EM PD - Ask Me Anything

Started by gamerEMdoc
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gamerEMdoc said:
Program leadership has the most say. But there is definitely resident input. You have to realize, when there’s 28 residents, everyone’s going to have their favorite, not everybody is going to like every candidate. So from a program leader ship standpoint, you have to take a step back and weigh everybody’s opinion equally.

The way I do it is, I formulate the rank list based on the scoring system. I have a blank with PowerPoint that every candidate has their own slide with all of their positives and negatives, scores, sloes, etc. we go to slide by slide for about two hours, and everybody weighs in, and I take notes. I then readjust the rank list based on their feedback with the PD and then we submit it.
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Every program is different.

some have a type of “rank day” like described in the post you replied to. Some have informal versions of resident feedback. At the end of the day, resident input matters, APD/PC input matters probably more. PD opinion matters the most.
 
WildcatS11 said:
Every program is different.

some have a type of “rank day” like described in the post you replied to. Some have informal versions of resident feedback. At the end of the day, resident input matters, APD/PC input matters probably more. PD opinion matters the most.
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Correct, there is no standard as to how people make rank lists. I’d imagine the majority of programs have some resident input. And I’d also imagine that almost close to all programs weigh the opinion of the program leadership above those of the residents, just because they see a broader picture (they’ve interviewed everyone, saw everyones apps, etc). How much resident input is weighed, is probably highly variable.
 
Appreciate the feedback. I was able to learn how the ranking occurs at this site. It's similar to how you both describe. The Attendings most involved with GME each get a vote, and the residents collectively get a vote. I didn't realize how much more Attending input was valued. Especially at the site I am currently at, we mostly interact, report back to residents, and only have very brief interaction with the Attending. I will certainly keep this in mind on my last week. Thanks!
 
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So I've been put in the fortunate position of being able to chose between US, peds, or EMS for a subspecialty rotation next block, and I just wanted to know your thoughts on which one would hold the most weight as a subspecialty SLOE. I completed my core EM rotation for a SLOE last month, and unfortunately I'm pretty sure it is going to be middle third, so I'm trying to compensate with a stellar subspecialty SLOE. With that said, I think I would do the best in either US or peds, but EMS is the most interesting to me, I just have zero prior experience in EMS.

Thanks so much for answering all of our questions.
 
I indirectly asked my SLOE writers if I should use their SLOEs from last year (as I only can send in 1) when reapplying next month. Basically it was an indirect way of asking if their SLOE was good. One of them said it was "good", and the other said it was "top 1/3". If they are telling the truth, then does that mean there's a red flag in my application? Or could it just be I wasn't as competitive as the other applicants?
I mean sure I'm a US IMG with a step 1 of 225 but I figured my step 2 score of 251 would help balance me out. The only red flags I could think of was I never had work experience, and no research papers, but I did have research experience. No rotation fails, no gaps, never got in trouble, I'd like to think I interviewed well. I just don't understand what went wrong.
 
Hey @gamerEMdoc, just have a quick question about LORs. If we're getting a SLOE, do we still need 2 additional LORs for 3 total for most programs? Or since this year is all sorts of messed up with COVID, are programs going to be more lenient on their LOR requirements? I'm wondering b/c I have 1 SLOE + 1 O-SLOE but my third letter writer is less than stellar about communicating with me, so I'm not sure if it'll be in by the time programs can view our ERAS apps. Also, if we have 1 SLOE + 1 LOR by the time applications are sent in, but are still waiting on a third LOR, will programs wait to send interviews out or would we just need to get that third LOR by the time ROLs are due? Thanks!
 
hopefulERdoc251 said:
Hey @gamerEMdoc, just have a quick question about LORs. If we're getting a SLOE, do we still need 2 additional LORs for 3 total for most programs? Or since this year is all sorts of messed up with COVID, are programs going to be more lenient on their LOR requirements? I'm wondering b/c I have 1 SLOE + 1 O-SLOE but my third letter writer is less than stellar about communicating with me, so I'm not sure if it'll be in by the time programs can view our ERAS apps. Also, if we have 1 SLOE + 1 LOR by the time applications are sent in, but are still waiting on a third LOR, will programs wait to send interviews out or would we just need to get that third LOR by the time ROLs are due? Thanks!
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Probably won't give you problems, though some do want to see 3 letters to make a complete app. Most years, I'll decide on interviews based on one letter as long as its a SLOE, and assume a 2nd SLOE will be coming some time during interview season.
 
