2019 IM Match Results

[imapp919]

I found this thread to be extremely helpful as I prepared my application this year, so I'm going to post my experience here for future students. Please post as many experiences/results as possible, they really help! Also, please forgive/close the thread if someone already started this - i did a cursory search and didn't see one.

School: Texas State school ranked in the 60-100 range.
Step Scores: Step 1: 235-240; Step 2 CK: 250-255, Step 2 CS: pass first attempt.
Grades: A in all rotations including Sub-I. Great research and clinical letters.
Research: Two research years between MS2 and 3. Two research years prior to med school in the same laboratory. 2 first author publications with 1 forthcoming, many co-authorships. Many posters/presentations.
AOA: No.
Rank: Second quartile (third quartile preclinical, top 10% clinical - I test at the average to just below average range unfortunately.)
Interview Invites: Applied for a mix of PSTP - Hematology/Oncology and Categoricals. PSTP IV: Mayo (CI track), Yale PST, UVa, NYU (clinical investigator - but not sure if this counts. ended up canceling.), Stanford TIP, UCLA Prostar, UTSW. Categorical IV: BIDMC, U Wash, UCSD, Cornell (was specifically told that I wasn't being considered for PSTP and only for categorical), UNC (also was given only categorical), Dartmouth, Vermont, OHSU, UT Houston, UTHSCSA, Rutgers, MUSC, Thomas Jefferson, Montefiore, Cambridge Health Alliance, Mount Auburn, UT Austin.

Rejections: MGH, BWH, Penn (initially waitlisted, then rejected), Columbia, BU, Tufts, Michigan, Duke (silent), Vandy, Emory, Uchicago, Northwestern, Brown, UCSF, Mount Sinai, Temple. Many more but those are the ones that stick out.

Matched (+ # on ROL): West coast PSTP

Advice: I have absolutely NO IDEA how these top programs determine who to invite. And man PSTP really adds a second layer of weirdness. PSTP heme/onc this year was incredibly competitive - far moreso than previous years I'm told (prob has something to do with that Nobel prize). Definitely felt a lot of imposter syndrome sitting next to these Harvard MD PhDs etc. Anyways, I'm super happy with the way things turned out. I did feel that some PSTPs were haphazardly organized and not really conducive to a structured experience, and that was reflected in my rank list. I definitely applied to more programs than I needed to, but felt it was necessary because I was slightly geographically limited (could only rank places where spouse's work had an office). But I did end up canceling >10 interviews and attending 9 (ran out of money). Also, had a lot of weird stuff happen (a PSTP asking me to come back for a second interview when i was abroad and then telling me they wouldn't rank me because I couldn't attend the second interview, people straight up asking what my ranking of them was, an interviewer asking me whether i was married), but for the most part, I had great experiences at all institutions. I was surprised at how similar everywhere felt. TBH, in the top tiers, most of the programs are so similar and really geography is what should determine your rank list. It was a fun ride but I'm glad its over. Also, if you are intending to cancel an interview, please do so as soon as you know you can't attend so that the spot frees up as early as possible in the cycle. Help your friends out!

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[275471]

School: Top 40
Step Scores: Step 1: 247; Step 2 CK: 256, Step 2 CS: pass first attempt.
Grades: Honors in IM/Peds/OB/Surgery/Neuro, HP in rest
Research: Significant amount
AOA: Yes
Interview Invites:
Attended: JHH, Columbia, Duke, NYU, MGH, NW, BIDMC, Vandy, WashU, UChicago, UMichigan
Declined: UTSW, Cornell, UCSD, Emory, Yale

