In the spirit of the original post, I will offer a few words about the program at I.U. (note: I am a resident at I.U., and am therefore biased):
We are located in Indianapolis, which is the 12th largest city in the U.S. (per the 2000 census), but does not feel like a big city. If you crave "big city" life, Indy is not for you. However, it is very affordable, and does offer many activities (sports, orchestra, theater, dining, etc.), although not in such abundance as Chicago or other larger cities.
The program itself serves 4 hospitals currently: Wishard (the county hospital), IU (tertiary care hospital), Riley (children's hospital), and the VA (separate treatment facility at the VA). We see a wide variety of pathology given these very different patient populations. We do not have to do off site rotations to fulfill ACGME requirements. We are also working towards a closer relationship with the proton facility in Bloomington, IN (45 minutes to one hour south depending on traffic).
Research is encouraged, but there is no dedicated research year. We produce both academic and private practice physicians (3 of the last 8 graduating residents have taken academic positions).
The clinical training is good, and our recent graduates tell me they have felt comfortable making the transition from resident to attending.
While there has been some staff turnover recently, the quality of the resident education has not faltered (in my opinion), largely due to the efforts of our excellent program director.
If anyone has more specific questions, I would be happy to answer via PM.
