This PT school admissions season, I’ve heard from many of you whose future PT schools are using Kira for interviews. I decided to create a blog post with information specifically about this new system to supplement the information I have about virtual and in-person interviews in my interview course.
Kira is a computer-based interview system that has partnered with PTCAS and offers both live and asynchronous video interviews. The live interviews function much the way any virtual interview runs. In the asynchronous scenario, you will submit either video or written responses to questions. Unfortunately, I’ve heard from many applicants that the questions they were asked seem random and unrelated to physical therapy school, and that Kira doesn’t give you much time to answer – typically it is 1-2 minutes per question after 30-60 seconds of preparation time. Students have reported feeling very awkward about this and have said they are frequently cut off.
The good news is that you’re in the same boat as other Kira users. Also, many programs ask “random” questions even during in-person interviews. This is to test how you think on your feet. Each day as a physical therapist you’re interacting with unpredictable patients, often treating conditions you have not heard of. Patient care requires the ability to make quick decisions, and interviews like this are assessing you for this skill. It’s important to remember that with most questions, there is no right answer, rather the DPT interview committee just wants to see how you think.
My guess is that schools use Kira to save time since conducting interviews, even live virtual interviews, can be extremely time-consuming.
Kira offers some level of support on its website, as well as advice for succeeding in the interview. Much of this advice is standard for any virtual interview – dress appropriately and ensure you have a quiet and clean space for the conversation.
I’ve also heard from many future DPT students that it is helpful to do the practice questions if you are given some, and that you can have a paper and pen nearby to jot down notes during the preparation period of points you want to remember to include.
At the end of the day, remember that getting an interview is a great sign that the PT school is interested in you! Do what you can to prepare and good luck!
And if you need extra preparation before your interview, consider taking a look at my PT school interview preparation course.