Rejections: MGH, BWH, UCSF, Stanford, UWash, UCLA

Matched (+ # on ROL): #1 JHH

Advice:
- It took me a couple of interviews before I really figured out what to look for in a program and to decide how I was going to distinguish between the programs. I'm glad I scheduled programs that I felt I would rank highly more in the middle of my season
- I think it is important to spend time deciding what matters to you. Do your best to block out what other people say about a program, what they think is important in a program, etc. Don't worry about other perceptions of what you are doing or where you are going - match day is one day and after that you have to live with your decision.
- I found it surprising that people would basically sink a program based off of not meshing well with one or a couple of residents at a preinterview dinner, an interviewer, etc. To me, that seems like such a small portion of the program. I basically tried to remove interactions like that from my consideration. And, in general, I tried to block out really any emotion I felt about a program or the interview day from my consideration. The interview season is long - you will get tired of it, you will get sick, you will get bored so I'd recommend trying to keep that in mind as you reflect on programs and acknowledge your state of mind while you were there
- If you can afford to not fly out the day of the interview, do that. For me, that's what burned me out
- I think regions play a big role in getting interview invites. I was really successful in getting interviews by contacting programs and giving specific reasons why I was interested in their program.

 

[EastOfSalinas]

School: Top 5
Step Scores: Step 1: 255. Step 2: Low 270s. Step 2 CS: Pass
Grades: HP in Surg and Peds. Honors in the rest.
Research: Masters/Research year. At ERAS opening I had one abstract accepted, two reviews submitted, and some posters from college. Actually most of my research production happened after ERAS submission.
AOA: Nope!
Rank: Top Portion, unsure as to %

Interview Invites: WashU, Mayo, NYU, Columbia, Mt. Sinai, BIDMC, Penn, Stanford, Yale, UW, UChicago, Rutgers-RWJ; all categorical
Rejections: BWH, Montefiore, MGH, UCSF, Hopkins, Northwestern, UCLA, Duke, Michigan, I think that's it?


Matched (+ # on ROL): Penn

Advice: AOA matters - I did not network well early on in med school because I had no idea that these badges would be such universal and important signals, I also wasn't MGH or bust. Grades, I probably should have honored surgery. No one brought up my lack of AOA or grades but if you want the most selective programs it seems like a nearly perfect record is required. I also think I could have been more active/pushy during my research year, and kept a closer eye on timelines for publications.

On interviews, smile and be affable, develop a list of questions that you can generalize to each program. Having a few unique and intelligent questions seems to be helpful as well. Get a nice suit. Programs seem to interview based on region, "over-qualification" is a factor. A first author paper with original data would make you stand out to any program - I definitely did not do any research my first three years but am very lucky to have ended up where I did.

 

[TheRealReel]

School: Top 20

Step Scores: Step 1: 252, Step 2 CK: 254, Step 2 CS: Pass, first time (although result came at the end of January)

Grades: Honors in Psychiatry, Outpatient Medicine, Surgery; HP in Ob/Gyn, Peds, Inpatient Medicine; after ERAS submission, did my home institution medicine sub-internship and received Honors

Research: Three submitted abstracts in surg subspecialty fields when ERAS opened, accepted abstract in medicine field early February, one presentation in orthopedic surgery. No publications.

AOA: No

Rank: Unsure, most likely second quartile

Interview Invites: NYU, Mount Sinai, Baylor, Brown, Boston University, University of Utah, Cedars-Sinai, UC San Diego, UChicago, Vanderbilt, UC Irvine

Rejections: UCLA, Stanford, LAC+USC, UC Davis, Colorado (waitlisted), Columbia, Cornell, JHH, MGH, BWH, BIDMC, Northwestern, WashU, Duke

Matched: Vanderbilt

Advice:

- So, I decided on medicine pretty late to the game (unsure during preclinical, loved my medicine rotation but got screwed over on my grade since our clinical grades barely register our performance on the shelf exam so I shied away from it thinking I wouldn't be a good candidate) with little research (mostly because I hadn't even decided what I wanted to do). I think some programs got the impression that I was back-up applying from another field (given the surg subspecialty research) and wasn't truly committed to medicine (which I thought I explained quite well in my personal statement but, who knows if these get read).

- If your clinical grades are a toss-up, like mine (especially medicine), get that sub-i done and kick ass to get Honors before ERAS submission is due. I ended up prioritizing Step 2 CK studying over taking my sub-i and I think that was a misstep (my application would have been stronger, I think, had I applied with Honors in my medicine sub-i versus having a Step 2 CK score given my HP in medicine).

