Official 2014-2015 Cardiology Fellowship Application Cycle

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Can any one please comment on mount Sinai Miami beach

So I went to the interview there few weeks ago. It's a purely clinical program on Miami Beach couple miles from South Beach. 8 cath labs and lots of peripheral procedures and large volume of echos and nukes so strong clinical training is definitely there - they cover all intraoperative TEEs for CT surgery too. It seems oriented towards people planning for private practice. Faculty seems approachable and fellows happy. They do TAVR as well. Very clinical place. Miami itself seems the biggest problem unless you're into that weather and lifestyle but hardly a good place to settle with family. Cost of living high and good areas with decent schools limited so some fellows send their kids to private schools if they have means to do so.

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My program impressions

So my interview season came to an end finally and I would like to share my impressions to aid some of you guys in their ranking this year and future applicants as well.


University of New Mexico

Wonderful weather (dry), amazing surroundings and super nice people. For outdoorsy types for sure since the city is not too big. Great vibe in the program which only has general cards so fellows do a lot including PPM/AICD or even ablations with EP attending or STEMI calls (obviously don't stent) if they want to. Fellows seem super happy and program very clinical, all of them hit COCATS LEVEL2 in all subspecialties and all take ECHO and nukes boards before graduation. Don't seem to have problems with intervention/EP placement afterwards. Little research but it's a clinical program and that's what matters most to 95% of fellows anyway. Altogether super nice place but far and awesom if you like outdoors and want general cards or don't mind moving again for intervention/EP.



University of Cincinnati

I was quite impressed by UC and the city itself strikes me as a wonderful place to live. Not too big but seems vibrant and recovering from the crisis. Downtown is being rejuvenated aggressively and large walkable part makes it very lovely place to live. Property prices are low compared to east coast and lots of great neighbourhoods to chose from. Interview itself started in the morning and was quite long with 9 faculty members interviewing. Applicants stationed in a large conference room and greeted by both PD an chief of cardiology who was recently brought from Duke to boost research efforts to add to a strong clinical program. There is definitely a wonderful academic atmosphere and the interview itself was preceded by an informal dinner with fellows. Program has clinical focus and PD insists that strong clinical training will remain a priority as they are working on research part. I saw impressive basic science labs and the buildings are new and beautiful. They hired quite a few new faculty with emphasis on advanced cardiac imaging. Fellows seemed happy and satisfied with training. It appears that they achieve level 2 COCATS in multiple subspecialties without difficulty.
Altogether I liked it a lot.


Mount Sinai Miami Beach, Miami

It's a purely clinical program on Miami Beach couple miles from South Beach affiliated with Columbia in NYC (fellows go to NYC for one month to do HF rotation) . 8 cath labs and lots of peripheral procedures and large volume of echos and nukes so strong clinical training is definitely there - they cover all intraoperative TEEs for CT surgery too. It seems oriented towards people planning for private practice. Faculty seems approachable and fellows happy. They do TAVR as well. Very clinical place. Miami itself seems the biggest problem unless you're into that weather and lifestyle but hardly a good place to settle with family. Cost of living high and good areas with decent schools limited so some fellows send their kids to private schools if they have means to do so.



University of Texas Houston

TMC is huge. Herman Memorial is the main hospital for UT and in addition the fellows cover VA and one other as well as MD Anderson for cardiology which is split 50/50 with Baylor.
Busy, front loaded schedule and strong clinical training. Research seems less emphasized but definitely present. Fellows place and manage ECMO’s and get tremendous exposure. Based on my impression as well as according to interventional fellow there the training is really tough in the beginning and nobody will hold your hand. Curiously enough you learn TEE before TTE and first year is mostly floors/consults. Second and third are much lighter and allow you to focus on preferred subspecialty. No problems with getting the numbers for COCATS level 2 in everything. EP seems in transition (interim PD) and probably a weakness. No advanced imaging although efforts are made to change that. Training seems to be intervention-oriented and with strong HF group. 4-5 TAVRs weekly which is apparently much more than THI.Proximity of Methodist and Baylor within TMC (literally across the street) makes it great place to train because you can always find what you want around even if not available in UT (Methodist has advanced imaging). Very impressive and compared to Baylor more clinical I would say.


