Interview Questions to ask THEM!

[EMfosho]

---

Members don't see this ad.

Hey everyone,
I tried searching for a good list of questions to ask on our interview day to attendings/residents but couldn't find any on here. I thought with interview season upon us, it would be helpful if we could all compile a laundry list of questions that would be generally good for everyone to keep in mind when they say, "So EMfosho, what questions do you have for me?". Obviously, if you have questions specific to you, no need to post them here.

thanks, and i hope this helps others! if someone else finds an old post with this info, please let me know where to find it.

 

[The White Coat Investor]

I thought with interview season upon us, it would be helpful if we could all compile a laundry list of questions that would be generally good for everyone to keep in mind when they say, "So EMfosho, what questions do you have for me?".

Tell me about the residents that have left the program in the last five years and the reasons they left.

What are you looking for in your residents?

May I see the residency procedure logs of your recent graduates?

What kind of residents are happiest in your program?

What does this program do better than any other program in this region?

What do the second-year residents complain about?

What is the off-service rotation that needs the most work?

What types of ultrasounds does your average graduating resident feel comfortable doing without a formal study following it?

How many endovaginal ultrasounds do your residents do during residency? FAST exams? Other studies? May I see a few of the ultrasound logs? How many times a shift do you assist a resident doing an ultrasound?

What types of alternative airway devices are used frequently in your department?

What do the residents do while on the trauma and ortho rotations?

What other programs do you compete with for residents and why do your residents choose you over them?

What can I do to emphasize to you how interested I am in your program?

Good luck playing the game.

 

[WilcoWorld]

Those are some great suggestions. However, I would avoid the potentially offensive ones asking to see logs and such. It is fair to ask how many scans, procedures, etc residents get, but it is inappropriate to ask for proof. This could rub someone the wrong way & if you doubt that what the person is saying is true, what's to say they didn't fabricate the logs?

Another question to ask, that kind of throws this back in their lap is, "Is there anything in my file that you wanted me to elaborate on?"

I also think that, "What are you looking for in a resident?" is a good, fair, and very helpful question.

 

[PowderHound]

How do your residents do on boards?

How do you prepare your residents to take Oral Boards?

What types of training/instruction do residents receive in evidence-based medicine?

(for the residents) How late after shift do you stay doing paperwork? How many patients do you usually carry?

 

[The White Coat Investor]

However, I would avoid the potentially offensive ones asking to see logs and such. It is fair to ask how many scans, procedures, etc residents get, but it is inappropriate to ask for proof. This could rub someone the wrong way & if you doubt that what the person is saying is true, what's to say they didn't fabricate the logs?

The point of very specific questions is they can only be answered very specifically. Obviously you have to be tactful asking any question. Obviously, if they can give you specific numbers (average intubations per graduating resident) there is no point to asking to see the log, but in my experience, PDs can't do it without looking at the logs. As far as I know, all residents are supposed to keep logs of their procedures and turn them into the residency program. It shouldn't be very hard to show one of those. If you go one place and the residents graduated with 8 or 10 chest tubes, and you go somewhere else and they graduated with 40 or 50, doesn't that say something about the program? If you don't get specific, you get answers like "Oh we get way more than the RRC required amount. We get so many by second year we're giving them away. You only need to do like 2 to get comfortable anyway." Well, I did two as a med student, and I sure felt a lot better about them after residency.

If a program can't show an applicant an ultrasound log, that same program can't show an ultrasound log to your future employer that will ask for that same log.

If you want to be able to differentiate between programs, you need to ask questions that will differentiate programs. It may take you 4 or 5 interviews to figure out how to do that. If you already know where you want to go, then you can just pitch the PD softballs and let him swing away. Just ask him about his hobbies or about one of the things that you know is one of the program's strengths.