Interview Feedback and Prep.

[TruTrooper]

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I decided to start this thread on interview feedback and preparation for interviews so that we can circulate some info that may be helpful for those who
have upcoming interviews. My first interview isn't up until later this month. Soon after I visit the program I will post info I gather from the program as well as my personal experience and assessment of the program and all other sites I will subsequently visit. Please feel free to contribute your experience. Gopher said that if this thread really gets rolling, he will sticky it.

 

[GopherBrain]

Also, if anyone wants to post feedback about interviews semi-anonymously, just email your comments to me, and I will post them. I find it highly unlikely that any PDs or such read this board, but if you want to be extra-safe, I'd be glad to help.

 

[neigeflake]

Hi. First, I would like to wish you all good luck with your interviews. I was in your shoes 2 years ago. It is definately worth it b/c neurology is excellent...I love what I do and despite the long hours it is really interesting and in general we are a nice group of people.

I'm not sure how useful my opinion of places is since I interviewed during the 2003-2004 season, but I'd be happy to post info on the following places if anyone is interested:
Penn, Partners, Mayo, Cleveland Clinic, Univ rochester, Dartmouth and BI.

Most imporantly, be yourselves and try to enjoy the process. It is a much more pleasant experience than applying to medical school. The odds are in your favor this time around.

Best wishes!

 

[moya moya]

neigeflake-
if you have any info on Barrow Neurological Institute, that would be really great if you could post it. I have my interview there coming up soon and I know several others on this site have mentioned that they will be interviewing there as well. Thanks!

 

[Brain on Brains]

I would love info on Mayo and Cleveland
I have not recieved invites from the other places. By the way where are you now? I completely agree neuro rocks but we are so bias we are going into it.

Hi. First, I would like to wish you all good luck with your interviews. I was in your shoes 2 years ago. It is definately worth it b/c neurology is excellent...I love what I do and despite the long hours it is really interesting and in general we are a nice group of people.

I'm not sure how useful my opinion of places is since I interviewed during the 2003-2004 season, but I'd be happy to post info on the following places if anyone is interested:
Penn, Partners, Mayo, Cleveland Clinic, Univ rochester, Dartmouth and BI.

Most imporantly, be yourselves and try to enjoy the process. It is a much more pleasant experience than applying to medical school. The odds are in your favor this time around.

Best wishes!

 

[Claymore]

Haven't heard much on Dartmouth...thoughts?

 

[play274]

Also, if anyone wants to post feedback about interviews semi-anonymously, just email your comments to me, and I will post them. I find it highly unlikely that any PDs or such read this board, but if you want to be extra-safe, I'd be glad to help.

Well, I do know that two program directors from supposed 'top level' programs are aware of this site. Although they do not take this site very seriously, one has mentioned that it is helpful for him to get a feel of what interview applicants are going through. With that in mind, I do believe that in it is in everyone's best interest to keep things anonymous.

Moreover, it is also important to note that one person's experience may be biased. It is even possible that a poster may simply be posing as an applicant to bias people for or against certain programs (ie. program 'A' is horrible, don't go there!).

Thus, although this site is very insightful, as the neurologists/scientists that we are, we should best be aware of the many potential biases of the class III data that is found in this site.

Best regards,
-274

 

[Methyldopa]

Thus, although this site is very insightful, as the neurologists/scientists that we are, we should best be aware of the many potential biases of the class III data that is found in this site.

Well said.

 

[TruTrooper]

There seems to be an old thread about post-interview impressions anyway so...

 

[moya moya]

I have talked to various neurology residents and have been told that in general, most programs will not pimp you during the interview. However, I was concerned when I was told that at one particular East coast program, they seat the applicant in front of a panel of faculty that begin to fire neurology questions at you; before you get the chance to answer one question, another question is directed at you. Has anyone else heard of this technique being used? I'm interviewing at that particular program later next month and was just wondering if this is the sort of thing that I should be preparing for.

