MD co ‘20 Residency Panic Thread

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I don’t think those exist for interviews dude lol
 
I sent some LOI to some TY and Prelim programs. The vast majority haven’t finished reviewing applications. They must have been bombarded with applications this year. Is there any solution to this madness?
 
cr7pt said:
OMG GOT A BOOKING EARLY DECEMBER, NO BOTS! LET'S ****ING GO!
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Congrats!!!
CidHighwind said:
I sent some LOI to some TY and Prelim programs. The vast majority haven’t finished reviewing applications. They must have been bombarded with applications this year. Is there any solution to this madness?
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It just feels like a mess. I’m assuming it’s like this every year and we’ve just been looking at it from the outside and didn’t realize.
 
Can anyone comment on good resources for brushing up on step 2 CS physical exam techniques? Just want to make sure I don't miss anything dumb. Also, how long do you suggest studying? Taking it in about 3 weeks and just need to make sure I pass to ensure a match.
 
medlove758 said:
Can anyone comment on good resources for brushing up on step 2 CS physical exam techniques? Just want to make sure I don't miss anything dumb. Also, how long do you suggest studying? Taking it in about 3 weeks and just need to make sure I pass to ensure a match.
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Bates is good, as are random YouTube videos. Make sure you review MSK stuff and know it cold. People will tell you that you only need a few days to study, but more people fail CS than Step 1 or CK combined. I would say at least 1-2 solid weeks to feel confident.
 
sharkbyte said:
If the sheer number of LOIs being sent out is what it actually seems like, I feel like in a couple years the majority of programs will just start banning them lol
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I hope they do. Please oh please. I sent one out last weekend and it was a traumatic experience. Sort of like when you're a teenager and decide to text your ex-girlfriend a year after she cheated on you and turned the entire relationship into a dumpster fire. Just like that.
 
Giovanotto said:
I hope they do. Please oh please. I sent one out last weekend and it was a traumatic experience. Sort of like when you're a teenager and decide to text your ex-girlfriend a year after she cheated on you and turned the entire relationship into a dumpster fire. Just like that.
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I was planning to send a few out this week. Should I not?
 
Can anyone comment on Thalamus and how it uses filtering? Is it easier to filter than ERAS? I have been getting mainly interview broker invites and some on ERAS but none on Thalamus and I'm wondering why that might be... It reminds me of when we applied to medical school and a lot of schools used the same AMP program and I never got an interview from those schools.
 
CidHighwind said:
Bates is good, as are random YouTube videos. Make sure you review MSK stuff and know it cold. People will tell you that you only need a few days to study, but more people fail CS than Step 1 or CK combined. I would say at least 1-2 solid weeks to feel confident.
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It's completely random for everyone. I had no MSK/neuro cases for my 12. If you've been doing well clinically on your third year then you should be fine. Take either First aid or kaplan and spend 3-4 days on it and you'll be fine. The key part is the practice cases (especially with a partner acting). It will at least help bring some top differentials to the forefront if you haven't seen them in a while (like me because I ended on psych).
 
darknecrosforte said:
I have several friends who are holding on to over 15 interviews, even at places they know they would never want to go - because they don't want to let interviews go -_-
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What do you expect people to do? It’s literally just past two weeks from MSPE release. I have a metric ton of interviews and I earned them all; if I don’t need them I’ll cancel with proper notice and professional courtesy, but I feel like it’s a little unfair to expect people to give up their opportunities this early on. Many haven’t even attended a single interview yet and have no idea how the process will go. Nobody is entitled to anyone else’s spot and nobody has the right to judge people for hanging on to the offers made to them.
 
21Rush12 said:
What do you expect people to do? It’s literally just past two weeks from MSPE release. I have a metric ton of interviews and I earned them all; if I don’t need them I’ll cancel with proper notice and professional courtesy, but I feel like it’s a little unfair to expect people to give up their opportunities this early on. Many haven’t even attended a single interview yet and have no idea how the process will go. Nobody is entitled to anyone else’s spot and nobody has the right to judge people for hanging on to the offers made to them.
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Exactly. I have interviews to places at legit the bottom of my list, but, id rather have these programs than nothing at all. That is just how it goes. I’m dropping those as I go along.

