Official 2018-2019 Anesthesiology Residency Application Thread

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abolt18 said:
Our program leadership specifically asks residents to provide them feedback about applicants (more about ones they really liked) and want to know if there was anyone we thought was just awful.
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Huh, interesting I'll have to keep that in mind. I spend most of my time seemingly chatting with residents who have drunk too much free alcohol and have no filter (which is why I love them). I don't think they're going to be judging me.
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Been off the forum for awhile but wanted to share what a PD from an east coast school recently told me. Apparently this is the time when programs start having a ton of applicants drop interviews BUT this year is an anomaly because it's just not happening. This particular program which is a mid-tier in a desirable location has had almost no one drop interviews, the waitlist just isn't moving. The PD actually sounded very surprised and said this has never happened to this extent before. I'm not saying this to freak anyone out or be pessimistic, I'm just sharing the info. This program has spoken to other programs and it seems to be a universal problem, either things got a lot more competitive this year or people are just going on a bunch more interviews than previous years. Either way, I'm sure we'll all be fine but don't be surprised if December is a dry month. Now on that super positive note everyone have a great week :)
 
coffeenut0 said:
def the increase in how competitive anesthesia is this year. i checked the prelim data for anesthesia and theres ~20 more applicants per program this year. quickly eyeballed the stats for EM, IM, peds, derm, psych and they all actually have less applicants per program compared to last year. I havent checked all the specialties but the only ones ive seen with an increase so far is gas/rads.
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Where do you get the data? Are there more applicants or more applications or both? It could be that the same or similar number of applicants are filling out more applications.

There’s around 130 programs. If there are actually 20 more applicants per program, it would mean there are 2600 more applicants. Could be an effect of new medical schools opening at a high rate. The bottleneck will be at GME. Soon all specialties will be more competitive.
 
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Received 2 interviews since start of dec from "Top 40" programs according to dox. . Unfortunately I won't be able to attend them as they conflict with a required rotation that wont give me days off :( :(.
 
nimbus said:
Where do you get the data? Are there more applicants or more applications or both? It could be that the same or similar number of applicants are filling out more applications.

There’s around 130 programs. If there are actually 20 more applicants per program, it would mean there are 2600 more applicants. Could be an effect of new medical schools opening at a high rate. The bottleneck will be at GME. Soon all specialties will be more competitive.
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ERAS Statistics - ERAS - Services - AAMC shows the Preliminary Data for number of applicants, average number of applications per specialty, etc for the 2019 match so far. Anesthesiology had a pretty big uptick this year from 1851 applicants in 2018 to 2112 applicants in 2019 for US grads. Most specialties had an increase in applicants this year, so you could attribute the big increase in anesthesiology applicants to the Merger, more people applying anesthesiology as a backup, or simply that Anesthesiology got a lot more competitive this year. It's likely a combination of all three. And this would make sense that less people are dropping interviews as in previous years, due to more applicants and increased competition. Since the number of applications per person increased as well, it could also be that more people are going on 15+ interviews this year, and that programs haven't increased the amount of applicants they are interviewing to adjust for this. I think a lot of people will match higher up on their rank lists because of this (or at least I like to think this to keep some of my anxiety at bay). Definitely a tougher year for matching into Anesthesiology than years past though, that's for sure.

On a separate note, how much weight do PDs place in applicants telling them "I'm ranking you #1" at the end of January? Do some PDs not care at all and don't adjust their rank lists, do some PD's move applicants way up that tell them that you're my #1? Does it vary from program to program?
 
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Eagles6389 said:
ERAS Statistics - ERAS - Services - AAMC shows the Preliminary Data for number of applicants, average number of applications per specialty, etc for the 2019 match so far. Anesthesiology had a pretty big uptick this year from 1851 applicants in 2018 to 2112 applicants in 2019 for US grads. Most specialties had an increase in applicants this year, so you could attribute the big increase in anesthesiology applicants to the Merger, more people applying anesthesiology as a backup, or simply that Anesthesiology got a lot more competitive this year. It's likely a combination of all three. And this would make sense that less people are dropping interviews as in previous years, due to more applicants and increased competition. Since the number of applications per person increased as well, it could also be that more people are going on 15+ interviews this year, and that programs haven't increased the amount of applicants they are interviewing to adjust for this. I think a lot of people will match higher up on their rank lists because of this (or at least I like to think this to keep some of my anxiety at bay). Definitely a tougher year for matching into Anesthesiology than years past though, that's for sure.