As if we don't have enough stress in our lives because of this process, I think I would probably crack if I had to enduring a firing squad of neurology faculty ready to pimp me 😱

 

[bustbones26]

where you from moya moya? I am from east and can tell you, this is typical of east coast medicine in general, you are suppose to know everything before receiving training, if you don't, you are an idiot!, If you know anything, its still not enough. You get beaten, abused, never given any credit. The philosophy is to make you feel inadequate so that you go home and study more. To me, it just makes me feel frustrated. To be honest, never really recognized that this is how east coast medicine works until I started training out in the west. Many people I meet out here from back east agree with me on this. I am at the point now that I will never consider training back east for anything, even Hopkins! I am now hooked on the west coast style of teaching medicine.

 

[Methyldopa]

I have talked to various neurology residents and have been told that in general, most programs will not pimp you during the interview. However, I was concerned when I was told that at one particular East coast program, they seat the applicant in front of a panel of faculty that begin to fire neurology questions at you; before you get the chance to answer one question, another question is directed at you. Has anyone else heard of this technique being used? I'm interviewing at that particular program later next month and was just wondering if this is the sort of thing that I should be preparing for.

As if we don't have enough stress in our lives because of this process, I think I would probably crack if I had to enduring a firing squad of neurology faculty ready to pimp me 😱

What program are you refering to? I've heard MGH has a panel interview, but haven't heard that they just pimp you.

 

[Perseverator]

What program are you referring to?!

I have talked to various neurology residents and have been told that in general, most programs will not pimp you during the interview. However, I was concerned when I was told that at one particular East coast program, they seat the applicant in front of a panel of faculty that begin to fire neurology questions at you; before you get the chance to answer one question, another question is directed at you. Has anyone else heard of this technique being used? I'm interviewing at that particular program later next month and was just wondering if this is the sort of thing that I should be preparing for.

As if we don't have enough stress in our lives because of this process, I think I would probably crack if I had to enduring a firing squad of neurology faculty ready to pimp me 😱

 

[neogeo]

What program are you referring to?!

Yeah Moya Moya, I'd like to know as well. You can always email the program's name to Gopherbrain and have him post on here, if you have any worries.

Of course, this is all just out of curiosity. If any program actually did that to me, I'd simply stand up and say "see ya!" That kind of crap ain't gonna be worth my time.

 

[GopherBrain]

What program are you refering to? I've heard MGH has a panel interview, but haven't heard that they just pimp you.

MGH was chill. No pimping (for me at least) last year. And the "panel interviews" are just you and two attendings sitting around a table.

 

[moya moya]

Keep in mind that this is all just hearsay, and I just heard all this through the grapevine, but the program mentioned was BU. If anyone has already interviewed there and could share some info on the interview experience, that would be great. I have to agree that although the East coast arguably has better academics, the West coast style of training is more conducive to learning.

Yeah Moya Moya, I'd like to know as well. You can always email the program's name to Gopherbrain and have him post on here, if you have any worries.

Of course, this is all just out of curiosity. If any program actually did that to me, I'd simply stand up and say "see ya!" That kind of crap ain't gonna be worth my time.

 

[play274]

Keep in mind that this is all just hearsay, and I just heard all this through the grapevine, but the program mentioned was BU. If anyone has already interviewed there and could share some info on the interview experience, that would be great. I have to agree that although the East coast arguably has better academics, the West coast style of training is more conducive to learning.

I remember interviewing at way too many programs (about 20); I used the interview season as a reason to travel. Two programs pimped me (which will go unnamed), and these were at programs that you would not expect it; although one was on the East coast, the other was on the West coast. I felt that the so-called 'top' programs were very chill and collegiate.

So what did I take from it? Pimping is a rather random occurence that does not necessarily reflect on what the program thinks of the candidate. If anything, the program may either be (a) tired of going through the same 'small talk' with every candidate, (b) trying to show the candidates that they teach, and/or (c) be interested in hearing some new neurology cases. Whatever the case, I did not feel that it reflected well upon a program to have this style of interviewing; it made me feel that the interviewers were insecure and needed to demonstrate a veil of superiority and control.