St. Elisabeth Medical Center, Boston

Community program affiliated loosely with Tufts. Part of Steward Healthcare network (11 hospitals in MA) and oriented towards clinical training. Rough first year and busy call schedule in the beginning. Procedure-heavy place and strong in peripheral PCI but numbers of coronary interventions low and apparently difficult to hit the numbers for interventional fellows but shouldn’t be any problems with diagnostic caths. They also do quite a few TAVRs.
In summary tough but good training. Very clinical but new faculty members recruited from MGH and Brigham have ambitions to boost clinical research.


St. John’s Medical Center, Detroit

Large 800 bed very nice community hospital in northern Detroit on the fringes of the city bordering affluent neighborhood of Grosse Pointe far away from downtown danger zone. Definitely clinically oriented in particular intervention-wise. They have national and international big names coming over to teach and show off skills. Teaching based on private cardiology groups which includes the PD but good atmosphere and teaching attendings do that out of their own volition and like it. Fellows seem very happy, not sure how busy the service is. Interestingly to improve the research experience they have a Duke professor (publication machine) coming over twice a month to guide the fellows.


Westchester Medical Center/ NYMC in Valhalla, New York

Good name in North East, historically strong in Neuro. Didn’t know anything about the cardiology program before getting there and was very pleasantly surprised. Program has been undergoing major changes over the last couple years with new chief of cardiology and PD coming from Georgetown, DC who have a vison and want to make it a premier CV institution. PD super nice and enthusiastic and I feel that he will make the program better and better.
Fellows super happy and love it there. Strong clinical training and robust clinical research with Dr.Aaronow there with sole function to take care of that aspect of fellow training. Great place in transition and will get more and more attractive.


Good luck to all.
 
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My program impressions

So my interview season came to an end finally and I would like to share my impressions to aid some of you guys in their ranking this year and future applicants as well..

Good luck to all.

This is impressive; very helpful. I suggest that other applicants add their own experiences to further the great work desdinova has done.

p diddy
 
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large community program with intervensional fellowship versus small univerity program without intervensional,
can any one help which one is better if long term goal is intervensional in academic place.
 
Could you rank the following NYC hospitals? I am interested in a good combination of academic and clinical environment and good chances to get into subspecialty training.

This is my current list for NYC programs. Any suggestion?

NYP-Cornell
NYU
St Luke's
Montefiore
Mount Sinai Clinical Track
Beth Israel
 
Any comments on which one to rank higher? University of New Mexico or University of Arizona?
 
Could you rank the following NYC hospitals? I am interested in a good combination of academic and clinical environment and good chances to get into subspecialty training.

This is my current list for NYC programs. Any suggestion?

NYP-Cornell
NYU
St Luke's
Montefiore
Mount Sinai Clinical Track
Beth Israel

Would switch NYU and Cornell
 
Could you rank the following NYC hospitals? I am interested in a good combination of academic and clinical environment and good chances to get into subspecialty training.

This is my current list for NYC programs. Any suggestion?

NYP-Cornell
NYU
St Luke's
Montefiore
Mount Sinai Clinical Track
Beth Israel

Mount Sinai
NYU
Cornell
Montefiore
Beth Israel = St. Luke's
 
Anybody have thoughts on Aurora St.Luke's? Seemed like a very busy private practice oriented place but not quite sure if there is more scut involved as a fellow than most places and whether there is enough research present (since I want to keep my options in academics open)

Also, what did you guys think about the following places: UT Memphis, UNC, Medical College of Wisconsin?
 
USF Program Tampa Fla

Program had one unmatched position last year that an internal candidate scrambled into. Lots of scut work. Fellows are unhappy with the training they get. Didactics are non existent and attendings do not even show up to noon conference besides the same 2. Noon conference is pretty much run by the fellows teaching each other via powerpoints. Fellows cover 4 different hospitals on call, Moffitt, TGH, VA, and Fla health. Few TAVRs performed, CCU is more of a chest pain obs, rare-no LVADS, no peripherals. EP has smart attendings who are unwilling to teach


UF-Jacksonville

Solid program, good training a lot of female fellows. Good reputation and strong clinical training
 
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Anybody have thoughts on Aurora St.Luke's? Seemed like a very busy private practice oriented place but not quite sure if there is more scut involved as a fellow than most places and whether there is enough research present (since I want to keep my options in academics open)

Also, what did you guys think about the following places: UT Memphis, UNC, Medical College of Wisconsin?


Aurora they mentioned this clearly we are more a community program. We will make you a good cardiologist but forget about clinical research. One cardiology attending at Aurora told me that
 
USF Program Tampa Fla

Program had one unmatched position last year that an internal candidate scrambled into. Lots of scut work. Fellows are unhappy with the training they get.

