Why do you want to attend this medical school?

Where answers to this question lose points

Our scorer marks every answer on three parts. For each of the 112 applicants who finished this question on Confetto, we took their first scored answer and counted the part that scored lowest.

• Structure: a clear order and a clear point48 of 112
• Content: covering what the question needs28 of 112

Confetto data as of November 8, 2026. A part is shown only when 20 or more applicants share it. Answers where two parts tied are not counted toward either. We never show anyone's answers or details.

What this question tests

• Decision making
• Personal growth

How to structure your answer

1. Answer (20 seconds). This example is written for one school, UCSF. The applicant opens with what they want from medical school, connecting individual patient care with understanding patients’ communities, then names a specific program (PRIME-US) and why it fits. In your answer, name a program or feature of the school you’re interviewing with.
2. Moment (45 seconds). The applicant describes organizing a vaccination outreach event where a father worried that side effects could make him miss work. By bringing in a nurse to discuss his concerns, they show how a concrete encounter exposed the limits of their preparation.
3. What it changed (30 seconds). The applicant explains how the encounter led them to ask about scheduling barriers and improve access to evening appointment information. They also recognize that outreach alone could not provide the clinical knowledge they wanted to help patients make informed decisions.
4. Looking ahead (15 seconds). The closing returns to UCSF as a place to connect community experience with clinical training. It describes the physician the applicant hopes to become, someone who considers both the appropriate treatment and whether care realistically fits a patient’s life.
5. Common pitfalls. Generic praise of UCSF or naming PRIME-US without explaining its personal relevance would weaken the school fit. Spending too long on event logistics without reflection, or portraying the father’s work concern as ignorance rather than a practical barrier, would also undermine the answer.

Example answer from Confetto

Example answer from Confetto. Not a real applicant's answer.

I’m looking for a medical education that connects caring for individual patients with understanding the communities they return to. At UCSF, the PRIME-US program particularly interests me, because its focus on urban underserved communities builds on questions I began asking during my public health internship in Oakland.

I helped organize a Saturday vaccination outreach event at a neighborhood community center. I coordinated volunteers, prepared information sheets, and called residents who had expressed interest. That morning, a father arrived with his daughter but hesitated near the registration table. When I asked if he had questions, he explained that he couldn’t risk missing work if he felt sick afterward. I had prepared to explain vaccine benefits, but I hadn’t prepared to discuss what vaccination might mean for someone’s next shift. I brought over our nurse so he could ask about side effects and timing without feeling rushed.

That conversation changed how I approached outreach. For our next event, I added questions about scheduling barriers to our reminder calls and worked with my supervisor to make evening appointment information easier to find. I also recognized my limits: I could help someone reach care, but I wanted the clinical knowledge to help them make informed decisions once they arrived.

At UCSF, I hope to deepen that connection between community work and clinical training, becoming a physician who asks not only what treatment fits a condition, but what care can realistically fit a patient’s life.

Use it for its structure. Interviewers can tell a memorized script, so tell your own story.

Keep going

• Tell me about yourself.
• Why do you want to become a physician?
• Aside from a desire to help people, what has been the primary motivation for your decision to pursue medicine?
• Medical school interview questions by type
• The full interview question bank