As you said, I earned those offers.
 
@ciestar I’ve followed along with your journey for a while and you most definitely have earned them

I guess it bothers me that this attitude is around that because some graph says x number is required that somehow there’s an obligation to not attend more than that number. If you’re deciding between 4 cities, interview at 4-5 in each city, that’s 16-20 interviews attended. Not an outlandish amount to me if deciding where to train/live/practice/raise a family.
 
21Rush12 said:
@ciestar I’ve followed along with your journey for a while and you most definitely have earned them

I guess it bothers me that this attitude is around that because some graph says x number is required that somehow there’s an obligation to not attend more than that number. If you’re deciding between 4 cities, interview at 4-5 in each city, that’s 16-20 interviews attended. Not an outlandish amount to me if deciding where to train/live/practice/raise a family.
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Thank you!!

Or, if you’re trying to stay in one area, interviewing in as many programs in that area as possible. Im going to go to as many interviews as I am comfortable with. I 100% know i cannot attend as many as I have been offered, but, as the ones that come in closer to home, those farther away will be dropped.
 
Are people seriously going to 20 interviews? LOL. Considering the pre-interview dinner and interview day, that's min of 40 days of commitment. Add in some traveling time and possibly scheduling imperfection. That's like 60-70 days of interviewing there. The only people I know who are doing 20 interviews are those who are shooting for couple matching.

I'm not hating bc I have 10+ IIs myself. But, I honestly don't see how I am going to attend more than 12 interviews.
 
21Rush12 said:
What do you expect people to do? It’s literally just past two weeks from MSPE release. I have a metric ton of interviews and I earned them all; if I don’t need them I’ll cancel with proper notice and professional courtesy, but I feel like it’s a little unfair to expect people to give up their opportunities this early on. Many haven’t even attended a single interview yet and have no idea how the process will go. Nobody is entitled to anyone else’s spot and nobody has the right to judge people for hanging on to the offers made to them.
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Interesting how you know the motivations and situations of people referred to in a statement made by an anonymous online poster. I expect that students that I have worked with closely to act in a slightly more aesthetic manner when offered interviews to programs that they not only would never rank, but even be motivated to go on the interview - especially since they each have over 10 interviews currently that they WOULD want to attend. Even with my below average app, I have been on two interviews already and have met a few with 3 or 4 under their belt already. Last I checked, free will means people can judge whoever the hell they want, bud.
 
Epilepsy365 said:
Are people seriously going to 20 interviews? LOL. Considering the pre-interview dinner and interview day, that's min of 40 days of commitment. Add in some traveling time and possibly scheduling imperfection. That's like 60-70 days of interviewing there. The only people I know who are doing 20 interviews are those who are shooting for couple matching.

I'm not hating bc I have 10+ IIs myself. But, I honestly don't see how I am going to attend more than 12 interviews.
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Oh, i don’t either and I’ve already attended four, with the fifth being Friday. It’s already tiring and my December is going to be really full. I am just not sure what to cut right now.
 
21Rush12 said:
What do you expect people to do? It’s literally just past two weeks from MSPE release. I have a metric ton of interviews and I earned them all; if I don’t need them I’ll cancel with proper notice and professional courtesy, but I feel like it’s a little unfair to expect people to give up their opportunities this early on. Many haven’t even attended a single interview yet and have no idea how the process will go. Nobody is entitled to anyone else’s spot and nobody has the right to judge people for hanging on to the offers made to them.
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ah yes, feels great to have all those FM interviews in South Dakota 😉
 
darknecrosforte said:
Interesting how you know the motivations and situations of people referred to in a statement made by an anonymous online poster. I expect that students that I have worked with closely to act in a slightly more aesthetic manner when offered interviews to programs that they not only would never rank, but even be motivated to go on the interview - especially since they each have over 10 interviews currently that they WOULD want to attend. Even with my below average app, I have been on two interviews already and have met a few with 3 or 4 under their belt already. Last I checked, free will means people can judge whoever the hell they want, bud.
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This thread is slowly devolving into the battle of the Haves and the Have Nots, soon I suspect a long comment Marxist-esque response about how those who have 10+ interviews have a moral obligation to drop. EAT THE RICH!!! #Bernie2020

Just an observation, please carry on.