Complete opposite feeling from fellows who told me they were very happy.

Didactics are non existent
Once a week didactics for five hours. Good teaching.

and attendings do not even show up to noon conference besides the same 2. Noon conference is pretty much run by the fellows teaching each other via powerpoints. Fellows cover 4 different hospitals on call, Moffitt, TGH, VA, and Fla health. Few TAVRs performed, CCU is more of a chest pain obs, rare-no LVADS, no peripherals. EP has smart attendings who are unwilling to teach

Call is covered at four hospitals but fellows take home call and are rarely called in. Can't comment on the rest.

UF-Jacksonville

Solid program, good training a lot of female fellows. Good reputation and strong clinical training
 
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Any thoughts ranking these programs? Looking for balanced clinical and academic training with no place/city preference. plan to do intervention. Thanks!

SUNY Downstate
St. Luke's NYC
Albert Einstein Philadelphia
VCU
Cooper U Camden
 
Thanks Desdinova for posting your impression, I think that's so helpful.
 
Now any thoughts on ranking these programs, looking on a balanced clinical and academic program that I can pursue any sub-speciality if I want ( undecided) , City /Hospital matters:

1- East Tennessee State Univ
2- Marshall Univ
3- Lehigh Valley Hospital
4- University of Albany , NY
 
Just wanted to see who else is feeling like me. For me, i have finished all my interviews, and feeling helpless at this time. I want to do more, continue to show interest, email them, stalk them (not really), but I think its best if I just leave the programs I interview at and just hope for the best. It just sucks to wait here.. and wait until nov 12th, when the rank list is due. Does anybody else feel the same way as me? or am I just crazy?
 
any thoughts on University of Chicago or Loyola in Chicago. I heard UofC has moved to a referral based program and do not get as much volume any more? What about Loyola?

Also any of you guys interview at UNC and have any input on volume, general fellowship happiness?
 
Re: UT Houston. I wonder if I interviewed on a different day from the other people on here as I came away with a different feel. Mainly, it seemed that first year is brutal. Fellows said they never sleep on call and have to do at least several admission H&Ps throughout the night. The heart failure service is extremely busy and has no residents so the fellow is primary and writes all notes. Fellows also responsible for running codes in the heart hospital during the day. My interview day also had a terrible interviewer who grilled us on how we would theoretically solve the problem of medications being prescribed which have not been shown to improve outcomes. Literally every one of us walked out of that interview in shock. However, all my other interviewers were great. They also have a really nice dedicated heart hospital. Interventional and heart failure seem very strong and the fellows all seemed cool. Because of the tremendous volume I'm sure fellows come out very capable.
Also just a correction to the prior summary of UT-Houston, they do not cover the VA (this is covered by Baylor). The 3 hospitals they cover are Memorial Hermann, MD Anderson, & LBJ (county hospital 20 min drive away from TMC which doesn't have a cath lab). And MD Anderson is not shared with baylor.

Re: Loyola. I did not interview at UofC but I really liked Loyola. They seem to have high volumes and my impression was that they are aggressive with treatment (eg. AF ablations) and patients are referred there for 2nd/3rd opinions when others have not offered treatment (they have an inhouse cath attending overnight which I think is pretty rare). I felt like it was well-rounded in the the sense that all the subspecialities were strong (and they have an Imaging fellowship). The fellows all seemed happy, call schedule seems pretty sweet (q12), all services Only downside is it's location--seemed like all fellows live in the city which involves a 30min-1h drive. Fellows that were matching in interventional the last few years didn't seem to match in any prestigious places though if you care about that.

Re: UNC. Really liked it. Fellows seemed very happy. No overnight call during first year which is pretty crazy and workload seems lighter. In terms of volume my impression was it was middle of the road, not the highest but sufficient. Fellows said they can easily get cocats II in cath/echo/nuc. Planning to start TAVR program now but hadn't done any yet at time of my interview in Sept. Faculty from big name places. Chapel Hill is beautiful.

I think there's definitely no harm in emailing a program to express interest, esp now while they are also making their rank list. I think it varies from program to program, but some really seem to value if a person wants to come there or not. I emailed my #1.
 
