Interview reviews

[Trisomy13]

First thought is why on earth wcostel would give away an interview question like that. I didnt nail it, but subsequent groups nailing it would sure make me look worse by comparison.

Second thought is that, after my own research, Birmingham is the kind of city that is very segregated, economically. Some very nice areas and some very rough areas. Live 20 minutes away and you can be in a nice area, but 20 minutes turns into 40 minutes in the afternoon. Overall, I found the program to be similar to UVA, with a very wide breadth of cases and very happy residents. Their internal moonlighting arrangement is something that is not found very often either. I would also not call Birmimgham a "great southern town" just because of its size (is atlanta a great southern town?). Just my opinion i guess.

fair enough, but to reiterate a very important point:

I can miss another day of my neurology clerkship by going to this interview.

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[Idiopathic]

Of course, I would definitely go. I hope I didnt give the impression that one shouldnt go to this interviews, its an excellent program.

Just discussing what I thought about some of the things raised.

Good luck.

 

[supahfresh]

see you in early january...

just curious, where do you guys go out for the drinks/dinner?

we went out to Bar for drinks. Hopefully we'll continue to go there. and hopefully next round of applicants will be up for going out to some other bars afterwards like botega or hot tomatoes.

early january is good. ill be around.

 

[wcostell]

First, I didn't nail it either, but they didn't care. Second, It's not exactly a gimme after what I gave up. Third, we all know this is one big beauty contest, so I'll be sleeping easy on Match eave.

 

[tx082md]

The question is not posed to see what you know; it is just Dr. Boyce's way of teaching you something during his interview with you. In addition, he just wants to show you how he teaches in the OR.

 

[Idiopathic]

Fair enough. But if it means even the slightest bit in your evaluation, it certainly is not in your (or my) best interest to describe the question.


And I know youd win a beauty contest wcostell

 

[lvspro]

I didn't get a chance to comment on the DVD we were given.
I just watched it. It's put together by the Vice PD, and is a biography of Dr Vandam. Not too shabby for a run through some history.

 

[VolatileAgent]

If I were married I'd love to wind up at PSU. I'm just not ready for that pace of life yet. No matter what my liver says. ;-) Now if it were located at the main campus of PSU... whole different story.

they obviously didn't walk you through the sicu and let you check out that pack of (mostly) single hotties. sometimes i make up excuses to go there and just sit to enjoy the view.

seriously, if you think you are going to be miserable, please don't come to our program. we have a great set of (mostly) happy residents, save the one or two (that every program has) who are miserable. but, they'd be miserable if they were taking call q30, getting paid $150k salary, and had one of those hottie sicu nurses giving them a backrub during every case.

other than that, i'd say the above review is pretty fair. of course, a good number of us are actually single and we unfortunately didn't get the chance to take some of you single folks out to harrisburg with us one night. and, there are a lot of other single residents in other specialties floating around too (you wouldn't date a co-gas-resident anyway, would you?) i think you get a slightly more limited view of the area without hitting a bar or two (or three or four) in hbg and seeing what it has to offer. there are tons of single folks to hang with both in the gas dept as well as other specialties.

so, single dudes, you'll be okay if you come here. there's plenty of very attractive and willing young females out there who are interested in meeting a nice, young burgeoning anesthesiologist. there's more going on in this area than you see at first blush (unless you truly have a burning desire to look at skyscrapers and breathe diesel fumes everyday). but, ladies, if you're single when you graduate med school i hate to tell you that it's a pretty poor prognosis all the way around, even if you look like heidi klum and live on park avenue. "md" in a single woman translates to "my disease" and just seems to be guy-repellant. sorry. you chose the life, and still good luck finding mr. right no matter where you go.

last but not least, the best advice i can give is don't pick a program on its dating potential. you're thinking with the wrong organ and, honestly, has it ever really made a good decision for you up to this point?

 

[Jamier2]

last but not least, the best advice i can give is don't pick a program on its dating potential. you're thinking with the wrong organ and, honestly, has it ever really made a good decision for you up to this point?

Now those are words of wisdom!

 

[bullard]

Now those are words of wisdom!

So we're supposed to go with our gut instead? That's gonna be a problem -- my gut's got sh i t for brains.

 

[Trisomy13]

they obviously didn't walk you through the sicu and let you check out that pack of (mostly) single hotties.

i didn't actually interview there yet. was just commenting on the area.

seriously, if you think you are going to be miserable, please don't come to our program.

i was just being humorous, if only for my own sake. i'd probably be very happy there. i'm a pennsylvanian and get along well with our peculiar strain of hunter/gatherer homosapien common in central PA.

other than that, i'd say the above review is pretty fair.

again, i was just making light of the area... i thought the review was positive, and happy to read it after checking out the program's website and thinking it sounded like a really strong program near home for me.

you're thinking with the wrong organ and, honestly, has it ever really made a good decision for you up to this point?

i don't know if it makes "good" decisions, but it sure has landed me in many a situation that has made for a good story. (move 3000 miles? and then back again? wait, you want me to follow you to which country now??)




caught me on a cynical "poke fun at the cow-tipping countryside" day, that's all

 

[Steel_City]

Just got back from interviewing at MCG. Here is my impression of the program.

Having spent a month in Augusta rotating through the department, I had a pretty good idea of what the program has to offer going into my interview.

