Match 2015

[Pennsylvania Pod]

does anyone know when we find out what specific program we matched with? CRIP in Texas said the 23rd, but the website says after MPII concludes on the 27th

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[illinigrad11]

does anyone know when we find out what specific program we matched with? CRIP in Texas said the 23rd, but the website says after MPII concludes on the 27th

Someone correct me if this is wrong, but I believe we find out our "matched" or "unmatched" status on Monday, March 23rd and then find out the specific program we matched at after the conclusion of the new MPII on Friday, March 27th.

 

[PeaJay]

According to the linked document we will find out where we matched on the 23rd. I could be wrong though.

http://www.casprcrip.org/html/casprcrip/AP_Instructions/MatchMatch.aspx

 

[I post PRN]

You find out 3.23.15, scramblers find out 3.27.15

 

[air bud]

How does scramble work this year? Sorry, I am past this point and just curious.

 

[PatchAdamsFan]

Monday (3/23/15) - 11am: applicants and programs are notified if they are matched or unmatched. Unmatched positions are released. Unmatched applicants resubmit their application and designate programs. 6pm: Applications delivered to programs. Programs begin reviewing applications and conducting interviews.

Tuesday - 11am: Ranking lists open for programs.

Wednesday - 11:30am: Program rankings lists are due. 12pm: Round one begins. 2pm: Round one ends. 3pm: Round two begins. 5pm: Round two ends.

Thursday - 9am: Round three begins. 11am: Round three ends. 12pm: Round four begins. 2pm: Round four ends. 3pm: Round five begins. 5pm: Round five ends.

Friday (3/27/15) - 9am: Round six begins. 11am: Round six ends. 3pm: MP II results released

- Programs with unfilled positions after the Match are required to participate.
-Only CASPR applicants are eligible to participate in MP II.
-Applicants are NOT allowed to contact programs directly prior to the program contacting them.
-Applicants must physically "accept" or "decline" an offer during rounds.
-Once an Applicant accepts an offer, MP II will automatically decline the other offers.
-Once an Applicant declines an offer, she/he can not reapply.
-Acceptance during the online process is BINDING.

Roughly the same process, just with a fancy new name (Match Phase II) and new website.

 

[apollofx]

Someone correct me if this is wrong, but I believe we find out our "matched" or "unmatched" status on Monday, March 23rd and then find out the specific program we matched at after the conclusion of the new MPII on Friday, March 27th.

I believe this was the original plan for MPI and MPII but I believe this has since changed and to my understanding you will now found out if and where you matched on the 23rd.

 

[illinigrad11]

I believe this was the original plan for MPI and MPII but I believe this has since changed and to my understanding you will now found out if and where you matched on the 23rd.

Glad to hear it, and after looking into it some more you are definitely correct. It seemed very unnecessary to make the matched students wait to find out their program until after the completion of the new scramble process.

 

[apollofx]

Glad to hear it, and after looking into it some more you are definitely correct. It seemed very unnecessary to make the matched students wait to find out their program until after the completion of the new scramble process.

Yea, it really would make no sense to make the matched wait. They will have to release the list of unfilled positions/programs anyways on Monday.

 

[dyk343]

Monday (3/23/15) - 11am: applicants and programs are notified if they are matched or unmatched. Unmatched positions are released. Unmatched applicants resubmit their application and designate programs. 6pm: Applications delivered to programs. Programs begin reviewing applications and conducting interviews.

Tuesday - 11am: Ranking lists open for programs.

Wednesday - 11:30am: Program rankings lists are due. 12pm: Round one begins. 2pm: Round one ends. 3pm: Round two begins. 5pm: Round two ends.

Thursday - 9am: Round three begins. 11am: Round three ends. 12pm: Round four begins. 2pm: Round four ends. 3pm: Round five begins. 5pm: Round five ends.

Friday (3/27/15) - 9am: Round six begins. 11am: Round six ends. 3pm: MP II results released

- Programs with unfilled positions after the Match are required to participate.
-Only CASPR applicants are eligible to participate in MP II.
-Applicants are NOT allowed to contact programs directly prior to the program contacting them.
-Applicants must physically "accept" or "decline" an offer during rounds.
-Once an Applicant accepts an offer, MP II will automatically decline the other offers.
-Once an Applicant declines an offer, she/he can not reapply.
-Acceptance during the online process is BINDING.

Roughly the same process, just with a fancy new name (Match Phase II) and new website.

Interesting way of doing it. Is this how MD/DO does it?

 

[g squared 23]

Programs also have to decide whether they will participate in the scramble process beforehand, assuming they end up with an unfilled position(s). Our program will not participate, so hypothetically we could not match any students and would not be able to fill those spots.

 

[apollofx]

Programs also have to decide whether they will participate in the scramble process beforehand, assuming they end up with an unfilled position(s). Our program will not participate, so hypothetically we could not match any students and would not be able to fill those spots.

This is news to me. I think, especially in light of the continued shortage, every program that participates in the match should be required to scramble but hey that would help the unmatched, and we wouldn't want that would we. Leaving positions empty when there are unmatched students seems irresponsible, and programs such as yours that refuse to scramble continue to compound the problem. I know someone will cite scramble students not matching their programs standards but not every scramble student is of poor quality.

