What to Wear for your PA School Interview + Interview Tips

The article outlines what to wear for your Physician Associate / Physician Assistant (PA) interview to make a strong first impression. We’ll discuss interview outfit tips for both men and women. We’ll also cover interview preparation strategies to help you stand out from 99% of the competition with your answers and presentation style. 

You’ve decided to become a Physician Associate (PA) and have an upcoming PA school interview.  Admission to a PA program is a prestigious accomplishment as it requires an extensive amount of prerequisite course work including successful receipt of a bachelor’s degree. Your interview attire and how you present yourself to the selection committee is an important part of interview day.

I am a firm believer that elevating your attire to be one level above that of the people with whom you are meeting is a smart play for presenting your best self.

Men: What to Wear

Knowing that the medical community, and especially the academic community, tends to be more formal, opt for a dark, full suit for your PA school interviews.  Formal, professional attire will ensure that you make a strong first impression.  It also demonstrates a level of respect for the people with whom you are speaking.  If you have purchased a new suit for the occasion, ensure that it has been properly tailored meaning the sleeves and pants are just the right length.  Tailoring is often required when buying off the rack suits so don’t leave this important purchase to the last minute.  A white shirt or blue dress shirt are smart choices.  Your shirt should be crisp and wrinkle free which typically requires ironing or steaming.  A dry cleaner can steam a shirt for you for a low cost.  Add a traditional tie to finish the look – no crazy patters or colors.  A bow tie can work as well, again keeping it simple and distraction free. 

For shoes, pick dress shoes that match your suit.  Black shoes to match a black suit and dark brown or tan shoes to match a navy suit. You may do a lot of walking around campus the day of your in-person interview so make sure your dress shoes are also comfortable shoes.  If your shoes are new, wear them around the house a couple days before the interview to break them in.

Women: What to Wear

Similar to men, you want to dress as formally as possible for your Physician Associate / Physician Assistant interview opting for a pant suit, skirt suit or dress suit.   A tucked in, nice blouse (collar or no collar both work) looks sharp underneath a suit jacket.  An alternative option could include a pair of dark dress pants and a sweater set or blazer if you don’t have a suit.  Wear closed toe, comfortable dress shoes – flat or heels can both work.  Ensure that your clothing is free from wrinkles, fold marks or lint of any kind.  I can’t emphasize the wrinkle free part enough!  These finishing details go a long way when it comes to making strong first impressions with your professional appearance.  

Make-up

I personally love a full make-up look as I think it enhances my features, brings more color to my very fair complexion and creates a polished look.  A make-up free, natural look is also perfectly acceptable if that aligns with your personal style and makes you feel most comfortable.  If you don’t typically wear make-up but are looking to boost your overall look, I think most women can benefit from mascara, blush and a coat of lip gloss.  If the PA program to which you have applied does virtual interviews, I would definitely apply blush.  The camera can often give you a washed out look and blush is the best way to look a little more alive!  

Accessories

Keep accessories to a minimum to minimize distractions. For women, consider a necklace and simple earrings.  Avoid any bracelets that jingle or clink together when you speak.  I would leave any smart watches at home for fear that some kind of alarm or alert might go off during the interview. For men, I would stick to a ring or two if you wear them and a basic watch.  

Interview Preparation

Now that we have reviewed what to wear for your big day, let’s dive into how to prepare for your interview as well as how to conduct yourself during the actual interview.

In Advance of the Interview

• Before the actual interview, I recommend participating in mock interviews before your actual interview.  This might involve reviewing commonly asked PA school interview questions and practicing your answers with a friend, college professor or family member.  An important step during your preparation should involve video recording you answering questions so that can make adjustments to your body language, tone of voice or answers.  For example, when reviewing a video, you may notice that you have a tendency to touch your hair or face when speaking.  Maybe you use excessive filler words such as “like” or “um.”  One of the best ways to improve any kind of public speaking, which includes interviewing, is to understand your baseline and determine where to focus on improvement efforts. 
• If possible, speak with a faculty member or a current PA student in the program.  Often the admissions department can facilitate an introduction to a current student if requested.  In addition to asking the student how they like the school, ask them for advice during the interview process based on their previous experience.  Do they remember any challenging questions they received?
• Perhaps the most common question you will likely get asked during an interview is “Tell me about yourself.” This may seem like a super easy question but if you haven’t thought through a thoughtful response, it can quickly turn into a rambling, non-relevant statement.  Prepare your answer in advance of the interview and keep it to 3-5 sentences. Here is an example. 

Day of the Interview Tips

• Focus on delivering crisp, clear answers in as few sentences as possible.  Simply answer the question and then stop talking.  When we get nervous, we have a tendency to go on and on.  The more you can practice answers to common interview questions, the better prepared you will be to manage the nerves that will inevitably accompany your in-person or online interview.
• On the day of the interview, if you are seated when the interviewer comes out to meet you, stand up, make direct eye contact and greet the individual by name. “Hi Alexa, nice to meet you.”  
• Beyond the initial greeting, try to use the person’s name a few times throughout the interview.  This is one of my favorite ways to highlight strong interpersonal skills and set you apart from the competition.  It might feel strange the first time but using someone’s name regularly in conversation can quickly become second nature.  If the interview is a panel interview where several people from the PA program are present, see if you can get their names in advance of the interview. The Admissions Department office manager or your interview coordinator will often be able to provide these details.  Usually you can find pictures of interview attendees on the school’s website.  Start to build name and face recognition so that it is easier for you to use names during the interview.  A great way to incorporate names is during the portion of the interview when you get to ask questions.  For example: “Theresa, can you tell me more about the clinic rotations that happen in Year 2?” or “What would you say, Calvin, makes your program different from the University of Colorado’s PA program?”
• Demonstrate strong body language throughout the interview.  Keep your hands in your lap and try to keep them there as much as possible to avoid excessive hand talking or face touching.  Sit up straight (no slouching) and keep your attention and eyes focused on the interviewer.  If the format is group interviews with multiple people on the Admissions Committee, rather than scanning the group back and forth with your eyes when answering a question, hold eye-contact with each person for 5-seconds before moving on to the next person.  This strategy builds stronger 1:1 connection and ensures that each member of the selection committee is focused and engaged as well! Holding eye contact for 5-second intervals takes practice.  You can easily practice this method with friends or family members or even at home alone.  Pretend that objects in your home are people, and lock eye contact for five seconds with each.  
• It is perfectly normal to feel a bit nervous before and during an interview.  If you happen to get stumped on a question and can’t think of an answer after 30 seconds or so of thought, ask the interviewer if you can come back to that question later in the interview.  Also, it is perfectly ok to allow silence while you are thinking of answer.  
• No gum chewing during the interview.  Totally fine to accept a glass of water if offered or bring your own if you feel you may need it.  Just don’t bring in the 40oz hot pink Stanley water bottle!

Good luck – you’ve got this!