mosche said:
I know that several of you will think that I am just being silly; however, after reading the Duke information in the FM forum and General Residency forum, I have really begun to stress over the programs to which I've applied. I mean, I know that there are warning signs to look for/questions to ask, but what if the warning signs are hidden really well? I refer to the Duke Family Medicine program -- if Duke (a so-called "top program" that attracts "top students") can cover up such attrocities, imagine what lesser known programs can cover up.[/QUOTE]
For future generations: My original post was prompted by the current (2005) FM situation at Duke; however, if you read my entire post, please be aware that Duke was only the stimulus to my concern.
wow, i am going to have to go look at the FM board! i am currently a first-year resident in psych at Duke, and i must admit that i know absolutely nothing about whatever scandal has been brewing in the FM department.
mosche, i totally hear you. the whole residency application process is SO scary - you basically have to decide to sign the next four years away to a program that you actually know very little about. all you have to bank on is the information you get from the program website and from the interview day itself - can't really get more biased than that. it's terrifying that a program could skillfully hide its weaknesses and suck you in - and then you get there and it's absolutely awful
the real question is, how can you keep this from happening to you?! i don't think any prevention strategy is foolproof, but i do think that the best resource you've got as an applicant is the residents at the program you're applying to. are they the walking dead, or are they smiling? how enthusiastic are they about the program? when i was visiting places, i was skeptical of residents. i figured that they were also in on the game, and likely wouldn't be telling me the truth. now that i actually am a resident, i realize that it would be really hard to hide being miserable. and if i were miserable, why would i want to hide it from the applicants? on the contrary, i would probably want to screw over my program by discouraging as many applicants as possible from coming. so... i think your best bet would be to talk to as many residents as possible from each program you're interested in. i realize that this is completely unsolicited advice - take it for what it's worth
🙂
on a side note, i am more than happy with my choice of residency program. in fact, if i were to do it all over again i would choose duke again. so if anyone has any specific questions about the duke program, feel free to send them my way.
-boofus