 

[ldsrmdude]

This is news to me. I think, especially in light of the continued shortage, every program that participates in the match should be required to scramble but hey that would help the unmatched, and we wouldn't want that would we. Leaving positions empty when there are unmatched students seems irresponsible, and programs such as yours that refuse to scramble continue to compound the problem.

Why should a program be required to fill all of their spots? They haven't been up to now. I think it's perfectly acceptable to allow programs to decide whether or not they want to take a student that scrambled.

 

[apollofx]

Why should a program be required to fill all of their spots? They haven't been up to now. I think it's perfectly acceptable to allow programs to decide whether or not they want to take a student that scrambled.

If you can't see the reason why a program shouldn't leave spots unfilled in a shortage I can't help you understand, and keeping things the same as they always have been isn't going to fix the problem. The #2 student in my class scrambled so I can tell you first hand that not all scramble students are of low caliber.

 

[ldsrmdude]

If you can't see the reason why a program shouldn't leave spots unfilled in a shortage I can't help you understand, and keeping things the same as they always have been isn't going to fix the problem. As I also said the valedictorian of my class scrambled so not all scramble students are of low caliber.

It has nothing to do with students who scramble being low caliber (which I never said by the way). It has to do with programs being allowed to choose which students they take as residents. If a program would rather only take students they ranked initially and not take students they know nothing about, why is that bad?

 

[apollofx]

It has nothing to do with students who scramble being low caliber (which I never said by the way). It has to do with programs being allowed to choose which students they take as residents. If a program would rather only take students they ranked initially and not take students they know nothing about, why is that bad?

If you were unmatched I'm sure you could see the bad in it. In an ideal world where no shortage or a very small one exists I'll agree that a program should have the right to exclude themselves from scramble but when a significant number of students still remain unmatched maybe suspending that right for a year or two would help even a few more students match.

 

[apollofx]

I think we all understand where you are coming from and your point of view on this matter. As a first year resident I can assure you that a bad resident can create many problems for the program. My program is in its 3rd year of existence but we have already fired a resident, which occurred during the first year of the program. The resident was not the person the program wanted and ended up being the worst kind of resident. This person was unprofessional, didn't show up to work and, worst of all, was an embarrassment to all DPMs during this person's off service rotations. Already creating a bad reputation for such a young program which has been rectified and is now a long distant thought.

Being forced to scramble and take a student that you know nothing about has a high probability of recreating the above scenario. Sure there maybe instances where the unknown might work out but having a bad resident could have a devastating impact. Firing a resident creates a ridiculous amount of work for the entire service and can jeopardize new training opportunities, especially if you piss off the wrong people. You must see this from the resident/ residency program point of view.

I am looking at it from a resident/program viewpoint, I am a resident. I see where your coming from but special circumstances require change and as we must all bear the burden of what our profession has created.

 

[ldsrmdude]

I am looking at it from a resident/program viewpoint, I am a resident. I see where your coming from but special circumstances require change and as we must all bear the burden of what our profession has created.

You should change your status, I was just going to comment on the different view point as residents and students like AB mentioned. We may just have to disagree because I don't see where it would be good for anyone to require programs to fill all of their spots if they don't want to.

 

[apollofx]

If anyone is to "bear the burden" it is the schools. Overall the quality of the Podiatric medical school education is not on par to MD/DO and the schools continue to be unregulated, accepting applicants who have no business caring for other humans. Taking more applicants than there are residency positions only to fund the salaries of other DPMs who hold hold jobs performing secretarial duties but still get a 6 figure salary which is completely undeserving. There are many problems within our podiatry education which are mostly political in nature. Then there are our board exams...don't get me started on our board exam quality.

Residency programs are the gate keepers. They are the reason the overall quality of the profession continues to steadily improve and gain respect within the entire medical field. The schools only make things worse. If anything it is the residency directors who deserve a huge congratulations for having to perform the screening process year in and year out. A job they shouldn't have to perform but need to because schools do a hell of a job of greasing through students, no matter how many course they fail, no matter how many times they fail their board exams. It's all about that tuition check.

I very much agree with your entire post. In the future these schools should be regulated for the greed that has jeopardized our profession and matriculated students that are left with debt and no future in podiatry. Regardless of of if programs participate or not in scramble there are still problems that plague our profession.

 

[jehjr]

As someone who didn't match the first time around, I acknowledge the temptation to require residencies to fill all their spots. That said, trying to solve one problem by creating another hardly seems like a prudent course of action. It is not the responsibility of existing residency programs to solve the present "crisis" of surplus graduates. There are a lot of things that I think I like about the new MPII process, but it seems like the residency programs are left without the chance to really vet their applicants. I would be concerned if I were in their shoes.

 

[apollofx]

As someone who didn't match the first time around, I acknowledge the temptation to require residencies to fill all their spots. That said, trying to solve one problem by creating another hardly seems like a prudent course of action. It is not the responsibility of existing residency programs to solve the present "crisis" of surplus graduates. There are a lot of things that I think I like about the new MPII process, but it seems like the residency programs are left without the chance to really vet their applicants. I would be concerned if I were in their shoes.

