Interviewing question

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I'm going to apply to psych next year and I am trying to organize my 4th year. Right now I'm going to medical school in the northeast but I want to go back home to CA for residency. To save money, I plan to move out there for 2 months to do all my interviews. I know I won't need two months but I'll be driving across the country each way, driving to all the interviews and I have to substract the holidays.
I have two options on when to take my vacation.
Plan #1: Dec 12th to Feb 4th.
Plan #2: Nov 14th to January 7th

I really prefer #1 but that would make the bulk of my interviews in January. Do most California programs do January interviews? I looked at the thread from last year (http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=662142&page=7) and it looks like davis and irvine may not 😱 I know that the list is not all inclusive but does anyone who interviewed at most of the california programs have any input? Will my #1 plan work? I'm applying to every program and will interview at every place that invites me. I'm also applying to Az, Or, Nv.

Thx in advance!
 
Hey, Psych...

My interview trail pretty much focused on California. A lot of programs started offering slots in mid-October. All of them offered in November and December. There were still slots in January, but much less so than in November. I know of at least two CA programs who are no longer interviewing and are going through and developing their ROL now.

You'd be MUCH better off with Plan 2, in my opinion. In plan 1, you're starting late and programs naturally slow down as you get near Christmas and don't rev up again until after New Years, so you're looking at a bit of dead space there.

If you're gung-ho on California, you probably want to apply broadly due to the competition, so you'll have a lot of interviews out there. With plan 2, you're able to max out your interview season and since you'll be interviewing in prime time, you might have more chances to arrange nice bundles of scheduling so that you're not a regular on Southwest.

Best of luck to you. Hope the return home works out.
 
Plan 1 would make things tough. Some programs won't interview around X-mas - New Years area which eliminates 2-3 weeks of your time frame. Some programs will stop interviewing mid-late January which could eliminate 1-3 weeks of your time frame. You may still be able to fit everything in to plan 1, but it is definitely more risky.
 
Agree about option two. I don't think UCD or UCI interviewed into January this year either.

Also, do you really need to take 2 months off to do it? I flew out to LA (in Chicago but from LA) and did 7 of my interviews in 3 weeks (20 days, actually!). Granted, I stayed at home and only had to stay in hotels for a few nights in the Bay Area. That may not be the case for you. You may find that flying out to CA and condensing your interviews will work out cheaper than driving cross country (both ways!?!, in the crap-middle of winter) and renting for 2 months.

Definitely apply broadly, but be realistic. No need to go overboard. As long as there are no major red flags on your application, you should get interviews at just about every CA program.
 
THank you all again for the replies! Very helpful!!
I'd be staying with family, so no $ wasted on rent. I will need a few hotels tho. If I didn't drive, I'd be renting cars and that would add up quickly. My hubby is coming with me so we will trade off on driving. 2 months is a lot for interviews but I want to be home for the holidays and I don't mind being in CA for my vacation.
 
psych said:
I'm going to apply to psych next year and I am trying to organize my 4th year. Right now I'm going to medical school in the northeast but I want to go back home to CA for residency. To save money, I plan to move out there for 2 months to do all my interviews. I know I won't need two months but I'll be driving across the country each way, driving to all the interviews and I have to substract the holidays.
I have two options on when to take my vacation.
Plan #1: Dec 12th to Feb 4th.
Plan #2: Nov 14th to January 7th

I really prefer #1 but that would make the bulk of my interviews in January. Do most California programs do January interviews? I looked at the thread from last year (http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=662142&page=7) and it looks like davis and irvine may not 😱 I know that the list is not all inclusive but does anyone who interviewed at most of the california programs have any input? Will my #1 plan work? I'm applying to every program and will interview at every place that invites me. I'm also applying to Az, Or, Nv.

Thx in advance!
Click to expand...

I ended up doing most of my interviews in November. Programs seem to have fewer interview days in January and sometimes stop interviewing before January. So if I were you, I would take the earlier vacation time. That said, the California programs are a little slower than the rest of the country in getting out interview offers, so if you end up with either vacation you're probably going to be OK. Good luck!
 
I think USC's last interview day this year was 12/16.
 
I have another question... When should I submit my eras? My school is giving us very little guidance and I have to set up my fourth year next week. Well actually they are offering sessions for competitive specialties. Also since programs see your step 2 eventually should I just take it early & try to do my best? I have a good step 1 score so I don't know.
 
psych said:
I have another question... When should I submit my eras? My school is giving us very little guidance and I have to set up my fourth year next week. Well actually they are offering sessions for competitive specialties. Also since programs see your step 2 eventually should I just take it early & try to do my best? I have a good step 1 score so I don't know.
Click to expand...

I say just get things done as quickly as possible to get them out of the way. Step 2 CK and CS are really easy, so might as well just get them done with. Also, you can submit ERAS September 1st, so, again, might as well do it then. That gives you 5+ months to write your personal statement, organize your CV, etc.
 
