With a legacy dating back to 1497, the University of Aberdeen is one of the oldest and most respected institutions in the UK. The medical school takes pride in its innovative curriculum, excellent teaching, and a supportive learning environment. Known for producing top-quality healthcare professionals, the Aberdeen medicine program is rigorous and highly competitive. It integrates clinical and theoretical learning from the outset, emphasising professionalism, empathy, and patient-centred care. Therefore, the admissions process, including the interview, is carefully designed to assess not just academic prowess but also the communication skills, ethical understanding, and personal attributes necessary for a successful career in medicine.
Aberdeen Medicine Interview Format
The Aberdeen Medicine interview follows the Multiple Mini Interview (MMI) format, which consists of multiple short interview stations. Each station presents a different scenario or task designed to evaluate various skills like communication, problem-solving, empathy, and ethical reasoning. Interviewees rotate through these stations, facing a new interviewer at each, minimising any interviewer bias. It’s important to note that while medical knowledge may be helpful, the focus of the MMI is primarily on your skills and attributes, your understanding of the healthcare sector and your motivation to study medicine.
Aberdeen Medicine Interview Preparation Tips
Preparing for the MMI involves a mix of understanding the healthcare sector, reflecting on your personal skills and experiences, and practising under MMI-like conditions. A key tip for MMIs is to be aware of the time constraints and to structure your responses appropriately. You should aim to answer the question directly, then expand upon it using examples or experiences where possible. The ability to listen and understand the question is crucial, as is showing empathy and respect in your responses. Reflecting on your work experience, volunteering or personal experiences and relating them to the qualities desired in a healthcare professional can be beneficial. Lastly, familiarising yourself with ethical principles, the NHS structure and current health issues will be helpful.
Aberdeen Medicine Interview Preparation Resources
To streamline your preparation, there are resources available including books, online materials and MMI courses. BlackStone Tutors, for example, offers comprehensive MMI preparation courses that can be extremely useful. They provide simulated MMI circuits, personalised feedback and strategies to tackle common MMI scenarios, allowing you to approach your Aberdeen Medicine Interview with confidence.
Sample Past Questions
You can anticipate the types of questions or tasks you might encounter. These may include ethical scenarios requiring you to weigh the pros and cons of a particular situation, tasks testing your communication and teamwork skills, or questions on your motivation to study medicine at Aberdeen. Reflecting on why you want to be a doctor, how empathy and resilience are crucial in medicine, and how you’d approach breaking bad news to a patient can be beneficial. Above all, your answers should demonstrate your suitability for a career in medicine, your understanding of the profession and your commitment to studying at Aberdeen. Exemplar questions can be found here and below.
Ethics
- Describe a time when you faced an ethical dilemma and how did you handle it?
- If a patient refuses treatment, what would you do?
- How would you handle a situation where a patient’s religious beliefs interfere with their medical treatment?
- How do you feel about euthanasia or assisted dying?
- If a 14-year-old wants to keep their medical diagnosis confidential from their parents, what would you do?
Teamwork
- Can you describe a time when you worked effectively as part of a team?
- How do you handle conflicts within a team?
- What role do you usually take in a team setting?
- How would you approach a situation where a team member isn’t contributing equally?
- Describe an instance where you led a team through a difficult situation.
- How do you support others in a team?
- How important is effective teamwork in healthcare?
Motivation
- Why do you want to study medicine at Aberdeen?
- Who or what has been your biggest influence in deciding to study medicine?
- Can you discuss a medical news story that you’ve recently followed?
- Describe a personal experience that confirmed your desire to pursue medicine.
- How have your work experiences prepared you for a career in medicine?
- What are the biggest challenges facing the healthcare sector, and how does this influence your decision to become a doctor?
- How do you plan to contribute to the field of medicine?
- Why should we choose you over other applicants?
- What aspect of medicine are you most interested in and why?
- How will you maintain your motivation throughout your medical studies and career?
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