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CALI programs

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Nicoletta2004

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Can anybody share some thoughts/opinions/insights on California programs in general? Also, what kind of board scores are necessary?

Thanks.
 
I interviewed mainly at the UC programs (and matched to UCLA). Here were my impressions:
1) UCSF: 8 positions. Residents seemed deliriously happy, as do the faculty (they have a Kaiser rotation in Hondolulu - I'd be deliriously happy, too). Very academic, big on family planning (almost a mission). Their volume is lower than most of the other programs. Many residents go into academic medicine.
2) UCD: 5 positions. Residents v. satisfied and glad to be there. felt very much like a family with the faculty. The busiest UC program of all, probably the best clinical training in terms of sheer volume. Most of their residents go onto Kaiser.
3) UCLA: 7 positions, +2 prelim spots. Residents seem pretty happy. Getting ready to set up family planning, none yet. Some concern over possibly losing their general hospital (Olive View), but we'll see what develops. ? over their missing residency director, but my communication re: residency has been good with one of their assoc. profs, so he may have been replaced.
4) UCI: 6? positions. STRONG Gyn/Onc, the best of all of them. No REI, though, after the fiasco a few years back, but they're working on it. Also no family planning. Chief of dept is switching out.
5) UCSD: 6 residents, worked hard but pretty satisfied. Warm, cozy, teaching is #1 priority. Lots of off-service rotations the first year, the most out of any of the programs. Faculty seem pretty accessible. 2nd largest volume processed, next to UCD (I think). Prog director is brand new, but she seems to get along very well with the residents (she's young). They have one faculty devoted solely to L&D and one devoted solely to resident clinic, so there's continuity in teaching.
 
TINY program. 4 peoplem very posh. General impression is that they're not as strong as the UC programs for residency, but fellowship in REI there is v competitive.
 
I keep forgetting. The only one that mentioned board scores were UCSD, in their "thank you for requesting information about our residency" letter. They said that their avg Step I scores for incoming interns in the last three years was 226.

No one mentioned cutoffs.