Preparing for Interviews

Interviews are very important! If you are invited in for an interview, that means the admissions committee determined you have met their academic qualifications. Among all of the students who meet their academic qualifications, however, the interview has a strong influence on who is ultimately offered admission. Thus, you need to prepare well. Remember:  Even outgoing, talkative people need to prepare carefully in order to do well at professional school interviews! Do not try to “wing it.”

Professional schools will use your interviews to assess your motivations for entering the profession and to determine whether or not you seem to be a "good fit" for the profession and for their particular school. They will seek to determine what you have learned from your activities and experiences, and how those insights have shaped your values and motivations. They will also be assessing how articulate you are, how well you think on your feet, and your level of maturity. (By the way, they do expect you to be nervous; in fact, if you do not appear to be nervous at all, they may gain the impression that you are overconfident or that you do not really want to gain entrance into their program.) At many professional schools, the interviewers are asked to get to know you so that they can present your case to the rest of the admissions committee. Thus, they are on your side.

The CE Pre-Health Five-Step Process for Preparing for Interview

In this session, we identify the types of questions commonly asked at health profession school interviews and explain WHY they are asked. We also help you understand the interview process. You will come away with a set of concrete steps to take in order to prepare for your interviews. The more familiar you are with the process and the more you have prepared in advance, the more likely you are to do well! If you are unable to attend the live version of this meeting, you may access a video of the presentation (and its associated handouts and resources) using the links posted at the bottom of this page.

It is common at professional school interviews to be given a scenario to consider that includes an ethical dilemma and to prompt you to explain how you would reason your way through it. Likewise, many professional schools require applicants to complete situational judgment tests (such as Casper and Preview) that test the same skill. This group meeting is designed to provide you with a framework for thinking your way through ethical dilemmas in interviews and on situational judgment tests. If you are unable to attend the live version of this meeting, you may access a video of the presentation (and its associated handouts and resources) using the links posted at the bottom of this page. 

It is common for professional schools to conduct their interviews in a Multiple Mini Interview (MMI) format. In Multiple Mini Interviews, each applicant rotates through 6 to 10 interview stations, meeting a new interviewer and responding to a new interview prompt at each station. MMI interview questions typically include a mixture of traditional interview questions, role-playing scenarios, and responses to ethical dilemmas. A good introduction to MMI-style interviews is posted on the .

We hold our annual MMI Practice Session in the spring semester each year. In that session, you will take turns answering MMI-style questions and also serving as a peer evaluator (using a rubric as your guide). Experiencing both roles will help you become more comfortable with this style of interviewing and will allow you to gain insight into the components of effective answers. This experience will help you prepare for both regular and MMI interview types. If you are unable to attend the live version of this meeting, you may access a video of the presentation portion of this session (and its associated handouts and resources) using the links posted at the bottom of this page.

You may use our to select a time for a "Pre-Health Application and Interview Prep" appointment with Jessica Talbot. Treat this as a dress rehearsal; it is ideal if you can come to this session wearing the interview attire you plan to wear at your real interviews (though it is also fine to come in regular clothes). You will complete a practice interview with the advisor and then receive immediate coaching. You also have the option of having one or more of your answers videotaped. Although it may sound excruciating to do this, we highly recommend this approach so that the advisor can help you develop the skill of critiquing yourself.

All CU Boulder students can use the interactive Interview Prep platform to practice and record their interview answers from home. You can set up the program so that it asks you the types of questions commonly asked at professional schools for the health professions. When you’re done recording through the Interview Prep platform, you can play it back to critique yourself or send them to family and friends for their input.

Additional Interview Prep Resources