- Cracking into the top IM programs probably requires more research, and of higher quality, than I had when I applied. Like, even one publication in a medicine field would have made life easier. I imagine that most people applying into medicine know sooner than I did, so this is likely not a problem for many applicants.

 

[MoLarryKerlyBLine]

School: DO

Step Scores: Step 1: 23x, Step 2 CK: 24x, COMLEX: >>600/>600 PE: Pass first time

Grades: Honors in all except Psychiatry. Honors in Sub-I

Research: Published first author on journal article in medium IF journal. Presented at national conference.

AOA: N/A

Rank: Unsure, most likely second quartile

Interview Invites: Stony Brook, UTMB, UConn, NYU Winthrop, USC, Univ of Tennessee, Univ of Tennessee-Nashville, Univ of Mississippi, Medical College of Georgia, DMC/Wayne State University, University of Alabama, Legacy Emanuel, Methodist Dallas, Western Michigan University, Central Michigan University, ETSU, UCF, Marshall University, Oklahoma State University, Henry Ford

Rejections: Lots.

Matched: #1 Academic program in NE/New England

Advice:

- So, my biggest piece of advice for any DO with mediocre stats who's contemplating IM is to first TAKE USMLE, and second, apply broadly. Not enough can be said about casting a wide enough net to ensure that you get the opportunity to interview at plenty of places. You will not be on your A-game for your first interview, and it took until my third interview to feel completely comfortable enough to crack jokes and open up. You will also not be able to know what you want from a program right away; see lots of programs, and learn exactly what you're looking for in a residency.

- You will also not get interviews at many places in the first round of invites. It never hurts to send a letter stating your desire to interview and match at that program. My number one and future residency program was one such program. I sent a passionate letter stating exactly what I wanted in a program, and why I wanted that region and within 3 days, I had an invite. I also made it known to my interviewer that this program was my #1 (late in season, so it didn't seam like a rash decision), and sent a letter to the PD 2 weeks later stating as such. Lo and behold, I matched at that program. There are no pity interviews, and PDs are not only looking to see that you're intellectually driven, but also that you are passionate about the program.

 

[AFNI_User]

School: New DO
Step Scores: Step 1: 252; Step 2 CK: 256, Level 1: 709; Level 2: 756
Grades: Honors in everything but a random HP in an elective. Honors in two aways.
Research: 2+ years prior to medical school, 6 pubs, 3 presentations, Summer internship at top 10 program.
AOA: LOL.. was sigma sigma phi
Interview Invites:
Attended: UCSD, GWU, GT, Cinci, Miami, Scripps, MUSC, Loyola, Wake, USF, MCW, Louisville, Einstein Philly, Carolinas
Declined: Henry Ford, Arizona-Tucson, USC-Greenville, Legacy Emmanual, Lehigh Valley, Santa Clara Valley Medical Center

Rejections: I'm going to to just list ones which historically take good DOs.. VCU, OHSU, Temple, UF, Rochester, RWJ,

Matched (+ # on ROL): #2 GWU

Advice: It's tough for DOs and I believe you can't give a residency program any reason NOT to interview you. Beyond just doing well on board exams, its my opinion you should try to be a well rounded applicant if you're interested in university IM programs. This includes good board scores, some research, LORs etc

I do recommend doing an away rotation or two to get your foot in the door or prepare for your SubI. I Sent 2 LOI's. Rush put me on their waitlist and I never got off, and VCU rejected me immediately afterwards. Never wrote a single thank you note.

 

[Thuderbird]

I also used this thread to gage my competitiveness and consider my prospects, and it was really helpful, so here's to paying back the favor.

Let me preface all this by the fact that I am Canadian (US medical school) and that definitely hindered me in some aspects but I think I did ok at the end.

