How did the interview impress you?

Positively

What was the stress level of the interview?

5 out of 10

How do you rank this school among ALL other schools?

9 out of 10

How long was the interview?

40 minutes

Where did the interview take place?

At the school

How many people interviewed you?

2

What was the style of the interview?

One-on-one

What type of interview was it?

Open file

What was the most interesting question?

"Why do you think you are drawn to fields of medicine which deal with terminally ill patients?" Report Response | I was asked this question too

What was the most difficult question?

"(Probably the question above)" Report Response | I was asked this question too

How did you prepare for the interview?

"I read SDN posts, reviewed my applications, and read through a great deal of the website." Report Response

What impressed you positively?

"1. There is an "intellectual buzz" (I can't think of another word) at Pritzker that is really invigorating. I could feel it even though I was only on campus for the day. The students all seem so fired up to be doing what they're doing. 2. Participation in research during the MD years seems emphasized in a good way. 3. The school strictly adheres to a Pass/Fail system (as opposed to the masked letter grade system of: honors, high pass, pass, etc.) 4. The facilities are fantastic! 5. The students were very friendly, sincerely took an interest in who you are, they seemed tighter as a class than many other schools I have seen. They seem very driven toward personal but also group success... (certainly not the competition you would expect from such a highly-ranked school). 6. I sat in on a class and the professor was extremely engaging -- you could tell he was enjoying lecturing to students." Report Response

What impressed you negatively?

"1. It was very cold in January -- it was 6 degrees on the day that I interviewed. If you're not used to that, it could be a big deal to get used to it. 2. Hyde Park does seem a bit sketchy. The school is well aware that the area is not the greatest, and said they have taken precautions accordingly, but it's hard to really assess how dangerous the area is until you are in it, I guess. The word from students is that, as long as you have some street smarts about you, there should be no problem. 3. They give you a Q and A session during lunch with a panel of students. They intended for it to be a low-key, ask-the-questions-you-really-want-to-ask-but-are-embarassed-to thing, but one of the students on this panel had been introduced previously as a member of the admissions committee. I don't know in what capacity he serves that committee, but having him there (although he was a really nice guy) seemed to defeat the purpose of their candid lunch session. Needless to say, we interviewees didn't ask too many interesting questions. 4. My fourth comment is really a neutral point, but I thought I'd include it down here since I've already listed so many positive impressions. It is: the curriculum is extremely traditional. The feeling from the students is that they would prefer to learn all the material comprehensively as it is presented in lecture as opposed to piecing together the information through problem-based learning. I actually agree with that format, and am a bit weary of PBL, but it's a good thing to keep in mind if you are looking for a school with far less lecture time." Report Response

What did you wish you had known ahead of time?

"It's really tough to prepare for that type of weather, unless you're from an area that is regularly that cold. It seemed like a lot of places would often over-compensate for the cold by cranking up the heat indoors to sweltering levels... Go in layers. " Report Response

What are your general comments?

"The motivation and proactiveness of the students and faculty, combined with having some of the best research faculty and facilities at your disposal is an unbelievable draw of Pritzker. I was extremely impressed by the school, the facilities, the students, the faculty, the MD admissions staff, and the organization of the interview day (save the lunch Q&A session). Sitting in on a class gave me a good sense of the interaction students have with their professors. The students and professors seemed mutually encouraging and fascinated by what they were discussing in class. Although the tour was a bit hard to enjoy on account of the cold, I felt I got a good sense of the school by the end of the day. " Report Response

Who was the tour given by?

Student

How did the tourguide seem?

Enthusiastic

How do you rank the facilities?

9 out of 10

What is your in-state status?

Out of state

What was your total time spent traveling?

4-6 hours

What was your primary mode of travel?

Airplane

About how much did you spend on room, food, and travel?

$201-$300

What airport did you use?

MDW

Where did you stay?

Friends or family

On what date did the interview take place?

01/15/2005

How do you rank this school among other schools to which you've applied?

8 out of 10

What is your ranking of this school's location?

7 out of 10

What is your ranking of this area's cultural life?

8 out of 10