Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Assessing moral attributes in med school interviews

Researchers at the University of Calgary report on an interview instrument to evaluate candidates’ “noncognitive attributes” for medical school. The instrument uses vignettes presented to the interviewee concerning moral and ethical dilemmas, and is purported to reflect dimensions of altruism, dutifulness and morality.

A look at the Student Doctor Network Interview Feedback postings indicates that a lot of schools are doing this although perhaps in a less systematic fashion. It also demonstrates considerable coaching among premeds in anticipating the questions and preparing for the “right” answers.

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