Lets start with the city. Augusta is a phenomenal place to live if you're a family man like myself. The southern hospitality is evident from the start and it's actually affordable to own your own home (and a nice one at that) on a resident's salary. This is something you definately cannot say about most places. Most of the single residents that I met had friends in Atlanta (2 hrs away) and Columbia, SC (1 hr away) that they spent time with. I really didn't get the impression that anyone was truely unhappy living in Augusta.

As far as the program is concerned, it's definately rock solid and they are anticipating opening additional fellowships in Pediatrics, and possibly even critical care. The faculty that I worked with during my ICU rotation were all amazing people, always willing to teach. Most of the residents were very happy and did not feel overworked by any stretch. You will, without a doubt work hard here (especially during MICU and OB months), but not hard enough that you can't have a life outside of the hospital. None of the residents had black circles under their like my surgery friends, so that's always a good sign. I got the imperssion that residents were around 60/40 as far as private practice/academic goals. Although research is encouraged here, they did not seem to push residents one way or the other in terms of participation. Dr. Meiler is in charge of the laboratory and is very passionate about his work. I, personally, admire people who are passionate about things (no matter what it is) and enjoyed listening him talk about his work. I do have a research background though and want to stay in academia so their research initiative was something that was especially appealing to me.

The interview day itself was very benign and just plain enjoyable. The program director is extremely laid back and is a strong resident advocate. Seems like he would be an excellent guy to talk to if anything came up. The anesthesia department is well respected by the hospital (this is straight from my surgery friend), and I think this is something that's very imprortant.

CONS: The senior class was around when hours were easier so I think it's been difficult for some of them to adjust to the increased work load. I, personally, don't mind a little hard work and averaging 60-65 hours per week seems great to me. Also, as of now, MCG doesn't do any heart transplants so if this is something you want to do, it might be a good idea to look elsewhere. I personally could care less.

SUMMARY: In short, I think this is an excellent place to train. Great people, balanced work load, and warm weather. The faculty seems to be supportive no matter what road you choose. I would certainly be VERY happy here.

 

[greets fr. nyc]

went to hopkins last week.

(as per post on another thread)

very chill, extremely nice restaurant, basically you can order anythng and everything on the menu at this cush seafood place. lots of fun just chatting and eating and drinking.
we all stayed at the grand hyatt in inner harbor.

the interview day was also laid back. four interviews. for my day: chair + pd + 2 senior attendings who were actually quite interesting people in their own right. there is a good amount of down time between interviews to chat with people/fellows/lynda the secretary (to luv her spunk, you have to meet her)

the pd was definitely a cool, stand-up, yet refreshingly soft-spoken guy.
from the looks of it & feedback from Hopkins residents CA1,2,3's: improvements made in large part from Mittman's initiatives to the scheduling/rotations/small group case conference is nearly universally acknowleged to be a big reason for resident happiness and balance between intensity and a good life. definitely NOT malignant in terms of personalities. call is only taken on weekend ~1-2x's a month (usually 1). other wise 3-4 overnight calls a month. q5-7 except in the ICU (q3).

the chiefs were great, i felt. the one we spent the most time was funny, intelligent, and just down to earth. all the gas attendings we happend to run into in all parts of the hospital had a smile and a warm greeting for the residents we were with.

the residents, were really a fun bunch. have never laughed so much on the interview trail.. a quirky and nice bunch. at least the ones i met. actually is filled with quite a balanced motley crew of superskilled but down-to-earth people. ALL types of schools represented: which i strongly believe is a major plus (not just high powered schools = decreased snootiness factor)

in summary...
awesome: leadership, super-skilled residents at the end of residency, great teaching small group case based program, the hospital, balanced life, residents seem to have an excellent relationship with attendings & surgeons.

hospital and case-mix: mondo impressed, and lots of tertiary/quatenary cases. this place is amazing. (also lots of trauma.)

tough: location (worse neighborhoods to north) yet thus with a major trauma component which other top programs often lack. on the other hand there were no major professional weaknesses that were clearly evident.

*maryland, the state itself, is definitely a liveable place.
*certain parts of baltimore are also very liveable though i must do some more exploring myself to see for myself. others define the word "urban blight."
*many residents stay for fellowship and become faculty.

I will rank this program very highly.

 

[pej933]

University of Texas Southwestern (Dallas)

Paid for the hotel room at Marriot. Pre-interview dinner. Well organized interview. Friendly faculty. Vice Chairman interviewed the students as well. He was a very friendly and approachable guy.

Program is strong. They don't really have any weaknesses. Pass rate for boards from last year class was 100% with superior performance from most. Didactics seem to be an important part of program. All peripheral hospitals within 20 minutes of the main hospital. It's a hard working program. They have every basis covered, peds, neuro, transplants, etc. Opportunity for moonlighting.

They'll pay for the board exam ($2750) if you get a score of 30 or higher on the mock oral exams during CAII.

They seem to be advocates of residents and want to be "one of the top 5" programs in the country.

Would rate this program very highly from what I saw.

 

[zack_morris]

Just got back from milwaukee- very unimpressed with this interview experience.....

While interviewing with program director, he went on about a resident with kids and made the comment that "I don't know if his wife works, and I don't care." I later asked him if many of the residents own houses, and he replied: "I really don't know. That's not my area of concern, because I really have no reason to communicate with the residents outside of the hospital." I asked him about the program's history of having mostly MCW students as residents, and he admitted bias, stating they frequently want an MCW student with a step I score of 205 higher than another US MD student with a step I above 220.