Doctor W said:
I indirectly asked my SLOE writers if I should use their SLOEs from last year (as I only can send in 1) when reapplying next month. Basically it was an indirect way of asking if their SLOE was good. One of them said it was "good", and the other said it was "top 1/3". If they are telling the truth, then does that mean there's a red flag in my application? Or could it just be I wasn't as competitive as the other applicants?
I mean sure I'm a US IMG with a step 1 of 225 but I figured my step 2 score of 251 would help balance me out. The only red flags I could think of was I never had work experience, and no research papers, but I did have research experience. No rotation fails, no gaps, never got in trouble, I'd like to think I interviewed well. I just don't understand what went wrong.
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Either they are lying (ie the one that said it was "good" when its really a low 1/3 or "we don't rank IMGs" sloe) or you just didn't match because you were a US IMG. The match rate in EM for IMGs is low. Has nothing to do with red flags in the LORs sometimes.
 
@gamerEMdoc For a DO applicant with a low comlex 1 score (530) and no usmles, Will a good comlex 2 score (hopefully 600's) released on Nov 2nd (which is much after the eras deadline) hurt our chances horribly and get us screened out of much more programs?
Already have 1 great eSLOE (top 1/3 - top 10%) and 2 great o-sloes.
 
Stethopotamus said:
@gamerEMdoc For a DO applicant with a low comlex 1 score (530) and no usmles, Will a good comlex 2 score (hopefully 600's) released on Nov 2nd (which is much after the eras deadline) hurt our chances horribly and get us screened out of much more programs?
Already have 1 great eSLOE (top 1/3 - top 10%) and 2 great o-sloes.
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Depends on where you are trying to match. The catch 22 is, most DO friendly programs are gonna be totally fine with a 530 and no USMLE and good SLOEs. Most DO unfriendly places may not be fine with no USMLE. But... they aren't DO friendly anyway, so what's it matter, really?
 
Dr.Bruh said:
Curious what kind of stuff we should be talking/asking about in the 10 minute time frame we get. Any suggestions?
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@gamerEMdoc Also curious if you have ever chatted with a student prior to application season who impressed you enough to select them for an interview? If you have, what impressed you about that student?
What are your expectations of the students when they speak with you during the fair?
Thanks!
 
Yeah, every year I've picked up some people on the interview list from the residency fair that I otherwise probably wouldn't have because they would have gotten put on the backburner in the 1000 apps you have to review to get to 80 interviews. Look, once you figure 30 students rotating (in a nl year), plus looking at in state apps, plus apps from people who applied for rotation but couldn't schedule, like 75% of the interviews are already taken up. So its a TON of apps for relatively few spots. The issue is USUALLY the residency fairs (EMRA and the ACOEP one) are AFTER I've already looked at the first batch of applications. So at that point we have some interviews, but not a ton. The ACOEP one comes so late usually we are filled up and just filling a wait list.

This year is different because both fairs are actually before ERAS even opens. So you have the potential for far more invites to be open at the time of the fairs. And its free and online, there's virtually no barriers to attending it. Plus students are limited on how many places they can speak to. So it has the ability to let you know who is actually interested in hearing more about your program, not just who could afford to fly across the country and who could go talk to 50 diff places.

So I DEFINITELY think this year will be more useful for programs trying to determine who has an interest.

