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Hull York Medical School PA Interview Questions

Advice & Insight From PA Application Specialists

General Interview Information

In order to be considered for admission to Hull York’s Physician Associate program, you must have at least a 2.1 in a relevant biosciences degree (like Medical Sciences, Biochemistry, Biomedical Sciences, Sports Sciences, or Pharmacology) or be predicted to achieve such. You must also have GCSE Maths at a C or above and GCSE English at a B or above. You must also show that you have a grounding in Chemistry – this might be through your degree, or could be through your A Levels. You must also be able to demonstrate that you are committed to working in healthcare, and that you have great communication skills.

Evidence of work experience in healthcare or in a clinical setting is ‘desirable but not essential.’

Interview Format for Physician Associate Studies at Hull York Medical School

The Hull York interview for PA Studies is a ‘series of mini panel interviews that ask competency and value based questions.’ They are designed to assess you against a trainee physician associate ‘person specification.’ The interview should take no longer than half an hour.

Key Dates

This is a two year program that starts in September.

Sample & Recent Interview Questions

​Motivation and Insight into the career of a Physician Associate

  • Describe the role of a physician associate. How does it differ from that of a doctor?
  • Why are you interested in studying at Hull York Medical School in particular?
  • Do you have experience of learning in a PBL format?
  • We have patient contact from week three. How can you illustrate to us that you are ready for, and confident about, this challenge?
  • Does the idea of learning in a PA program that is linked to an established medical school appeal to you? Why?
  • What do you think a typical day looks like for a PA?
  • How does a physician associate’s role differ from a nurse practitioner’s?
  • Is it possible for a PA to work alone (independent of a doctor)?
  • Are there particular specialties or areas of healthcare that you find more or less interesting?
  • What are the most important current challenges to global health in general?
  • Tell us about COVID-19 and how it has affected the NHS.
  • Which body regulates physician associates in the UK?
  • What can you tell us about the history of the NHS?
  • What are the 6Cs?
  • What healthcare topics have stood out to you recently, other than COVID-19?
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Learn the best interview strategies and practice with interview questions & model answers.

Ethical Dilemmas

  • How would you react if you found that junior doctors on your ward were not dealing with their responsibilities, and instead leaving them to you?
  • Should the NHS offer treatment for self-inflicted problems? As an example, should it treat smokers whose condition is due to their decision to smoke?
  • Should recreational drugs be illegal, or would legalising them lead to less drug hospitalisations?
  • Should physician assistants be allowed to refuse to treat certain patients due to their religious beliefs or cultural background?
  • Should the NHS be privatised or altered in another way? Are its goals sensible in the 21st century?

Communication Stations​

  • Please describe an experience that illustrated the importance of good communication skills to you.
  • How should health professionals alter the way in which they communicate depending on who they are talking to?
  • What attributes are essential to those that are good communicators?
  • What is active listening?
  • How does empathy help one communicate?

Teamwork Tasks

  • Do you find that you learn well in teams in general?
  • What can you tell me about the role of the multidisciplinary team in Medicine in the NHS?
  • Please provide us with an example of a team that you have been in that failed in a task or objective. What did you learn from this experience, and how did the team evolve as a result of it?
  • Please provide us with an example of your leadership ability.

General / Personal Statements

  • Imagine we asked your friends to describe you in three words or phrases. What would they say?
  • How do you deal with pressure?
  • How can you show to us that you are organised enough to tackle the course here at Hull York?
  • Tell us about yourself.
  • What is your greatest ambition in life, outside of the professional realm?
  • Tell us about your family and your upbringing.
  • What is your greatest weakness?
  • What one attribute that you have would you single out as being particularly important to PAs?

Hull York Medical School PA Interview Questions

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