Questions You Could Be Asked
The key to handling questions asked during the interview is to relax, be yourself, and know yourself.
Relax: Being nervous will not help your cause. Nervousness causes you to tense up and lose focus. Just relax, trust yourself and the time you have spent preparing yourself for this moment. Just think of it as your time to get to know the future faculty that will be helping you get through PT school.
Be Yourself: Interviewers can tell when you are not yourself. They are looking for people who are the right fit for their program and if you don't fit that description then you probably shouldn't be there anyway. But there are many, many different programs so it is likely that one of them will be looking for a person like you. Being yourself will also help you to relax during the interview.
Know Yourself: You will be asked questions about your past experience, future goals, morals and ethics, and your knowledge of the physical therapy profession. It is good to know past lessons you have learned from experiences specific to you, future plans you have involving physical therapy, how you would handle certain situations that could be potentially awkward, and current issues affecting physical therapy. Being comfortable with your values and ideals will allow you to feel even more relaxed knowing that no matter what question they ask you, you know how YOU feel about it.
Know the Profession: You will almost always be asked something related to current issues in the PT profession. In my case, I was very focused on getting through undergrad, pre reqs, GRE, etc, that I didn't feel I was adequately informed on current issues so I review some more prevalent subjects beforehand (direct access, vision 2020, etc).
Now days, there are many social media avenues that make staying up to day easy and effortless. Look for facebook groups, people to follow on Twitter or Snapchat, and following podcasts are all easy ways to learn about issues and develop your own opinion. In the helpful links page is a like to Student Doctor Network. This forum can be extremely helpful, make a user account and participate in the discussions that go on there to start forming your own opinions on certain topics.
Relax: Being nervous will not help your cause. Nervousness causes you to tense up and lose focus. Just relax, trust yourself and the time you have spent preparing yourself for this moment. Just think of it as your time to get to know the future faculty that will be helping you get through PT school.
Be Yourself: Interviewers can tell when you are not yourself. They are looking for people who are the right fit for their program and if you don't fit that description then you probably shouldn't be there anyway. But there are many, many different programs so it is likely that one of them will be looking for a person like you. Being yourself will also help you to relax during the interview.
Know Yourself: You will be asked questions about your past experience, future goals, morals and ethics, and your knowledge of the physical therapy profession. It is good to know past lessons you have learned from experiences specific to you, future plans you have involving physical therapy, how you would handle certain situations that could be potentially awkward, and current issues affecting physical therapy. Being comfortable with your values and ideals will allow you to feel even more relaxed knowing that no matter what question they ask you, you know how YOU feel about it.
Know the Profession: You will almost always be asked something related to current issues in the PT profession. In my case, I was very focused on getting through undergrad, pre reqs, GRE, etc, that I didn't feel I was adequately informed on current issues so I review some more prevalent subjects beforehand (direct access, vision 2020, etc).
Now days, there are many social media avenues that make staying up to day easy and effortless. Look for facebook groups, people to follow on Twitter or Snapchat, and following podcasts are all easy ways to learn about issues and develop your own opinion. In the helpful links page is a like to Student Doctor Network. This forum can be extremely helpful, make a user account and participate in the discussions that go on there to start forming your own opinions on certain topics.
Possible Questions
*Why do you want to pursue a career in physical therapy?
Why not go into another profession of health care?
How would you handle this situation....?
What are some experiences you have had working in PT clinics?
How has this experience in your life influenced you to pursue physical therapy?
What made you decide on PT?
What is your opinion of Vision 2020?
*Why do you want to go to school here?
If you could have dinner with 1 (or 3) people who would they be and why?
If you could change 2 things in the Healthcare system what would you change?
What will your future classmates like about you?
What do you expect out of your future classmates?
*Those with asterisks will almost always be asked
Why not go into another profession of health care?
How would you handle this situation....?
What are some experiences you have had working in PT clinics?
How has this experience in your life influenced you to pursue physical therapy?
What made you decide on PT?
What is your opinion of Vision 2020?
*Why do you want to go to school here?
If you could have dinner with 1 (or 3) people who would they be and why?
If you could change 2 things in the Healthcare system what would you change?
What will your future classmates like about you?
What do you expect out of your future classmates?
*Those with asterisks will almost always be asked
Good reference on Student Doctor Network:
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=835929weeblylink_new_window
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=835929weeblylink_new_window