Interview Techniques2013 Admissions Workshop

AACP Annual Meeting

July 12, 2013

ParticipantsSamford University

Jon Parker, MS, EdS jmparker@samford.edu

•Assistant Director of Pharmacy Admissions

University of Kentucky

Stephanie Wurth stephanie.wurth@uky.edu

•Director of Admissions & Student Diversity

University of Illinois at Chicago

Thomas TenHoeve, PhD tenhoeve@uic.edu

•Associate Dean

University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences

Schwanda Flowers, PharmD skflowers@uams.edu

•Associate Dean for Student Affairs and Professional Development

Session Overview

• Overview of interviewing techniques

• Innovations to ensure accurate interview assessment and student selection

• Lessons learned/Challenges

• Panel discussion

Jon ParkerAssistant Director of Admission

Samford University McWhorter School of Pharmacy

Samford University McWhorter School of Pharmacy

Rolling Admission (Oct – April)

Approximately 200 Interviews

30 Min Interview/30 Min Essay

Two Interviewers/One Interviewee

Interview Day

• 10 – 20 Applicants in Two Sessions • Meet and Greet with Student Ambassadors• Overview of the Day – Schedule and Intro of

Interviewers• ½ Start Interview – ½ Start On-Site Essay• Information Session – Welcome from Dean,

Overview of Curriculum, Student Groups• Q&A With Ambassadors/Facility Tour

Interview Details• Experience Based: Focusing on 7 Areas• Half-Blinded: Committee

Member/General Faculty or Alumni• Paperless

Essay Details• Handwritten

• Non-Controversial Topics

Stephanie WurthDirector of Admissions & Student Diversity

University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy

UK College of Pharmacy Characteristics

• Applicant Pool = 800

• 260 interviews

• 135 seats

• Early Decision and Rolling Admissions– October through March

• PharmCAS and Supplemental Application are also required

Current Interview ProcessCurrent•Behavioral Based•1 individual/1 group

• 2 moderators per candidate• Blinded• 20-25 minutes/each

• Ice Breaker/Tour/Meeting with Dean/Info Session also included

•Improved rubric– Characteristics of scores– Tightened scale (1-4)

Challenges: Current Process• Canned responses

• Assessment challenges for Committee

• Limited number of interviewers– Quality/Quantity

• Interviewer – Biases (Expectations/Perspectives)

– Variability (Inconsistency/Scoring/Narrative Comments)

• Lack of soft skill assessment

Soft Skills or Emotional Intelligence

Ethical and Moral Judgment

Professionalism Interpersonal Skills Management Abilities

Critical Thinking

Decision Making Problem solving Time Management

Collaboration Negotiation Communication Cooperation

Future Interview Process: Fall 2013

Multiple Mini Interviews (MMI)•Developed by McMaster University

•Application of objective standardized clinical examination (OSCE)-like principles to the interview process

•5-10 small or “mini” interviews/stations– Scenario based (Discussions/Critical thinking)

– Simulations (Role playing)

– Collaborative

•6-10 minutes each (typically <8 minutes)

Process for Implementation• Shadowing• Faculty Presentations

– Evidence based

– Reliability/Predictability

– Positive Feedback

– Lessened time commitment

• ProFIT HR (McMaster)– Software

– Scenarios/Theories

– Web-based interviewing scoring product

Virginia Tech Carilion (VTC) School of Medicine and Research Institute MMI Interview Day

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYZc-rItyRw

UK COP MMI• Faculty survey to select soft skills

• 7 stations/7 minutes

• 3 circuits

• Approx. 40 students/day

WISH US LUCK!!