Also interviewed with another attending (I'm leaving out names) and asked her about the relationship between residents and attendings. She replied: "Depends. (pause)..... You know, you come to work and see them for awhile and its professional, you go home, and then after three years you never see them again." I also asked about the quality of teaching, and she again responded with "depends", with little further elaboration. She also explained how she knows that she is in the position to make a resident's day painful, but "I really don't need to do that to feel better about myself". Again, I left that interview in disbelief.

Another interviewer went on talking about his corvette and house in florida, his son who is a doctor, and he constantly interrupted me to tell me more about these things while I was answering his questions.

To make matters worse, our lunch with residents had no residents for the first 20-30 minutes. All the applicants finished eating before one resident showed up, but only because he happened to walk by and see the food. I asked him to describe his typical day, and he responded, "What are you looking for?". I told him I was simply trying to compare his response with other programs, and he again asked what I was looking for. I asked him a couple more questions and he continually asked me the same question.
3-4 more residents showed up during the next hour, but they too happened to see the food, and stated that they didn't think any other residents were aware of the interview lunch. We also didn't have a tour because no residents could be found/taken off cases to show us around.

The only positive thing about the day was the interview with the chairman, which was conducted after lunch. He is a very nice man and he really seemed to care about the residents and the program.

Overall, I definitely got a bad impression of this program. The program director doesn't seem to take much interest in his residents, and the program is historically inbred. However, the clinical exposure the residents receive seems to be very good, especially in peds and ob, plus they just started a regional rotation.

If anyone else had a better experience here, please share it with everyone because the MCW students that interviewed with me seemed very surprised with what I told them.

 

[KungPOWChicken]

I was equally unimpressed with MCW.

 

[bullard]

I'm a little backlogged.

MGH:

Met a number of cool CA-3s night before the interview. They made it clear that they work hard and take care of the sickest of the sick, but that the call schedule was reasonable. Definitely a more intense group of residents but still fun, IMHO.

As for the interview day itself...

Caseload: Strong just about everywhere (duh) but cardiac may be a liability. As CA-3s some residents go to Lahey Clinic for additional (less sick) hearts. May start sending CA-3s to VA for hearts too. PD pointed out that interventional cards is getting so good that cardiac surgery #s are going down all over the country. While that's true, there's plenty of great anesthesia programs out there where residents can do their hearts in one place (nothing wrong with Lahey Clinic, just saying). Program director said that MGH is no longer the Mass "General Anesthesia" Hospital, plenty of regional to go around, do it on your ortho months (no block doc time). Do some peds and OB at MGH, some at Children's and Brigham, which I think is a cool setup. 3 required months of SICU.

Facilities: OK. Not as nice as Cornell or Northwestern, just OK.

Residents: Met some more at lunch. Liked 'em. Not 60 MD/PhDs running around like everybody says. Tried to ask about stuff they didn't like about program -- didn't get a good sense.

Interviews: Everybody says to watch out for friendly pimping from Zapol, but I got pimped by a couple of other interviewers about grades and random pharmacology and it wasn't super-friendly either.

Verdict: Obviously top program, will do a 2nd look to talk to residents more, not sure if I have a prayer though in light of all that pimping!!

 

[bullard]

I still don't have a good format for these things. If I forgot stuff it's probably mentioned on scutwork.

Cornell:

Residents: Definitely like to have a good time, much like the Columbia and U of C people

Totally categorical now, intern year has three months of anesthesia, something like 5 months of various ICUs, some thoracic surgery, very little floor medicine. The surgery is supposed to be actually decent -- you have lousy hours but the PAs do a lot of floorwork so you end up operating quite a bit. If you like ICU, all that ICU is good -- if you don't, the residents tried to sell it by pointing out that the attendings are young and good about getting you post-call early. Plus, Sloan-Kettering ICU is only 12 beds and there's 3-4 interns so you're not overwhelmed.

Caseload: Regional obviously strong. NO LONGER GOING TO COLUMBIA FOR PEDS. Apparently at CHONY the Columbia residents were getting preference for the good cases and peds volume at Cornell is up so that's that. They say they do a ton of pedi neuro and pedi onc at Sloan-Kettering. Basically, they argue that they get plenty of peds but don't have dedicated pedi hospital (although that might get built in the future...but not in next 3 years). No heart or lung transplants, no livers either but apparently they will have them by the time we get there (surgeons are already there, cardiac anesthesiologists will do the transplant cases, etc, applying for certificate of need right now...maybe an attending can explain what that means?). Lots of complex thoracic, vascular, cardiac, burns, etc. See the other thread for ICU info. Lots of bread and butter too.

Call: Residents are numbered 1 through 10, higher numbers stay later, if you stay after midnight you don't come in next day. Kinda confusing but basically comes out to something like 4 shorts and 4 longs a month. I think.

Housing: Awesome deal. They talked about how there's a real sense of community among residents in the dept and hospital as whole because of the housing.

Moonlighting: totally forgot to ask about this -- I think it's OB call as CA-3, anybody remember?

CRNAs: you have to relieve them now and then.

CA-3: PD said half the CA-3 year will be completely elective. Cool!

Interviews: everybody specifically wanted to know where else we were interviewing (and no, it wasn't really acceptable to just say, "Boston"). Kinda weird. Otherwise, totally innocuous interviews. Savarese (the chairman) was super-nice, came to the conference room straight from OR where he was giving breaks. I thought this was cool (as opposed to MOST other programs where they're in suit and tie and talk for 10 minutes about stuff that's totally irrelevant to us).

