How many interviews can be considered a safe number for TY/Prelim combo?

[sam012]

Hello fellows, I have a question, hope you guys can help me clarify...

What is considered a safe number of internship interviews to secure a PGY-1 position (TY or Prelim Med)?

When I asked my Dean on Oct 14,2010 that so far I have 11 internship interviews scheduled (9 TY, 2 prelim med), he told me that I should have at least 15 internship interviews to be safe.


Thank you~~

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[gutonc]

Hello fellows, I have a question, hope you guys can help me clarify...

What is considered a safe number of internship interviews to secure a PGY-1 position (TY or Prelim Med)?

When I asked my Dean on Oct 14,2010 that so far I have 11 internship interviews scheduled (9 TY, 2 prelim med), he told me that I should have at least 15 internship interviews to be safe.


Thank you~~

Somewhere between 1 and 100 is a good number.

It all depends on your stats. If you're a good applicant (AMG with >230 Step 1 and otherwise good application), your 11 will be fine. If you're borderline (IMG/FMG, crap Step scores, crap grades, etc), your Dean's suggestion won't be enough.

At least one of you is wrong...you might both be...it's impossible to know.

 

[sam012]

Thanks~

I am a AMG (MD), and have board scores (step 1 254, 2Ck 254, CS pass) its not superb, but relatively strong I guess..., strong basic science, average 3rd yr, strong 4th yr, mid-tier school...

Do you think if I attend all 11 interviews so far, and hopefully get more and attend them, I hope it should be okay... 🙂

Do any1 know when is usually the last period the TY/prelim-med programs send out interviews? Thank you.

 

[coup de chance]

Thanks~

I am a AMG (MD), and have board scores (step 1 254, 2Ck 254, CS pass) its not superb, but relatively strong I guess..., strong basic science, average 3rd yr, strong 4th yr, mid-tier school...

Do you think if I attend all 11 interviews so far, and hopefully get more and attend them, I hope it should be okay... 🙂

Do any1 know when is usually the last period the TY/prelim-med programs send out interviews? Thank you.

Yeah, don't worry about it.

You may want to check out FREIDA stats for the programs to see how many interviews are given per slot -- this was referred to as s:i ratio on the 2011 Neuro Interview Invites thread.

Even if you didn't have your stats, you should still be fine with 11, possibly less than 11 -- check FREIDA.

Now just don't sit on the interviews that you're not going to attend so all the other ppl can get their 11 PGY-1 interviews too

 

[Law2Doc]

Hello fellows, I have a question, hope you guys can help me clarify...

What is considered a safe number of internship interviews to secure a PGY-1 position (TY or Prelim Med)?

When I asked my Dean on Oct 14,2010 that so far I have 11 internship interviews scheduled (9 TY, 2 prelim med), he told me that I should have at least 15 internship interviews to be safe.


Thank you~~

How many interviews you need depends a lot on how you come across in person, and whether we are actually talking TY or prelim. A bad interviewee can tank 100 interviews and not get a spot, while there are folks out there for whom 1 interview is all they really need. And there are folks who, despite interviewing adequately, could have 30 TY interviews and not get one, but may have an easy time securing a prelim spot. You have to realize that for the cushier TY spots, you are often competing with the top derm/optho/rads/rad onc superstars, and thus some TY slots are, in fact, the hardest to secure in the match.

The most concerning thing for me in your post is that while 11 is often enough on a purely statistical basis for someone with your stats to ensure something, especially a prelim, the fact that your dean, who actually knows you, and how you come off in person, and what will be in your dean's letter, feels you should shoot for 15 makes me think maybe you should aim for 15. It's easy for us, never having met you to assume that you carry yourself competitively, but as always, we should defer to anyone who has actually met you in terms of questions like this.

 

[sam012]

So basically it all depends on how I perform overall at the interviews, and supplemental factors such as MSPE, personality, and etc...

That makes sense. I had difficulty at the start of the 3rd year learning clinical medicine, social & political stuffs of medicine. I do not think there's going to be any negatives on my MSPE, but I'm not AOA... Fortunately, I improved as the year moved on and performed solid in the 4th yr (knowing that 4th yr clinical grades probably don't matter that much).

I guess I will try not to blow any of the interviews! Thanks~

How many interviews you need depends a lot on how you come across in person, and whether we are actually talking TY or prelim. A bad interviewee can tank 100 interviews and not get a spot, while there are folks out there for whom 1 interview is all they really need. And there are folks who, despite interviewing adequately, could have 30 TY interviews and not get one, but may have an easy time securing a prelim spot. You have to realize that for the cushier TY spots, you are often competing with the top derm/optho/rads/rad onc superstars, and thus some TY slots are, in fact, the hardest to secure in the match.

The most concerning thing for me in your post is that while 11 is often enough on a purely statistical basis for someone with your stats to ensure something, especially a prelim, the fact that your dean, who actually knows you, and how you come off in person, and what will be in your dean's letter, feels you should shoot for 15 makes me think maybe you should aim for 15. It's easy for us, never having met you to assume that you carry yourself competitively, but as always, we should defer to anyone who has actually met you in terms of questions like this.