Interviews - termtime vs summer

**Will Watson** · 05-12-2004, 08:46 AM

With the proposed introduction of a Post-Qualification assessment system (applying to university after recieving final A-level results and using these for assessment instead of predicted grades), the selection process for medical school would have to take place in July/August/October.

This leads me to the quick straw poll - what would be more convenient for you - interviews in the middle of termtime when you're in the middle of coursework and various extracurricular commitments or in the holidays when you've lined up a break in Tenerife/holiday camp/large amount of lie-ins?

**Adam** · 05-12-2004, 06:42 PM

Has to be termtime - it would be much harder to keep the levels of staff required to process applications and conduct interviews during the summer. I'd have thought it would result in fewer candidates being interviewed.

But as you say, if the system is changed and the process won't even start until June, then universities will have to interview in the summer.

**Will Watson** · 05-12-2004, 06:59 PM

I think that's the main issue that's being focussed on at the moment, and it's certainly not going to make PQA very family friendly for university staff! However I was just wondering what the effect would be on students themselves.... There's going to be a DfES meeting on Monday on how the system could work and I'm looking at points to feed in.

**caster** · 05-12-2004, 09:06 PM

Originally Posted by Adam

it would be much harder to keep the levels of staff required to process applications and conduct interviews during the summer.

Then again, most academic staff work over the summer period, doing research and developing teaching materials, etc, anyway, and if interviews were conducted over the summer, it would mean interviews and selection could take place when the staff weren't busy with teaching committments, as it would free up time during the winter when selection currently takes place.

**Vixter** · 06-12-2004, 11:53 PM

When i was goin for interviews last year it was a right pain in the proverbial to take time off uni from lectures (yes - im a good girl....never missed lectures) and time off from my dissertation, to attend interviews at the other end of the country.

Personally i would rather have had my interviews in holiday time, where i would have been able to dedicate more time to interview prep, without neglecting my work.