FYI, I had 4 cases (with differentials and outcomes) semi-memorized for the interviews - to be ready for the 'tell me an interesting case' scenario. The East coast program actually pimped me on all four of my prepared cases.

-274

 

[TruTrooper]

Well, I am providing a little feedback from my interview at U of Minnesota. This will be short and sweet.


Overall, great experience! Things sort of kicked off the evening before the interview with dinner with the residents. I was picked up in a town car with a chauffer that held up a sign with my name outside of the hotel. I was then transported to a very nice restaurant where I had dinner with other interviewees and, of course, residents. I recommend attending the dinner.

The dinner was so cool and laid back just like the interviews. We talked with 4 really cool residents who seem genuinely very satisfied with the program. They told us about how cool the faculty is, how the faculty look at the Residents as colleagues and how they are generally very well treated and supported. We had such a great time that we all wanted to stay a bit just to hang out. The next day we had lunch with the residents as well and met even more residents who spoke of how great the program is and how much they enjoy living in Minneapoilis.

Minneapolis seems to be a great city with a lot of culture and activities. It is really beautiful in the fall time. During the program overview presentation, we were told about a lot of what the city has to offer. I took a walk around the campus and it seems like a great place to be with a lot of activity buzzing.

I won't go into too much detail about the interviews. I will just say this: The interviewers were very nice and helped you to feel relaxed. It almost felt more like a conversation with Attendings on the wards rather than interviews.

We were interviewed by five faculty members. A couple even had me laughing very hard because they were so down-to-Earth and good conversationalists. I was sort of pimped by one interviewer but it was like a pseudo-pimp type question rather than a blatant assessment of my knowledge but I laughed the hardest with this interviewer. One interviewer even told me how great I was doing during the interview. Most of the question were simply and directly about my application in which the interviewers allowed me to do most of the talking. Another interviewer just allowed me to come in and tell me him about myself. That was basically it. Each interview is about 25 minutes and they fly by so quick.

Again, these interviews were so chill and comfortable that I don't recommend any special preparation outside of knowing your application very well and reading up on the program. You can really be yourself here which is my approach to any interview. I am going to give you the real Trutrooper and these guys really helped to facilitate this. If you are interviewing here, you should have a great time. I plan on giving this program a great spot on my rank list.👍

 

[GopherBrain]

We have some new feedback, posted by a user who wishes to remain anonymous. Enjoy!

Loyola
All the faculty were really nice, energetic, talkative and put you at ease instantly. No pimping, just conversation. One odd thing was that the Chairman was really busy that day so he wanted to be sure and meet all of us although he didn't have time to interview all of us. We were scheduled for 10 min interviews with him and each of us ended up with about 5-7min with him. He seemed too busy to really be interested but nice guy. The PD was just so excited about the program and neurology... it was infectious.
The day didn't flow perfectly but everyone was super nice. The residents didn't seem as "excited" as the faculty but they really emphasized team work and seemed really happy there. No dinner the night before, just lunch with 4 of them.
The tour was with another resident. Ladies beware, all of us in heels were in pain by the end of the day. I was trying to hide a limp. The tour was very thorough!

 

[TruTrooper]

We have some new feedback, posted by a user who wishes to remain anonymous. Enjoy!

Loyola
All the faculty were really nice, energetic, talkative and put you at ease instantly. No pimping, just conversation. One odd thing was that the Chairman was really busy that day so he wanted to be sure and meet all of us although he didn't have time to interview all of us. We were scheduled for 10 min interviews with him and each of us ended up with about 5-7min with him. He seemed too busy to really be interested but nice guy. The PD was just so excited about the program and neurology... it was infectious.
The day didn't flow perfectly but everyone was super nice. The residents didn't seem as "excited" as the faculty but they really emphasized team work and seemed really happy there. No dinner the night before, just lunch with 4 of them.
The tour was with another resident. Ladies beware, all of us in heels were in pain by the end of the day. I was trying to hide a limp. The tour was very thorough!

