Tell us about an area of weakness you would like to improve in medical school.
Your medical school interviewing team is seasoned enough to know that every student they interview is about to face the toughest four years of their life during medical school. They worked hand in hand with enough students to know that every incoming medical student possesses a weakness or two that needs to be improved. They want to hear that you are cognizant of your weaknesses and are ready and willing to work hard to overcome them.
"I believe I could improve my written communication skills as I tend to be blunter than I would like to be at times. I enrolled in a week-long workshop to become a more eloquent written communicator. I hope to gain skills in this workshop that I can continue to utilize during my medical school training and eventual residency training down the road."
Pick a weakness that is not a core skill for your success as a medical student. You can be candid in your answer, recognizing that you aren't great at something and acknowledging your need to improve. Be sure to have an action plan to improve on this weakness.
"One weakness is content integration. I am able to retain and master content from one subject but sometimes it takes me longer to integrate that knowledge into other fields. For example, in organic chemistry I was able to master each of the fundamental reactions; but, when it came to synthesizing larger molecules, I had difficulty."
Community answers are written by other candidates practicing this set. Reading how others frame the same question is one of the fastest ways to sharpen your own.
Anonymous Answer
I think that an area of weakness I would like to improve is to be more concise in my writing skills and also verbal communication. I can be too wordy, and others might miss the main point I am trying to get across. I plan to work on this by consciously practicing to be more concise and to get my point across in fewer words. I want to take a writing course at a local community college.
Rachelle's Feedback
Practice, as well as a writing course, will certainly help you with this goal. You show a lot of self-awareness. Good work!
Anonymous Answer
I am very good at avoiding confrontation, which can, in turn, cause frustration and tension. I am learning how to talk to someone about a hard topic by first letting them know I am looking out for everyone's best interest. I am such a people pleaser; I don't want to hurt anyone. But with previous experiences, I am learning that it is important to help someone realize a problem at hand so that a team can work better together.
Rachelle's Feedback
This is a very strong and honest response which the interviewer should appreciate. Are you using any resources or tools to improve your conflict management skills?
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