A Time You Failed
MMIEasyPersonal Qualities · 5 minSelf-marked
How to use this: start the timer and answer the question out loud (or type it). Then grade yourself 0–3 on each skill with a note of your evidence — exactly as our examiners do. Hit Reveal benchmark & score to see what a model answer scores and how you compare. Everything saves to your browser automatically.
Answer timer
5:00/ 5 min suggested
1
Answer the question
A Time You Failed
Give me an example of a time you failed and what you learned.
Likely follow-ups
1
What specifically went wrong?
2
What was the lesson?
3
Have you applied it since?
Your answer
Speak it out loud and we'll type it for you (free), or type your own notes — then mark yourself below.
Resources & frameworks
- Answer the question directly, give evidence, then reflect on what it means for you as a doctor.
What strong answers doReveal the benchmark
Hidden so they don't bias your answer. Score yourself first, then reveal them to compare.
- Pick a real failure - not a humblebrag ('I worked too hard'). Tutors spot fake ones immediately.
- Spend 60% of the story on the failure, 40% on what you did about it. Don't rush past the difficulty.
- End with concrete evidence the lesson stuck: a behaviour change, a habit, a result.
2
Mark yourself
Score each skill against the rubric, then add a line of evidence. Scale:
0Not shown1Limited2Good3Excellent
Quick mark:Completion: 0%
Self-awareness
0/3Honest about failure
Reflection
0/3Specific lesson identified
Resilience
0/3Recovered
Communication
0/3Told well
3
Reflect & score
What would you change next time?
Your overall score / 10
Total: 0/12(Core 0/6 • Extra 0/6 • Score 0/10)
Saved to your browser