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Just wanted to see who else is feeling like me. For me, i have finished all my interviews, and feeling helpless at this time. I want to do more, continue to show interest, email them, stalk them (not really), but I think its best if I just leave the programs I interview at and just hope for the best. It just sucks to wait here.. and wait until nov 12th, when the rank list is due. Does anybody else feel the same way as me? or am I just crazy?
You are not alone. I feel the same way. I sent e-mail to the program who is number one on my list about 11 hours ago. I'm paranoid now because my e-mail is yet to be acknowledged. It's crazy. Now, I don't feel like contacting any other program.
 
Please, how do the following programs compare? Thanks in advance.

University of South Florida
SUNY at Stony Brook
University of Texas at Houston
 
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Re: UT Houston. I wonder if I interviewed on a different day from the other people on here as I came away with a different feel. Mainly, it seemed that first year is brutal. Fellows said they never sleep on call and have to do at least several admission H&Ps throughout the night. The heart failure service is extremely busy and has no residents so the fellow is primary and writes all notes. Fellows also responsible for running codes in the heart hospital during the day. My interview day also had a terrible interviewer who grilled us on how we would theoretically solve the problem of medications being prescribed which have not been shown to improve outcomes. Literally every one of us walked out of that interview in shock. However, all my other interviewers were great. They also have a really nice dedicated heart hospital. Interventional and heart failure seem very strong and the fellows all seemed cool. Because of the tremendous volume I'm sure fellows come out very capable.
Also just a correction to the prior summary of UT-Houston, they do not cover the VA (this is covered by Baylor). The 3 hospitals they cover are Memorial Hermann, MD Anderson, & LBJ (county hospital 20 min drive away from TMC which doesn't have a cath lab). And MD Anderson is not shared with baylor./QUOTE]

My bad on the MD Anderson coverage, wasn't sure about that I thought that's what they said. Volume and busy is good though because you learn how to be efficient I think.
Surprised about that grilling you mentioned, I didnt get that.
Cheers
 
I have a question guys: is having a master in clinical research give you any advantage ? Thanks in advance :)
 
Re: UT Houston. I wonder if I interviewed on a different day from the other people on here as I came away with a different feel. Mainly, it seemed that first year is brutal. Fellows said they never sleep on call and have to do at least several admission H&Ps throughout the night. The heart failure service is extremely busy and has no residents so the fellow is primary and writes all notes. Fellows also responsible for running codes in the heart hospital during the day. My interview day also had a terrible interviewer who grilled us on how we would theoretically solve the problem of medications being prescribed which have not been shown to improve outcomes. Literally every one of us walked out of that interview in shock. However, all my other interviewers were great. They also have a really nice dedicated heart hospital. Interventional and heart failure seem very strong and the fellows all seemed cool. Because of the tremendous volume I'm sure fellows come out very capable.
Also just a correction to the prior summary of UT-Houston, they do not cover the VA (this is covered by Baylor). The 3 hospitals they cover are Memorial Hermann, MD Anderson, & LBJ (county hospital 20 min drive away from TMC which doesn't have a cath lab). And MD Anderson is not shared with baylor.

This is a fair warning. I interviewed at all 4 programs in Houston as I am a Texan. UT-Houston is the weakest program of the bunch. It is not regarded as a competitive fellowship. UT-Houston covers some of the cardiology floors at MD Anderson, they spend one month in the cath lab. Texas Heart fellows rotate through the MD Anderson cath lab, not Baylor. UT-Houston does not spend time at the VA, that is part of the Baylor program. I will not go into details, but you will have very little exposure to intervention in your general cardiology fellowship.
 
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Just wanted to see who else is feeling like me. For me, i have finished all my interviews, and feeling helpless at this time. I want to do more, continue to show interest, email them, stalk them (not really), but I think its best if I just leave the programs I interview at and just hope for the best. It just sucks to wait here.. and wait until nov 12th, when the rank list is due. Does anybody else feel the same way as me? or am I just crazy?

You are not alone!
 
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can anyone comment on how they would rank the following places if no geographical limitation. no one really replied in the other thread

uflorida
tulane
utsw
baylor dallas
ut houston
methodist houston
miami
usf
stony brook
case western

thanks
 
Let's try to help one another with the ranking process. The final decisions lie with each individual. However, hearing other people's opinions help. Thank you.
 
