The Multiple Mini-Interviews (MMIs) are a major topic discussed amongst medical school applicants. Although they may be called “interviews” they are by no means your regular one-on-one interview experience. The MMIs are a series of short and structured stations used to asses personal traits and qualities. The MMIs last two hours and their format can vary depending on the school. In general, stations can be one of two types; question-based stations where candidates are given a question/ problem to analyze or scenario-based stations where candidates engage in a role-play scenario with an actor while an assessor watched.
Before each station, candidates have time to read a script and familiarize themselves with the situation. Once the scenario begins, candidates must interact with an interviewer /assessor and navigate their way through the scenario. The interviewer/ assessor must then uses assess and evaluate the candidate’s performance. The MMIs were derived from the OSCE (Objective Structured Clinical Examination) used by various medical programs to assess application of clinical skills and knowledge.
The MMIs are meant to assess personal attributes. Stations are strategically structured to evaluate traits like communication skills, maturity, ethical and critical decision-making abilities, and knowledge of health determinants in a local/ global context. MMI questions can be vague, ambiguous and feel as though they have nothing to do with medicine. However, you must remember that the point of these questions/ scenarios is not to get the right answer. Instead, candidates are evaluated on how they come up with an answer, their reasoning as well as their thought process. How a candidate navigates a scenario says a lot more about this candidate than whether or the correct answer was reached.
University of Sherbrooke, Laval & University of Montreal Mini-Entrevues Multiples (MEMs)
Quebec French medical schools combine their interviews. Which means University of Sherbrooke, University of Laval & University of Montreal all have the same interview.
If invited, you will attend a virtual (or in-person) interview. They are meant to evaluate an applicant’s:
(1) professionalism (integrity, authenticity, sense of responsibility)
(2) relational capacity (empathy, communication, teamwork, leadership)
(3) adaptability & self-criticism
(4) ability to exercise sound judgment & critical thinking
(5) social awareness and open-mindedness
Number of stations: 8
Length of stations: 9 minutes (2 minutes to read prompt & 7 minutes to act/ discuss)
Types of Scenarios:
(1) Discussion scenario: asked to discuss your stance on a particular topic.
“Nos universités ont de la difficulté à équilibrer leur budget. Parmi les diverses mesures envisagées pour optimiser les coûts de formation universitaire, certains proposent d'augmenter le nombre d'étudiantes et étudiants par classe. Tout de suite, des personnes opposées à cette idée ont poussé les hauts cris… Veuillez réfléchir à ce débat.”
(2) Acting: expected to interact with an actor based on the prompt you read.
“Votre compagnie vous mandate ainsi qu’une collègue, Sara, qui travaille dans une autre équipe, pour assister à une rencontre d'affaires d'une importance capitale. Cette rencontre a lieu à San Diego. Sara et vous habitez à Montréal. Pour simplifier les choses, vous avez proposé à Sara de passer la prendre en auto chez elle, puis de vous rendre ensemble à l'aéroport Pierre-Elliott-Trudeau à Dorval. À l'heure convenue, vous sonnez à la porte de Sara. Elle vous invite à entrer. Vous aurez 7 minutes pour effectuer cette rencontre.”
*both examples are taken from University of Sherbrooke’s Faculty of Medicine website
McGill University MMIs
Selected candidates will be invited to attend virtual (or in-person interviews). Attendance is by invitation-only and sent via electronic mail.
Meant to evaluate an applicant’s abilities on the basis of the Physicianship curriculum component which references the CanMeds roles. Familiarizing yourself with these principles can set you up for interview success.
Types of stations:
(1) Task-oriented: applicants must solve a given task
(2) Simulation or scenario-oriented: applicants must navigate a sensitive/delicate situation
(3) Discussion-oriented: applicants asked to analyze & discuss a topic
Number of stations: 8
Length of stations: 7 minutes (1 minute to read prompt & 6 minutes to act/discuss)
Examples of scenarios:
Ethical Decision Making
"Dr. Cheung recommends homeopathic medicines to his patients. There is no scientific evidence or widely accepted theory to suggest that homeopathic medicines work, and Dr. Cheung doesn't believe them to. He recommends homeopathic medicine to people with mild and nonspecific symptoms such as fatigue, headaches and muscle aches, because he believes that it will do no harm, but will give them reassurance. Consider the ethical problems that Dr. Cheung's behavior might pose. Discuss these issues with the interviewer.”
Standard Interview Question
"Why do you want to be a physician? Discuss this question with the interviewer.”
Communication Skills
"The parking garage at your place of work has assigned parking spots. On leaving your spot, you are observed by the garage attendant as you back into a neighboring car, a BMW, knocking out its left front headlight and denting the left front fender. The garage attendant gives you the name and office number of the owner of the neighboring car, telling you that he is calling ahead to the car owner, Tim. The garage attendant tells you that Tim is expecting your visit. Enter Tim's office.”
*The examples listed above are provided by McGill’s Career Planning Services (CaPS) and can be found on their website’ MMI FAQ Sheet.
Click here for an additional 10 practice scenarios provided by CaPS.
