What makes a residency less/more competitive?

[M-PharmD]

Hi all,
I'm currently looking for residency programs nationwide, i'm single, young and moving out of state is not a problem! so since i'm looking at all programs, I can't distinguish what makes a residency more/less competitive. I didn't think about doing a residency until beginning of P4 yr so i didn't work hard for it during p1-p3, so i'm looking for LESS competitive programs that I may get matched to. There are way many programs out there and I don't know which to apply for

Please advice how can I distinguish a program to be less competitive than the others?
is it how much they're paying?
is it geographical region/area? (If yes, please specify what locations tend to be less competitive)
is it how many positions?
any other factors?

if it matters to you, my GPA is 3.45, works as an intern with a big chain for about year and half, have many leadership skills but outside of school (i.e established a homeless service, teaching sunday school kids,... etc) but not any pharmacy related ones. Working on a research this year (i'm the primary author) and will present a poster at mid-year. What you think how competitive i would be to the other candidates... please give your insights because i'm really overwhelmed with this and feel that i'm not going to reach my goal and I feel i have a lot to give as a future clinical pharmacist! THANK YOU!!

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[bacillus1]

Look at newer programs (pre-candidate/candidate status). Those tend to be less competitive. Also locations farther from large cities are less competitive. That being said, you should apply to a mix of more and less competitive places. You never know where you'll match.

 

[M-PharmD]

Thank you @bacillus1 for your reply! does doing a residency to a pre-candidate/candidate status programs have any downsides? I mean after finishing the residency and looking for a clinical position. Do hospitals take residents that finished their residencies in those kind of programs seriously?
Also, If a residency become accredited after one's experience, can one say that they had an accredited residency? Thank you again

 

[bacillus1]

If it is a pre-candidate or candidate, for all intents and purposes it's an accredited residency. If it is not pursuing accreditation at the time, then you can't say you graduated from an accredited residency. Only downside is that it will be a less-developed program and they still may have to work out some kinks. I seriously considered a candidate program when I was matching, and that program has matched its grads to PGY2s in big-name hospitals, so it depends on the program more so than the accreditation status.

 

[M-PharmD]

Thank you @bacillus1 for this info, I appreciate it