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darknecrosforte said:
I expect that students that I have worked with closely to act in a slightly more aesthetic manner when offered interviews to programs that they not only would never rank, but even be motivated to go on the interview - especially since they each have over 10 interviews currently that they WOULD want to attend.
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What does this sentence mean? I want to understand your point, especially if what I said is perceived as offensive. I’m just not sure what you’re saying.
 
Horners said:
This thread is slowly devolving into the battle of the Haves and the Have Nots, soon I suspect a long comment Marxist-esque response about how those who have 10+ interviews have a moral obligation to drop. EAT THE RICH!!! #Bernie2020

Just an observation, please carry on.


Sent from my iPhone using SDN
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This process is clearly melting our brains ...
 
Out of curiosity, anyone here <5 IVs? How are you handling? Reach out to the Dean already? LOIs sent? Applied to more programs? Or waiting it out another week or so?
 
cr7pt said:
Out of curiosity, anyone here <5 IVs? How are you handling? Reach out to the Dean already? LOIs sent? Applied to more programs? Or waiting it out another week or so?
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I am not in that boat, but I nearly sent some LOI out last week because I didnt get IVs at my top 2 programs I was seriously considering. Might be worth at least drafting them up now and having them in case you don't get anything early next week.

Idk what reaching out to the Dean would do tbh, unless yours are vastly more supportive than mine, cause mine kinda suck. Applying to more programs this late probably isnt going to do much for you tbh but I don't think it'd hurt you unless youre super strapped for cash.
 
21Rush12 said:
What does this sentence mean? I want to understand your point, especially if what I said is perceived as offensive. I’m just not sure what you’re saying.
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The slight offense taken is the assumption that I have no right to judge classmate(s) who are not violating any moral principles, but are annoying to me. I must be a Marxist if I think CA psych applicants - with invites to > 10 CA programs who have never lived in the south or rural midwest AND have stated they would never want to, are not couples matching, and had no problems burning $26 on almost every program - should just decline those invites earlier than later. I mean... releasing those even a week earlier can mean saving a significant amount of money in travel due to holidays and I can think that they are jerks if I want. I guess panic threads are very specific in the perpetuation of negative human emotion. Is this the "FM/other applicants with many invites telling other applicants to chill the F out thread"?
 
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Meh, match isn't about what they want, I know a bunch of people who thought they were safe and dropped past their top 10 ranked programs - 3 of which were psych 2 years back when it was weirdly competitive all of a sudden, the rest being DOs going into IM. Them having 10 programs in Cali doesnt mean they're going to match/match well (although statistically it gives them a really high chance of doing so). I know I'm probably only going to cancel a couple IVs despite having nearly 20 at this point. I want to match, so I'm going to rank a bunch. I'm not going to SOAP and throw my life away having to move away from my fiancee and family because someone else needs an IV.

Not saying you can't judge, you obviously can, it's a free country. But to think that anyone owes someone else here an interview that they might need at the end of the day, especially one that they worked hard to earn, is just silly. If you genuinely know people who are holding onto a large amount of IVs at places they're not even planning to rank, then that's a different story and those people are jerks and should probably give up those IVs sooner rather than later so that people who will rank them, can get them.
 