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can anyone comment on how they would rank the following places if no geographical limitation. no one really replied in the other thread

uflorida
tulane
utsw
baylor dallas
ut houston
methodist houston
miami
usf
stony brook
case western

thanks
I wish I could be of much help. I only interviewed in 3 of the above programs: USF, UT Houston and Stony Brook. I am still trying to rank these 3 programs. I was impressed with UT Houston most based on what they offer and my interview experience. However, I have read some negative reviews about the program. USF combines all the didactics--one afternoon per week, I'm not sure I like that as such. Stony Brook - no heart transplant, otherwise, solid program. maybe UT Houston >USF > Stony Brook. What do you think about this ranking among these 3 programs? Thanks.
 
can anyone comment on how they would rank the following places if no geographical limitation. no one really replied in the other thread

uflorida
tulane
utsw
baylor dallas
ut houston
methodist houston
miami
usf
stony brook
case western

thanks



Utsw>case, these are your strong programs, everything else can't comment on.
 
Do European IMGs get more or better invitations than Asian or Latin American IMGs? Could the IMGs in this forum disclose their continent of origin? @matchpass and others? Basic credentials? Number of publications? Their experience? How are your other IMG friends doing? Just wondering...
 
my roommate is an indian IMG , community program, 1 publication (3rd author), 212/214, have not given step 3. only 6 interviews....
 
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trying this one more time as i am really confused in ranking between these programs as they are almost similar! thanks guys.

"Any thoughts ranking these programs? Looking for balanced clinical and academic training with no place/city preference. plan to do intervention. Thanks!
VCU
SUNY Downstate
St. Luke's NYC
Albert Einstein Philadelphia
Cooper U Camden"
 
Can any one help me ranking these programs as i'm looking for both clinical and academic programs. Thanks

North shore long island hofstra
Mount sinai miami
University of new mexico
UCSF fresno
Methodist new york
University of south dakota
Lankenau medical center philadelphia
Christiana delaware
 
Hi y'all - need help ranking these 4 programs (no geographic preference - but want to remain in academia and research), very confusing!

Indianapolis
Umass
Louisville
Vermont

Thanks!!!
 
Hi y'all - need help ranking these 4 programs (no geographic preference - but want to remain in academia and research), very confusing!

Indianapolis
Umass
Louisville
Vermont

Thanks!!!

You have them in right order mate :)
 
Do European IMGs get more or better invitations than Asian or Latin American IMGs? Could the IMGs in this forum disclose their continent of origin? @matchpass and others? Basic credentials? Number of publications? Their experience? How are your other IMG friends doing? Just wondering...

Central European, top Med school back home, top USMLE scores, Ivy League affiliated community IM program , Ivy League research, two pubs in Circulation and 3 others, more than few research projects, dozen posters, letters from Ivy League and one other big name. Got 10 interviews.
 
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Central European, top Med school back home, top USMLE scores, Ivy League affiliated community IM program , Ivy League research, two pubs in Circulation and 3 others, more than few research projects, dozen posters, letters from Ivy League and one other big name. Got 10 interviews.
Thanks!
 
I just received a call from a program in the West coast. The PD informed me that I am ranked to match. It seems this is a key week. Good luck to everyone!!!
 
Can any one help me ranking these programs as i'm looking for both clinical and academic programs. Thanks

North shore long island hofstra
Mount sinai miami
University of new mexico
UCSF fresno
Methodist new york
University of south dakota
Lankenau medical center philadelphia
Christiana delaware

Taking into account the location

Methodist NY > Mount Sinai Miami > Lankenau Medical Center Philadelphia >>>> Delawere, Dakota, New Mexico, Long Island
 
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I just received a call from a program in the West coast. The PD informed me that I am ranked to match. It seems this is a key week. Good luck to everyone!!!

What was your response to it. Did you tell them you will be ranking them highly as well, or ranking them #1? I feel that if you tell a program you will be ranking "highly" means, not #1.
 
Anybody can comment on this? A program called my program director personally to inquire more about me. I know that is a good sign, but has anybody hear of that happening, and not matching?
 
what are people's opinions of Kaiser San Francisco and CPMC (Cal Pacific Medical Center)?
 
what are people's opinions of Kaiser San Francisco and CPMC (Cal Pacific Medical Center)?

Kaiser SF > CPMC for training, but both will get you shots at good jobs in the Bay Area, the former with Kaiser and the latter with Sutter Health.

p diddy
 
I was wondering if anyone has thoughts on the "non-HUP" Philadelphia programs. I found each to be quite different from the others in such significant ways that I'm finding it hard to rank them. How would you assess the following: Jefferson, Temple, Drexel, Lankenau, Cooper
 
which would you rank higher - Guthrie in PA or South Dakota?
 
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