Verdict: Great program, makes living in NYC affordable unlike Columbia. I get the feeling that some of the residents really REALLY hate relieving CRNAs though. Doesn't sound like it happens constantly though. CRNAs are also in the "boring" rooms too so it sounds like that when it happens, you could always just get some quality intraop Miller reading done.

 

[aredoubleyou]

I'm a little backlogged.
I got pimped by a couple of other interviewers about grades and random pharmacology and it wasn't super-friendly either.

Verdict: Obviously top program, will do a 2nd look to talk to residents more, not sure if I have a prayer though in light of all that pimping!!

I very recently had a similar experience, not at MGH, but a program that (at least in their mind) thinks that they are just as prestigous - there was a lot of random pimping - whats the point of that? Totally turned me off on the program - whatever they can glean from those questions can't be worth how many people get turned off. The whole -explain why you are weak in this area of your CV just doesnt sit well with me...I'm not into making excuses or saying that I was sick when I took the boards or residents conspired against me to explain low grades...I could totally tell from that point on I was interviewing very badly. If you didn't like my numbers/ grades/ experiences/ etc, dont invite me - but they did - and I stayed at their hotel, ate their food - and we will probably rank eachother low...what a waste.

 

[Idiopathic]

I very recently had a similar experience, not at MGH, but a program that (at least in their mind) thinks that they are just as prestigous - there was a lot of random pimping - whats the point of that? Totally turned me off on the program - whatever they can glean from those questions can't be worth how many people get turned off. The whole -explain why you are weak in this area of your CV just doesnt sit well with me...I'm not into making excuses or saying that I was sick when I took the boards or residents conspired against me to explain low grades...I could totally tell from that point on I was interviewing very badly. If you didn't like my numbers/ grades/ experiences/ etc, dont invite me - but they did - and I stayed at their hotel, ate their food - and we will probably rank eachother low...what a waste.

I dont know. If I was given a chance to explain perceived deficiencies in my transcript, etc. I would be grateful. Sounds like they wanted to see more of you and you didnt want to show them? "Take me as I am!" eh? Warts and all. I might have viewed this as an opportunity.

Just another point of view.

 

[aredoubleyou]

I dont know. If I was given a chance to explain perceived deficiencies in my transcript, etc. I would be grateful. Sounds like they wanted to see more of you and you didnt want to show them? "Take me as I am!" eh? Warts and all. I might have viewed this as an opportunity.

Just another point of view.

True - cant argue with the logic. Im also not saying that its not a fair question either...However 2 things...first - my main point is just I can't imagine that they are really getting an answer which somehow puts a deficiency in a perspective that changes their perception of me significantly while at the same time giving me the vibe that I'm gunna be ranked low - so I of course will do the same. Im skeptical that the cost/ benefit ratio works out for either side. More specifically to this interview, I sensed verbal and nonverbal hostility and arrogance, which made a 'fair' question into a seemingly derogatory and judgemental question (maybe I'm just sensitive, I'll try to hold back the tears). Why would I want to work for someone who comes off that way? 4 years is a long time to work under someone you get bad vibes from.

 

[Idiopathic]

Thats fair. Questions I have been asked that I wasnt necessarily prepared for/at ease with answering the first time:

"Why did you go to X number of colleges? Were you participating in an academic experiment?"

"Why did you go to DO school?"

"What was your MCAT score?" (followed by "What was your SAT/ACT score?")

"Why did you get this B?" (One of two in medical school...I didnt know I had gotten it)

I didnt necessarily like it then either.

 

[Trisomy13]

on a similar note, my question when i interview at MGH, for my interviewer will be along the lines of... "um, why did you invite me here?"

if they are going to ask about average grades and average board scores, it's going to be a long day

i agree that those questions can be an opportunity to explain oneself though. my standard response is "hey, you try holding down a full time job and going through your first year of medical school and see what kind of grade you get in immunology." hehehe.

we'll all end up where we will end up, and next year we'll be scaring the next batch of nervous applicants on SDN.

 

[Broken Ankles]

True - cant argue with the logic. Im also not saying that its not a fair question either...However 2 things...first - my main point is just I can't imagine that they are really getting an answer which somehow puts a deficiency in a perspective that changes their perception of me significantly while at the same time giving me the vibe that I'm gunna be ranked low - so I of course will do the same. Im skeptical that the cost/ benefit ratio works out for either side. More specifically to this interview, I sensed verbal and nonverbal hostility and arrogance, which made a 'fair' question into a seemingly derogatory and judgemental question (maybe I'm just sensitive, I'll try to hold back the tears). Why would I want to work for someone who comes off that way? 4 years is a long time to work under someone you get bad vibes from.

totally agree. what if my best effort in a particular class only got me an "average" grade? trying to explain this perceived deficiency makes me feel like an even bigger dumbarse. i guess programs need to fill the bottom of their rank list with somebody, but they're not winning any points on my rank list either. just thinking about the price of the plane ticket to visit these programs and getting these no-win questions just gets me angrier...

 

[Idiopathic]

totally agree. what if my best effort in a particular class only got me an "average" grade? trying to explain this perceived deficiency makes me feel like an even bigger dumbarse. i guess programs need to fill the bottom of their rank list with somebody, but they're not winning any points on my rank list either. just thinking about the price of the plane ticket to visit these programs and getting these no-win questions just gets me angrier...