Wow, I had given up on this thread since I wasn't going to be the only one contributing here so thanks. I have Loyola coming up in December so I will remember to leave my heels at home. 😀

 

[csf]

I have talked to various neurology residents and have been told that in general, most programs will not pimp you during the interview. However, I was concerned when I was told that at one particular East coast program, they seat the applicant in front of a panel of faculty that begin to fire neurology questions at you; before you get the chance to answer one question, another question is directed at you. Has anyone else heard of this technique being used? I'm interviewing at that particular program later next month and was just wondering if this is the sort of thing that I should be preparing for.

As if we don't have enough stress in our lives because of this process, I think I would probably crack if I had to enduring a firing squad of neurology faculty ready to pimp me 😱

Not to worry Moya x2 - I interviewed at BU already & they were relatively harmless - not quite kittens but defintiely no pimping. You definitly dont need to brush up on your neuro. Actually, the biggest surprise was that the residents were such a happy bunch of people - it was impressive. All the best with the interview!

 

[GopherBrain]

Another anonymous submission. Keep 'em coming!

UTSW--Loved it.
Faculty trained at great places and really seemed to enjoy teaching. No required ICU months, but the program will send you to do rotations with neurointensivists if you want. Residents get great fellowship spots. They're rightly proud of teaching the art of medicine-- faculty have almost 100% compliance from their clinic patients. TONS of electives in almost every imaginable subspecialty. Residents seem great, really stick together. The facilities are good overall, with new research space and imaging facilities. The VA is pretty far, but there's only a consult svc there. q4 busy call for most of PGY-2, but then mostly home call for PGY-3 and PGY-4. Seems like residents get excellent training. I will rank highly.

 

[GopherBrain]

Another One!

Columbia-
Obviously tops. Lots of in-house call both as PGY-2 and upper level. Residents were very interested in research. 6 months of neuro ICU, few outpaitent/clinic months so best for academic or neuro critical care types. Does not seem particularly malignant now-- I heard that it used to be 3 or 4 years ago. Half the interviewers were really nice, the other half were hard for me to read.

 

[GopherBrain]

SIU-Springfield
Schedule of day seemed a little disorganized. Support staff seemed excellent- really friendly, fun group.
Had 4 interviews, none seemed to have looked at my app beforehand, really nice faculty but interviews seemed almost too laid back. PD was really serious about wanting to answer questions and gave honest feedback with positives and negatives. Met only 1 resident who showed us around and answered questions.
No pimping, very relaxed, you ask more questions than they do.
All the info on the actual program you can find out yourself just by being there. Just want to let people know what to expect out of the day.

 

[GopherBrain]

Another submission. C'mon people - keep my PM box full!

U of Minn
Thought it was an extremely well organized day. Flew by quickly. Energetic residents and faculty, great support staff. Of my 5 interviews, only one was a little stressful. This guy just enjoys jazzing things up. (the peds guy) It was actually my favorite interviewer in retrospect.

FYI: On the interview trail I have met a few people who interviewed there and one described their interview with this guy as a "stress" interview and another said they were "semi-pimped" about some vague neuro topics. I would not have called this interview a stress one, he just enjoyed making you squirm a little, but in a light-hearted manner.
Overall, it was a VERY well run day and the interviews were more conversational in nature.

 

[GopherBrain]

BU-
Looks like a really great program. Residents tell you -with a lot of enthusiam and big smiles- that they work a lot, see a lot, have lots of calls and like the program very much. They seem to socialize a lot as well.
You get the feeling that they either really love it or get free TCAs and cocaine daily (I believe it's the former). Attendings and residents seem to have very good and personal interaction. Teaching seems to be great and well organized. Chair and PD seem to be really nice and involved.
The interviews are benign and they really want you to check them out as well. Prepare to ask questions and enjoy! Don't miss the dinner.