I agree with plickfu. There is no reason not to have your application in on or shortly after September 1. Some schools offer interviews before all of your LoRecs are even in. That being said, might as well start asking for LoR's now. I took step 2 CK early and believe it helped me, but there is little reason to wait, programs are going to see it before they rank you so might as well knock it out early. CS - it is easy, just take it whenever it fits into your schedule.
 
Thanks plickfu and representando for the advice!
 
plickfu said:
I say just get things done as quickly as possible to get them out of the way. Step 2 CK and CS are really easy, so might as well just get them done with. Also, you can submit ERAS September 1st, so, again, might as well do it then. That gives you 5+ months to write your personal statement, organize your CV, etc.
Click to expand...


Step 2 ck was definitely not easy . . . That said, putting it off past late summer is just prolonging the pain/studying for no tangible reason. So be ready, do study, and make sure your score isn't lower than your step 1, but don't put it off for too long.
 
Cinnameg said:
Step 2 ck was definitely not easy . . .
Click to expand...
Ditto this. How hard Step 2 is is largely dependent on how well you do on standardized multiple choice tests. If you found Step 1 hard, you'll likely find Step 2 hard too. Maybe easier, but far from easy. I had to use the whole month and studied like an animal to get a very average score.

Cinnameg's right on timing. Earlier is better. Your body of knowledge for Step 2 comes from your shelf study in 3rd year, not the rotations themselves, so any waiting into 4th year just leads to book-knowledge atrophy. Do it early.

Also, for scheduling purposes, please keep in mind that some schools require proof of passing of both steps in order to rank you. This is an issue for the Step 2. If you cut it too close to late-December, your score will not be back in time and you could find yourself not ranked at a good program.

Lastly, I think your performance on Step 2 is so small in the application process as to be nearly negligible. If you have a solid Step 1, even a drop on Step 2 is not going to rankle too many feathers. No one is going to think you addled your mind with drugs or suffered some head trauma. Programs will want to know you've passed.
 
representando said:
I agree with plickfu. There is no reason not to have your application in on or shortly after September 1. Some schools offer interviews before all of your LoRecs are even in. That being said, might as well start asking for LoR's now. I took step 2 CK early and believe it helped me, but there is little reason to wait, programs are going to see it before they rank you so might as well knock it out early. CS - it is easy, just take it whenever it fits into your schedule.
Click to expand...

A majority of program do NOT need to see your Step 2 scores before ranking you. All would prefer it, but only a few require it.

I took my Step 2 exams in October/November and it worked out fine.
 
Just going based on my experience. I thought Step 1 was pretty hard, but CK was really easy. I gave myself 8 days to study and was expecting the worst, but I was pleasantly surprised with the actual exam.
 
Thanks again for the replies! I spent 2 months preparing for step 1 and it was ridiculously hard but I ended up doing well so it was worth it. I plan to devote 2 (hopefully 3) weeks to step2CK and hopefully I'll be prepared.
plickfu said:
5+ months to write your personal statement, organize your CV, etc.
Click to expand...

I'm also struggling with what to write for my personal statement. Should it take 5 months? I wrote a PS (in about a day because my school required a 1st draft) and the psychiatrist who read it was not impressed (it was vague, generic, ect). Basically it lacked depth and whoever reads it should say, I really want to meet this person, and that was not the case. Now I feel more pressure because I heard that in psychiatry the PS is more important than other things (compared to other fields). Any tips or advice? I've never read a psych PS but I know they are all different. I find it so hard to talk about myself. Is mentioning about a family member sharing too much?
 
psych said:
Thanks again for the replies! I spent 2 months preparing for step 1 and it was ridiculously hard but I ended up doing well so it was worth it. I plan to devote 2 (hopefully 3) weeks to step2CK and hopefully I'll be prepared.


I'm also struggling with what to write for my personal statement. Should it take 5 months? I wrote a PS (in about a day because my school required a 1st draft) and the psychiatrist who read it was not impressed (it was vague, generic, ect). Basically it lacked depth and whoever reads it should say, I really want to meet this person, and that was not the case. Now I feel more pressure because I heard that in psychiatry the PS is more important than other things (compared to other fields). Any tips or advice? I've never read a psych PS but I know they are all different. I find it so hard to talk about myself. Is mentioning about a family member sharing too much?
Click to expand...

You definitely want to put forth an effort for the PS but I have been told by several people on my schools selection committee that 90 percent are generic and don't make a difference, 5% are great and help, and 5% suck and hurt chances. So just make sure that you aren't in the 5% that suck.
 
Thank you OPD for the link! That was very helpful.

Daftrage said:
You definitely want to put forth an effort for the PS but I have been told by several people on my schools selection committee that 90 percent are generic and don't make a difference, 5% are great and help, and 5% suck and hurt chances. So just make sure that you aren't in the 5% that suck.
Click to expand...

That's a little reassuring. Definitely do not want to be in that 5% tho!
 
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