The Move to the Multiple Mini Interview

Thomas TenHoeve, PhD

Associate Dean

UIC College of Pharmacy Characteristics

• Two Campuses– Chicago has160 per class– Rockford has 50 per class

• Typical Applicant Pool - 1500• Number of Applicants Interviewed - 500• Admissions are done on a rolling basis starting in

October and running through April• Use PharmCAS application, supplemental

application, and interview to score applicants• All components have a scoring rubric (to ensure a

consistent, objective review)

Interview Type Transition

Traditional Interviews

Behavior Based Interviews

Multiple Mini Interviews

Pros and Cons

• Traditional – easy to set up interviews (lots of faculty involvement), no real training necessary, no specific space requirements, no set scoring rubric, very subjective, blind, one interviewer

• Behavior-Based – training necessary, need to develop prompts, harder to get faculty involved, scoring rubric possible, no specific space requirements, blind, one interviewer, lack of consistent scoring between interviewers

Pros and Cons (cont’d)

• MMI – very resource intensive (time, people, $$$), need to develop stations for circuit, general training necessary, station specific training necessary, need space for circuit(s), scoring rubric must be developed, more “eyes” on each applicant, much more consistent evaluation of applicants

The UIC MMI Experience• Work with ProfitHR – company that formed out of

McMaster University, the home of MMI.

• 6 stations - Ethics, Problem Solving, Professionalism, Teamwork (giving and receiving), Time Management

• Each station has a scenario score and a communication score

• 7 minutes per station with 3 minutes transition for a total of an hour

• 3 hours of interviews per interview day (18 applicants)

The UIC MMI Experience (cont’d)

• Interviewers “specialize” in their scenario

• 5 interview teams (30 interviewers)

• Interviewers - faculty, P4 students, and alumni

• Interview day consists of an MMI intro for applicants, a tour of the college, Q/A with current students, lunch

• Writing assessment (asking them to write about their interview experience)

Feedback

• Applicants love it!

• Interviewers love it!

Schwanda Flowers, PharmDAssociate Dean for Student Affairs and

Professional Development

UAMS College of Pharmacy

University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences College of Pharmacy

Mission:To improve health of culturally diverse populations by, educating pharmacy leaders to address community health needs, advancing scientific discovery to produce innovations in healthcare, and fostering progressive pharmacy practice through service to the profession

•Students:Total – 481

In-State – 470

Male – 179

Female - 302

UAMS COP Application Process• Pharmacy College Admissions Test (PCAT) is required

– Minimum composite percentile of 30 is required for consideration of application

• Overall college GPA of 2.50 or above • Minimum of 8 hours of General Chemistry I and 4 hours of Organic

Chemistry I with a grade of “C” or better by the application deadline• Only applicants that are US citizens or hold a valid Permanent

Resident/Resident Alien (green) card are considered• Supplemental application required

– All applicants with a completed PharmCAS application and selected for interview will be provided the information about supplemental application materials. There is a $100.00 supplemental fee

• Letters of Reference– All applicants must present three references – two must be from college

professors who have taught the applicant in class and one reference may be of the student’s choice.

Interview Day• Welcome

• Campus tour

• NW Campus

• Curriculum Overview

• “More Choices” presentation

• White Coat prep

• MMI

Multiple Mini Interview

• Implementation Spring 2008• Clinical Skills Center• 4 station MMI

– Ethics/professionalism, empathy/rapport, knowledge of profession, career choice/suitability for profession

• Actors, faculty, and students– NOT members of the admissions committee

• 8 minutes cases

UAMS Center for Clinical Skills

• Fall 2013 Admissions cycle– 537 applicants– 228 interviews– 8 interview dates

• 24-48 applicants per date• Approx. $6,000• 24 Faculty/students/actors per date

Multiple Mini Interview

MMI Score sheetScoring

Scale: 1 Unsatisfactory 3 Borderline 5 Satisfactory 7 Outstanding 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Communication skills

Strength of argument/discussion content

Suitability for pharmacy

Overall performance YES NO

The candidate appears confident that he/she can become an active participant in the provision of direct patient care services. (Yes=0 & No=1)

At the conclusion of this interview is there anything that ‘worries/concerns’ you about the candidate. (Yes=1 & No=0)

MMI Results

• Admissions data 2008-2011

• N=476

• Median MMI score of 5.7

• MMI scores <4.3 were 3x as likely to experience difficulty (p=0.0396)

Questions?