Interview timing

[pakmand]

I'm right in the middle of an away rotation and was wondering how important the timing of the interview is. One of the attendings said that he could schedule an interview for me at the end of the rotation or just interview later in the year. I'm really interested in the program but didn't want to do the interview too early in case they start to forget about me. So I guess the question is does it matter if the interviews in July or November/December?

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[southerndoc]

I would interview in December or January for a couple reasons. One, you will be more prepared. Always schedule your first interview as your least favorite program. It'll give you time to get good at interviewing. Second, the program will forget you and then remember you again.... right about the time they do their rankings. Do not discredit second impressions upon good first impressions!

 

[APACHE3]

If an EM program has 8 spots available...HOW MANY people will they actually rank? 8? 10? 20? Just curious..and thats good advice about interviewing. Thanks

 

[Seaglass]

I agree, I did an interview at the end of an audition rotation and I think it was a bad idea for several reasons. For one you either really like the rotation or hate it and that carries over into the interview. I think it's better to interview after you've been away from the place for a while when you can be a bit more objective. Hopefully you will have also seen some other programs and will have more to compare against and better questions to ask based on those experiences.

 

[southerndoc]

If an EM program has 8 spots available...HOW MANY people will they actually rank? 8? 10? 20? Just curious..and thats good advice about interviewing. Thanks

I've heard anywhere from 5-15 people ranked for each open position.

 

[Jeff698]

I interviewed during my rotation at the place I ended up matching. While the interviews went well, I'd recommend against doing this.

In addition to the reasons already discussed, I missed out on the dog and pony show at my program. As much as I thought all of those interview days were all the same, it turns out you really do get a lot of information about the program. My fellow interns had a lot of information about the program that I didn't, even though I'd rotated here.

Take care and good luck!

Jeff