Interview Season

[EMDrMoe]

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We just got the first half of our schedule for 4th year, and I have a few questions about interviewing: when would the earliest ones be scheduled, when would the bulk of them occur, and when can I expect them to be done? I have some adding and dropping to do already, but it'll really help me plan.

I tried to search for this info, but couldn't find what I needed. If there is a good thread, please paste it in reply 🙂

Thanks in advance for your wisdom! 😀

 

[po' boy]

earliest ones are beginning of november, most occur in december/january, and are done by the end of january. get your apps in early, beginning of september, and most offers will come in late october/early november. check your email and phone often and do not hesitate to schedule interviews as slots fill up quickly.

hope this helps.

 

[Seaglass]

Good point there, schedule as soon as you get the invitation. Even if you have to switch it later it is better to get your name on the schedule. Most programs offer more interviews than they have interview spots knowing some people will decline/cancel.

 

[Hercules]

We just got the first half of our schedule for 4th year, and I have a few questions about interviewing: when would the earliest ones be scheduled, when would the bulk of them occur, and when can I expect them to be done? I have some adding and dropping to do already, but it'll really help me plan.

I tried to search for this info, but couldn't find what I needed. If there is a good thread, please paste it in reply 🙂

Thanks in advance for your wisdom! 😀

Hey ATC2MD,
I interviewed this year, and my earliest one was Nov 12. You might be able to knock out a few interviews in November, but the majority of programs I looked at didn't even have November dates. Most programs also take some time off in December for the holidays, so I wound up doing the bulk of my interviewing during January. Some programs offered early February interviews, but again not many programs did this because I think applicants are pretty bad about cancelling those late interviews. So I guess interview season starts at the beginning of November and ends at the beginning of
February, but the bulk of your interviews will probably be in January and December.

Also agree with previous posters that you should schedule as soon as you get the e-mail. Some programs send out more invites than they have spots for and fill up in a hurry.

 

[turtle md]

I started to get offers near the end of September. I interviewed at two places in October, but these were arranged because I was on an away rotation at the one and the other was in the same basic area and allowed me to come while there so I wouldn't have to come back. Definately schedule them as soon as they are offered - you can always change the dates later, if possible.

 

[jkl]

my last interview was sometime during the second week of february. my advice is NOT to schedule interviews in february if they are offered. it seemed like the program already had their rank decisions made before I interviewed.

 

[bulgethetwine]

It's funny -- if you surf old posts from previous interview seasons you will invariably find several interview strategies in terms of when to interview.

To save you the time, I found that the best advice was to schedule a couple of interviews to "warm up" your material... assuming you are lucky enough to get several interviews. I scheduled the ones I really thought I was interested in toward the end of my interview season (my top 3 ranks were all in the second and third weeks of January). Of course, the danger is the very real "interview burnout" if you schedule your favorites last, but you can always par the list as more desireable spots get offered to you.

So in summary, a couple of lower priority end of November if possible, don't be afraid to interview at some desireable locations mid December, and try to save your best for January.

Of course, I realize that many people will scoff at the notion of "warm up" interviews at all -- the prevailing wisdom being "why bother to interview if you truly view them as 'warm up'?" But I mean 'warm up' in the sense that you would consider them (you applied afterall!) but they probably lie (initially, at least!) outside your top 3 to top 5. Plus, many people will regale you with stories about a program that they weren't that keen on until after they interviewed, only to end up ranking them highly!

Good luck!