Professional school interviews

The “STAR Approach” (Development Dimensions International, n.d.) is a useful technique for answering behaviour-based questions:

• Situation: Provide background and context

• Task: Describe what you needed to do

• Action: Explain what actions you took and how you did it

• Result: Describe the outcomes of your actions

• Learn more tips about using the “STAR approach”.

The SPIKES model is used for delivering bad news and was developed by Robert Buckman, MD, Associate Professor of Medical Oncology, University of Toronto and modified from the original version.

• Setting  - where you as healthcare professional sit in relation to patient/family members; create best physical circumstances.

• Perception  - why here today: as you know we have done some tests; ask before tell to get patient’s understanding of medical situation.

• Invitation  - how much does the patient want to know? e.g. “how would you like me to provide information about your test results?” Some prefer the big picture and some prefer every small detail; let patient ask questions.

• Knowledge - (physician tells “bad” news: don’t tell them they have cancer immediately — use “tumour” first; did I answer your questions?

• Empathy  - listen for and identify emotions of patient and identify cause, validate patient’s feelings and expressions, offer resources and other support.

• Summary - summarize discussion.

_{(Sandrick, K.1998)}

PESTLE model

• Political: government interventions, tax considerations and policy initiatives.

• Economic: cost in time and money.

• Social: cultural considerations, health consciousness, population growth and social determinants.

• Technological: R&D activities, automation and innovation.

• Legal: legal implications.

• Environmental/Ethical: weather, climate change, tourism and/or ethical considerations.

_{(Wood, n.d.)}

CARVE model, developed by Eric H. Gampel

• Consequences: what are the potential consequences of the solution?

• Autonomy: how fully does the solution preserve the right to choose?

• Rights: how does the solution affect the rights of the stakeholders?

• Values: how well does the solution uphold personal or organizational values?

• Equality: how well does the solution promote equality? Is the solution just?

_{(McClean, 2019)}

ABCDE model

• Autonomy: how fully does the solution preserve the right to choose?

• Beneficence: does the solution provide the greatest benefit to the affected parties?

• Confidentiality: how well are principles of confidentiality preserved by the solution?

• Do no harm: how well is the principle of do no harm upheld by the solution?

• Equality, Equity or Justice (justice): how well does the solution promote equality/equity? Is the solution just?

_{(Levine, 1994)}

General interview questions ask about your goals, characteristics, fit with the program, past experiences and coping skills.

How do I prepare for a general interview question?

Reflect on your experiences, growth and motivation for the profession Review possible questions online and practice responding according to your interview’s known conventions.

Behaviour-based questions are interview questions that prompt you for a specific time when you used a skill or dealt with a situation in the past.

It combines a prompt for one specific example (e.g. “tell me about a time when”) with a skill you need or situation you will face in your program or profession (e.g. “you had to communicate complex information”).

How do I prepare for a behaviour-based question?

• Review relevant frameworks, skills and competencies essential to your prospective profession.

• Identify related personal experiences to start building your library of experiences you want to pull from in your responses. Consider reflecting on:

  • What you did?

  • Why you did what you did?

  • What options you considered?

  • What you learned from the experience?

  • How you would handle things differently in hindsight.

Difficult conversation questions will prompt you to share how you would deliver bad news or handle an uncomfortable conversation.

Difficult conversation questions provide an opportunity to demonstrate your interpersonal communication. You will be evaluated on how well you demonstrate your skill set, rather than on solving the problem.

How do I prepare for a difficult conversation question?

If you find frameworks helpful to structure your responses:

• practice with friends, family and peers so you feel comfortable in an interview.

• review frameworks for sharing bad news.

Critical thinking and ethical questions are designed to let the interviewer see how you think as you walk through a complex problem that doesn’t have a clear answer.

How do I prepare for an ethical or critical thinking question?

Ethical and critical thinking questions can be complex. There are various ways to prepare for these types of questions. You might:

• Identify how you like to work through a problem.

• Review common ethical scenarios in your field.

• Search for critical thinking/ethical questions and practice responding out loud in a structured way.