 

[GopherBrain]

Einstein: Nice day. 15 applicants, lovely dinner the night before. Residents are all friendly and outgoing. PD didn't say much. Chairman is a total bench researcher, basically gave us a basic science lecture. Two hospitals, Montefiore and Jacobi, are 10 minutes apart. Nice housing, but it's Bronx. Jacobi is a city hospital, moving to a new building, should be completed by the end of the year.

 

[GopherBrain]

UMDNJ-

Poorly organized, with no introduction/greeting. Was pimped during one interview. No tour was offered. Residents were unhappy and not particularly friendly. Three centers: University Hosp, VA, and Robert Wood Johnson (40 minutes away!) They are phasing out Robert Wood, but it will take 4 years for that to happen! Overall, not impressive at all.

 

[penguins]

I don't like having the IM interview at the end of the neuro day. Maybe I am just worn out but it is hard to come up with questions especially when they have been nice enough to give you a thourough presentation of the program and if you ask any question at all it will just look like you weren't paying attention.
Any advice for a question that they couldn't have possibly covered in a presentation? Am I the only one that finds it difficult to be "on" at that point in the day?

 

[GopherBrain]

Medical College of Georgia

MCG, Augusta-
Nice group of people. Relaxed dinner the night before. Residents were very available for Q&A. Interviewed with 7 other applicants, largest group I have been in so far. That made the day a little disorganized, had to wait for other people to finish interviewing.
Not all of us met with the PD individually. He just talked to us as a group, as did the Chairman. I can't imagine why the PD wouldn't want to interview each candidate.
Program seems to have a lot of inbreeding of their own graduates. If not their own, than seem to be from other countries.
Nice facilities, small and friendly program. Very long day but pleasant, all interviews were relaxed.

 

[GopherBrain]

U of Louisville

Nice dinner night before, nice day of interviewing. Faculty was very friendly and welcoming. Short tour of hospital.
Around lunchtime had tour of city with an outside person (relator type). This was a nice gesture, however, made the day longer.
Nothing to fear, laid back.

 

[GopherBrain]

U of Miss, Jackson
Most fun interview day I have had yet. Very nice new hospital almost done being built, excellently equipped new neuro-ICU. Group of residents and faculty was really fun. Morning report, 6 interviews, lunch, tour.
PD and another attending came to the dinner and an attending came to lunch with residents. First time I have had attendings come to dinner, made it a little more formal but still fun.

 

[neogeo]

Dartmouth: truly mid of nowhere, but very nice faculty and nice residents. Relaxed environment, good dinner in Hanover the night before. Small program (only takes 3) but otherwise fairly strong faculty and they do care about their residents. Interviews are benign. Didn't get pimped.


EDIT: wonder if anyone can comment more on Einstein and Boston's panel interview system?

 

[GopherBrain]

WashU: Sets up prelim interview for you the day before the Tuesday neurology interview.

Definitely stay at the Parkway Hotel if you go! All the buildings in the complex, including the hotel, are connected by enclosed walkways. It's a nice enough place, fridge and microwave in each room with reasonably priced room service from Applebee's. If you book direct with the hotel and mention you're interviewing, it's $95 a night.

Interview Structure: prelim interview is an afterthought. Typical PD/chair speeches followed by a tour, ONE faculty interview, lunch, and a meeting with the chief resident. Neuro interviews are with the PD, chair, and two faculty and follow the PD's powerpoint presentation. Group is split in half, half interviews while half tours, then everybody goes to lunch. We were done at 1 pm.

Residents: I was disappointed to meet only one PGY2, out of a class of 8. PGY3s and 4s are very content with the program, have many good things to say about faculty and the city of St Louis.