School: New MD school
Step Scores: Step 1: 240s; Step 2 CK: 250s, Step 2 CS: pass first attempt.
Grades: H in IM, Sub-I, OB, Neuro / HP in FM, Peds / P in Surgery / Pass with Remediation in Psychiatry (passed shelf and CPE but had to retake OSCE)
Research: One 3rd author undergrad paper / 6-7 Posters presented at various conferences, some national / 2 abstracts / Several projects that never saw the light of day, or are just about to get compiled for publication. Also did a 4 week research internship in the summer between M1 and M2.
Miscellaneous: worked on first school student magazine, and was able to get that published. I also draw/paint on the side and some of my works have been featured on doximity and journal covers so I put some of those down as "publications" as well.
AOA: No.
Rank: Second quartile.
Interview Invites: Applied for pretty much every top 25 program in the country, then every other solid academic program + some safety schools. Applied to about 50 places.
-> Case, OHSU, Tufts, WashU, Jefferson, Rush, Loyola, Mayo AZ, Hofstra, Montefiore, Beaumont, Henry-Ford, Minnesota
Rejections: Penn & Yale (waitlisted then rejected), all the remaining top 25 places (mostly silent rejections), some unexpected silent rejections OSU, Emory, withdrew from most of the safety places once I had enough interviews.

Matched (+ # on ROL): #1 (first few)

Advice:
-> Generally
- Start your ERAS & Personal Statement early - refining your words to express exactly what you want to say takes time
- Apply broadly; my strategy was 33% reach, 33% mid, 33% safety, but in the end it skewed more towards 45%, 35%, 20% respectively
- You never know how they filter through applications so just shoot for whatever dream program you want because it's now or never
- Don't shy away from expressing interest if you don't hear back - email or call to follow up on your application and expressing interest (even better if you have a reason/story to support why)
- Try to showcase uniqueness in your application, because it stands out - everyone has done "volunteering" or "research" - how is yours different? Make it align with a deeper mission to explain your cause. Same goes for your Personal Statement.
-> Interviews
- Pretty chill for most part, but be prepared to answer details about research you did 5 years ago
- You'll shine here if you have interesting hobbies - for me it was the drawing/painting thing - almost every interviewer was interested in talking about my art & the magazine even more so than research or my career goals
- Be friendly, be courteous, don't be obnoxious, don't demean anyone - common sense stuff but it will amaze you how it's actually a concern
- Again, make them see why you'd fill their needs perfectly, don't wait for them to pull that information from you
- They're cracking down on thank you notes, so if they specifically tell you DON'T, then I wouldn't send it - if you have legitimate questions tho, they'll welcome those
-> Away/Audition electives
- I feel the camp is divided halfway on this one
- I did a couple at Penn & Emory - I got rejected from both so you can obviously guess what camp I'm on right? Jk - no honestly, I'm super glad I did Aways because of the experience I gained. My rationale for doing them was because our school is new, it might give me a better shot at getting an interview at the top institutions if they know me personally and see that I work hard. I felt I did good work at both institutions, Emory probably more than Penn because it came second. Even the residents and attendings made calls for me to help me get an interview, but nothing.
- So I guess my overall advice is, DO aways for the EXPERIENCE, not for a courtesy interview. If you enjoy the experience, the chances that you'll get an interview are high - but sometimes it will not happen. Don't measure your worth by who notices you, or gives you an interview - if it happens, great, if it doesn't, be happy and live your life!
- Schedule a meeting with the PD when you're at any away - facetime is always good.
-> Final thoughts
- Enjoy 4th year, interviews really are fun, try to do at least 1 or 2 things unrelated to the interview in each city because you may never be back in that city ever again, so take advantage
- Use airbnb and public transport as much as possible cuz $$$ add up real quick!

Good luck!

