- Joined
- Feb 7, 2006
- Messages
- 110
- Reaction score
- 1
- Points
- 4,531
- Medical Student
Highlights from the NRMP report released this morning:
Emory scrambled 3 spots
Univ. Maryland scrambled 2 spots
There were about 50 total spots. Most were from community type programs. These were the ones that really surprised me.


Highlights from the NRMP report released this morning:
Emory scrambled 3 spots
Univ. Maryland scrambled 2 spots
There were about 50 total spots. Most were from community type programs. These were the ones that really surprised me.
Meh.
The match is a tricky beast sometimes. For programs like Emory it's more of a gamble with how many they will need to interview to fill, and I'd imagine in most years, it's quite a few less per spot than most programs through out the country. Interviewing takes time and money and if you think you can fill, say, interviewing 300 people, as opposed to 400 people, you are not going to interview 400 people. I kind of imagine UMD being a solid middle teir performer interviewed per usual, as many as it could get, who seemed qualified, and just missed out regionally, being less attractive girl at the dance with year.
I think they consider themselves a great program mainly because they are one of the top programs in the SE. Even though they are a good program, I was just very, very underwhelmed by Emory this year.
I think its more than that. They are probably interviewing a lot lesser than they should - knowing what tier they are placed on. Its like why candidates go to scramble - they dont apply smartly. Something tells me both these programs dont interview smartly.
Also if you mainly interview candidates who also had interviews at the Big 8, then...you know. Its like a candidate should apply to a few top programs, but also where he/she has a good and safe chance of matching.
As was I. I think part of it was the new PD (the one who was previously an associated PD). He was a real downer in my opinion.
Which programs are the big 8?
I thought Emory was the new Emory, in a manner of speaking. On my BWH interview, someone very high up in a student branch of a very prestigious Medical organization told me (when I told them my next interview was Emory) that that's the biggest/worst-kept secret in the medical world - Emory IM *never* fills bc it has too many spots. I actually posted about Emory in the original match leaks thread last week, but edited out my post because I didn't want it to seem like a violation. But yeah, that program director struck me as off, even though Grady seemed like a great place. I also knew that UMD didn't fill either, and really wanted to post about that in the recent rash of UMD threads we had last week just before Thursday, but didn't want to just for that same reason... seemed like propaganda from someone who scrambled there or someone with inside information about their lack of full match.
Also if you mainly interview candidates who also had interviews at the Big 8, then...you know. Its like a candidate should apply to a few top programs, but also where he/she has a good and safe chance of matching.

If we're gonna start making up names like the big 8, I think everyone should tell people that they train at one of the big 8, just to make it more confusing, and enhance everyone's perceived pedigree.
![]()
Whoa...looking at the list, UNC had TWO rad-onc spots and BOTH were unfilled? 😕 Isn't rad onc uber-competitive? I guess it's only relevant to this thread b/c a medicine prelim is required😀. But that's terrible.
correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe UNC didn't participate in the match for rad-onc this year
What the hell is this? I guess I could understand a big 4, but even then, it took an unhealthy amount of time reading SDN to figure out MGH, BWW, JHH, and UCSF, constituted some sort of big 4, which even most people at med school wouldn't be able to identify. But since when has there been a big 8? And why was this said so nonchalantly like everyone would understand what this meant. Why not just say top 10? Is this to stick it to programs like Michigan? Do they need to be excluded so you can say big 8?
If we're gonna start making up names like the big 8, I think everyone should tell people that they train at one of the big 8, just to make it more confusing, and enhance everyone's perceived pedigree.
![]()
- it 'barely' made it to the big 8 😉 ) BWH, MGH, UCSF, Penn, Duke, Columbia, Michigan, UCLA
Anyway dont take me apart..I just used big 8 instead of the big 4 to broaden the spectrum of candidates Emory and Maryland "think" they can invite. And just for an example. I repeat, let's not deviate the thread into a rankings discussion. I was just using it as an example.

BWH, MGH, UCSF, Penn, Duke, Columbia, Michigan, UCLA
Anyway dont take me apart..I just used big 8 instead of the big 4 to broaden the spectrum of candidates Emory and Maryland "think" they can invite. And just for an example. I repeat, let's not deviate the thread into a rankings discussion. I was just using it as an example.

I think it's official. Anytime Moonglow brings up how amazing Hopkins is, people on SDN should point out that it's not even in the Big 8.
Did you make this up to piss off Moonglow?![]()
(no offense intended, all good humor)ny
ny methodist 10/5
ny methodist primary care 10/0 (aww 🙁)
Not that anyone cares, but NYMH routinely does this. They take a few pre-matches, make a rank list that includes basically any US grad who bothered to interview there and then just fill in the scramble. In the past this has seemed like a really ridiculous plan, but given the number of people who didn't match this year, there were probably a fair # of decent folks jonesin' for an IM spot so they probably did better than usual.
I also knew that UMD didn't fill either, and really wanted to post about that in the recent rash of UMD threads we had last week just before Thursday, but didn't want to just for that same reason... seemed like propaganda from someone who scrambled there or someone with inside information about their lack of full match.
BWH, MGH, UCSF, Penn, Duke, Columbia, Michigan, JHH (specifically put last for reasons known to the forum members- it 'barely' made it to the big 8 😉 )
Also the prelim Med at some programs like UAB,Colorado,Uchicago were not entirely filled? Whats with the prelim programs at such places going to scramble? (also is going unfilled necessarily the same as going to scramble?)
Whoa...looking at the list, UNC had TWO rad-onc spots and BOTH were unfilled? 😕 Isn't rad onc uber-competitive? I guess it's only relevant to this thread b/c a medicine prelim is required😀. But that's terrible.
Although there were 7 spots claimed to be unfilled in Radiation Oncology this year, in actuality there were only 3 (Kansas, Kentucky, Louisville).
The other 4 "spots" (2 for UNC, 1 from Tufts and 1 other) were actually in programs that didn't even participate in the match or accept applications this year. Why they are counted in the seven is beyond me, but there were truly only 3 unfilled spots in RadOnc this year. I feel so blessed to be in the ~70% that matched (142 spots for 218 applicants).
Yes, RadOnc is uber-competitive, which is why I am so thankful.
Although there were 7 spots claimed to be unfilled in Radiation Oncology this year, in actuality there were only 3 (Kansas, Kentucky, Louisville).
The other 4 "spots" (2 for UNC, 1 from Tufts and 1 other) were actually in programs that didn't even participate in the match or accept applications this year. Why they are counted in the seven is beyond me, but there were truly only 3 unfilled spots in RadOnc this year. I feel so blessed to be in the ~70% that matched (142 spots for 218 applicants).
Yes, RadOnc is uber-competitive, which is why I am so thankful.

Haha...sorry, yeah I was wondering why I was forced to include UCLA in that list....please replace UCLA with JHH.
I think Moonglow went into dormancy after UMd and her "committee" went to scramble(no offense intended, all good humor)
What do u mean? UCLA should be in the top 10. Hopkins as well. Is there some kind of joke that i'm missing? I'm new to the IM forums.
