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How the MMI Is Scored: Rating Scales, Raters and Weights (2026-27)
How medical schools score the multiple mini interview, station by station: what raters see, the rating scales schools publish, and how much the MMI counts at McMaster, McGill, Calgary, Manitoba and more.
The MMI is scored station by station. At each of about 6 to 10 stations, one trained rater scores you on that scenario, often without seeing your application, and the school adds the station scores into one MMI score. How much that score counts depends on the school: 70% of the offer score at McMaster, 50% at Calgary, 35% at Manitoba and Saskatchewan, and all of the final selection at McGill.
How one MMI station is scored
The AFMC's 2027 guide to Canadian admissions describes the usual setup: a scenario, a few questions and a scoring sheet, and “There is usually one interviewer per interview station.” Arizona Phoenix publishes its scale: 1 to 5 in 4 areas, up to 20 points a station and 100 across its 5 stations.
Many short stations are the point. In the first MMI study at McMaster (117 applicants, 10 stations, Eva et al., 2004), how a person did depended a lot on the station, so one long interview is a weak measure. As Duke puts it, “if an applicant does poorly at one station, they have an opportunity to do well on the remaining interview stations.”
What raters see, school by school
Raters often don't see your file. Duke says “Raters at the MMIs will be blinded to your application prior to meeting you.” And McMaster says “Applicants are not assessed on their scientific knowledge.”
| School | Stations and raters (October 2026) |
|---|---|
| Arizona Phoenix | 5 stations, a 2-minute read and a 7-minute talk. Scored 1 to 5 in 4 areas, up to 20 points a station. Source |
| Duke | 8 to 10 stations of about 10 minutes. Trained raters who haven't seen your application. Source |
| Mississippi (UMMC) | 8 to 10 ten-minute stations, each with its own trained rater. Source |
| UC Davis | A virtual MMI that is closed file, so raters don't see your application. Source |
| UC San Diego | 8 stations, a 2-minute read, then 8 minutes with an admissions committee member. Source |
| Dalhousie | 10 stations of 8 minutes, with a single rater at each one. Source |
| UBC | About 10 interviewers. No medical knowledge needed. Source |
How much the MMI counts
Canadian schools publish their formulas. At McGill, McMaster and NOSM, the interview outweighs the rest of the file. None of the US MMI schools we checked publish a weight.
| School | Weight (October 2026) |
|---|---|
| McGill | MD-CM final selection is on the interview alone (100%). Grades, Casper and CV decide the invite. Source |
| McMaster | MMI 70%, GPA 15%, MCAT CARS 15% for offers. Source |
| NOSM | Interview score about 68%, pre-interview score about 32%, plus a full file review. Source |
| Calgary | MMI 50%, pre-interview score 50%, then offers by rank. Source |
| USask | MMI 35%, panel interview 35%, academic average 30%. Source |
| Manitoba | MMI 35%, MCAT 40%, GPA 15%, Casper 10%, plus a minimum passing MMI score. Source |
| Ottawa | Its recorded early-phase MMI ranks you for an interview, with GPA and ABS. No weight published. Source |
What is a good MMI score?
There is no shared scale, and no school we checked publishes a cutoff. Your score is ranked against your pool, so a good score beats most of it. Calgary says “When the aggregate scores are ranked in order, offers of admission are made accordingly.” Manitoba also requires a minimum passing MMI score. You won't see your own score either: McMaster says “we regret that we are unable to provide individualized feedback regarding the assessment of your file”.
Can you prepare for the MMI?
Yes, but not by memorizing questions. The AAMC says “The best way to prepare is to practice expressing yourself articulately and logically in a timed environment.” UBC says “Many applicants, who do very well, practice or prepare on their own”, and warns about prep companies that claim to have the real questions: “Be very wary of these claims.”
What a strong station answer does: on an ethics station, it opens by asking what it needs to find out, names who is affected and the conflict, weighs the options, chooses, and says what happens next. Raters judge the reasoning, not which side you pick. Score your own practice with our five-point self-check.
In our 2026 practice data, role-play stations scored lowest of the 17 station themes (69.4 out of 100 across 123 sessions), and teamwork stations scored among the highest (76.1). These are AI practice scores, not admissions scores.
Sources: AFMC, Admission Requirements 2027, AAMC on the MMI, Eva et al., Medical Education 2004, and each school's own page in the tables (Calgary's Applicant Manual 2026-2027, updated July 2, 2026). All checked October 17, 2026. Weights can change each cycle.
Frequently asked questions
How is the MMI scored?
Station by station. At each of about 6 to 10 stations, one trained rater scores you on that scenario, usually on a short form and often without seeing your application. The school then adds the station scores into one MMI score. Arizona Phoenix, for example, scores 1 to 5 in 4 areas per station, for up to 100 points.
What is a good MMI score?
There is no shared scale, and the schools we checked don't publish cutoffs. Your MMI score is ranked against the other applicants at that school, so a good score is one that beats most of your pool. Manitoba also sets a minimum passing MMI score.
How much does the MMI count?
It depends on the school. McGill's MD-CM program selects on the interview alone, McMaster weighs the MMI at 70% for offers, Calgary at 50%, and Manitoba and Saskatchewan at 35%. The US MMI schools we checked don't publish a weight.
Do MMI raters see my application?
Often not. Duke's raters are blinded to your application and UC Davis runs a closed-file MMI. Each rater scores what you do at their station.
Can you prepare for the MMI?
Yes. The AAMC says the best way to prepare is to practice expressing yourself articulately and logically in a timed environment. You can't learn the questions in advance, but you can practice how you think through a new prompt out loud. Score your own practice on five points.
Is the MMI scored like Casper?
No. Casper is a separate online test from Acuity Insights with its own scoring. The MMI is scored by each school's own raters, one station at a time. See how Casper is scored.