How is this a "no-win" question? Giving you an opportunity to explain a possible negative (i.e. turning it into a positive)...you'd rather them just figure its a negative? I think you guys are way off here, and these opportunities should be prepared for, and desired.

I look at it as a chance to tak about my family, how I worked during med school, what my outside interests are, etc. You know what your perceived weaknesses are, you should prepare for them accordingly.

 

[blaze]

Anyone hit Wake Forest yet? Hoping someone could give a review. There is nothing on scutwork.com. Last years reviews were 50/50. I was hoping to hear some opinions.

 

[IlianaSedai]

More specifically to this interview, I sensed verbal and nonverbal hostility and arrogance, which made a 'fair' question into a seemingly derogatory and judgemental question (maybe I'm just sensitive, I'll try to hold back the tears). Why would I want to work for someone who comes off that way? 4 years is a long time to work under someone you get bad vibes from.

This is hard. I did an away at a place that seems to make every applicant feel harassed during the interview. Place was great. But even meeting the chairman during the away was scary. It made me realize that bad vibes don't necessarily equal bad program, while good vibes unfortunately don't necessarily equal good program (even scarier thought).

I'm just getting more and more confused!

 

[SoImpossible]

Interviewed last week.
Interview with 4 people. Everyone interviews with Chairman and some people also interview with PD. Some people said they got pimped by PD which was surprising cause i thought it was the chairman that tended to do that. Of all the people i interviewed with only the chair had read my application. Others just thumbed thru it in front of me, and opened with "do you have any questions?" or "tell me about yourself." It was a loooong day.

Night before with residents was good. Many were enthusiastic about the program. one thing i did notice at Penn is that most resident I met were athletic looking white men. (I am not complaining ) but makes me wonder if maybe i just didnt get to see a good representation. Any thoughts?

Academics and research are booming. Facilities are OK. Location in W. Philly not the best. Crime is high in that area. But you cannt beat the Penn reputation.

 

[Sugar72]

How is this a "no-win" question? Giving you an opportunity to explain a possible negative (i.e. turning it into a positive)...you'd rather them just figure its a negative? I think you guys are way off here, and these opportunities should be prepared for, and desired.

I look at it as a chance to tak about my family, how I worked during med school, what my outside interests are, etc. You know what your perceived weaknesses are, you should prepare for them accordingly.

I haven't had this kind of question (yet!) and it is nice to think that it gives you an opportunity to explain or reframe "deficiencies". As a woman, if i tried to explain these away with family issues I would expect the PD to think to himself that I might not be able to perform in residency because all of those issues will still be present. So if you are trying to explain away "deficiencies" in your application - make sure you use things that have been resolved. If they are ongoing hardships - it might make the PD wonder if you will be a good resident. I am glad I haven't gotten that question.

 

[freshity]

i too agree that these are good opportunities and should be looked at as such. one thing is for sure, you don't ever, under any circumstances, want to appear defensive about any sort of question thrown at you. this can be difficult, but it's true in life in general that you really need to force yourself to step out of your reaction zone and treat the question as objectively as possible. it doesn't stop with residency...the less you can react defensively to things in life and work, the less negative energy you will create within yourself, which leads to less stress. obviously sometimes it is warranted, but i think the majority of times people should really try to see things differently and check their defenses. don't personalize.

i have never felt anyone being arrogant in their delivery of these sorts of questions, but i wonder if interviewers might target certain individuals at times (not necessarily anyone here) as a way of ferreting out 1)if they will react defensively, or 2)if they have a mature perspective on personal failure that has evolved from experience. i always use these questions as a way to show the individual that i devote a lot of thoughtful consideration to my weaknesses/failures and that i am self-reflective in the process.

 

[Trisomy13]

one thing i did notice at Penn is that most resident I met were athletic looking white men. (I am not complaining ) but makes me wonder if maybe i just didnt get to see a good representation. Any thoughts?

You probably went on Aryan Wednesday. They hold special Multicultural Monday interviews for some applicants.




PS everyone mentions crime in so-and-so parts of Philly. it isn't too bad once the initial numbness sets in and you get used to hearing about murdered med students, dead porn stars in the river, rappers in high speed car chases. ahhh.. i'm getting nostalgic for the city of brotherly love.


PPS even with all the horror stories, Philly is worth it. great town.

 

[hermione]

I agree with others that those questions may have a place, but it does truly depend on how they are asked. I have some average grades. Asking me about them is fine. Asking me in this way: "You were an average student. Do you think if you become a resident here, you'll actually bother to find time to read?" is not fine. You are just being rude. I mean, sure, this jackass could be gauging how I react to someone being a jackass, but he just kept doing it, over and over. By the end of this (extremely long) 15 minute interview, I found myself just laughing at his questions, they were so malignant and rude. I mean, how exactly could I have answered that? "Why yes, thats a FANTASTIC idea! Reading!! I wish I had thought of that before!!". Seriously. I have no problem talking about my "shortcomings", but attacking me is not really nescesary, and truly, we are "interviewing" the program as well. I won't be ranking this place, by the way. I think it was unprofessional and unacceptable to treat someone that way.

 

[IlianaSedai]

"You were an average student. Do you think if you become a resident here, you'll actually bother to find time to read?" is not fine.

May I ask where you were asked this question and by whom? (You can PM me if you want.)

