Internal Medicine Residency Mock Interview
Prepare for 40 Internal Medicine Residency interview questions covering clinical reasoning, patient care philosophy, and program fit.
Question 24 of 40
If I asked your friends, what would they say are your strengths and weaknesses?
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Ryan Brown created and launched MockQuestions in 2008.
You will likely talk about your strengths and weaknesses throughout your interview. This question is unique because they request that you answer from the perspective of your friends, rather than your student colleagues or the preceptors you've worked with in the past.
Ryan Brown created and launched MockQuestions in 2008.
"My strength is that I communicate my priorities clearly. During my rotations in medical school, I worked closely with social workers to ensure that patients had a placement in a nursing home or other facility so that they had a smooth transition out of the hospital when their condition improved. I also made sure they had physical and occupational therapists to ensure early rehabilitation following surgery and that any questions or concerns about care were addressed promptly. My weakness is self-criticism. I frequently reflect on my words and actions and wonder if I should have said or done something different. I have learned to call my patients to provide new information about important issues that I may have neglected to discuss during their appointment."
Ryan Brunner has over ten years of experience recruiting, interviewing, and hiring candidates in the healthcare, public service, and private manufacturing/distribution industries.
Give a strength that is unique to you and applies to the field of medicine. It is a common strategy to offer a weakness that is actually a strength (e.g., "My weakness is that I work too hard"). The interviewers will recognize this as a transparent tactic. For this reason, you must provide an example of a legitimate weakness that you have worked to improve. You should not offer more weaknesses than strengths in your answer.
"Strengths: Hardworking and empathetic.
Weaknesses: Overanalyzing - I have worked to overcome this over the years by giving myself time to analyze something but then also telling myself that after that time is up, that a decision needs to be made with the information at hand at the time."
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Anonymous Answer
My background has helped me to develop strong leadership skills and the ability to have a collaborative approach to work. I remember championing a community outreach activity to help reduce the high HIV incidence that I noticed while consulting. I trained community health workers and through our collaboration, we were able to target all the high-risk zones and screen and educate the population, share free condoms. many months later we saw a crease of 4.5% in the incidence of HIV. This gave me the understanding that a team can achieve many things if they support each other, respectful of others' suggestions and opinions, Other strengths include my adaptability, I tend to easily adapt to any situation or new community in that I find myself. This program has diverse residents and patients and also I am coming into a new healthcare system in the US. I will easily adapt and integrate myself into the system and culture. Lastly, I am passionate and committed. Any task given to me, I will be fully committed to it and do it excellently and on time. My biggest weakness is that I am shy about public speaking and then speak fast. I remember just after graduation from medical school, I presented an abstract at a conference and the feedback my supervisor gave was that she felt like I was shy and spoke fast and rumbled. So far I have registered for online courses on public speaking and have been doing my best to present in seminar or conference that comes up. If taken in your residency, I will be the first to show up when anyone needs to opt to present a topic or an abstract.
Marcie's Feedback
Excellent! The strengths you have chosen to discuss (being a strong leader, collaborative, adaptable, passionate, and committed) are relevant and align with what the interviewer will be seeking. Supporting these assertions with examples is also very helpful. Finally, the weakness you mention (being shy when it comes to public speaking) is a common struggle for many, and the interviewer will be happy to hear that you are taking concrete steps to overcome this challenge. Great response!
Anonymous Answer
-Resilient: I have shown resilience in sticking with medicine despite some time away. I never gave up on the dream. I made steady but decisive, incremental steps to turn my life around. I successfully dealt with my illness, then I found financial stability. Till I came to the point where I was able to study and review medicine- took Step 2. Found work that got me in touch with medicine and gave me clinical experience. Finally, I took it one step further and completed Step 3 with a very good score.
-Empathetic- I have always had an empathetic nature. Since I was young I found myself understanding and feeling others pain. That and my interest in medicine have brought me here. My empathetic nature has translated to my care and connection patients. I was able to empathize with a patient and really listen to her…took her pain seriously…despite the hand-off from night shift as a possible drug seeker. I was able to diagnose her with an aortic dissection.
I was have been nominated for the GHHS award for my excellence in patient care. Also a result of my compassionate empathetic nature. I can connect with everyone. That also extends to my teammates.
-Flexible: Regardless of whatever has come my way, from an early age. I have been adaptable. Came to the US as an immigrant kid, not known the language and culture. My teacher told my mom….its like hes been here. Despite my recent struggles, I found a way to succeed and keep. I’ve keep my eye on the prize. My ability to adapt and change with any situation sets me apart from most people because I thrive in environments where things don't remain constant every day."
Weakness- I am overly critical of myself. That can lead to some anxiety.
However, I now harness that feelings to reflect daily on areas that I can improve. I take positive action, and I allow myself some patience for improvement. For instance, if its a gap in my knowledge I read it up on it that night.
Marcie's Feedback
Excellent! You've done a fantastic job of describing several of your strengths and one of your weaknesses. Your response is thorough and detailed, which makes it memorable and meaningful. Choosing to cite being overly critical of yourself as your weakness is a good choice because it can potentially be seen in a positive light (having high expectations and standards for yourself). Most important is showing the interviewer how you are working to overcome this, which you have. Great job!
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