Medicine - University of Melbourne Chancellor's Scholars Program - interview for medicine?

[mschanandelerbong]

Hi everyone!

I hope this is the right place to post this, I'm a long time lurker, first time poster.

I'm a student from Queensland who wants to study medicine, and I recently found out that I got an ATAR of 99.90, and have been offered the Melbourne National Scholarship. This means I'm now eligible for entry via the Chancellor's Scholars Program, which is supposed to guarantee entry into their medical program. I know that as late as 2015, the Chancellor's Scholars were allowed to sit the Multiple-Mini-Interview that is required by Melbourne to enter their medical program essentially the day after VCE results came out, so that they would be assured of their guaranteed spot. However, there is no longer any mention of this on their website, and it now just says that applicants sit the MMI in the final year of their bachelors like the rest of the graduate applicants. I was wondering whether anyone knew whether they've discontinued their practice of letting students sit it before they begin their degree, or whether they did have these early interviews and I've missed my shot. I would love to go to Melbourne, but I'd really like to have a guarantee that I'll have a spot in Medicine; I really don't want to get to the end of my degree, fail the interview, and be stuck when it comes to becoming a doctor.
If they did hold these early interviews this year, then I might be out of luck, because I got my OP (the final rank you get in Queensland) several days after the Victorian students got their ATARs, and didn't find out my ATAR until several days after that when I got scholarship offers.
Are there any graduates from this year who are hoping to do medicine at Melbourne as a Chancellor's Scholar that can tell me what the process has been for them? Also, does anyone know what the stats are like for how many Chancellor's Scholars fail the interview on their first go? I asked someone who got in with an early interview last year, and while he doesn't know how many/if any at all failed the interview then (because obviously Melbourne likes to keep things a bit mysterious and secret), he said there were rumours about those students being able to sit it again at the end of their third year. My worry here is, if they don't let me sit it now, I'll only have one shot at it in my third year.

I'm hoping someone here can shed some light on this issue for me! I just don't want to gamble my hard work this year and potentially risk not achieving my dream of becoming a doctor (I have other options for guaranteed entry into medicine, but none with such a generous scholarship).

Thanks guys!

[Alter]

First of all: congratulations! You should be super proud of your achievements.

So to answer your question, I believe my year (2016 entry) was the last one in which Unimelb let people in the Chancellor's Scholars program sit MD entry interviews before entering the degree. That being said, you shouldn't let that decision deter you, given that you'll essentially have three years to prepare for the interview and you only need to 'pass it', so to speak. The interview process could be considered more of a formality for Chancellor's Scholars, according to accounts I have heard from friends in the program, but take this with a grain of salt.

This kinda makes sense given that you don't really need to compete with a GAMSAT or GPA as a Chancellor's Scholar, unlike everyone else. Instead, you will just need to perform satisfactorily in the interview, so it's the only thing in between you and a CSP into the MD.

I'd still encourage you to take the offer, even if it may seem like a bit of the gamble. The interview certainly isn't as scary as it seems, and there are definitely ways to prepare for it. Like you mentioned: the scholarship is a huge bonus, and you'll definitely value the preparation that Biomed provides in the long term.

[vox nihili]

I'm with Alter on this. The interview is a relatively straightforward process that I'm sure you'd be able to pass with flying colours, particularly in light of your fantastic achievements in year 12

[mschanandelerbong]

Thanks for the responses! I'm still undecided, but I really appreciate all of your advice!

[mtse]

You'd basically have to be a psychopath or a mute to be refused a Chancellor's scholarship with your ATAR. You have nothing to fear!

Just got to say this isn't entirely true... I know of people who got 99.90 and 99.95 ATARs who have unfortunately failed the MMI interview for entry into Chancellors/medicine due to various reasons, and none of them are "psychopaths" or "mutes"
The interview is relatively straightforward however people do make mistakes and there are some red/yellow flags that could cut super-intelligent and well-deserving people out of the running.

[deuce]

As mentioned, the Chancellor's MMI is generally quite straightforward and 'hard to fail' - when I sat it the scenarios were simple enough, and most of the interviewers were very nice and seemed to want you to do well. However, anecdotally, more people have a failed the MMI for Chancellor's in Year 3 since the ATAR 'prestige' is no longer there by the end of a degree. The third year interview seems to indicate Melbourne are trying to somewhat dilute the volume of people getting into the MD via Chancellor's.

But take this with a grain of salt, as I haven't sat the 3rd year MMI, and you only need to pass it as a threshold, not necessarily score well.
Good luck!

[peterpiper]

Just got to say this isn't entirely true... I know of people who got 99.90 and 99.95 ATARs who have unfortunately failed the MMI interview for entry into Chancellors/medicine due to various reasons, and none of them are "psychopaths" or "mutes"
The interview is relatively straightforward however people do make mistakes and there are some red/yellow flags that could cut super-intelligent and well-deserving people out of the running.

Well, my comment of encouragement was just offensive then. That was insensitive of me; I realise that now. 

[mschanandelerbong]

This is definitely what's worrying me - since most of the past Chancellor's Scholars would have sat the early interview, it's a bit difficult to gauge how I might fare in the third-year MMI. The rumours I've heard suggest that the early MMI that they used to hold was easier to pass than the third-year one, and even the phrasing of the process on the university website seems to indicate that from now on, the students will be sitting the same one as graduate applicants, and would be assessed in comparison to them. And as a couple of you have said, it sounds like there have definitely been talented and hard-working students who did well in Year 12 that have missed out in the past, which is a scary prospect...