 

[aredoubleyou]

I agree with others that those questions may have a place, but it does truly depend on how they are asked. I have some average grades. Asking me about them is fine. Asking me in this way: "You were an average student. Do you think if you become a resident here, you'll actually bother to find time to read?" is not fine. You are just being rude. I mean, sure, this jackass could be gauging how I react to someone being a jackass, but he just kept doing it, over and over. By the end of this (extremely long) 15 minute interview, I found myself just laughing at his questions, they were so malignant and rude. I mean, how exactly could I have answered that? "Why yes, thats a FANTASTIC idea! Reading!! I wish I had thought of that before!!". Seriously. I have no problem talking about my "shortcomings", but attacking me is not really nescesary, and truly, we are "interviewing" the program as well. I won't be ranking this place, by the way. I think it was unprofessional and unacceptable to treat someone that way.

That sounds a lot like my last interview - say a deficiency: your grades are mediocre - then says - what, do you just not want to work hard - or something like that. Kinda threw me off for the day - but in some ways is a nice reminder that I'm not the greatest thing since sliced bread - as they make you feel on some interviews...whatever - its still rude and its a defenite turn off to have a boss whos a jerk, or at least doesnt mind being one.

 

[blaze]

Anyone hit Wake Forest yet?

Any Takers?

 

[teep]

Boston Medical Center

S: Not a good vibe here. Most of the staff seemed disinterested in the interviewees. Day started with an off-the-cuff presentation lasting about 45 min, after a 45 min wait in a small room with some coffee and continental type breakfast. It seemed that the vice pd spoke a lot, but never really said anything. After he excused himself for whatever reason, the other students all kinda looked at each other with a "what happened" look on their face. One was even entertaining the idea of walking out, but decided against it. After a 20 minute period after the vice PD walked out, he came back in mumbling something about "he's not showing up," and decided to start the interviews. I was invited into his office, at which point he opens my file, looks me in the eye, and says "I haven't read your file... what schools did you go to?" So after regurgitating that part of my PS, he asks me what my board score means, and I answer "nobody really knows... the nbme keeps it that way so that they can prevent tampering etc..." then, realizing that he is unprepared, he hits me with "what questions do you have for me?" After I finish interviewing him (b/c that is what really happened) I walked out realizing that he never really answered any of my questions. Turns out, he was vague as hell with the other interviewees too. So fast forward a few mins to interview 2 w/PD "why anesthesia" he asks... so, after reading him that part of my personal statement, he then hits me with "well what questions do you have for me" Again, vague as could possibly be. We go back into our holding area, are fed some lasagna, and a cuppla residents make their way down... one at a time b/c the attendings that were interviewing us had to go upstairs to relieve them... so I figure maybe I can get some meat outta these cats.
me: "how do you like the program?"
res1: "it's good"
me: "how's the teaching?"
res1: "it's good"
me: any negatives
res1: "not really"
me: "do you mind if I borrow your mom for a while... my room gets lonely"
res1: "not really"
the last one was a mental extrapolation. Anyhow, the other residents were pretty vague, and only answered questions that were qualitative, with good being the only option.
The tour of the campus was cancelled b/c our guide was too busy with a case. This last sentence speaks volumes about the program, as well as leads me into...

O: Work hard. CA1= 8 call/mo, 2=6-7, 3=5-6. Call rooms not shown to us. $8 on call food, $4 postcall in a cafeteria that serves termite $hit and eye of newt. Pay=50K. Parking 35/mo. Housing= expensive as all hell. Ancillary staff is hit or miss. No time to study, no time for research, residents looked haggard, and tired. PD makes it clear that they are looking to train people they want to hire into their private group... which works their as$es off. AV room is cutting edge, but small as a closet. Along with this is the web-based access. You can see the lectures b4-hand, and do questions. Board pass last yr=100%. Nice touch screen projector. Strong in peds, regional improving, hearts are strong, only kidney transplants, poor in neuro d/t lack of cranis, ob improving. Residents have no problem getting fellowships in elite neighboring programs. No autochart system= you're charting everything for every case. Boston is cool, tons of things to do.

A: Everyone is so vague b/c they can't really soften the crappy work/learn ratio verbally without scaring off students.

P: I'll quit medicine if this is where I end up matching (negotiable). Even so, I'll rank 'em d/t my fear of not matching. They will be ranked according to above review.

 

[Sugar72]

Boston Medical Center

$8 on call food, $4 postcall in a cafeteria that serves termite $hit and eye of newt. .

oh my god - that's my favorite meal! I should have applied there....darn.

 

[Idiopathic]

Ive officially quit interviewing after 9.


Thank you.

 

[CaliGirlDO]

Anybody coming out to interview at Yale soon? Look forward to meeting you guys and answering any questions about the program at the pre-interview night dinner. We usually go hang out at a local bar afterwards which is a nice chance to really get to talk to people. PM me ahead of time if you wish!

 

[Trisomy13]

Anybody coming out to interview at Yale soon? Look forward to meeting you guys and answering any questions about the program at the pre-interview night dinner. We usually go hang out at a local bar afterwards which is a nice chance to really get to talk to people. PM me ahead of time if you wish!

i'll be there Jan 3rd/4th. looking forward to revisting my old 'hood and hopefully looking up some people in the EPH building before the dinner. where do you usually go for the dinner, or rather, how casual is it?

 

[Idiopathic]

Anybody coming out to interview at Yale soon? Look forward to meeting you guys and answering any questions about the program at the pre-interview night dinner. We usually go hang out at a local bar afterwards which is a nice chance to really get to talk to people. PM me ahead of time if you wish!

Only crickets from yale so far, sadly. Would have liked to see what you guys are all about up there, but oh well.

