Any special advice for matching home program?

[VoiceofReason]

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Lets say I'm pretty sure I will be a competitive but hardly stellar applicant and I really want radiology, don't really care where.

I've heard matching at your home institution can be the easiest way to go about this -- I'm wondering if thats true, first of all, and if so is there any special advice not found in the FAQ anyone can give me for maximizing my chances?

 

[MrBurns10]

There are a few things I did to increase my chances, and while the match hasn't happened yet I've gotten positive feedback from my PD about my chances to match there. But I'm couples matching so I still have no idea if that's going to work out or not.

First, and maybe it's too late for this, do research with someone in the department, maybe even in the same division as the PD. Impress them. Get a LOR from them. And make sure that your mentor knows you want to stay (he'll let the PD know).

Second, sit down and meet with the PD at some point. It should be a general advice meeting, but in that meeting make sure you express your strong interest in staying. Just don't make the whole meeting about that.

And finally, stay in touch with him throughout the interview season. Say things like "I've been to X number of interviews and nowhere have I been as impressed...blah blah blah." Then, after all your interviews are over, reiterate it's still your #1 choice. You can even ask your mentor to call/email again.

I agree that in general your chances of matching at your home program are best. Just let it be known (repeatedly) that that's where you want to be. Best of luck!

 

[colbgw02]

Consider doing an entire rotation in a radiology subspecialty in order to a get a letter from a faculty from your home program. Since most general radiology rotations don't allow you to spend more than 2-3 days with any one faculty, letters from those rotations don't mean as much. I know that in addition to general radiology, my school had a dedicated interventional rotation, but you may have to create your own.

 

[idq1i]

Lets say I'm pretty sure I will be a competitive but hardly stellar applicant and I really want radiology, don't really care where.

I've heard matching at your home institution can be the easiest way to go about this -- I'm wondering if thats true, first of all, and if so is there any special advice not found in the FAQ anyone can give me for maximizing my chances?

Depends where/what your "home program" is. Do an elective and talk to the decision-makers in your last week to see where you stand. If you work with them, they are more likely to give you a direct answer.