KMMS will invite around 300 applicants to the first round of Multiple Mini Interviews (MMIs), but may also interview later in the year.
The Kent and Medway University Medical School interviews are supposedly very different to those that take place at other medical schools. The university labels its interview ‘multistation interviews’ rather than ‘multiple mini interviews’ as seen elsewhere. They explain that applicants in the 2019-20 group supposedly found the process entirely different to what they had prepared for. As such, the university does not recommend that students undertake any particular form of preparation, but ‘advise applicants to be alert, organised, and in good form to show us the best version of yourself.’ Applicants will be provided more information from the university to prepare them for the interview process, and can find more information on the MMI section of the website prior to this.
Expect there to be six stations, with each taking seven minutes. There will likely be two minute intervals between the stations. After this there will likely be a c.40 minute group activity, with each applicant being individually assessed throughout this. In 2019-2020, the six individual stations were data handling, problem analysis, situational judgement, roleplay, task and a values-based station. The university will likely continue with the same time format, although the station types may change.
All applicants invited to MMIs are required to sign a non disclosure agreement.
Kent and Medway University Medical School does provide an overview of the exact type of student that they are looking for, and the attributes that this student will have. From this we can deduce the kind of questions one might expect at an interview here. Here is the overview:
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Per the university itself, you don’t need to prepare for this interview, and doing so could in fact damage your chances. However, you should take this with a pinch of salt – their overview does explicitly provide topics that you should revise and prepare beforehand. Therefore, look to understand the NHS core values in detail, and reflect on how you can put them into action. Ensure that you have reflected thoroughly on each part of the student persona overview, and considered your experiences in order to map them onto it.
Due to the nature of the KMMS interview, understanding the kinds of questions that they are likely to ask is difficult. All applicants are expressly forbidden from discussing the interview, and unlike other schools the university will make applicants sign an NDA to this end. However, you would do well to focus on communication skills, team working, diversity, motivation and understanding of Medicine. The following are exemplar questions only.
Learn the best interview strategies and practice with past interview questions & model answers.
Communication Skills
How have you improved your communication skills throughout your life so far?
Why are good communication skills so important to the practice of Medicine?
Tell me about a time when you found it tough to communicate with someone else.
Tell me about the other professionals that doctors have to communicate with on a daily basis.
What are some of the attributes of a good communicator?
Diversity
Why is diversity so important to the medical profession?
How can you educate yourself to improve your understanding of other people and their backgrounds?
Motivation & Understanding
What do you think are the most rewarding aspects of being a doctor? Can you compare them to the most challenging parts of the career?
When did you first realise that you wanted to be a doctor?
What have you done to further your knowledge of the profession?
Why are you interested in studying at this university? What sets our course apart in your opinion?
Where do you see the field of Medicine going in the next 25 years?
