 25 to 60 minutes. Traditional interviews can include more than one interviewer and more than one applicant, usually no more than three people on either side of the table – panel style. Some schools also have a group interview in which four or more students are interviewed by one or more faculty or medical students.

The interviews I refer to below as Traditional Plus (Trad +) include one or more traditional interviews as well as additional activities: writing exercises, patient-based situational interviews, standardized patient exercises, standardized interview formats, and group activities. These additional activities are different on each campus and will vary in length, requirements, and details. Some schools are using actual patients in the interview process who provide feedback on their interactions with you.

The multiple mini interview (MMI)

After the traditional interview, the multiple mini interview is the second most popular format. The MMI was first created in Canada to create a more unbiased and standardized way to assess applicants at the McMaster University Medical School. In an MMI, multiple people interact with and assess applicants, providing more reliable scores for applicants. It usually includes anywhere from 5 to 10 different stations that vary from 6 to 8 minutes in length at each station, and students have 1 to 2 minutes to think about a question or prompt before engaging in the activity. Not long after the first article was published about the MMI in 2004, it was being used in the U.S. UCLA David Geffen was one of the first medical schools in the U.S. to begin using the MMI method in 2007 and still continues to use it.

The hybrid med school interview

Some medical schools are using a combination of the traditional and MMI formats in creating a Hybrid interview. These interviews often include one or more traditional interviews along with a shorter version MMI – 5 or fewer stations.

The Hybrid Plus (Hybrid +) style interview includes these variations along with an additional activity, like situational judgement tests. Again, these will vary from school to school so be sure to collect as much information as you can about them if you are interviewing on a campus that uses them.

Problem-based learning interview (PBL)

One school, Carle Illinois, is taking a new approach in using PBL (problem-based learning) group activities. In this type of interview, a facilitator leads a group problem-solving session involving a patient case. It’s equally beneficial to students to participate in a PBL style interview since many medical schools integrate problem-based learning in their curriculums. Read this article to learn more about it.

If you are invited to interview at an allopathic medical school, you can expect to encounter any combination of these types of interviews.

Here is an overview of the different styles of interviews allopathic medical schools offer and the total number of schools that use them.

Types of medical school interviews

Traditional95 (Traditional +6)
MMI37
Hybrid11 (Hybrid +2)
PBL1
Total number of schools143
Total number of campuses144

As you can see, most schools (66%) still use a traditional interview format. The next most popular interview style, MMI, is offered at 26% of medical school campuses. Eight percent of schools have a hybrid interview, a combination of both traditional and MMI interviews. Only one campus relies solely on a PBL interview, a statistically insignificant number.

Below, you will find a complete list of all 143 allopathic medical schools (144 campuses) with the style of interview they offer. This data is based on the last known interview style used by each school as of March 2019. Since this information is subject to change, please double check the school website and/or call the school to confirm before an interview if the school does not provide this information to you in its interview invitation.