AlteredScale said:
Did you apply to alot of programs already? Did you apply top heavy?
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List is around 60 programs so I would consider that quite a bit however, about 1/3 in CA, about 1/2 largely in states like NY, MA, IL, and NC, and then the rest in smaller numbers like LA, OR, UT, NM, CO, etc. As I'm writing this, it does sounds top heavy since most of these are desirable big city locations (doesn't take much to guess what cities in those each states), so I'm not sure if we need to focus on more community based programs (there's already a few) and/or apply to less desirable locations. Specialty is Psych
 
cr7pt said:
List is around 60 programs so I would consider that quite a bit however, about 1/3 in CA, about 1/2 largely in states like NY, MA, IL, and NC, and then the rest in smaller numbers like LA, OR, UT, NM, CO, etc. As I'm writing this, it does sounds top heavy since most of these are desirable big city locations (doesn't take much to guess what cities in those each states), so I'm not sure if we need to focus on more community based programs (there's already a few) and/or apply to less desirable locations. Specialty is Psych
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Agree, probably apply to smaller, community programs since more than 50% of your apps are in desirable regions while the rest seem to be probably in desirable cities and academic.
 
cr7pt said:
List is around 60 programs so I would consider that quite a bit
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Yeah that should be more than enough, as long as you're a competitive applicant for the field and don't have a complicating factor such as couples matching etc.

I don't mean to pry too much, and you deffo don't have to answer these q's, it's just me thinking out loud about why this might be the case. Do you know if your Step1/CK are good for your field (what field are you going into)? Do you have your CS pass? Are you MD/DO/IMG? Any red flags? Did you do well pre-clinically/on rotations (ie class rank)? Good letters of rec? Apply on time w/ everything the programs require (ie sufficient LORs)?

I agree with AlteredScale, at this point it's probably good to apply to community programs/less desirable locations cause we're getting a bit late in the season to be getting a bunch more if you're sitting with <5.
 
AlteredScale said:
Agree, probably apply to smaller, community programs since more than 50% of your apps are in desirable regions while the rest seem to be probably in desirable cities and academic.
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Bingo - thank you, will have the conversation with my SO tonight.
 
darknecrosforte said:
The slight offense taken is the assumption that I have no right to judge classmate(s) who are not violating any moral principles, but are annoying to me. I must be a Marxist if I think CA psych applicants - with invites to > 10 CA programs who have never lived in the south or rural midwest AND have stated they would never want to, are not couples matching, and had no problems burning $26 on almost every program - should just decline those invites earlier than later. I mean... releasing those even a week earlier can mean saving a significant amount of money in travel due to holidays and I can think that they are jerks if I want. I guess panic threads are very specific in the perpetuation of negative human emotion. Is this the "FM/other applicants with many invites telling other applicants to chill the F out thread"?
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Okay — I actually don’t think we disagree on very much then. My only point would be that it’s still on the early side and this week and next are about the time when I would hope people are able to drop their no-longer-desired spots. I think you (and everyone) are for sure entitled to the opinion about what’s annoying. I wanted to offer my thoughts as someone from the other perspective which is that I actually want to and plan to drop interviews, I just can’t make the decision yet until a few more ducks line up in a row. People saving it to the last minute and dropping just because they can helps nobody and hurts others, I just don’t think we are anywhere close to last minute yet. One problem is that more selective or desirable programs don’t invite until later and do so at a snails pace, forcing applicants to hold less desirable dates longer because there’s no guarantee of a better program sending an invitation.
 
Seanman111 said:
Yeah that should be more than enough, as long as you're a competitive applicant for the field and don't have a complicating factor such as couples matching etc.

I don't mean to pry too much, and you deffo don't have to answer these q's, it's just me thinking out loud about why this might be the case. Do you know if your Step1/CK are good for your field (what field are you going into)? Do you have your CS pass? Are you MD/DO/IMG? Any red flags? Did you do well pre-clinically/on rotations (ie class rank)? Good letters of rec? Apply on time w/ everything the programs require (ie sufficient LORs)?

I agree with AlteredScale, at this point it's probably good to apply to community programs/less desirable locations cause we're getting a bit late in the season to be getting a bunch more if you're sitting with <5.
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Step 1 is on average with Psych - low 220s - CS in December, CK soon. MD. Pass on all clinical/rotations (no honors in any), good letters, apply on time with the only delay was the release of USMLE/COMLEX which seems to unfortunately be common. Only red flag was taking 1 semester off after first year, so my guess is that it is this red flag + mix of programs applied to.

