Faced with two applicants who are both exceptional academically, how does a medical school determine which one to accept? For decades, the OHSU School of Medicine (and most medical schools) has made these determinations by relying, in large part, on two interviews, each an hour long. This is all about to change, and you can be part of the change. This is how The Oregonian described what’s next for OHSU:
This fall, applicants to the medical school at Oregon Health & Science University will be rigorously examined for their emotional intelligence: the ability to communicate with real people in real situations and with professional colleagues in complex care-giving scenarios. They'll be observed by at least seven professionals in at least seven successive and unknowable situations, rated on how well they parse the challenge and then work through it with others in the room.
This is a bold move for OHSU, one of fewer than 10 medical schools in the United States – including Stanford and UCLA – who've adopted the formal testing protocol called the MMI, for multiple mini interview. The MMI was designed years ago by researchers to replace the inherent bias of traditional one-on-one interviews, still employed at many medical schools, in which one interviewer likes one candidate, another likes another, and judging across shared metrics in any consistent manner is impossible.
Articles in The School of Medicine News and The New York Times describe the process in more detail.
What’s involved? OHSU needs you to serve as a station rater. Your time and thoughtfulness are needed, and deeply appreciated.
Volunteers should be physicians (practicing or retired), clinicians, scientists or others with a connection to health care and a strong interest in contributing to identifying future physicians. Experience in evaluations or testing situations would be ideal but is not essential.
Selected volunteers will participate in a 90-minute training session in September and then sign up for at least three sessions of rating the medical school applicants. The MMI sessions with students will take place from October to March. Each session is three hours, either morning or afternoon, and volunteers would need to be present for the entire session. The scoring is completed during the session, and no preparation is necessary ahead of time.
For additional information, please contact Lori Toner, Administrative Admissions Manager, at tonerl@ohsu.edu or (503) 494-5950.