 

[Beck928]

Went to U of Cincinati and thought I'd post...

Was very surprised by this program. Firstly, they went out of their way to interview me on a non-interview day because my fiance was coming for his surgery interview, so that was awesome and says a lot. The residents and attendings that I talked to were really friendly and laid back. So they definitely scored some bonus points there.

To start the day off I met with the program director who talked to me personally for an HOUR! That is the most time anyone's spent with my on the interview trail (it might have something to do with being the only applicant there that day). People here seemed to mention that anesthesia used to be somewhat weak, but stressed that with the new chair and program director who have been in place 3 years things have vastly improved. The chair Hurford is a critical care guy from MGH who brought several of his Boston cronies with him. The residents and faculty really feel that he is amazing and has beefed up the program considerably.

Much of the bad wrap about Cinci had to do with the surgery "regime" of 27 years that came to an end when the surgery chair left. I have actually been told not to apply here due to the rumor of malignant surgeons (and same goes for my fiance) but things have changed immensely with new surgery leadership. I talked with both surgery residents and anesthesia residents who claimed that they had a great working relationship, and both programs spoke highly of the other.

Strengths: Small program with CRNA power means you always have your pick of the good cases. Critcal care is outstanding. Neuro cases are aplenty if you like that, with complex neurovascular procedure that aren't done everywhere. Cincinati Children's is a top-ranked peds hospital and is a huge strength of the program. Plenty of Transplants and trauma (lots of penetrating trauma). Work hours are really reasonable (50-65 hours or so). There has been an increasing emphasis on didactics. Oh, housing is wicked cheap too! Major bonus!

Weaknesses: If you think that 6 residents is too small (which I'm not sure it is) then maybe a weakness, but the work hours aren't overwhelming just because there are less residents. If you are single, I'm not sure Cincinati is a really exciting place to live, either. OB is not very busy.

Overall: I think this program is very up-and-coming with new faculty and an increase in the quality of residents they have. The once-malignant sugery atmosphere has changed, which was the biggest issue I think they had in the past. I was pleasantly surprised with the program and I think they have moved up the list!

 

[Hypnomania]

Medical College of Wisconsin
Pros:
-Large residency program (looking for around 20 positions-majority advanced)
-Very strong in peds.
-Excellent research opportunities. The department ranks 5th nationally in NIH funding.
-Rotate at 5 sites (incl. Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin)
-Do all types of transplants.
-Friendly group of residents that feel very enthusiastic about their program.
-Great fellowship opportunities (especially peds and pain. They also offer CCM, cardiac, neuro, OB)
-Nice down to earth faculty.
-Milwaukee is a nice city and very affordable.
-Dr Doliski is the associate program director, she came to MCW from Wake Forest. She is putting a lot more emphasis on improving the teaching quality of the residency training (whereas before the major strengths of this program lay with its research activity and clinical experience). She seemed like a genuinely nice person and holds the journal club sessions at her home.
-They hold weekend worskshops in trauma, airway management, TEE, cadaver/regional blocks.
-Weekly academic lectures (plus subspecialty lectures, M&M’s and monthly keyword mcq’s).
-High board pass rates.

Cons:
-Relatively weaker in CVS and regional.
-Disappointing interview day (the Program Director and Chairman were both absent for our interviews, although one was missing due to some personal tragedy which is of course understandable). The hospital tour was cancelled because no residents were available to show us around. The interview day was composed of four interviews (around 20 minutes long, very friendly and informal) and lunch with the residents (a few showed up). Dinner prior to the interview was very nice at a Chinese restaurant and a good opportunity to chat with the residents about the program. They put us up for the night at the Radisson, which was very nice (those sleep number beds are great).

Conclusion: I think that this is a strong program that offers great training. I was disappointed by the interview day, but still feel that MCW is a very good program.

 

[Hypnomania]

Rush
The interview visit started with dinner the night before at a Greek restaurant, a lot of residents turned up and were nice, easy going people who were enthusiastic about the program.
The interview day itself comprised a talk by the Program Director, Dr. Birmingham, followed by four (20 minute) interviews with various faculty members. I found them all to be very nice and approachable.We then had a tour of the Medical Center and were finished by midday.

The Rush anesthesia department is essentially a private practice run within an academic setting, so residents learn to be time and cost efficient.
They have four PGY1 spots and 8-9 PGY2 spots. Residents rotate at four sites.

Pros:
-Seems like a friendly, hardworking environment.
-Excellent clinical exposure. Lots of orthopedics/ regional anesthesia and also very good pain exposure.
-They do liver transplants, plus hearts and kidneys.
-They have a patient simulation lab.
-The clinical base year they offer sounds good (includes anesthesia, ICU, PICU, ER, thoracic surgery, int. medicine, pulmonology, cardiology).
-Research opportunities are available if interested (mainly in pain and neurophysiology).
-They offer a pain fellowship. Roughly 50% of residents go on to do fellowships.
-Weekly teaching lectures and above average board pass rates.
-Get to live in Chicago.

Cons:
-No trauma (it all goes to Cook County across the street).
-The OR’s look a little old.

Overall: A very solid program offering excellent clinical exposure.

 

[Tenesma]

Hurford has made some good changes over at cincinnati... he was a great ICU director at MGH and he often if not regularly would put surgeons in their place (even when i thought the surgeon was actually right). He will definitely be a great role model (especially in critical care).... deep down he is a big teddy bear (and kind of looks like one too)

 

[ear-ache]

It’s time to resurrect this thread. I think medstudents and PD alike benefit from these subjective reviews.