Surprising subspecialty weakness: nonexistent neuro-onc. PD mentioned the opportunity to set up rotations at Sloan-Kettering or MD Anderson, however, so people with interest can still get exposure.

Call: q4 during 6 floor months as a med intern, then q6 during 6 neuro floor months as a pgy2. q3 in the micu, 8 hr shiftwork in the n/nicu.

Environment: st. louis not actually that bad. warmer than other parts of the country, with less snow. affordable housing. free museums/zoo. urban blight near barnes-jewish slowly receding as downtown revitalization proceeds.

 

[GopherBrain]

U of IL, Peoria:

Dinner night before was different. The secretary, PD and former PD were there with just 2 residents so it was not the greatest opportunity to ask questions that it usually is. The new PD is still technically the interim PD and expects to become officially in next couple of months. The former PD is still practicing and involved, he is older so probably just wants more time.
Day was great, secretary was really friendly and gave out lots of information on program and city. Department seemed really fun and friendly, however, the personality of the residents didn't measure up. They seemed happy enough there, but weren't real enthusiastic or energetic. Kinda laid back, not unhappy just not enthused.
They are increasing their program size, are certified for stroke fellowship, are at just one hospital with VA outpatient clinic only. Lots of teaching of medical students it seems. Although there is some research going on, it appears to be primarily clinically oriented with no research requirements.

 

[GopherBrain]

U of Missouri, Columbia:

There were 9 interviews, 2 of them pimped you. One was painless, the other painful.
They say they are just looking to fill 1 of their 2 advertised spots, FYI.

 

[TruTrooper]

UT-Dallas


Very nice and warm group of faculty membrs and staff. The interview is broken up into two days with much walking so bring along some comfortable shoes! I personally thought the tour was exhaustive but it really gives you great insight into the program. They interview a lot of students per interview block.

Your interviews will be broken up into two days and with interviews broken up between those two days and on the first interview date and a great lunch and nice reception on the second date. If you are interested in this program I strongly recommend attending all functions! Some students felt that the dinner wasn't really worth going to but I strongly disagree. Go!

Again, faculty were a nice bunch of people with no pimping. Residents seem pretty satisfied with their experience. I imagine that they are treated like human beings in the program because, like I said, the faculty seems genuinely nice. I can tell when the faculty try to fake it but I do appreciate some faking as I will go more into below.

My significant other and I got a chance to hang out in Dallas and I suggest doing this if you have time. It is a great looking city and we both loved it. I can't stress how genuinely nice these people are at UT - Dallas. They really made us feel at home and others agreed. I am sure this is how they treat their residents. Correct me if I am wrong through a PM.






Loyola

-No pimping (which is always important). No dinner either. As promised earlier in this thread, you will do much walking. Too bad I forgot to do this but bring some comfortable shoes. Very nice facilities and they seem like they have many things to provide residents with great training. Those facilities are **** and span clean and have a shiny new feel to them.

The interviews were basically benign but I walked into a couple of them and could swear that they were not all that interested in seeing me. Come on! It cost money to make these trips!

The residents were sort of difficult to assess. They really were not the most enthusiastic bunch but they do seem like they are receiving great training and they all seem to be satisfied with that fact.

I also got the feeling that there really wasn't enough time for us. I didn't expect to have the greatest feeling coming out of this day but maybe it was just me or something because other applicants seem to have been cheery. I wanted to ask them all how they felt about the day but I thought it would have been too invasive. I did ask one person and that person said they thought it was okay except for one faculty member and seem like she wasn't liked immediately but the person that was mentioned was great with me.

BU-

Review below is pretty much on the money. Again, don't miss the dinner! Why are people skipping the dinners?

 

[GopherBrain]

ndiana:

Dr. Pascuzzi (Indiana's Chair & PD) has put together a solid clinically-oriented program (good, varied outpatient experience). He gives an excellent, thorough overview of the program to begin the interview day. Hotel provided night before...Dinner with residents night before at Rock Bottom Brewery...

