I thought, I start a thread that might help next year's applicants or at least delight some of you. Maybe you can add more.
During my interviews I had some strange experiences with fellow applicants that I thought did not really let them shine (but of course, I have no idea whether that influenced their match).
- Quite a lot of guys were not able to sit straight, neither during pre-interview dinner nor during the interview day lunch or get-together with the residents. Some really lolled self-confidently in their chairs- legs wide open, head resting comfortably much too close to the seat. Looked like sitting in front of the TV watching adult-only stuff by themselves.
- Pre-interview dinner- Some people ordered lots of booze. That's fine for the residents, but I think it does leave a bad impression if you drink heavily the day before your interview. Also, some people cannot eat properly. Here again mother's rules: Keep your mouth closed while chewing, do not talk or spit or both while chewing, keep your hands on the table most of the time, don't touch all of the shared appetizers with your fingers before grabbing half of the plate for yourself.
- Some people vocalized very strong political opinions during the day(s). I remember this one guy high-jacking a nice chat with his thoughts about extramarital sex being the core of all problems while other residents and staff were present (in Southern California, not the bible belt).
- Yawning- Believe me, I was tired sometimes having jetlag and more. But some people just could not stop yawning at all. By all means- drink more coffee and please cover your mouth, it looks better.
Some positive surprises:
- I never saw any crazy makeup or daring hair-do in the female applicants. Most girls looked really plain. Very few skirts.
- Basically everybody wore black, some color daredevils dark gray or one even brown. I guess more color could really set you up from your fellow applicants. So if your steps are not that great maybe try dark green or blue.
All in all I really enjoyed meeting other applicants, neurologists are a really nice bunch of people (no prejudice here 🙂 ).
I also only had one strange interview, but the PD was sick that day and they substituted with a chief resident who must have read Iverson's right before the interview and asked all theses strange questions (What would you do if a junior resident complained about too much work? ---And then? ---And then? --- And then? - By the end, I nearly screamed at him- "Just kick that idiot out and take me instead of him, I would not complain if someone helped me that much".)
Hope we all match at the best places for us.
During my interviews I had some strange experiences with fellow applicants that I thought did not really let them shine (but of course, I have no idea whether that influenced their match).
- Quite a lot of guys were not able to sit straight, neither during pre-interview dinner nor during the interview day lunch or get-together with the residents. Some really lolled self-confidently in their chairs- legs wide open, head resting comfortably much too close to the seat. Looked like sitting in front of the TV watching adult-only stuff by themselves.
- Pre-interview dinner- Some people ordered lots of booze. That's fine for the residents, but I think it does leave a bad impression if you drink heavily the day before your interview. Also, some people cannot eat properly. Here again mother's rules: Keep your mouth closed while chewing, do not talk or spit or both while chewing, keep your hands on the table most of the time, don't touch all of the shared appetizers with your fingers before grabbing half of the plate for yourself.
- Some people vocalized very strong political opinions during the day(s). I remember this one guy high-jacking a nice chat with his thoughts about extramarital sex being the core of all problems while other residents and staff were present (in Southern California, not the bible belt).
- Yawning- Believe me, I was tired sometimes having jetlag and more. But some people just could not stop yawning at all. By all means- drink more coffee and please cover your mouth, it looks better.
Some positive surprises:
- I never saw any crazy makeup or daring hair-do in the female applicants. Most girls looked really plain. Very few skirts.
- Basically everybody wore black, some color daredevils dark gray or one even brown. I guess more color could really set you up from your fellow applicants. So if your steps are not that great maybe try dark green or blue.
All in all I really enjoyed meeting other applicants, neurologists are a really nice bunch of people (no prejudice here 🙂 ).
I also only had one strange interview, but the PD was sick that day and they substituted with a chief resident who must have read Iverson's right before the interview and asked all theses strange questions (What would you do if a junior resident complained about too much work? ---And then? ---And then? --- And then? - By the end, I nearly screamed at him- "Just kick that idiot out and take me instead of him, I would not complain if someone helped me that much".)
Hope we all match at the best places for us.
