- Thalamus Virtual Interview: The Thalamus video platform that allows interviewers expanded integration of the interview experience into the Thalamus Core.
- External Virtual Interview: links for virtual interviews through 3rd party interview platforms can be manually added into your itineraries.
Before accessing the Virtual Interview Platform, an Itinerary and interview session must be created. Visit our Building Applicant Itineraries and Event Sessions guide for more information.
For information on testing our Virtual Interview platform, visit our Testing the Virtual Interview Platform Prior to Your Interview Dates guide.
Access Your Interview Day Itinerary
1. Log into Thalamus.
2. Select the "Schedule" and then "My Schedule" to view the scheduled interview sessions.
3. Navigate to the correct interview session by selecting the interview session on the left navigation menu or by using the arrows at the top of the page
4. If you are scheduled for multiple interview sessions on the same day, you will see multiple rows within the page. The following is accessible within each row:
- Itinerary session information including name, time, and date
- Applicant information that will include Applicant Name, Medical School, AAMC ID and Email
- If a Thalamus virtual interview session has been scheduled, you will see the "Join Meeting" button. Click "Join Meeting" to enter the virtual interview session.
If a 3rd party Video Chat Software (Zoom, Teams, or WebEx) is being used instead, the "Join Meeting" button will be taken to the appropriate 3rd party software site. - Program Users have the options to add notes and scores directly from this screen for that specific applicant. If any documents have been uploaded for the applicant, you will see "View PDF"
Note: The preferred browser for using the Thalamus Virtual Interview platform is Chrome.
- When interviewers click "Join Interview" they are immediately added into the session.
Note: if you are an interviewer go to step 8. - When Program Admins/Coordinators/Directors click on the button, it goes through the flow mention in 8 downward
5. A new tab will open in your browser.
6. Program Admins/Coordinators/Directors, your interview sessions will be listed in 3 tabs:
- Active
- Previous
- Upcoming
If you are unable to find the session you are looking for, select the "Upcoming" tab.
7. Once you have found the correct interview session, select the numerical link listed under the "Room Name" column or Select the "Join" button to enter the Virtual Interview.
Access the Thalamus Video Chat Platform
8. You will be taken to the Join Meeting page where you will be able to select and save the camera and microphone settings.
9. You must save your camera and microphone settings to join your first meeting. These settings will be saved locally on your device and browser, and the user will be able to join subsequent meetings without reselecting camera and microphone settings.
Note: The camera and microphone settings are saved only locally. The settings will only be saved and automatically applied if meetings are joined from the same device and browser.
From this screen, you can also select to Mirror your Video.
Navigating the Thalamus Video Chat
Thalamus video is accessible through Chrome, Edge, Firefox, and Safari browsers. For the best optimal experience using Thalamus Video, we suggest using the most updated browser version of Chrome or Edge. Important note: Internet Explorer is not a supported browser for Thalamus Video.
10. Once in the Virtual Interview room, you have access to the following features at the top of the screen:
- Session Type: Provides the interview session type name to all attendees
- Chat: A public text chat box that you can use to chat publicly with other attendees.
- Participants: This allows you to see the list of participants currently in the room. It will be divided into to sections, Interviewers and Applicants
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Interview Panel: The Interview Panel will provide you with a snapshot of each applicant of those attending the same session(s) as you are in. The panel will provide you with:
- A headshot (if applicable) and specific applicant information (chosen by Program Leadership)
- Scoring module that allow you to take private notes and document scores for applicants in your video chat. This information can only be seen by you (and your Program Leadership).
- Access any documents uploaded for the applicant
- If there are multiple candidates attending the same session, interviewers and program staff have the ability to toggle through the applicants using the arrows at the top.
11. Along the bottom of the screen, you have access to the following features:
- View Meeting Details: Confirm which session you have joined, how much time is remaining in the room, the video chat link, and the dial in number.
- Meeting Controls: Turn your microphone and video on and off, change the source of your audio or video through the settings module, or leave the video chat through the Hang Up button.
- Share: Share your screen or an application through the share screen feature.
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Change Layout: Choose from multiple attendee layout views based on your preference. These layout view changes apply only to you.
- Presenter - Highlights the active speaker in the main view, while presenting the other attendees on the right-hand side. Arrows can be used to move back and forth to see attendees exceeding the capacity of the screen.
- Grid - Shows all attendees within the meeting in a grid format. Arrows can be used to move back and forth to see attendees exceeding the capacity of the screen.
12. Once your Applicant or another Interviewer joins the room, you will see their video on your screen. As more participants join the room, the videos will resize to accommodate multiple users.
13. If there are no other users in the room, you will see a notification: "There is no one else currently in this room. Once another individual joins they will appear here."
14. If you should accidentally leave the interview room before you have finished, you can return to the room via the steps used to previously access the room.
15. When you are done with your interview, you MUST Select the phone "hang up" icon to end the meeting.
Note: The program coordinator or admin may use the virtual knock or notification message to inform that an interview is ending and/or over.
17. To move to your next interview, repeat the steps at the beginning of this guide.