Personally, I wouldn't worry about what you say. That's not the point of the fair IMO. It's not an interview. Anyone who stops by at the fair to my table gets their app looked at and I decide on whether to interview them. I can't look at 1000 apps for 20-30 interviews (after the rotator + in state group). Once full, your full and there just isn't a point at looking at say the last 400 apps once you've already got 80 scheduled and a waitlist of 50. So to me, the point of the fair is an indication of interest, and so it allows me to at least find the students in that pile of 1000 applicants who have said interest and pick their apps out of the pile to look at them for consideration.
 
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That being said, I actually hope EMRA considers doing this virtually every year. I doubt they will, but being free and spanned out over a week allows every student to participate. And not waiting for ACEP allows them to hold it whenever they want so they can do it well before ERAS opens. It would add so much more value to the fair for both programs and students in doing it this way IMO.
 
gamerEMdoc said:
Yeah, every year I've picked up some people on the interview list from the residency fair that I otherwise probably wouldn't have because they would have gotten put on the backburner in the 1000 apps you have to review to get to 80 interviews. Look, once you figure 30 students rotating (in a nl year), plus looking at in state apps, plus apps from people who applied for rotation but couldn't schedule, like 75% of the interviews are already taken up. So its a TON of apps for relatively few spots. The issue is USUALLY the residency fairs (EMRA and the ACOEP one) are AFTER I've already looked at the first batch of applications. So at that point we have some interviews, but not a ton. The ACOEP one comes so late usually we are filled up and just filling a wait list.

This year is different because both fairs are actually before ERAS even opens. So you have the potential for far more invites to be open at the time of the fairs. And its free and online, there's virtually no barriers to attending it. Plus students are limited on how many places they can speak to. So it has the ability to let you know who is actually interested in hearing more about your program, not just who could afford to fly across the country and who could go talk to 50 diff places.

So I DEFINITELY think this year will be more useful for programs trying to determine who has an interest.

Personally, I wouldn't worry about what you say. That's not the point of the fair IMO. It's not an interview. Anyone who stops by at the fair to my table gets their app looked at and I decide on whether to interview them. I can't look at 1000 apps for 20-30 interviews (after the rotator + in state group). Once full, your full and there just isn't a point at looking at say the last 400 apps once you've already got 80 scheduled and a waitlist of 50. So to me, the point of the fair is an indication of interest, and so it allows me to at least find the students in that pile of 1000 applicants who have said interest and pick their apps out of the pile to look at them for consideration.
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When you say you look at in-state apps, are you referring to where the applicant's medical school is located or the address they have listed in ERAS?
 
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@gamerEMdoc I've got a question about SLOEs in this COVID cycle. On paper my application is good, but after meeting with my advisor I'm getting the impression that my home SLOE is weak, probably even lower 1/3. This is kind of blindsiding me frankly because all my comments and feedback throughout the rotation were positive and I even got Honors in the rotation. I've found plenty of advice online on how to handle a weak part of an application if it's a test score or clerkship grade or something, but no good information on what to do if you're fine other than a SLOE. This is especially frustrating because it's the one part of my application I cannot see, and thus I don't really know for sure what I'm dealing with. Also this year it's extra annoying because I don't have an away rotation SLOE to potentially offset it a little.

For some context, I go to a pretty well thought of MD school (top 25 but not top 10, if those kind of rankings even mean anything) and I am average to a little above average for clerkship grades and MSPE.
Step 1: 242
Step 2: 262
A little bit of research and good leadership and volunteering in EM-related things
FWIW I am pretty sure from what I've heard that my home program actually sticks to roughly 1/3 percentages for their rankings even though they grade inflate, but again I can't see it for I don't know for sure.

What are my chances this cycle like this? Should I just plan on applying to 100+ places or do I need to consider prelims or family?
 
dragonfire9 said:
@gamerEMdoc I've got a question about SLOEs in this COVID cycle. On paper my application is good, but after meeting with my advisor I'm getting the impression that my home SLOE is weak, probably even lower 1/3. This is kind of blindsiding me frankly because all my comments and feedback throughout the rotation were positive and I even got Honors in the rotation. I've found plenty of advice online on how to handle a weak part of an application if it's a test score or clerkship grade or something, but no good information on what to do if you're fine other than a SLOE. This is especially frustrating because it's the one part of my application I cannot see, and thus I don't really know for sure what I'm dealing with. Also this year it's extra annoying because I don't have an away rotation SLOE to potentially offset it a little.

