No Med School Interview Invites? Why Interview Prep Is Still Important

When Do You Usually Hear Back About Medical Schools Interviews?

Trying to understand why you have no medical school interview invites can be incredibly stressful. While application season is going on, you’re busy writing your medical school personal statement and medical school secondary essays and there isn’t much time to sit and worry. But once all applications have been submitted, there’s suddenly a lot more free time and you spend it worrying!

Before you start to stress about getting no medical school interview invites, keep in mind that the dates for interviews can vary. For instance, programs with rolling admissions usually have a longer interview season starting as early as July and ending as late as March whereas other schools have set times for interviews in early Winter that may occur over just one or two weeks. Check your schools’ admissions websites to confirm the exact timelines for their interview season.

So, how do you know when it’s too late to get an interview?

As a general rule of thumb, when it comes to medical school interview invites, no news is good news – it means they might still be deciding on your application. Even if many months have passed since you submitted your application, you could be on a “pre-interview hold”, which is essentially like being waitlisted before the interview.

Would you like to practice some med school interview questions? Test yourself with these!

Possible Reasons Why You’re Not Getting Med School Interview Invites

It is absolutely crucial that you reflect on possible reasons you may not be getting interview invites. Why?

Firstly, because even if you do get invited to interviews later in the season, you should reflect on whether anything in your application raised a “red flag” for the admissions committee.

Secondly, in case you do not get any interview invites this season, you will be aware of your own mistakes and not repeat them again for the next application cycle. So, let’s dive into what you should consider when you analyze your application:

Did your stats meet the standards of the schools you applied to?

While you might have ensured that your application meets the “minimum” medical school requirements , that’s not always enough to get an interview invite. Medical schools receive thousands, and sometimes tens of thousands, of applications every year.

Check MSAR, as well as the admission websites of your schools, to confirm the average accepted stats for the schools you’ve applied to. If your GPA and MCAT score are lower than their average accepted GPA and MCAT score, that could be a critical reason why you haven’t received interview invites.

Did you emphasize the right extracurriculars?

If you have amazing statistics including a high GPA and a great MCAT score, then the reason you’re not getting an interview invite could be your extracurriculars. Most medical schools look for certain types of extracurriculars: clinical experience, shadowing experience, volunteer work, and research activities. However, the extent to which one experience type is valued over another, and how much experience is required, could vary from one program to the next.

For instance, you should check how many hours of shadowing experience the schools you’re applying to require. Some may not have “requirements” but could recommend a certain number of hours be completed. Other schools that have excellent research facilities and integrate mandatory research components in their curriculum, meaning they could rate candidates with research-related extracurriculars higher. Many medical schools also place an emphasis on community engagement and service, so lack of any type of volunteer experience in the AMCAS Most Meaningful Experiences section could get an application waitlisted or rejected.

Want to see a few of our key points summarized? Take a look at this infographic:

Did you emphasize your clinical experience?

Clinical experience is crucial for medical school applications and a lack of experience is a common reason for rejection. Shadowing, although valuable, doesn't count as clinical experience since it’s a passive activity. Similarly, volunteer hours in a medical setting or administrative hospital jobs don't fulfill this requirement.

Clinical experience is essential, not just to enhance your application but to demonstrate your genuine interest and suitability for medicine. It helps you write well-informed personal statements and tailored secondary essays. If your application lacked meaningful clinical experience, seek opportunities to gain it. If you have such experience, ensure you effectively highlighted it in your application. Reread your personal statement, activities section, and essays to see if they convey the significance of your experiences and excite the reader.

Was your application weak, late, or rushed?

This closely ties to the previous point. Reflect on whether your application truly showcased your best skills, significant activities, and why you're the right candidate for a particular medical school. Instead of just listing achievements, your application should tell a captivating story of your journey to medical school, standing out among thousands of others.

Late applications often suffer in quality due to rushing, leading to overlooked instructions, poorly answered prompts, and grammar errors, which can quickly disqualify your application, regardless of its stellar content.

Why You Should Still Do Interview Prep

One of the most common mistakes students make during the med school application process is waiting until they receive an interview invitation to start their medical school interview preparation.

While it’s natural to want a break after submitting essays and documents, the application process isn't over yet. Instead of worrying about your application's status, use this time to prepare for interviews. Even without invitations yet, you might receive them later in the season when fewer spots are available, making it crucial to deliver an exceptional performance.

Early preparation is key, as some students receive invitations just weeks after applying, leaving little time to prepare. By starting early, you can master critical communication skills and avoid being unprepared for late-season interviews. These skills are invaluable, not only for med school but also for landing prestigious extracurricular opportunities and enhancing your resume. In the long term, they can provide a competitive edge for future applications or professional interviews.

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Other Things You Can Do if You Have No Medical School Interview Invites

Work on gaining some additional experiences, skills, or achievements

If your extracurriculars are weak, focus on adding impressive activities that align with your top programs' values and excite you personally. Prioritize boosting the weakest areas of your application. For example, if you have strong research experience but lack clinical experience, seek clinical work at a hospital or clinic. If you’ve done shadowing but need community service, find a volunteer job you’re passionate about.

If you find new and meaningful experiences, you can communicate additional experiences and achievements to your school via your letters of update and letters of interest.

Submit an application update or a letter of interest

Sending additional communications to a school is beneficial, especially later in the application season, as it keeps your application fresh in the admissions committees' minds and showcases new skills, awards, and experiences. This demonstrates your initiative and motivation.

There are two types of communications: an update and a letter of interest. An update is an informal modification or addition to your application, such as new non-academic experiences or updated academic transcripts. A letter of interest is a formal letter reaffirming your interest in the program, highlighting your unique qualities, experiences, and strengths, and should be tailored to emphasize why you are an ideal candidate for the school.

Which one you chose to submit will depend on the specific requirements of the school. Some have a prescribed template or process to submit updates and don’t accept any other communications, while others only allow updates to be communicated via a letter of interest or a letter of intent.

Submit a letter of intent

A medical school letter of intent is a more specific letter that you will only send to a single school. This explicitly confirms that the school you’re addressing is your top choice and if offered a place, you will definitely accept.

You should only send one letter of intent and ideally, we would suggest waiting to send this letter until after you’ve been interviewed, and if you’re waitlisted at your top school. However, if February arrives and you still haven’t received a single interview invite, you don’t have much to lose by sharing a letter of intent with your top-choice school.

Conclusion: Prepare a back-up plan

What will you do if you receive no medical school interview invitations? While this possibility can be frustrating to contemplate, remember that it’s not necessarily the end of your medical school dream.

Use this opportunity to self-reflect and identify the key weaknesses of your application. Think about what you do to upgrade your application and consider if taking a gap year before medical school can help you. For example, many students use the gap year to complete a post-bacc program or a special master’s program to improve their GPA and get a stronger foundation in science subjects, while others opt to build their extracurriculars with more clinically or medically focused experience.

At this stage, you can also consider hiring a medical school advisor to give you expert guidance about selecting the right schools and how to improve your acceptance chances.

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To your success,

Your friends at BeMo

BeMo Academic Consulting

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