Background Evaluation of interprofessional education (IPE) has been limited to students’ self-report and rarely assessed content validity using real-world input. Purpose This study compared students who did and did not complete an IPE curriculum using a mock interview. Aims were to compare them: 1) in terms of competencies around team based care, and 2) as rated by clinicians providing team based care. Method Students participated in a mock field placement interview. Study staff rated transcripts on IPE competencies. Clinicians rated and ranked students in terms of their knowledge/values and preference for hiring. Discussion. IPE students had higher ratings on seven of eleven competences than non-IPE students. Clinical experts rated IPE students higher and ranked them as more preferable. Conclusions This study demonstrates the efficacy and validity of foundational IPE beyond self-report. IPE impacted students’ responses in a real-world scenario in a way that discriminated them from their peers.