5 spots. 1/2 do medicine prelim and 1/2 do transitional internship. 5 hospitals include University Hospital, VA, Wishard (County), Riley Children's, and likely Methodist as well. 6 months elective time total during residency. Continuity clinics at county, VA, and university hospitals to get most interesting patients. Strong in Stroke, neuro-ID, NM, Dementia, PedsNeuro...They are looking to hire neurointensivist, behavioral neurologist...otherwise solid throughout. Once intensivist hired, will likely add 1 month neuro-ICU requirement...

Outstanding didactics...Stand-up/high ethics faculty. Dr. Pascuzzi is well known around the country for resident education. His lectures are becoming legendary (blends in humor to get complex concepts to stick); Won 2001 national neurology teaching award. He teaches during morning report daily. His wife is Karen Roos who is internationally known for neuro-ID (one of only 4-5 neuro-ID specialists in country). She is the editor of the highly readable, Seminars in Neurology. Dr. Dr. Demyer is also a unique asset. He has written neurology texts that many med students and residents use (Technique of the Neurological Examination and NMS Neurology). He heads the 2-month PGY3 required comprehensive neuroanatomy course (plastic-embedded and wet brain, histology, skull/vertebral column, comparative specimens like shark/dog/monkey brains, CT/MRI correlations, and historically important neurology articles. During this 2-months, the residents have the afternoon off to study...Excellent, well-known neuropathologist. Their PGY3 curriculum sets you up well for your PGY4 consultative/teaching role.

Required research project and lecture series provided in clinical research methodology. Dr. Williams is one of the course coordinators and is great advocate for resident involvement in research.

Once a week call...2 junior residents cover 2 hosptals each per night...wkday 4pm-8am...wknd 8am-8am...go home 1pm after noon lecture. staff with faculty...call is all 3 years...

Misc...international elective in Kenya may be set up in the future...medical school is large with about 280 students per class...a large amount of their students go into neurology every year...10 this year. That means their program has a high number of residents from their own school, although are looking to diversify resident group.

 

[GopherBrain]

UF Jacksonville:
This is new program. For being a new program, really seems on top of things, great residents, neuro faculty been there for a while, numerous teaching awards from IM Residents and med students. A lot of my concerns about it being new were alleviated during my visit.
IM residency(which is "more than likely" included, working on 3 new spots just for neuro people and is waiting on final ACGME approval), however, I didn't like the deparment as much. Been on probabtion, now is approved for 3 years without prob. New PD has really turned the place around. Residents are honest and like it for the most part.
Current neuro residents (3) are great and excited about program. Research requirement annually and they encourage you to ask for funding and start research. Don't mind if you aren't that into it though.
Overall impression of neuro program was extremely positive, only drawback is the obvious: it is new. It is affilliated with U of FL at Gainsville so I think that makes it more stable.
Most impressive call room area/ resident's lounge I have ever seen or imagined!

 

[GopherBrain]

UT Memphis
Really nice PD, I think he is shy (FYI when interview, get him talking)
5 interviews, no dinner night before, met only 3 residents (most were at a meeting that day somewhere else). The 2 that we really talked to said they wouldn't come back if given the chance. Had no real complaints, just emphasized that training is training, it is the city that really makes a difference and they weren't fans of the city of Memphis.

Didactic schedule and attending teaching seems great. 4 hospitals to cover with really itense experience at The Med and less intense at the others. Do a neuro-onc rotation at St. Judes. They have recently brought in 3 new ped-neuro guys to beef up what they percieve as a program weakness. Met one and he was great and super excited about teaching (from UT-Houston)
No pimping, just asked some details about an interesting case (undercover pimping as i call it). Went to grand rounds which was totally over my head.
Faculty appears strong and stable (3 came from Columbia over 10 years ago others been there even longer), however residents that I did meet didn't seem very happy. Only talked with 2 though. Town is a big detractor, high crime rate without enough good stuff to make it worth it to me.
PGY-1 is included.