Virginia Mason
If your not going to interview for a transitional or prelim spot, don’t even bother wearing your interview duds. The first thing you do when you get to the department is change into scrubs, the only person who will see you in your freshly pressed suit is the program secretary (and that will be for 30 seconds as she directs you to a changing room). Be sure to eat breakfast and bring your comfy OR shoes. It is an “observational” interview day as an attending liaison shuffles you from an educational conference to jumping from resident-to-resident as you interact them work in the OR’s and holding area. VERY laid back, I never got pimped. Everyone I met (residents, attendings, house staff) were very friendly, approachable, and appeared genuinely happy. Residents and Attendings went out of their way to answer my questions and make me feel comfortable. Your 1 or 2 interviews are done informally in nearby empty offices, lounges, and hallways – very causal and stress free. Lunch is at the hospital cafeteria and I was presently surprised at the quality (Again, eat breakfast, otherwise this will be your first meal of the day).

Positives
- Seattle. Great city with tons of stuff to do outside.
- Small, close knit, community type program with a collegial environment. You will really get to know your co-workers and attendings, and be raised on quick OR turnovers.
- Good call schedule. 1-2 weekends/month. Five people take staggered late call per day. Overnight call is 1-2/month.
- I think they work around 12 hour days, so approx 60 hours/week.
- Great relationship with surgery department. Probably d/t the community practice foundation.
- Good didactics.
- 2 months of trauma at Harborview
- Critical care rotations are identical to what the UW residents do. One month each at UW (neuro ICU) and Harborview (trauma ICU)
- Free parking and 100% health benefits
- Strong endorsement from VentdependanT.
- Oh! I hear they have pretty good regional training too.

Negatives
- Seemed to be weak on “big cases”. No liver, heart, or lung transplants. Adequate cardiac, but not a strength.
- Only one month of electives your CA-3 year.
- There are research opportunities available (I think mostly clinical), but not a major emphasis.
- Need to go to Harborview and UW for required trauma and ICU rotations.
- Old hospital with small OR’s, holding area’s, and hallways. They are to start construction on a new hospital (next door) in the near future.
- Seattle. High cost of living, with less and less residents owning homes.
- No free hotel stay (at least they didn’t offer to pay for mine).

Overall, I think this is a great program with high morale and I would be very happy to match there. Anyone got anything else to add?

 

[Sugar72]

I am a bad interviewee - I put off posting about my interview at Uof Az and know I don't remember a damn thing. At least now I can go back and look at my other reviews...but I got zippo on Uof Arizona. So someone who interviewed there - please write a review so I can try to remember it!

 

[NoodleIncident]

The ones I've been to recently have already been reviewed, but I thought I'd say a few things about UNM.

Interview day:
They had us stay in a Radisson hotel that supposedly was a nice place before. There's no way I could've known that by the thin walls, noisy people outside, and toilet that wouldn't work well. Anyways, on the morning of the interview, you're shuttled with 25-30 other applicants to the UNM campus and then all meet in a big room. One thing I found amusing was that the nametags were on a string that was to be worn around your neck. A little unusual, like a collar of sorts. The chairman & program directors then gave their spiels. You interview with two faculty members and then go on the tour or vice versa. They were very proud of their sim center, but otherwise nothing stood out about the physical facilities. After the interview day, they offered to take the applicants on a tour of the city and out to dinner. I declined this so I cannot comment on it (already knew I would not rank this program). They did push the city a lot.

Notable things:
During the presentation, the chair mentioned how they had trouble with cardiac and neuro numbers in the past. He said that some residents rotate at another hospital in town during CA-3 yr for more heart experience and that they hired a new neuro guy. Later, on my interview, I asked about these (specifically, are the CA-3s going to that hospital just for more experience, or because they have to so that they meet the numbers?). My interviewer seemed honest and said that hearts are very poor and that he hasn't seen a heart come through in at least 3 weeks. He also was unsure of how much the neuro guy would work, whether he'd bring anyone else in, or how long he'd stay and would not put much faith in the neuro getting better.

I recall them offering only 2-3 mo of electives. Though I did not ask, I suppose that this is due to CA-3s requiring more months to catch up on their numbers.

He also alluded to poor anesthesia fellows and stated his distrust in letting them oversee residents, saying that it's hard to believe that the fellows even completed an anesthesia residency.

No transplants. I asked my other interviewer if the program would facilitate an outside rotation and they said that it's never been done and the resident would have to set it up and pay out of pocket themselves.

Residents were nice, and stated that they'd feel confident when finishing.


My overall impression is that this program is for those that really want to live in Albuquerque. I know this review may sound harsh, but I want a program that has no problem meeting and exceeding the basic requirements and therefore will be looking elsewhere.

 

[DrDre']

Anyone have any positives to describe re: UNM?

 

[deleted50478]

Anyone have any positives to describe re: UNM?

Ok. I went to UNM ages ago, but I remember a little. The city was about as good as they come for outdoor enthusiasts. Great weather, clear dry air, mountains and rivers in your backyard. There seemed to be a little street with some clubs and things, but I passed through early in the evening while things were slow. You could also afford to buy a 2br house near the hospital if you wanted to. The program had very friendly residents and they all thought the regional experience was very good. I heard that hearts were light but adequate and that neuro has improved. This is the best I can do since it has been a while. I did leave really liking the place though.