For some context, I go to a pretty well thought of MD school (top 25 but not top 10, if those kind of rankings even mean anything) and I am average to a little above average for clerkship grades and MSPE.
Step 1: 242
Step 2: 262
A little bit of research and good leadership and volunteering in EM-related things
FWIW I am pretty sure from what I've heard that my home program actually sticks to roughly 1/3 percentages for their rankings even though they grade inflate, but again I can't see it for I don't know for sure.

What are my chances this cycle like this? Should I just plan on applying to 100+ places or do I need to consider prelims or family?
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Isn't it unusual to get honor and lower 1/3 SLOE? Maybe you read too much about the situation?
 
MakeLifeHappen13 said:
When you say you look at in-state apps, are you referring to where the applicant's medical school is located or the address they have listed in ERAS?
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Permanent address, hometown, and in-state med schools. Trying to any candidate with ties to the central and western part of the state as that has seemed to be where we have had the most success in terms of matching candidates.
 
dragonfire9 said:
@gamerEMdoc I've got a question about SLOEs in this COVID cycle. On paper my application is good, but after meeting with my advisor I'm getting the impression that my home SLOE is weak, probably even lower 1/3. This is kind of blindsiding me frankly because all my comments and feedback throughout the rotation were positive and I even got Honors in the rotation. I've found plenty of advice online on how to handle a weak part of an application if it's a test score or clerkship grade or something, but no good information on what to do if you're fine other than a SLOE. This is especially frustrating because it's the one part of my application I cannot see, and thus I don't really know for sure what I'm dealing with. Also this year it's extra annoying because I don't have an away rotation SLOE to potentially offset it a little.

For some context, I go to a pretty well thought of MD school (top 25 but not top 10, if those kind of rankings even mean anything) and I am average to a little above average for clerkship grades and MSPE.
Step 1: 242
Step 2: 262
A little bit of research and good leadership and volunteering in EM-related things
FWIW I am pretty sure from what I've heard that my home program actually sticks to roughly 1/3 percentages for their rankings even though they grade inflate, but again I can't see it for I don't know for sure.

What are my chances this cycle like this? Should I just plan on applying to 100+ places or do I need to consider prelims or family?
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I don't think I can possibly answer this question without knowing what the SLOE ranking is and what it says. As you said, it makes it extremely difficult to gauge competitiveness without knowing that one piece, and it just so happens to be the most important part of the app. Did you get a subspecialty SLOE or OSLOE to augment your app?

The rest of your app is competitive enough that if you got a mid 1/3 sloe you'd be absolutely fine.

What makes you think the SLOE is weak? Did your advisor tell you to apply to another field instead of EM?

Unfortunately, there isn't really a way of hiding from a bad SLOE. If a sloe is lower 1/3, and you have other good sloes, then it can be overcome if the issue is just its coming from a competitive place. This year, with one SLOE, its gonna hurt more probably bc of the lack of other sloes. Low 1/3 SLOE with damning comments are an app killer many times.
 
gamerEMdoc said:
I don't think I can possibly answer this question without knowing what the SLOE ranking is and what it says. As you said, it makes it extremely difficult to gauge competitiveness without knowing that one piece, and it just so happens to be the most important part of the app. Did you get a subspecialty SLOE or OSLOE to augment your app?

The rest of your app is competitive enough that if you got a mid 1/3 sloe you'd be absolutely fine.

What makes you think the SLOE is weak? Did your advisor tell you to apply to another field instead of EM?

