Hi Helen,
I’m glad you’re thinking ahead. Absences during interview season can accumulate, so it may be beneficial to take a lighter course load. Students often have difficulty catching up on a lot of missed work in addition to preparing for interviews. However, I would not worry too much, as professors and bosses are usually very understanding about excusing your absences for this reason.

Speaking from personal experience, about 1/3 of my interviews were in the winter semester compared to 2/3 in the fall. Additionally, 1/3 were on the other weekdays while 2/3 were on Fridays, which may contradict your assumption about all Friday interviews. However, many schools tend to give notice far in advance of each interview, so you will be able to call out of work and class early in most cases. Sometimes, schools allow you to choose out of a list of 3-5 dates, and you are able to choose a day where you don’t have any exams, or possibly during a school holiday–I scheduled two of my interviews during fall break, and didn’t have to miss school at all!

As far as how many interviews you can expect, it is hard to predict. Although it depends on your strength as an applicant, there are also many other factors, including the school list as well as timing–how early you applied and when the school got to reading your application. It is a general consensus that 4 interviews usually leads to at least one acceptance, although this can vary greatly depending on your interview skill and the schools you are invited to interview at.

If you need any more help with medical applications or course scheduling, come visit us at office hours, with details located on our events tab!

Best wishes,
Pooja, Co-President