Also just a heads up on this for anyone else reading so I don't come across as stupid... my SO is the one applying, not me.
 
cr7pt said:
Step 1 is on average with Psych - low 220s - CS in December, CK soon. MD. Pass on all clinical/rotations (no honors in any), good letters, apply on time with the only delay was the release of USMLE/COMLEX which seems to unfortunately be common. Only red flag was taking 1 semester off after first year, so my guess is that it is this red flag + mix of programs applied to.

Also just a heads up on this for anyone else reading so I don't come across as stupid... my SO is the one applying, not me.
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Know people at my school (low tier) with lesser numbers, one with step 1 failure, getting 9+ psych interviews. From what they have told me, CS is needed at many programs in order for them to extend an ii. CS is important for psych, as I am told. Why is CS so delayed? I feel like an advisor would have said something about this...
 
tulip81 said:
Know people at my school (low tier) with lesser numbers, one with step 1 failure, getting 9+ psych interviews. From what they have told me, CS is needed at many programs in order for them to extend an ii. CS is important for psych, as I am told. Why is CS so delayed? I feel like an advisor would have said something about this...
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Good to know. No clue why is it delayed, it was supposed to be in 2 weeks but she had to push because she wasn't ready for CK. My understanding is that overall CK > CS, but sees like you mentioned it is important for Psych. Well... now I'm curious too. Got a couple of IVs so far from good programs so there's "quality" there... just need quantity now
 
Does anyone happen to know if it looks incredibly bad to ask for interview availability later in the interview season after already scheduling a date? I'm currently scheduled to interview at a program in mid-Nov and am thinking of asking for mid-January availability..
 
rukia013 said:
Does anyone happen to know if it looks incredibly bad to ask for interview availability later in the interview season after already scheduling a date? I'm currently scheduled to interview at a program in mid-Nov and am thinking of asking for mid-January availability..
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I seriously doubt it would look bad if you were just inquiring for the first time.
 
Epilepsy365 said:
Are people seriously going to 20 interviews? LOL. Considering the pre-interview dinner and interview day, that's min of 40 days of commitment. Add in some traveling time and possibly scheduling imperfection. That's like 60-70 days of interviewing there. The only people I know who are doing 20 interviews are those who are shooting for couple matching.

I'm not hating bc I have 10+ IIs myself. But, I honestly don't see how I am going to attend more than 12 interviews.
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What's the consensus on pre-interview dinners?

I did one and I'm already over it. Bunch of people awkwardly sitting around a table forcing themselves to ask questions that they'll then ask again at the interview day lunch. It's horrendous, and unnecessary. How much is not going to them going to hurt me?
 
Giovanotto said:
What's the consensus on pre-interview dinners?

I did one and I'm already over it. Bunch of people awkwardly sitting around a table forcing themselves to ask questions that they'll then ask again at the interview day lunch. It's horrendous, and unnecessary. How much is not going to them going to hurt me?
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Your non-attendance will be reported by residents there to the PD. Do so at your own risk.
 
tulip81 said:
Know people at my school (low tier) with lesser numbers, one with step 1 failure, getting 9+ psych interviews. From what they have told me, CS is needed at many programs in order for them to extend an ii. CS is important for psych, as I am told. Why is CS so delayed? I feel like an advisor would have said something about this...
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if just sending my CS score solves the drought i’m experiencing i will kiss whoever posted this
 
Giovanotto said:
You're kidding....
I can barely take 1 day off for interviews, never mind 2!
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You don't have to ask questions you'll ask in a more formal setting the next day. Use your pre-interview dinner to get a feel for what the residents are like. Everyone is on their best behavior during interviews, but people are a little more real during the dinners especially when there are free drinks. Take the time to get to know these people so you can get a good feel for whether they'll be tolerable for 80+ hours a week for 3+ years.
 
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