Interview styles at allopathic med schools

School Name:Interview Style:
AlbanyMMI
Albert EinsteinTraditional
BaylorTraditional
Boston UniversityTraditional
BrodyTraditional
California Northstate UniversityMMI
California University of Science and MedicineMMI
Carle IllinoisPBL
Case Western ReserveTraditional
Central MichiganMMI
Charles E. SchmidtTraditional
ChicagoMMI
ColumbiaTraditional
CooperTraditional
CreightonTraditional
Donald and Barbara Zucker, HofstraMMI
DrexelTraditional
DukeMMI
East TennesseeTraditional
Eastern VirginiaTraditional
EmoryTraditional
Florida InternationalTraditional
Florida StateTraditional
Frank H. NetterTraditional
GeiselTraditional
George WashingtonTraditional
GeorgetownTraditional
HarvardTraditional
HowardTraditional
IcahnTraditional
IndianaTraditional
Joan C. EdwardsTraditional
Johns HopkinsTraditional
KeckTraditional
Lewis KatzTrad+ (3 writing activities)
Loma LindaTraditional
Louisiana State in New OrleansTraditional
Louisiana State in ShreveportTraditional
LoyolaTraditional
MayoTraditional
Medical College of GeorgiaMMI
Medical College of WisconsinTraditional
Medical University of South CarolinaTraditional
MeharryTraditional
MercerTraditional
Michigan StateHybrid
MorehouseTraditional
New York Medical CollegeMMI
New York UniversityMMI
Northeast OhioTraditional
NorthwesternTraditional
Nova SoutheasternHybrid
OaklandTraditional
Ohio StateTraditional
Oregon Health and ScienceMMI
Pennsylvania StateTraditional
PerelmanTraditional
PonceTraditional
RenaissanceTraditional
Robert Larner, University of VermontMMI
RushTrad+ (group activity)
Rutgers New JerseyTraditional
Rutgers Robert Wood JohnsonMMI
Saint LouisTraditional
San Juan BautistaTrad+ (patient-based situational interviews)
SanfordTraditional
Seton Hall-Hackensack MeridianTraditional
Sidney KimmelTraditional
Southern IllinoisTraditional
StanfordMMI
State University of New York DownstateTraditional
State University of New York UpstateMMI
TCU and UNTHSCMMI
The CommonwealthTraditional
The University of ToledoMMI
The Warren Alpert MSTraditional
TuftsTraditional
TulaneTrad+ (standardized patient exercise)
UCLA/DrewMMI
Uniformed ServicesTraditional
Universidad Central Del CaribeMMI
University at BuffaloTraditional
University of AlabamaMMI
University of ArizonaMMI
University of Arizona at PhoenixMMI
University of ArkansasTraditional
University of California at DavisMMI
University of California at IrvineMMI, Filmed
University of California at Los Angeles David GeffenMMI
University of California at RiversideMMI
University of California at San DiegoMMI
University of California at San FranciscoTraditional
University of Central FloridaTraditional
University of ChicagoTraditional
University of CincinnatiMMI
University of ColoradoHybrid
University of ConnecticutTraditional
University of FloridaTraditional
University of HawaiiTraditional
University of IllinoisTraditional
University of IowaTraditional
University of KansasTraditional
University of KentuckyTraditional
University of LouisvilleTraditional
University of MarylandTraditional
University of MassachusettsMMI
University of MiamiTraditional
University of MichiganHybrid
University of MinnesotaMinneapolis - MMI
Duluth - Traditional
University of MississippiMMI
University of Missouri, Kansas CityMMI
University of Missouri, Columbia SOMTraditional
University of NebraskaTraditional
University of Nevada, Las VegasTrad+ (standardized interview format)
University of Nevada, RenoMMI
University of New MexicoTraditional
University of North CarolinaHybrid
University of North DakotaTraditional
University of OklahomaTraditional
University of PittsburghTraditional
University of Puerto RicoTraditional
University of RochesterTraditional
University of South AlabamaTraditional
University of South CarolinaTraditional
University of South Carolina, GreenvilleHybrid
University of South FloridaHybrid
University of TennesseeTraditional
University of UtahHybrid+ (situational judgement test)
University of VirginiaTraditional
University of WashingtonTraditional
University of WisconsinHybrid+ (small group situational exercise)
VanderbiltTraditional
Virginia CommonwealthMMI
Virginia TechMMI
Wake ForestMMI
Washington StateMMI
Washington University, St. LouisTraditional
Wayne StateHybrid
Weill CornellTraditional
West VirginiaTraditional
Western MichiganHybrid
Wright StateTraditional
YaleTraditional

Final tip: Know your medical school interview style!

To prepare for an interview, practice. Mock interviews can provide the best preparation, especially if they are similar in length, style and questions to the interview(s) you have scheduled. Many schools share detailed information about the interviews they offer on their websites. Learn as much as you can about their approach and use this information to inform your preparation.

If you have new information, please let us know by commenting on this post!

Do you need assistance in preparing for your interview? Check out our Medical School Interview Packages for the highest quality preparation and feedback for all interview styles.

How to Nail Your Medical School Interviews: Register for the webinar!

Alicia McNease Nimonkar admissions expertAlicia McNease Nimonkar worked for 5 years as the Student Advisor & Director at the UC Davis School of Medicine's postbac program where she both evaluated applications and advised students applying successfully to med school and other health professional programs. She has served Accepted's clients since 2012 with roughly a 90% success rate. She has a Master of Arts in Composition and Rhetoric as well as Literature. Want Alicia to help you get Accepted? Click here to get in touch!

 

Related Resources:

• The Ultimate Guide to Medical School Interview Success, a free guide
• Do I Really Need a Mock Admissions Interview?, a short video
• Practicing for Your Med School Interview: Conversation 101

Article by Alicia Nimonkar / Medical School Admissions / Albany Medical College, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Baylor, Boston University Medical School, Carle Illinois College of Medicine, Case Western Reserve School of Medicine, Columbia Medical School, Drexel Medical School, duke university medical school, George Washington School of Medicine, Georgetown University School of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Hofstra Northwell Medical, Icahn SOM, Indiana University School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins Medical School, Medical College of Wisconsin, Medical School Interview, Morehouse School of Medicine, Multiple Mini Interview, New York Medical College, Northwestern Feinberg, Penn State College of Medicine, rutgers medical school, SKMC, Tufts University School of Medicine, UCLA/Drew, UM Miller SOM, UMMS, University of California, University of Illinois College of Medicine, University of Michigan, University of Minnesota Med School, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, USC Keck School of Medicine, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Weill Cornell, Yale School of Medicine

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