Preparing for the University of Northern Colorado College of Osteopathic Medicine interview

Casper is required

UNC COM says all applicants "are required to complete the Casper assessment through the Altus Suite as part of the admissions process." Casper, from Acuity Insights, is an online open-response situational judgment test, and UNC says it measures things like ethics, empathy, problem-solving and collaboration. To take it you need a computer with audio, a working webcam and microphone, a reliable high-speed connection, a valid email and a government-issued photo ID. If you have already taken Casper, you send your score to UNC COM from your Acuity Insights account. UNC lists the attributes it values as professionalism, ethical decision-making, communication, empathy, collaboration and self-awareness. Casper is a registered trademark of Acuity Insights, and we are not affiliated with it; our Casper practice questions are independent practice.

What UNC COM is looking for

UNC COM describes a "mission-merit-based" admissions process that looks for applicants "committed to caring for patients, serving communities, and advancing health equity," who are "not only dedicated scholars but also compassionate, service-minded leaders." Its mission is a transformative education that inspires students "to become caring physicians who embrace their identity, deliver patient-centered care, promote health equity, and positively impact the patients and communities they serve." Its values are Osteopathic Philosophy, Richness of Perspectives and Experience, Service, Community and Lifelong Learning. AACOM lists the selection factors as academic profile, regional connection, "distanced travel (resilience, determination, grit)," community engagement, personal statement, supplemental essays and interview scores. The college focuses on Colorado, the High Plains and the Intermountain region.

What the school names	How it might show up in your answers (our suggestion)
Identity and lived experience	One honest story about where you come from and how it shaped what you notice
Health equity	A specific disparity you saw and what you did about it
Collaboration	A team outcome you could not have reached alone
Regional connection	Why Colorado, the High Plains or the Intermountain West, in concrete terms
Resilience and grit	A distance you traveled, literally or not, and what it took

Timeline for the current cycle

• AACOMAS opened May 4, 2026 and the primary deadline is April 1, 2027. UNC encourages applying at least six weeks before.
• Supplemental invitations start in June (AACOM lists June 1, 2026 as the earliest submission date). UNC's page says the supplemental closes April 1 and AACOM says April 15, 2027.
• Interviews begin in September. Offers run from October to June, with a $150 deposit within 14 days of acceptance and a further $250 by May 1. Deposits are not binding to enroll, per UNC's FAQ.
• Requirements: MCAT of at least 498 with no section below 123, within three years. A 3.0 minimum overall GPA, with a BCPM GPA of 3.4 or higher recommended. In rare cases the committee may send a supplemental to applicants with a GPA as low as 2.7 and an MCAT of at least 500.
• Letters: a composite from a pre-health committee, or three individual letters (one from a science instructor, one from a supervisor, mentor or preceptor, and a third), with UNC recommending that one be from a DO or a supervisor who is a medical provider. AACOM lists a physician letter as required.
• Applicants must be U.S. citizens, permanent residents or DACA recipients.
• UNC's Plains to Peaks Pathway guarantees an interview, first come first served and after screening, to qualifying residents of targeted states (CO, WY, NM, OK, KS, TX, MT, UT, ID, NE, SD, ND) or graduates of partner institutions, with an MCAT of at least 502 and a 3.5 science GPA.

A new school: what to know

UNC COM is a public university's new college and holds COCA pre-accreditation status. UNC says it welcomed an inaugural class of 80 students, and applications are open for its Fall 2027 class. Its FAQ explains that COCA will review the college during the first year and again before the inaugural class graduates. The college is housed in a new 110,000-square-foot facility on UNC's Greeley campus, with simulation and clinical skills labs, a standardized patient center and an augmented-reality learning studio. About 60 percent of clinical rotations are in northern Colorado and Wyoming, per AACOM. If you are asked why UNC COM, strong answers tie to the regional mission, the "our community for your community" approach or the active-learning format, not to novelty.

How to prepare

1. Prepare for a recorded, asynchronous MMI. There is no interviewer to react to, so practice speaking to a camera, with an opening, one example and a close, inside a time limit you set yourself.
2. Prepare a separate live conversation. The second stage is a semi-structured one-on-one. Know your supplemental essays well, because they cover identity, health equity and collaboration.
3. Take Casper seriously. Book it early, test your equipment and practice typed and recorded responses. Our Casper practice questions can help.
4. Learn the platform. Kira Talent is used for the live interview. Practice with a similar tool so the interface does not distract you.
5. Do three timed MMI runs and two live mocks. Record the MMI runs and watch for filler and rambling.

Practice questions (written by us, not UNC)

UNC COM does not publish its MMI prompts or live interview questions. We wrote these around its mission, values and supplemental topics. They are for practice and do not predict what you will be asked.

1. Tell me about an experience that shaped your identity and how it affects the way you see patients.
2. Describe a health inequity you have seen close up. What did you do?
3. Tell me about a time you collaborated with someone whose approach differed from yours.
4. Why UNC COM, and why Colorado or the High Plains region?
5. A patient from a rural community has to travel three hours for specialty care. What do you consider?
6. What does it mean to embrace your identity as a physician?
7. Describe a time you showed grit. What kept you going?
8. A teammate is not contributing and the group deadline is tomorrow. What do you do?
9. You discover that a colleague made an error that has not yet affected a patient. Walk me through what you do.
10. How would you explain osteopathic philosophy to a patient who is skeptical?
11. What would you want to learn from a community before trying to improve its health?
12. What would you like us to know that is not in your application?

Our free question bank preview has more medical school interview questions, and the full bank has over 500.

A 40-minute practice run

1. For the asynchronous MMI, set a phone to record, read a prompt once and give yourself a fixed response time. Do four prompts back to back.
2. Watch the recordings. Check whether you opened with a clear answer, used one specific example and closed without trailing off.
3. For the live interview, recruit a friend to ask six questions from the list above with a follow-up each, on Zoom.
4. Ask them what they would still want to know, and add that detail to your next round.
5. Redo the weakest recorded prompt the next day.

Practicing alone? Confetto's AI mock interviews run MMI stations as well as traditional and panel-style interviews, ask follow-up questions based on what you said, and give rubric-based feedback afterward. You can start with a 7-day free trial.

UNC COM interview FAQ

Is the UNC COM interview an MMI?
Partly. UNC's Apply page describes an asynchronous MMI, followed for some applicants by a live virtual one-on-one interview on Kira Talent. AACOM lists the format as traditional.

Is it virtual?
Yes. Both stages are described as online, and AACOM lists virtual interviews only.

Do I need Casper?
Yes. UNC COM requires all applicants to complete Casper through the Altus Suite.

What is the minimum MCAT?
UNC COM requires a 498 or higher with no section below 123, within three years.

Is there a guaranteed interview?
UNC's Plains to Peaks Pathway offers one to qualifying applicants from targeted states or partner institutions, on a first-come, first-served basis after screening.

Do I need PREview?
No PREview requirement appears on UNC's pages or its AACOM profile.

Applying to other Colorado DO schools? See our guide to the Rocky Vista University College of Osteopathic Medicine interview, or our medical school interview prep page.

Confetto isn't affiliated with the University of Northern Colorado or Acuity Insights. Details come from UNC COM's public admissions pages and its AACOM Choose DO Explorer profile as of October 2026. Formats can change between cycles, so go by what your invitation says.