Western U interview questions

[athenaparthenos]

Hey, those of you who have interviewed at Western/are currently there now, I just had a few questions:

Does the time in my e-mail (8:15) refer to when my actual interview begins, or when the group activities begin and then at some point I have the interview? They didn't really send me a schedule of when things would occur, just a list of the things we will be doing (tour, PBL-session, financial aid, etc.).

I read somewhere in one of these threads about lunch being offered, is that so?

How big is the veterinary portion of the campus? The shoes I bought for my suit, while classy, are not the most comfortable for walking long distances. I'll be bringing another pair of shoes to walk around in if necessary, but I was just wondering what to expect as far as the tour goes. Some of the interview reviews on SDN made it sound like it was as tiny as a single portable classroom unit, so I'm not sure what to expect as far as distance goes...

Thanks. These are probably silly questions, but my interview is Thursday and I'm getting the jitters (it's my first one!). Thanks for any advice you might have!

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[imagine21]

8:15 is when everyone needs to be there. The Dean comes in and welcomes you and you are given a name tag and pamphlet. Your name tag has a group number on it and within the pamphlet there is a schedule based on what group you are in. As you said before they have 4 different rotations and thus 4 groups. Each group goes through these rotations separately - you could have your interview in the first rotation or last. I do not think that you need a change of shoes because the tour is not long since the campus is not very large. You are given water all day but no food until lunch so bring a snack or eat breakfast before you go. Don't be nervous everyone there is extremely friendly and the whole day is very laid back. Hope this answers your questions. PM me if you have any more questions and good luck!!

 

[adOggy07]

totally in agreement with the above answer! I hate heels and even I survived a day with them on at Western.

 

[clawsbeatskin]

Okay, I feel really stupid asking this, but where should I have the shuttle drop me off? I don't remember this information in any of my interview notification. I just realized I haven't a clue where I need to be!!

 

[athenaparthenos]

Okay, I feel really stupid asking this, but where should I have the shuttle drop me off? I don't remember this information in any of my interview notification. I just realized I haven't a clue where I need to be!!

It's okay, I felt silly asking about if my heels were going to be okay to wear -- but I knew I would worry about it if I didn't ask! So it's better to ask, I think.

This was in my confirmation e-mail:

Thank you for scheduling your interview. You are confirmed for the following appointment:

Interview: Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM)
Date: Thursday, February 7, 2008
Time: 8:15am
With: Doctor of Veterinary Medicine

If your appointment is on Monday or Friday, please report to the Health Professions Center Lobby (Building 5 on the campus map). If your appointment is on Tuesday or Thursday, please report to the Health Sciences Center Lobby (Building 4B on the campus map).

 

[chris03333]

Good Luck all! I actually miss Western.................

 

[BG85]

Hi, Just a few more Western questions...

Is the interview as laid back as we hear? I've been brushing up on behavioral type interviews, and I've heard Western asks pretty much standard questions of all the candidates. I understand it's closed file, so was wondering if you get to talk about your current situation at all, or if it's all situation responses.

And, how is the weather out there? No matter what, it's going to be nice to visit a Vet school in California.

 

[Catnapper]

It was freezing this morning, but warm and sunny by mid-day. There were several, behavioral-based questions--more than I was anticipating (the kind I'm sure you've seen in the interview thread). You can talk about anything you can relate to the question--one of the first-years told us that in his interview, he talked about sports and music. They were very friendly, but because the interview's behavior-based, I left having no idea how well or poorly I did. Apparently, they're interviewing ~400 people for a class of ~100...but they'll tell you this.
Good Luck!

 

[ramaloma]

The Interview is definitely laid back. You also have no idea how you did coming out of it. For me it was very conversational, and I think they sounded like they skipped off the main questionnaire a little bit during mine just because we were talking about other stuff.

 

[clawsbeatskin]

I also found the interview very relaxed. I appreciated their effort to make us comfortable and well fed (snacks everywhere!)

I'm trying to take their advice and not think about how it went. My interview was a laugh-fest, not sure if that's good or bad. But it was actually kind of fun.

 

[jniee]

Anyone know how long the entire day will last? I'm trying to see whether I should fly out that night or the next day.

 

[OSJ]

I was finished around 1 or so. My day started there at 8:15 am. I know they have different schedules for different days though (mine was a thursday schedule.) You might want to email Karen Lopez to check for your day though.

Good Luck!

 

[prideprejudice]

Does anyone know what they consider after the interview phase of the process to decide who is in the "acceptable" pool that the Dean receives (from which the final class is picked)? TIA!

 

[OSJ]

At the interview they said if you get a "yes" on your application then you are offered an interview. If you get an interview you get a "yes" or "no." If you get a "yes" then they select the class from the all the "yesses" based on diversity. They said they do not consider gpa/gre or experience as diversity but location, career goals, etc.

 

[clawsbeatskin]

I think it is so interesting that the Dean handpicks the class by himself. I just picture him in his office, alone, staying all night, ordering pizza or something, trying to make such huge decisions.

I understood the criteria to be: Homestate, Gender, Ethnicity, and Area of Interest.

 

[Catnapper]

I think it is so interesting that the Dean handpicks the class by himself. I just picture him in his office, alone, staying all night, ordering pizza or something, trying to make such huge decisions.

I understood the criteria to be: Homestate, Gender, Ethnicity, and Area of Interest.

Uh-oh...I'm a white crazy cat lady (but I live in CA!)!

 

[clawsbeatskin]

To clarify...I don't think they meant homestate as in CA residents get preference, in fact, I heard them state several times that was not the case. I just think they don't want to end up with a class that's 50% CA residents and 50% (enter single state here). Diversity seems key.

 

[Catnapper]

Where's the bawling smiley?