Unfortunately, there isn't really a way of hiding from a bad SLOE. If a sloe is lower 1/3, and you have other good sloes, then it can be overcome if the issue is just its coming from a competitive place. This year, with one SLOE, its gonna hurt more probably bc of the lack of other sloes. Low 1/3 SLOE with damning comments are an app killer many times.
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I was not told to apply to another field, but I was told to apply to at least 80 if not 100 programs, and I know that a couple other people at my school certainly aren't getting that kind of advice. I do have another SLOE from an EM faculty member that should be at least decent, but I doubt that will get nearly as much weight as the committee letter.
 
Hi @gamerEMdoc, how much of an issue would it be to not have a Step 2 score back until early November? With the compressed timeline, it looks like the first few interview dates are as early as the week of November 9th, so I'm wondering if I'll automatically be screened out at some competitive programs.

My Step 1 is 240 and I do have a Top 10% SLOE, and I'm looking at competitive programs.

Do you suggest telling programs after I apply that I've taken Step 2 and I'll have my score back soon?
 
Hey @gamerEMdoc so because of covid my step got moved from June to September and my “dedicated” was in the middle of an audition. My step 1 is average for EM (upper 230s) but my step 2 dropped to upper 220s. All my SLOEs are upper ⅓ from what I’ve heard and no red flags. Do you think my step 2 will be a big barrier to getting interviews? Thank you!
 
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Just wanted to say that these EMRA residency fair meetings are legit. I was skeptical of their utility but I’m def getting dif “vibes” from program and can kind tell how happy the people are from them (not as good as in person obvi but better than I expected). Like one PD at a newish program seem legit apprehensive that I was a DO (even tho his program has a DO in each class) and mentioned they really want us to do well on boards. while another APD at a large established academic program was like “we don’t give a **** about DO we love them” also we don’t screen by boards at all def holistic etc. I could def get a vibe on which place would legit look at my app vs not. Curious what everyone else experience is
 
gamerEMdoc said:
Doubt it will be an issue. Typically, in most years, plenty of people don't have step 2 when interview season opens in early Sept. Early November is only a week or two into interview season. So it will kind of be business as usual on that end. I doubt anyone will care.
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Hi @gamerEMdoc, just wondering about the SLOE. Obviously we can't see our SLOE grade but in our institutional evaluation, we can see what grade we got which historically at our school is representative of our SLOE grade. If we got a high pass SLOE grade (which i'm assuming ranks middle 1/3), is this the kiss of death given quite strong step1/ck scores (240/250+ respectively). Thanks!
 
STG1021 said:
Hey @gamerEMdoc so because of covid my step got moved from June to September and my “dedicated” was in the middle of an audition. My step 1 is average for EM (upper 230s) but my step 2 dropped to upper 220s. All my SLOEs are upper ⅓ from what I’ve heard and no red flags. Do you think my step 2 will be a big barrier to getting interviews? Thank you!
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Depends on where you are applying. If its at places that have board cutoffs and its below them, then yes. If its at places that don't have board cutoffs, then probably not.
 
Dr.Bruh said:
Just wanted to say that these EMRA residency fair meetings are legit. I was skeptical of their utility but I’m def getting dif “vibes” from program and can kind tell how happy the people are from them (not as good as in person obvi but better than I expected). Like one PD at a newish program seem legit apprehensive that I was a DO (even tho his program has a DO in each class) and mentioned they really want us to do well on boards. while another APD at a large established academic program was like “we don’t give a **** about DO we love them” also we don’t screen by boards at all def holistic etc. I could def get a vibe on which place would legit look at my app vs not. Curious what everyone else experience is
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It's been a great experience overall. For something that is free with no travel expenses, this is an invaluable resource for students IMO.
 
hopefulERdoc251 said:
Hi @gamerEMdoc, just wondering about the SLOE. Obviously we can't see our SLOE grade but in our institutional evaluation, we can see what grade we got which historically at our school is representative of our SLOE grade. If we got a high pass SLOE grade (which i'm assuming ranks middle 1/3), is this the kiss of death given quite strong step1/ck scores (240/250+ respectively). Thanks!
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No. A low 1/3 may hurt considerably this year since for the most part SLOEs are a one and done thing, but a mid 1/3 SLOE does not kill anyones chances of matching.
 
