How much can networking/"connections"play into getting interviews and matching?

[kdburton]

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Before I came to medical school I went to business school. One thing I learned in business school is that its not about what you know (assuming you're not a complete idiot), but who you know. I have friends that work for top consulting firms, investment banks, hedge funds, etc. and for some it is largely a product of them making some good connections while in school. This is not an assumption I'm making about them - it seriously happens and they all will admit to it. I'm also pretty sure that students with physician parents tend to wind up getting accepted at the school that their mom/dad is on faculty (I'm not saying that none of them have the application to back it up of course)...

I'm going to be applying for [insert specialty here] in September of this year and I may have some "connections" that could potentially help me out - physicians who know me and have worked with me clinically. Multiple times I've heard them talking about placing calls for fellows who were interviewing for jobs here and there because they know the chair of that department and yadda yadda. Does this kind of stuff happen at the residency application level? If so, can anyone on here speak from personal experience or maybe about a friend for whom this worked in their favor?

EDIT: After reading over my post I thought I'd clarify that I'm not talking about getting LORs from faculty members who know me and have strong, positive things to say about me (of course I would want to do that). However I'm more interested in whether or not people have ever had personal phone calls made on their behalf as it seems to be common practice, albeit under the table, in other situations where someone is looking for a "job"

 

[ZagDoc]

I'm going to be applying for [insert specialty here] in September of this year and I may have some "connections" that could potentially help me out - physicians who know me and have worked with me clinically. Multiple times I've heard them talking about placing calls for fellows who were interviewing for jobs here and there because they know the chair of that department and yadda yadda. Does this kind of stuff happen at the residency application level? If so, can anyone on here speak from personal experience or maybe about a friend for whom this worked in their favor?

Yes. It can, and does happen. Especially in a lot of the smaller fields.

 

[McGillGrad]

If there has ever been something that carries weight in business (and also in medicine), and for very good reason, it is being a "known entity" when being considered for a position.

It is no coincidence that audition elective rotations are popular among both programs and applicants. The cost (both in time and resources) of replacing/retraining someone is so extreme, that having a familiar person call on your behalf is welcomed because it reduces a great deal of risk involved in judging a candidate only on an application and short interview.

 

[rachmoninov3]

I have seen this work first hand. One of the away students asked one of our attending surgeons about getting a rotation at another university, and two days later he tells me that he's in (the attending called and presto it happened!)

As the OP compared residency to his experience in business, I was wondering if someone could clarify what it is going to be like this time next fall. Are we interviewing for jobs? Are we interviewing for school? Both? Or something else? It just seems like such a weird thing that we're applying for jobs that will last 3 to 5 years, and not only do you have to be qualified, but you have to be someone they want to spend/invest time with. No nursing job interview I've ever had has every carried that much weight and it seems a little intimidating!

 

[Davey Havok]

Are we interviewing for jobs? Are we interviewing for school? Both? Or something else? It just seems like such a weird thing that we're applying for jobs that will last 3 to 5 years, and not only do you have to be qualified, but you have to be someone they want to spend/invest time with. No nursing job interview I've ever had has every carried that much weight and it seems a little intimidating!

I would think of it like interviewing for an apprenticeship, or both a job and an educational experience. After all, you will sign a 1-year contract (keep this in mind, neither you nor the residency are "locked in" to the full length of training) agreeing to terms of your compensation, vacation, work-hours, etc. So yes, they're looking for people that have all the qualities you would want in a good job applicant.

It's definitely more than just a job, though, since the program is designed to provide the necessary and sufficient means for you to become board-certified. Try not to be intimidated; keep in mind they need you to staff their hospitals and provide many hours of work. This is why your particular "fit" with a program becomes very important, for both you and them.

 

[Davey Havok]

Multiple times I've heard them talking about placing calls for fellows who were interviewing for jobs here and there because they know the chair of that department and yadda yadda. Does this kind of stuff happen at the residency application level? If so, can anyone on here speak from personal experience or maybe about a friend for whom this worked in their favor?

EDIT: After reading over my post I thought I'd clarify that I'm not talking about getting LORs from faculty members who know me and have strong, positive things to say about me (of course I would want to do that). However I'm more interested in whether or not people have ever had personal phone calls made on their behalf as it seems to be common practice, albeit under the table, in other situations where someone is looking for a "job"

The short answer to your question is that yes, this happens all the time in Medicine, and there is nothing underhanded about it. If people with "connections" are willing to place a call on your behalf because they think you're an excellent candidate for "X," that's great. It goes the other way too; PD will sometimes call faculty at your school they know, or your letter-writers, to aid in the decision-making process of rank listing. If you're trying to "sell" yourself to a particularly difficult program or specialty, this can be an obvious advantage. You can be sure that other people are using this advantage if they have it, so my advice would be to use all ethical means possible to enhance your chances.

Now, I don't know about more shady deals like calling in favors or quid-pro-quo arrangements, i.e. "Hey (Program Director I know well), we took your applicant a few years ago when you called, so how about you take (this guy we like) now?" I don't doubt that that happens to some extent, but you as a student/applicant probably won't know about it, and I'd stay away from anything ethically tainted like this.

 

[MSmentor018]

I know...I know...it sounds like a penthouse forum letter. "I am 18 years old and I thought it'd never happen to me" but yep, it did. I was doing a sub-I EM rotation at a private community hospital last oct. and had one of those mini disaster, med student dream come true type days. did some minor face/plastics work, ran my own codes, chest tube, central lines, intubations....etc. my attending spread the word and the next day this lady i worked with said "I went to a fantastic program that you'd be a great fit at, have you applied?", I didn't and she painted a great picture that I got interested in so I gave my email address and asked her to keep me in mind. following morning I got an email from the program stating he got a call last night and for me to apply on eras now for an interview! so if you do well on your rotation, and someone wants to help you out, the possibilities are endless. and yes I did go there, had a great interview, it was a good fit just like she said, it will be highly ranked.