I would argue that they are, in fact, able to vet their scramble applicants more than ever. In the past programs had very little time to assess the applicant pool, spots often filled within moments and it was difficult to asses the entire applicant pool as it changed moment to moment. I think MPII will allow the programs to at least evaluate their the entire scramble applicant pool and rank accordingly. I think MPII is a win-win for students and programs and should have been done years ago. Soon we will see just how well MPII will really work in application.

 

[jehjr]

I definitely think it is an improvement. The flood of emailed applications--especially with the number of scamblers in recent years--was madness. After re-reading the details on MP-II, I'm not sure what the motivation would be to not participate other than the time commitment. Programs will still have the time to conduct phone interviews or invite some student from the other side of the country to come out for a same-day 10 minute interview. They won't be required to take anyone they don't like.

 

[CoffeeMonster]

It has nothing to do with students who scramble being low caliber (which I never said by the way). It has to do with programs being allowed to choose which students they take as residents. If a program would rather only take students they ranked initially and not take students they know nothing about, why is that bad?

Sorry if this is a dumb question, but it's one of my biggest worries. I keep reading in these forums that people know many students who are in the top of their class or close to it who have had to scramble. How/why does this happen? Is it because that person only applied to top tier programs and didn't impress? I just figured if you work hard and manage to get to that level of success in school, you'll set yourself up for success when it comes time to match. It worries me a lot that you can potentially be one of the top students at your school and still not get a residency...

 

[apollofx]

I definitely think it is an improvement. The flood of emailed applications--especially with the number of scamblers in recent years--was madness. After re-reading the details on MP-II, I'm not sure what the motivation would be to not participate other than the time commitment. Programs will still have the time to conduct phone interviews or invite some student from the other side of the country to come out for a same-day 10 minute interview. They won't be required to take anyone they don't like.

I agree completely. Students will be able to actually get their application in versus the full voicemail and email boxes from the flurry of panicked students in past scrambles, and programs will have the opportunity to assess their entire applicant pool and choose the best scramble applicant for their program instead of panicking that they will lose the best scramble students within minutes.

 

[ldsrmdude]

Sorry if this is a dumb question, but it's one of my biggest worries. I keep reading in these forums that people know many students who are in the top of their class or close to it who have had to scramble. How/why does this happen? Is it because that person only applied to top tier programs and didn't impress? I just figured if you work hard and manage to get to that level of success in school, you'll set yourself up for success when it comes time to match. It worries me a lot that you can potentially be one of the top students at your school and still not get a residency...

There are a lot of reasons why students scramble. Some do like you said and apply to only top programs that are out of their range. Some just don't apply to enough programs, period. Others are socially awkward or have problems getting along with other students/residents. Academic success does not guarantee all that much when it comes to clerkships.

 

[heybrother]

(1) If they wanted you to be 15 minutes early that's when they should have said the start time was.
(2) You'll be travelling a lot and won't know the area so they should understand that you can't predict traffic and might be late.
(3) You might very well know more than the resident and you should let them know that or at least correct them if you disagree. The knowledge difference between a starting resident and a 4th year is trivial.
(4) Whatever way you were taught things in school is right. Diplomacy is for people who can't win a a discussion.
(5) Some people learn differently. For example - auditory learners - so read your presentation to them word for word.
(6) Jumping on every opportunity that arises and showing your superiority to your fellow students demonstrates your commitment and value to the program. This is a competition.
(7) Given a long term project? Work on it when its convenient for you and don't beat yourself up trying to do it early or putting a lot of time into it. Not like you get a grade for it or anyone is really listening. Also, its ok to run long.
(8) Old pods probably didn't do a long residency if they even did one at all. Newer/younger is always better.
(9) Don't take criticism if you know you are right.
(10) The staff/ coordinator / non-physicians and their endless paperwork/permissions/emails can be addressed/handled when you have time for it at your convenience. Deadline is just another word for suggestion.
(11) Speaking of suggestions. Anything they ask you to read / know before you arrive. Suggestion. Probably won't come up again.

 

[confusedpod]

Anyone know what the shortage is this year

 

[heybrother]

A Dean's letter last month indicated that the podiatry cohort of 2015 contains 553 students and there were 576 available positions at that time. There's obviously still quite a backlog of students from prior years (http://www.aacpm.org/pdf/PlacementUpdate.pdf). Once again, the part II pass rate will play an interesting role.

 

[apollofx]

A Dean's letter last month indicated that the podiatry cohort of 2015 contains 553 students and there were 576 available positions at that time. There's obviously still quite a backlog of students from prior years (http://www.aacpm.org/pdf/PlacementUpdate.pdf). Once again, the part II pass rate will play an interesting role.

There is some improvement but still a significant shortage it seems, good luck to all those entering match this year! Purely out of curiosity does anyone know what the overall pass rate looked like this year?

 

[illinigrad11]

There is some improvement but still a significant shortage it seems, good luck to all those entering match this year! Purely out of curiosity does anyone know what the overall pass rate looked like this year?

First time pass rate was 88%. I'm not sure what it is after the second offering though?