Interview trail advice

[oldmanriver]

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For all you residents and newly minted attendings out there, what are some of the questions that you wished you had asked when you were interviewing?

 

[BraggPeak]

My advice for those of you about to start interviewing:

1. Don't stress out too much (I know, easier said than done) and limit the time you spend on this website looking at who has already sent out invites. Invites come out in batches, for some programs. If you get an invite in batch #2 or #3 it does not mean that you are a less desirable candidate than the applicants invited in earlier batches; it may just be the order that the applications were reviewed in.
2. NEVER act over-confident, even at the "worst" program. It is not necessary for other interviewees to hear about your board scores or number of publications you have.
3. If you're flying, don't check-in a bag with the clothes that you plan on wearing at an interview.
4. Interview date times fill-up fast. Try to schedule a spot as soon as possible. It is easier to switch your date later if you have an interview conflict, as compared to waiting and then hearing the program coordinator say "I'm sorry all the interview spots have been filled. I will put you on the waitlist."
5. Try to avoid flying through Chicago and flying in general, if possible. Travel in the winter months is unpredictable. I got stranded in the middle of a snow-storm and missed an interview. The program was unable to give me another date.

I would say that in terms of things to look for/ask for is:
-how happy residents appear
-research opportunities
-in terms of research, you can ask if programs have databases that keep updating (which can be helpful if you want to do retrospective studies)

-One of the most important things to find out is how the quality of the didactics are. Some programs have horrible physics/rad bio lectures, which makes learning those especially difficult (more for the physics class). You definitely want to go to a place that has good, quality didactics, that are a priority for the program.

 

[radonc]

to attendings:
do you expect any/many changes in the near future?
what are the 3 strengths (or weaknesses) of this program?
what do you look for in an applicant?

to the residents:
are you happy?
is there any scut work?
how are the lectures?

while they may not answer these questions openly, you may be able to pick up things in their answer that say it all...

 

[BozoSparky]

I agree with a statement made above - don't stress out looking at the interview invites thread...it can take time.

Interviews can be easy or just bizarre...and my impression of how an interview went has never proven true (for good or bad interviews). So don't beat yourself up too much.

Also, try to get a feel for resident happiness. If you ask if they are happy, almost everyone will say yes.

oh, and definitely don't check your suit in at the airport...and plan on getting sick at some point during dec/jan. you'll have to buy some dayquil.

most importantly, be nice to everyone.

 

[deleted4401]

This is a little different, as you are probably on a resident budget, but I've been recently interviewing for staff positions and staying at various hotels that they put you up at. I've noted that the nicer the hotel (Ritz Carlton, St. Regis, etc.), the more expensive certain services are (internet, gym, valet parking), and its unclear whether or not you can send the expense to the interviewing clinic. When I stayed in more moderate places (Staybridge Suites, for example), there was free wireless internet, a nice gym, hot breakfast, free newspaper, free parking. Heck, one place had this complimentary "happy hour" with food and beer - nice way to unwind after these 10 hour interview days.

-S

 

[OTN]

I'm going to assume you mean interviewing for a residency position.

I'd be on your best behaviour both during the interview day AND during any "resident-only" dinners either before or after. We sunk a couple of people who revealted their inner jackass at dinners where we weren't "supposed" to have a say in the process. Of course, we did.

That doesn't mean you can't talk candidly, let loose a bit and get to know the residents, but don't assume you can behave like an idiot and get away with it. Should be common sense, I know, but a couple times I was amazed...

 

[clintpark]

This is a little different, as you are probably on a resident budget, but I've been recently interviewing for staff positions and staying at various hotels that they put you up at. I've noted that the nicer the hotel (Ritz Carlton, St. Regis, etc.), the more expensive certain services are (internet, gym, valet parking), and its unclear whether or not you can send the expense to the interviewing clinic. When I stayed in more moderate places (Staybridge Suites, for example), there was free wireless internet, a nice gym, hot breakfast, free newspaper, free parking. Heck, one place had this complimentary "happy hour" with food and beer - nice way to unwind after these 10 hour interview days.

-S

The interviewing clinic should pick up all legitimate tabs. Food, internet, parking all sound pretty legit to me. Gym? perhaps questionable. The key is to be courteous and use your common sense. If they see you requested to be reimbursed for your in-room porn, it may not make a very good impression.

I only had one interviewer, a big corporate group which shall remain un-named and un-numbered, turned me down a request for a full re-imbursement (they don't pay for food... what?!?!).

Everyone else was very good at reimbursing me for all of my expenses (e.g. 3 meals a day, flights (sometimes they purchased them for you), hotels (most of the time, they pay for it before you get there), rental cars with GPS (and a car seat when I went with my family), baggage check-in fees, long term parking at the airport, etc. It certainly felt weird that someone else paid for this kind of stuff.

I would also use this opportunity as a barometer of how good their support staff is. There is definitely a difference between how quick the turnaround is among various groups.

 

[BraggPeak]

My advice for those of you about to start interviewing:

1. Don't stress out too much (I know, easier said than done) and limit the time you spend on this website looking at who has already sent out invites. Invites come out in batches, for some programs. If you get an invite in batch #2 or #3 it does not mean that you are a less desirable candidate than the applicants invited in earlier batches; it may just be the order that the applications were reviewed in.
2. NEVER act over-confident, even at the "worst" program. It is not necessary for other interviewees to hear about your board scores or number of publications you have.
3. If you're flying, don't check-in a bag with the clothes that you plan on wearing at an interview.
4. Interview date times fill-up fast. Try to schedule a spot as soon as possible. It is easier to switch your date later if you have an interview conflict, as compared to waiting and then hearing the program coordinator say "I'm sorry all the interview spots have been filled. I will put you on the waitlist."
5. Try to avoid flying through Chicago and flying in general, if possible. Travel in the winter months is unpredictable. I got stranded in the middle of a snow-storm and missed an interview. The program was unable to give me another date.

I would say that in terms of things to look for/ask for is:
-how happy residents appear
-research opportunities
-in terms of research, you can ask if programs have databases that keep updating (which can be helpful if you want to do retrospective studies)

-One of the most important things to find out is how the quality of the didactics are. Some programs have horrible physics/rad bio lectures, which makes learning those especially difficult (more for the physics class). You definitely want to go to a place that has good, quality didactics, that are a priority for the program.

Thought I would re-post this.

Other things to look for in a program in addition to what is mentioned before:
-Are any of the attendings oral board examiners
-is the institution a RTOG member (some may not agree with this, but it will give you access to using RTOG data for research project...'secondary analysis of RTOG xyz)
-does the program support resident travel to all conferences where they are presenting an abstract (an indirect indication of how committed your chair/program is to the residency and resident research)
-and if you are for really interested in research, see if the any of the residents have gotten grants in the past