 

[mugiwara]

School: Northeast Mid-tier MD
Step Scores: Step 1: 240; Step 2 CK: 239, Step 2 CS: pass first attempt.
Grades: HP in everything including Sub-I/AI except P in Ob/Gyn and H in Neuro
Research: Two projects in summer after M1 leading to national poster presentations
AOA: No.
Rank: 3rd quintile
Interview Invites: Mt. Sinai, UIC, Loyola, Harbor-UCLA, Montefiore, USC, Stony Brook, Northwell/NSLIJ, Temple, Georgetown, GWU, Rutgers-RWJ, Lankenau
Rejections: BIDMC, BU, VCU, UMD, Jefferson, UC-Davis, UC-Irvine, UCLA, UCSD, Tufts, Cornell, U-Rochester, Cedars-Sinai, UVA, NYU, Silent rejections from all of the other programs

Matched (+ # on ROL): Within my top 3 - Name omitted for privacy

Advice:
Overall, I'm happy about how things worked out because I ended up matching at a great academic program that I'm excited about. IM is getting more competitive so apply broadly. I ended up applying to 40 programs and got 13 interviews. I got rejections from programs that I was told I'd be competitive for and got interviews at programs that I was told would be a reach for me so it's a crapshoot.
If your home institution's PD or chair of medicine makes themselves available to you, definitely meet with them to go over your list of programs because they can gauge your competitiveness for those programs and give you the names of more programs you might be competitive for. If your dean's office offers mock interviews, take them up on it and do a lot! It really helped polish my interview skills and the deans even helped polish some of my responses.
I did research with my mentor the summer after M1, shadowed him in his clinic for three months, and kept him updated throughout medical school. He was also my attending during one of my inpatient rotations. He wrote me a killer LOR that got commented on during my interviews and contacted a lot of programs on my behalf which probably helped me get interviews at places I wouldn't have gotten invitations from otherwise. If you've got a mentor, maintain that relationship because it will become a really valuable.
I think my grades definitely limited me from getting interviews at a lot of the top programs so for rising M3s, it goes without saying do your best to honor as many rotations as possible! Start those qbanks early and do them often! Ask your residents and interns on your first day about expectations and be eager and available to help! If your rotation grades are average, do your Sub-I/AI as early as possible. I did mine right after taking CK but at that point, I hadn't been in the hospital for 2-3 months so I was noticeably rusty. If I could go back, I'd definitely take an inpatient elective before my Sub-I/AI.
For rising M4s, once you get an interview, a good chunk of it comes down to how you interview. It's a no-brainer, but don't put anything on your application that you're not able to talk about for 5 minutes with someone else. And talk about something you're passionate about! If you have any unique hobbies, mention them in ERAS because those questions can come up in your interviews. As for mine, they definitely became my favorite interviews and the ones I had the most fun with. Be nice to everyone you meet on an interview. And feel free to chat with your fellow interviewees because you might run into them again 🙂

 

[greek102]

School: NE mid tier school
Step Scores: Step 1: 245-250, Step 2: 245-250
Grades: HP in most rotations third year. H for all clinical electives and sub-I for fourth year.
Research: Research projects during college, one research project between MS1-MS2. Multiple poster presentations.
AOA: No.
Rank: Middle of the class.
Interview Invites: ~20 programs throughout the NE, mostly academic. Examples: BU, Tufts, U Maryland, Sinai, Hofstra, Jefferson, Temple.

Rejections: Penn, NYU (no response).

Matched (+ # on ROL): #1, upper tier academic program in NE

Advice:
1. Step matters a lot. I don't think I really realized how much it does until this process. Study throughout MS1 with first aid and start doing UWorld questions as soon as possible. It's extremely important for initially getting those interviews at upper tier to begin with.
2. I didn't honor my third year medicine clerkship and this worried me in terms of being able to get interviews at upper tier programs (in addition to not being aoa). If you didn't honor your third year clerkship, work hard to honor your sub-internship and medicine electives you may have in the beginning of MS4. I think this is what helped me immensely at the end of it all.
3. For interviews, I found most of them to be very relaxed and chill. They just want to get a sense of who you are and, thus, I found that over preparing for interviews didn't make a lot of sense. a lot o times, they just wanted to see that you had things that you were passionate about/interests and want you to talk about it. So think about this before your interviews!
4. I did not do any away rotations during fourth year and, I agree with many of the people before me, if you want to do away rotations do it more so for the experience rather than for getting interviews. I don't think not doing an away rotation hurt me in any way.