Looking for top tips for a HYMS medicine interview? You’ve come to the right place!
Interview format: MMI
Applying to Medicine for 2018 entry? Book a space on our newly announced MMI Circuits!
Book an MMI CircuitI absolutely loved my interview at HYMS. The staff did their absolute best to make everyone feel relaxed, and the interviewers did exactly the same.
With HYMS, the interview is pretty interesting. It consisted of three main parts: two 10 minute personal interviews (one on you, one on medicine) and one 20 minute group interview (based on PBL). Now, there is apparently a new station, known as the ‘Scenario Station’, where you will partake in some roleplay with an actor.
1. Let your personality shine in your HYMS Medicine interview!
If you weren’t intelligent, you wouldn’t get an interview for medical school. HYMS know that, and so in the interview they don’t care about how many A*s you are targeted, or how you can spell Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease backwards whilst juggling. In fact, your interviewers will not have even seen your UCAS form. They want to see you and your personality, because that’s what patients see. If you only take one thing from this article, please let it be this tip. Smile as much as you want, and be as friendly as you can.
2. Don’t be afraid to speak up in your PBL session
In your HYMS medicine interview, the PBL session consists of reading a PBL-style scenario on a patient who will most likely have social problems rather than rare, medical issues. They won’t give you any complicated diseases, so do not worry about that. Rather, they are more interested in seeing how you can look at a patient, and understand how their problems will affect their everyday life.
The tutor running the session will probably say very little throughout the session, and it is up to you as a group to discuss the patient. You will probably get a loud, overly confident person who will know everything about the case, but that is just the way things go. You need to be able to deal with that, and you will get amazing marks if you are able to try and involve other people who are ‘ruled over’ by the loud people.
You don’t necessarily get marks on your contributions, but they love it when the discussion flows, so pick up any silences and you’ll do great. Also, to get a tick by your name straight away, I encourage you to be the person that reads out the scenario to the group. It is a great way of ‘ripping off the plaster’, and makes you look more confident than you possibly feel.
3. Read the NHS Constitution for England
HYMS love the NHS Constitution, and the general ideas around it. It is only a 15 page document, so I do encourage you to read it. You will not be expected to know the ins and outs of every section, but it is important to have an understanding of its values to reflect on in your interview.
During your answers in your HYMS medicine interview, if you can refer back to the constitution, your interviewer will love you, although don’t do it for every answer! It might help to print it out about a week before your interview, and highlight any parts you think could form part of an interview answer, especially in the new scenario station. Then, on the morning of your interview, have a quick flick through it. HYMS also love asking questions on current affairs, so whilst you’re watching the news, think about how some stories may link with the NHS Constitution.
Words: Daniel James
