U of A’s Med School MMI Interview

Upon first receiving news of an interview invitation, I wanted to better understand the structure of a Multiple Mini Interview (MMI). I did so through my own research as well as speaking to current medical students and experienced an MMI. I learned that it was a series of stations which offered a variety of scenarios to candidates. Hence, I quickly understood that I would be speaking for extended periods of time at each station, which meant that I needed to start building a knowledge pool to draw from.

One of the first steps I took towards preparing for the interview was to familiarize myself with current issues involving healthcare. One of the easiest ways I began accomplishing this was through reading 1-2 articles a day from the Globe & Mail Health section or articles I found interesting from the Canadian Medical Association Journal. Through habitually doing so, I was able to draw from examples these articles to reinforce points I made during my interview stations.

Also, being unfamiliar with ethics, I wanted to better understand its role in the world of medicine. I read the book “Doing Right” as well as educated myself on the importance of the CANMED roles while making medically and ethically sound decisions.

Finally, with the help of interview coaches through Astroff Consultants, I was able to develop a strategy towards approaching prompts in a logical and time-efficient manner. I then practiced numerous prompts in front of my coaches, family, friends and even recorded myself to pick up on any mannerisms that may have been distracting.

What I found to be unique about the actual U of A interview was the diversity of stations. I found majority of stations to be quite engaging and enjoyable, especially those that involved more creative responses.  Just prior to the interview, I felt a little out of place especially having flown to a new province and city. The environment was unfamiliar and I travelled to the university alone. However, post-interview I was pleasantly surprised at how welcoming staff and students were to the candidates. Interview Day ran exceptionally smoothly with medical students offering warm words of encouragement along the way. The faculty truly seemed to care for the well-being of their students and the curriculum sounded quite interesting. I quickly became enamoured with the MD program offered at the University of Alberta. I had started with a little bit of hesitation but by the end of the interview, I was confident that this was a school I could envision myself attending.