When I found out about the interview, it was less than SIX days away! I had no time...I needed to prepare! I needed to brush up on my U.S. healthcare system policies, ethics questions, my shadowing and volunteering experiences, my research paper that was published, and of course obvious questions like "why do you want to be a doctor?" and "why should we pick you?" AHHH....THERE WAS SO...MUCH...TO...DO! I was a little panicky. I started searching on the internet for what specific questions they might ask during the interview, and prepared based on those.
Besides the fact that I had to prepare, Mr. Regional Director (no names...sorry) wanted me to meet him on a major college campus 2 hours away from my house, and just a couple hours before I had to work the night shift at my job! I was thinking..."Are you serious?!", but needless to say, I was very excited for the opportunity, and would have traveled to California (waaaayyyyyy more than 2 hours away from my house) just for this interview!
April 29th came, and I was feeling great, a little nervous though, but I was ready! I had my power suit on, with my no-iron Brooks Brothers button up, with my pearl necklace and earrings...looking like I was ready to be apart of their incoming Fall 2009 class. All I needed to do was nail the interview! Mom and I set out on the road. We arrived an hour early in the city, but it took us 30 minutes to find our way around the campus! Needless to say though, I was 15 minutes early, and waiting on Mr. Regional Director.
He showed up in a old flannel shirt and some shorts. I was in awe! We sat in a quiet place, and at 10:05, my interview (or conversation) began. He asked me about different things he had noticed on my application, my overall & pre-med GPA (3.4/3.5), my shadowing experiences, my leadership roles in college, etc. Pretty much, what I wrote on my application, he touched on. He then began to tell me more about the school, the expectations, the island, the islanders, and the type of students they were looking for. I believe he referred to me as the "poster child for Caribbean medical schools". He said my GPA was good, my experiences were good, but (as I stated in my earlier post) my MCAT was holding me back from getting into a U.S. medical school. We went from one topic to the next...I talked about my family, he talked about his. We talked about my pre-medical adviser, my school, and my current job. Finally...the question I had been waiting on (out of all the questions I practiced...the only one he asked!) "What are your feelings on the U.S. Healthcare system?" YESSSSSSSSS!!! I was ecstatic! I was talking this question over with mom in the car. I believe I answered the question well. My interview (our conversation) lasted 1 hour and 15 minutes!! Not bad! I felt relaxed.
At the end of the interview, Mr. Regional Director said that he had put me through some tests to see how bad I wanted this. The tests:
1.) Seeing if I would actually meet him in person instead of opting for a phone interview. He said it showed how bad I really wanted to get accepted into medical school.
2.) Making sure I would be dressed properly for the interview. He noticed and commented on my power suit. He said it showed my professionalism.
3.) Making sure when I spoke or he spoke, I provided my full attention, and gave eye contact. He said it showed my attentiveness and willingness to listen.
4.) He commented on how well written my application was, and how well-spoken I was. He believed that these qualities had a lot to do with how I was raised.
All in all, I felt pretty good about the interview. He said I would receive a decision in 3 weeks. I left the interview feeling great, and feeling relieved that it was over!!!! As soon as I reached home, I sent Mr. Regional Director a thank you email in regards to the interview. He replied back within hours stating that I had "definitely been raised right" and I needed to "thank my mother" because of my thank you note to him. FINGERS CROSSED...I hope I get in!!! It's been a week, and I have 2 weeks left until I get a d
