The TTUHSC School of Medicine interview format (Lubbock)

The Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center School of Medicine in Lubbock runs short one-on-one interviews, held virtually. Its interview day page says "Interviews are 20 minutes in length," that they run in timed Zoom breakout rooms and "will end automatically, after 20 minutes," and that the interviews "will be one-on-one but there may be instances where we will have faculty shadowing each other," so a second faculty member may be present. Before your first interview and between interviews you may be placed in a public room with other applicants and interviewers.

The AAMC's MSAR interview procedures report for the 2027 entering class describes "two one-on-one twenty minute interviews with School of Medicine faculty, and/or 3rd or 4th year medical students," with invitations starting in mid-July and all interviews held virtually. After interview day, invited applicants are welcome to visit campus on select Preview Days.

Item	What TTUHSC and the AAMC say
MD interviews	Two 20-minute interviews
Interviewers	Faculty and/or 3rd or 4th year medical students (MSAR); a second faculty member may shadow
Extra interviews	Invited MD&E dual-degree and FMAT applicants get one more 20-minute interview; MD/PhD applicants get two more
Virtual or in person	Virtual, on Zoom, with timed breakout rooms
Night before	An informal virtual hangout with applicants and Dean's Ambassadors at 7:00 pm Central
Invitations	From mid-July, to the email in your TMDSAS application (MSAR and the school)

TTUHSC doesn't publish whether each interview is open or closed file, or what questions to expect. This is the Lubbock school. The TTUHSC El Paso Paul L. Foster School of Medicine is a separate school with its own MMI, covered in our Foster guide.

How applications work at TTUHSC

TTUHSC's admission requirements page says applicants must use the Texas Medical and Dental School Application Service (TMDSAS) and that, beginning in 2021, the school no longer accepts AMCAS for any program. Eligible applicants then complete a TTUHSC secondary application. For deadlines, the page refers you to TMDSAS. Interview invitations come by email to the address in your TMDSAS application, so mark the sender safe and check your spam folder. After interviews, offers follow the TMDSAS match process, and the school keeps an unranked alternate pool.

Only U.S. citizens and permanent residents are considered. TTUHSC describes a holistic review "by which balanced consideration is given to experiences, attributes, and academic metrics." We didn't find Casper or PREview requirements on its admission pages.

What TTUHSC says about the interview

The interview day page gives practical advice. Dress as you would for an in-person interview and use a plain, well-lit background. Introduce yourself by first and last name. Your Zoom name must match your TMDSAS name, displayed as LastName, FirstName, so staff can place you in the right breakout room. Look at the camera, keep it at eye level, and don't talk over the interviewer, since "this is easy to do when connected virtually." It also says a plain "Tell me about yourself" is "not the same as 'Why do you want to be a physician'," so prepare both.

The page sets conduct rules you should know. Information from the interview day is confidential, and you may not make screenshots or recordings. And "Utilizing any AI source or tool during an interview is strictly prohibited."

The school's mission is to save lives, improve community health and meet "evolving needs for primary and specialty care," drawing on "the expertise and insight forged in our communities across West Texas." It emphasizes interprofessional collaboration, noting that the School of Medicine, School of Health Professions and School of Nursing share one campus. Those are strong ideas to connect to in a "Why TTUHSC?" answer.

How to prepare for two 20-minute interviews

Write tight answers. Twenty minutes is a small number of questions. Practice one-and-a-half-minute answers.
Have separate "tell me about yourself" and "why medicine" answers. TTUHSC says they aren't the same question.
Prepare for a different interviewer in each room. A faculty member and a student may ask very different questions. Practice with both.
Prepare a West Texas and teamwork story. Connect your experience to the mission or to interprofessional care.
Prepare for the breakout-room rhythm. The timer ends the interview automatically, so finish your last answer cleanly instead of trailing off.

TTUHSC practice questions (written by us, not TTUHSC)

TTUHSC doesn't publish its questions. We wrote these around the topics its interview page and mission suggest. Keep each answer to about ninety seconds.

Tell me about yourself.
Why do you want to be a physician, specifically?
Why Texas Tech, and why Lubbock?
Tell me about a time you worked with people from other health professions, or in a team with different roles.
What does it mean to meet the primary care needs of a rural or underserved region?
Tell me about a time you faced a setback and what you changed.
What is one issue in current health care you have thought about, and what is your view?
Describe a moment when you had to communicate something difficult clearly.
Tell me about a time you were wrong and how you handled it.
What are your goals for your first ten years as a physician?

For a wider set, see our practice questions with answers guide.

A drill for fast one-on-one interviews

Ask two friends to interview you in two back-to-back 20-minute Zoom sessions, in breakout rooms if you can. Have them end each session with an automatic timer.
Give a one-and-a-half-minute answer to each question and stop. If you ran long, cut a sentence.
Practice a clean finish: a final sentence that states your point, then a pause.
Swap your camera setup: eye level, plain background, good light. Use the page's tips as a checklist.
Do a 60-second answer to "tell me about yourself" and a separate 90-second answer to "why a physician."

If you don't have a practice partner, Confetto's AI mock interviews ask follow-up questions based on what you actually said and give rubric-based feedback afterward. The question bank has over 500 questions, and you can start with a 7-day free trial.

TTUHSC interview FAQ

Is the TTUHSC Lubbock interview an MMI?

No. TTUHSC describes two one-on-one 20-minute interviews. The El Paso Foster school is a different school and uses an MMI.

Is the interview virtual?

Yes. TTUHSC says all interview day activities are virtual, on Zoom.

Can I use AI tools or notes?

TTUHSC says using any AI source or tool during an interview is strictly prohibited. It also says you shouldn't record or screenshot interview day.

Do I apply through AMCAS?

No. TTUHSC uses TMDSAS and has not accepted AMCAS since 2021.

How many interviews will I have?

MD applicants have two 20-minute interviews. Some dual-degree applicants have more.

Applying to other Texas schools too? See our guides to the UT Southwestern Medical School, UT Health San Antonio and Texas A&M University School of Medicine interviews, or our medical school interview prep page.

Sources: TTUHSC SOM: Interview Day Information, Admission Requirements, About the School of Medicine, AAMC MSAR interview procedures (2027).

Confetto isn't affiliated with Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center. Everything here about the school comes from its public admissions pages and the AAMC MSAR report, checked in October 2026. Formats can change between cycles, so go by your invitation email.