Dang, as someone that is taking step 2 soon and so decided I didn't have time to do the whole residency fair thing, I'm really kicking myself for not taking the time to participate..
 
partypantss said:
Dang, as someone that is taking step 2 soon and so decided I didn't have time to do the whole residency fair thing, I'm really kicking myself for not taking the time to participate..
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There is still one day left, you could probably knock out a few programs tomorrow if you have any availability.
 
Might be a humbly dumb question, but I was thinking. In terms of getting feedback from an Audition rotation. I asked for feedback, and residents would say, "I think you did good, you presented well, and came up with relevant differentials and plans." But now I'm thinking, wouldn't they just say that to every student? I can't imagine a resident saying "I think you need to work on XYZ." That'd probably make things awkward during future shifts. I guess my question is: Are there any concrete signs that a program residents/attendings like you? Want you to come to their program?
 
Simply out of curiosity, how do programs see applicant data from their side? Is there a datasheet you use to keep track of important data like Step scores and SLOE rankings? Can you filter applicants and arrange by ascending/descending scores? How do you keep track of 1000s of applications and LORs?

Also, is the final interview and rank list decided by the PD + APDs, or do other people play a role too?
 
Compared to other fields, I'd say the biggest threat will be a persistent decrease in volume after COVID. I don't know anywhere that is still seeing their pre-covid volumes consistently, and that can obviously create issues in the job market with more residents graduating. How likely is that? Idk. But COVID definitely put telehealth on the forefront, and its possible that could continue to clip away some ED volume going forward. Time will tell.
 
DragonSalad said:
Simply out of curiosity, how do programs see applicant data from their side? Is there a datasheet you use to keep track of important data like Step scores and SLOE rankings? Can you filter applicants and arrange by ascending/descending scores? How do you keep track of 1000s of applications and LORs?

Also, is the final interview and rank list decided by the PD + APDs, or do other people play a role too?
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You can build filters for a ton of things, but LORs aren't one of them. You can't make a list in ascending/descending order by scores, I don't think, but you can build a list with say a cutoff of a step 1 of 220, or 230, or 240, or whatever you want. You can build a list of candidates only from in state schools. Or only with in state permanent addresses. Or choose other states around you.

Things that are attachments (LORS and MPSE) can't be filtered by the content within those PDFs.

In terms of how is the rank list decided, that's going to be program specific. I'd imagine most have some sort of scoring system, some more detailed than others. I'd imagine most have some resident input in the list in terms of moving people up and down. Ultimately, the PD/APDs are going to have the final say. Lots of generalizations there.
 
gamerEMdoc said:
Yeah, every year I've picked up some people on the interview list from the residency fair that I otherwise probably wouldn't have because they would have gotten put on the backburner in the 1000 apps you have to review to get to 80 interviews. Look, once you figure 30 students rotating (in a nl year), plus looking at in state apps, plus apps from people who applied for rotation but couldn't schedule, like 75% of the interviews are already taken up. So its a TON of apps for relatively few spots. The issue is USUALLY the residency fairs (EMRA and the ACOEP one) are AFTER I've already looked at the first batch of applications. So at that point we have some interviews, but not a ton. The ACOEP one comes so late usually we are filled up and just filling a wait list.

This year is different because both fairs are actually before ERAS even opens. So you have the potential for far more invites to be open at the time of the fairs. And its free and online, there's virtually no barriers to attending it. Plus students are limited on how many places they can speak to. So it has the ability to let you know who is actually interested in hearing more about your program, not just who could afford to fly across the country and who could go talk to 50 diff places.

So I DEFINITELY think this year will be more useful for programs trying to determine who has an interest.

