How to Prepare for Your PA School Interview: A Step-by-Step Guide
How to Prepare for Your PA School Interview: A Step-by-Step Guide
Two questions are guaranteed to come up in your PA school interview: “Tell me about yourself” and “Why do you want to be a PA?”
Both sound simple, but your answers hold incredible weight and can immediately make or break the interviewer’s opinion of you. How you execute these early questions also sets the tone for the rest of your interview.
The problem is, most applicants either wing it or, more commonly, they over-rehearse it. Both approaches backfire.
The interviewer can tell when you’re reciting a script, and they can tell when you’re rambling because you haven’t prepared enough. How do you execute well-practiced answers that sound genuine, and not like a robot? The answer is a process, not a script.
Here’s exactly how to prepare (for these two questions, and every other question you’ll get asked):
The MedAscent Interview Question Prep Process:
Build your question list. Start broad. Pull together a list of about 10 questions you might get asked (there are PLENTY of lists online - try to start with the common ones). You’ll see categories of classic questions, behavioral questions, ethical scenarios, and school-specific ones. Read plenty of resources to see how people answer these questions, but choose just 10 for this list of core questions.
Want my list of top 10 questions I ask in every mock interview? [Get it here.]
Draft your answers broadly. Do some old-fashioned brainstorming with pen & paper.
Trim your answers, and make the answers YOURS. Write out a succinct answer in your own words. Resist the urge to include everything. A strong answer has one clear point, backed by one clear example.
Read them out loud and time yourself. When you think you've got the answers, read them out loud. When read from your notes, the interview answers should be about 1 minute long at this stage. In real life, without notes, the same answer will usually run longer, so this helps to prevent run-on answers from the start.
Practice out loud, repeatedly. Reading isn't the same as speaking. Now it's time to say your answers, out loud & without notes, until they start to feel natural in your mouth. The goal is to remember the ideas, NOT to memorize and reproduce your writing word-for-word. Do this in the car, on a walk, or while getting ready. If it doesn’t sound the exact same every time, that’s ideal!
Record yourself. Turn on your camera and record a practice run. Answer your questions without reading your notes. Watch it back. No, really. You'll notice things you can't catch by ear alone. Pay attention to filler words and pacing. Are your facial expressions reflective of the story you're telling, or flat? Do you sound like your normal self with cadence, or is your voice monotone and rehearsed? Aim for under 2 minutes per answer now (which is the final goal). Recording is the step people skip, especially when they’re running low on time.
Adjust and repeat. Take what you noticed in your recording and fix it. Re-record. Do this multiple times, until your answers sound like you, not like a script.
Practice with other people. This is the single most effective step to achieving preparedness & confidence for PA school interviews. Mock interviews do more than help you refine your words; they provide real feedback from someone outside your own head. This can feel intimidating, but is worth every bit of that discomfort. More importantly, it tricks your brain into a slightly stressful environment, and practicing in that condition is the best way to bridge your prep into the real thing. The highest-value mock interviews come from two ingredients: (1) someone you don't know too well (enough to enter the semi-stressed state, with zero real repercussions), and (2) someone who knows the PA interview process specifically (not just any interview or even a med school interview). More on this below (see "Practice with Someone Who Knows PA Interviews").
Tips for Answering Any PA Interview Question
Use concrete examples, not just statements. Don't just tell the panel you're compassionate, empathetic, or a strong communicator. Show it, through a specific moment from your clinical experience, your shadowing, or your personal life that demonstrates it. Specificity is what makes an answer memorable.
Circle back and actually answer the question. It's easy to get a few sentences into a story and lose track of the original question. Before you wrap up, make sure you've clearly and directly answered what was actually asked.
Always tie it back to PA. Whatever the question, whatever the story, bring it back to why this experience, trait, or lesson makes you a strong future PA. The panel isn't just getting to know you; they're evaluating whether you're ready for PA school and a career as a PA.
Give Yourself Enough Time
Don't wait until the week before your interview to start this process.
Begin about 6 months out by reading and watching interview content casually, just to get exposure to the range of questions (including the creative ones) that might come up. Then shift into active prep around 2 months before interviews typically begin, usually June/July, or right as you're catching your breath after supplemental essay submissions.
Practice with Someone who Knows PA Interviews
Practicing on your own is 75% of the journey. You also NEED to practice with other people, parents, friends, mentors, anyone willing to listen and ask you questions. Mock interviews should start as soon as you feel comfortable with your answers. Aim for at least 2 weeks between your last mock interviews and real interview, to give yourself time to adjust after feedback.
Next level interview development comes from people who actually know the PA interview process, because they can give you feedback about the experience itself, not just whether you sounded confident. If you have PA friends or mentors in your life - see if they’ll sit down with you for a mock interview.
The highest level of polish comes from PA admissions experts, like us. Each of our MedAscent Advisors has been in your exact shoes, and now we sit on the other side, with all the insider info. Friends and family love you and want to help, but they don't always know what an interview panel is actually listening for. We do.
We don't just tell you if an answer sounds good. We know what the interview panels are looking for, and we help you perfect your answers until they hit that mark, without losing what makes the answers genuinely yours. There's only one you in that interview room. We help make sure it's you they remember.
Ready to Practice With a PA Admissions Expert?
We work through the two big questions (plus countless others) in every mock interview at MedAscent Advising. You'll be able to talk through your answers & strategy with your PA mock interviewer. Moreover, you’ll receive detailed written feedback and a video recording of your session, so you can see exactly what's working and what to adjust.
Happy interviewing!
