How to Answer the “Why Medicine” Interview Question

during the medical school application process you'll have to answer many difficult questions but one of the most challenging and important questions you'll encounter is why do you want to be a doctor let's break down how to approach it dr jubal med schoolinsiders.com sometimes the simplest questions are also the most difficult to answer on the surface the why medicine question may seem like a straightforward question with an equally straightforward answer however this isn't the case simple as it is this question forces you to deeply examine your own motivations for pursuing medicine as such it is one of the most important questions you have to answer not only for medical school applications and interviews but also for yourself medical school is not for the faint of heart regardless of how intelligent you are or how hard you work you will face numerous challenges and obstacles on your way to becoming a doctor understanding your true motivations will help push you through the difficult times and remind you of why you're doing all of this in the first place one of the worst things you can do is fabricate a response in an attempt to present yourself in the best possible light not only will you be lying to your interviewer and make yourself more susceptible to any curveballs they might throw at you but you'll also be lying to yourself when thinking about how you want to answer this question it's important to look inward this is your chance to think about you your life and why you want to pursue medicine regardless of what anyone else thinks with that out of the way let's dive deeper and talk about what interviewers are looking for in your response first and foremost admissions committees use this question to get to know you better as a person they have already seen your application and read through your personal statement now they want to get to know the person behind it all the why do you want to be a doctor question should not be a regurgitation of your primary application or personal statement but rather a genuine discussion about what led you to pursue medicine and why it's the career for you a well-thought-out answer shows that you have put considerable thought into your reasons for pursuing medicine and weighed the pros and cons of this career field it also shows that you know what you're in for and you're prepared for the challenges ahead of you this is also the perfect opportunity for admissions committees to assess your in-person communication skills something they can't do at any other point in the application process although admissions committees can get a feel for your written communication skills through your essays and personal statement the interview stage is where they get to see how you interact with others as such you want to make sure to communicate your reasons for pursuing medicine as clearly and effectively as possible communication skills are fundamental for aspiring physicians if you can't explain to someone why you want to go into medicine you will likely have trouble communicating a difficult diagnosis to a patient another thing that interviewers are looking for is your commitment to medicine becoming a physician is one of the longest and most challenging career paths that you can choose admissions committees want to make sure that you are committed to becoming a physician and are willing to overcome the challenges ahead of you part of the reason that medical school admissions are so rigorous is that medical schools want to make sure that they're accepting students who will ultimately graduate and become practicing physicians although getting into medical school is no easy feat there are still some students who don't end up completing medical school some drop out due to health issues family circumstances or other unforeseen events others drop out because they are unable to handle the rigors of medical school or decide that they no longer want to become a doctor this affects medical schools in two ways first it's bad from a financial perspective once a student matriculates into medical school and begins classes their spot is locked in and is not easily replaced if a student drops out of medical school during their second year the school can't just replace their spot with another second year medical student instead they lose out on the tuition that student would have provided over the next two years of their training in addition a high attrition rate can affect the academic reputation of a medical school schools with high dropout rates may deter students from applying or attending that school for these reasons medical schools are incentivized to be cautious when choosing students the why do you want to be a doctor question is one way that schools can determine which students are driven and motivated enough to make it through medical school now that we know why this question is so important how should you approach it much like with your medical school application you want to build a narrative around the why medicine question you should follow the same approach that you would if you are writing a good story first you want to have a beginning middle and end to your response this will allow you to organize your ideas in such a way that they flow seamlessly together remember this is your chance to show admissions committees your stellar communication skills if you jump around from point to point haphazardly your response can be confusing and difficult to follow i recommend formatting your response in the following way start by discussing how you were first introduced to the field of medicine if possible incorporate specific experiences and follow the show don't tell principle this will make your response much more engaging and grab your interviewers attention next discuss how you learned more about the field what did you do to learn more about the world of medicine and the realities of being a doctor this is your chance to discuss any standout experiences that you had and what they taught you about medicine lastly you should talk about why you are committed to medicine what does becoming a doctor offer you that other careers especially other careers in healthcare don't be specific here a great way to approach this part of your response is to think about the impact you want to have on your patients what can you offer your patients as a physician that you can't offer in other careers and why are these things important to you for example you might discuss the fact that physicians possess a deep knowledge and understanding of medicine which provides them with a level of problem-solving ability and intellectual stimulation that you don't get in other fields of healthcare by possessing this level of knowledge yourself you'll be able to provide more nuanced care to your future patients it is important for you to reflect on your specific reasons for pursuing medicine your response should be genuine and true to yourself now let's talk about some mistakes to avoid although it is important to prepare for this question by organizing your thoughts you should avoid trying to memorize a perfect response interviewers are trying to assess your communication skills and this approach often feels rehearsed which can come across as disingenuous remember you won't have a script when you're talking to patients instead you will have knowledge in your head that you need to communicate effectively to the person sitting in front of you this is no different you want to show the interviewer who you are as a person and let your personality shine through this is often difficult to do when you're reading from a script next avoid responses like i like helping people or i love learning about the human body these are some of the most common answers that pre-meds give to interviewers if you give a similarly generic answer you will have a difficult time standing out from the hundreds of other pre-meds who said the exact same thing in addition these responses aren't specific to becoming a doctor you can help people and learn about the human body in many different career fields so why become a doctor instead of a nurse physician assistant or physical therapist you want your answer to reflect why you want to become a doctor specifically and why it's the best career for you next avoid answers that involve money power or respect these responses indicate that your reasons for pursuing medicine are extrinsic meaning that they come from external sources instead of internal ones although these reasons may be involved in your decision to become a physician they can come across as selfish and lead interviewers to question your commitment to medicine being a doctor is a field focused on helping people as such your response shouldn't be focused on what medicine can offer you but what you can offer the field of medicine and ultimately your future patience in addition research has shown that intrinsic motivations for becoming a doctor such as enjoying the intellectual challenge of medicine are correlated with increased academic performance whereas extrinsic motivations had no significant association with a medical student's academic performance this last point should be obvious but don't say you're going into medicine because your parents are doctors or because they want you to go into medicine although having family members in medicine can be a great motivator and provides you with first-hand perspectives of what it's like to be a doctor this should not be your primary reason similar to the previous point this response suggests that your motivations for pursuing medicine are extrinsic they are influenced by what others want for you instead of what you want for yourself which is often a red flag for interviewers although the why medicine question is one of the more difficult questions you'll have to answer when applying to medical school it is just one aspect of the medical school interview in addition to practicing what to say you also need to practice how you say it which is often difficult to do on your own while your friends and family can help you sound good they won't have the nuanced understanding of what medical school admissions committees are looking for the best way to prepare is by completing mock interviewers with doctors or instructors who have served on actual medical school admissions committees in a med school insider's mock interview you'll work with a former admissions committee physician who knows firsthand what interviewers are looking for and how to present yourself in the best light together our team has conducted thousands of interviews and we know the process inside and out if you want to shine on your interviews and maximize your chances of getting into your top choice program visit us on medschoolinsiders.com thank you all so much for watching if you enjoyed this video check out five reasons pre-meds fail to get into medical school or this other video much love and i'll see you guys there you

Channel: Med School Insiders

Views: 42,384

Keywords: Pre-med, Premed, Med Student, Medical School, Med School, Medical Student, medical school applications, medical school interviews, common med school interview questions, why medicine interview question, why do you want to be a doctor, med school interview tips, med school interview questions, admissions committees, medical school interview, medical school interview questions, most common med school interview questions, mock interview, how to prepare for med school interviews

Id: 5qPAbV0KTf8

Length: 8min 56sec (536 seconds)

Published: Sat Sep 03 2022