Personally, I wouldn't worry about what you say. That's not the point of the fair IMO. It's not an interview. Anyone who stops by at the fair to my table gets their app looked at and I decide on whether to interview them. I can't look at 1000 apps for 20-30 interviews (after the rotator + in state group). Once full, your full and there just isn't a point at looking at say the last 400 apps once you've already got 80 scheduled and a waitlist of 50. So to me, the point of the fair is an indication of interest, and so it allows me to at least find the students in that pile of 1000 applicants who have said interest and pick their apps out of the pile to look at them for consideration.
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If you never get to the last 400 out of 1000 apps for the limited interview spots, how do you decide which apps to go through first?
 
gamerEMdoc said:
Compared to other fields, I'd say the biggest threat will be a persistent decrease in volume after COVID. I don't know anywhere that is still seeing their pre-covid volumes consistently, and that can obviously create issues in the job market with more residents graduating. How likely is that? Idk. But COVID definitely put telehealth on the forefront, and its possible that could continue to clip away some ED volume going forward. Time will tell.
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Agree that telehealth will remain a more available option for access to care, with options for primary care and even EM docs.

however, my site(s) have been within 5% of pre covid volume (I.e. boarding like crazy) for the last few months. I can’t imagine we won’t be back to pre-covid volumes at some point.
 
DragonSalad said:
If you never get to the last 400 out of 1000 apps for the limited interview spots, how do you decide which apps to go through first?
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You try to go with the people most likely to match. Which means the people most likely to rank your program highly. So you use geographic filters based on school address, permanent addresses, hometowns, etc. Look at schools where you've matched well at in the past. Look at apps of people you've met at residency fairs or applied for rotation and couldn't get in for whatever reason, look at people who email later in interview season with interest. Its an imperfect science for sure. You approve ones that are likely fits. Someone from in-state but who is from a city with 5 EM programs, 4 hrs from your program, who was born there, went to college and med school there, and has top 10% board scores and great sloes from programs in that city... they aren't leaving that city. You are wasting your time interviewing them. But someone from that same city who rotated more broadly, with a more average app, they are more likely fair game.

There's just a lot of prediction that goes into interview selection. If you just basically took the top 80 scoring students, chances are, you would do quite poorly in the match as a program. The goal is trying to find the best students who are actually interested in ending up at your program and aren't just applying to get that 14th interview.
 
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MakeLifeHappen13 said:
Any personal statement tips? Or common mistakes/pitfalls we should avoid?
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It isn't an ER or an Emergency Room. It's an ED (Emergency Dept). ER isn't a field, its EM.

Don't spend time trying to explain why you are average. Average isn't a red flag. Talking about how you missed your goal on step 1 sounds whiny. If you need to explain a true red flag (board failure, an arrest, etc) then fine, but spending 1/4 of your PS trying to justify and make excuses why you just didn't do as well as you wanted doesn't come across well to me.

Make sure its grammar checked. Grammarly is literally free. Download it, run it.

Make sure the PS answers the question why you are applying to EM. You'd be surprised how many I read that barely mention EM and could be used to apply to any field.
 
gamerEMdoc said:
It isn't an ER or an Emergency Room. It's an ED (Emergency Dept). ER isn't a field, its EM.

Don't spend time trying to explain why you are average. Average isn't a red flag. Talking about how you missed your goal on step 1 sounds whiny. If you need to explain a true red flag (board failure, an arrest, etc) then fine, but spending 1/4 of your PS trying to justify and make excuses why you just didn't do as well as you wanted doesn't come across well to me.

Make sure its grammar checked. Grammarly is literally free. Download it, run it.

Make sure the PS answers the question why you are applying to EM. You'd be surprised how many I read that barely mention EM and could be used to apply to any field.
Click to expand...

Is it ok if the statement explains why I am applying to EM, but is pretty generic? I feel like I'm writing stuff that can be applicable to many other applicants.
 
What are some of the best questions applicants have asked you when you interview them?

And thanks so much @gamerEMdoc, this thread is so helpful!
 
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