While responding to ethical or critical thinking questions, it may be helpful to:

• Summarize the question in your own words to help the interviewer understand your sense of the question.

• Identify missing information or state assumptions or note the key issue to narrow the scope of the question.

• Structure the response to systemically work through the factors and perspectives.

• Incorporate information from other sources when applicable (personal experiences, articles, class content).

• Propose a new initiative, training or information gathering mechanism that could improve your suggested solution.

• Summarize your response with a clear decision.

Ethical scenario/situational interview questions ask what you would do in a hypothetical situation. These types of questions evaluate your interpersonal skills and fit for the profession based on your approach to a hypothetical situation. 

To answer a situational question well, you will need to describe your actions in detail, including:

• What options you would consider?

• What past experiences you would draw on in the situation?

• What you would do and why, and the outcome of your actions?

How do I prepare for an ethical scenario/situational interview question?

To help prepare for these types of interview questions:

• Reflect on your experiences, particularly your past handling of difficult situations.

• Identify how you like to work through a problem.

• Research possible questions online and practice responding according to your interview’s known conventions.

• Practice summarizing the question in your own words and identifying missing information or assumptions - this will help to contextualize your responses.

Current event or knowledge stations draws on your knowledge of healthcare to answer a question about policy or current events. These questions could be based on a wide variety of trends and topics.

How do I prepare for a knowledge station?

You might already know more than you think; review some common questions like the examples listed above and work through your answer based on what you know right now. You may also want to add some current events, podcasts, documentaries or readings to your interview preparation schedule.

Other students have shared it is helpful to:

• State the issue and why it is an issue. You might share what you’re basing your recommendations on and or what type of research you’ve done on the issue already.

• Include ideas or initiatives to improve the issue. You might share how you think these suggestions could help advance change.

• Discuss actions and implications. Depending on the issue, you might share possible financial implications; benefits and challenges to social or environmental concerns.

• End with a summary statement.

An acting/role play station is a station where you interact with one or more actors. There will also be an observer evaluating your behaviour. Acting questions evaluate your interpersonal skills and fit for the profession based on your approach to a situation.

How do I prepare for an acting/role-play station?

• Practice with friends, family and peers.

• Ask open questions like “how can I help” and “how are you feeling?”

• Use closed questions like “when did this happen” and “has this happened before” to get specific information.

• Strive to identify the underlying issue or motivator.

During the MMI, there will be an observer in the room. Remember to interact only with the actor.

In the collaboration station, you will work with another candidate to complete a task. There will be one or more observers who will grade your station. You may also be asked to give feedback to the other candidate.

Collaboration stations evaluate your ability to work with others and adapt the way you communicate information. You will not be evaluated based on your ability to complete a given task.

How do I prepare for a collaboration station?

Practice with as many different people as you can. The more data you have about how people handle collaboration puzzles, the better you are at adapting during the interview. Remember to:

• Describe the task to your partner, or ask to have it described to you.

• Strategize with your partner about how to complete the task.

• Discuss any possible difficulties or problems.

• Provide step-by-step instructions on completing the task.

• Check that your instructions were clear and ask when to move on.

In a debate station, you will be assigned a perspective on an issue and debate with another candidate. Often, you will give feedback on your performance or the other candidate’s performance after the debate.

How do I prepare for a debate station?

Ask your friends to debate with you and practice listening carefully to their points and responding. What is this part of the interview evaluating? Debate stations evaluate how well you interact and communicate with others. Stay focused on the issue and acknowledge your debate partner’s points. When you evaluate the debate, provide positive feedback and tips for what could have worked better.

Pilot stations test future MMI content. They won't be identified as pilot stations. Don’t panic if you’re asked to label a diagram, respond to a data set, add words to comic bubbles or do something else you weren’t expecting.

In a rest station you can rest, get a drink of water and possibly talk to a current student at the rest station.

The rest station can throw you off during the MMI as it can distract you from the flow of the interview; don’t rehash your previous stations or try to predict which questions will be next. Take a drink, stay calm and be ready to move to your next station at the signal.