On a separate note, how much weight do PDs place in applicants telling them "I'm ranking you #1" at the end of January? Do some PDs not care at all and don't adjust their rank lists, do some PD's move applicants way up that tell them that you're my #1? Does it vary from program to program?
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Thanks for the link and the data.

That is a significant jump but only 2 more applicants per program, not 20.
 
Eagles6389 said:
On a separate note, how much weight do PDs place in applicants telling them "I'm ranking you #1" at the end of January? Do some PDs not care at all and don't adjust their rank lists, do some PD's move applicants way up that tell them that you're my #1? Does it vary from program to program?
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This is and can be widely debated. Answers range from no its pillow talk to yes I matched with my #1 program due to writing such an email. One PD at a program in the midwest I interviewed at said he takes it into account, but who knows to what degree.

Overall whatever is said will be individual cases or anecdotal.

Of course be careful if you’re going to tell multiple programs they’re your #1.
 
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Got an IV today from a top 10 doximity program. Got a trickle down last week from a top 25 doximity program.

There’s still hope, don’t give up or give into the negativity. Contact the programs you’re interested in and let them know you want to be there. Calling has worked better than emailing for me.
 
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Eagles6389 said:
On a separate note, how much weight do PDs place in applicants telling them "I'm ranking you #1" at the end of January? Do some PDs not care at all and don't adjust their rank lists, do some PD's move applicants way up that tell them that you're my #1? Does it vary from program to program?
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I can't speak for Anesthesia, but for a prelim IM position, both the PC and PD told us to email them in February if you were serious about going there, and that from there "we would be in touch"

So, no guarantees (as it is against the rules to say "You scratch my back, I scratch yours"), but pretty thinly veiled. This was a pretty small program, though, so I could see why they'd be interested in that kind of commitment
 
There are ways to sound strongly interested without blatantly telling programs they're you're #1. I told my number 1 they were my top choice and the PD basically told me I was ranked to match. I told multiple programs that I would be excited to match there after my interview day without explicitly stating what position they were on my rank list.

Edit: I matched last year
 
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Did anyone interview at Kansas Wichita Or at Rutgers New Jersey university program? If so please send me a message I have a few questions to ask



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step1almostdone said:
I'm interested if anyone has more info on this... at my interview a resident told me that a lot them assumed they had a spot at Columbia and didn't go on enough interviews
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I heard this as well. I pleasantly was surprised how much Columbia historically projected its own and essentially guaranteed their residents fellowship spots.
 
Me waiting on more IV offers.
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Footballfan93 said:
Thoughts on Kentucky, Cincinnati, Tennessee?
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UC is my home program and i love it. It's definitely underrated overall.
- Small program with huge volume. Get to pick and choose good cases for the most part. No deficiency in terms of numbers, with even some "stronger" programs like michigan struggling to get regional numbers. Cardiac may be weaker than some hospitals.
- Relieved around 3:30 by CRNAs most days, depending on the room (not cardiac, neuro, etc.)
- Young attendings and PDs who are passionate about teaching. Residents are easy to get a long with and get to know each other quickly due to size
- Moonlighting is legit, probably second only to UAB from what I've seen. A resident I know made 30k extra last year
- Cincinnati is crazy affordable and a lot of fun
- Cons include kindof a rough intern year and a night float system for 1 mo straight both CA2 and CA3 year, but reasonable call schedule overall because of it
 
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Jhuze said:
UC is my home program and i love it. It's definitely underrated overall.
- Small program with huge volume. Get to pick and choose good cases for the most part. No deficiency in terms of numbers, with even some "stronger" programs like michigan struggling to get regional numbers. Cardiac may be weaker than some hospitals.
- Relieved around 3:30 by CRNAs most days, depending on the room (not cardiac, neuro, etc.)
- Young attendings and PDs who are passionate about teaching. Residents are easy to get a long with and get to know each other quickly due to size
- Moonlighting is legit, probably second only to UAB from what I've seen. A resident I know made 30k extra last year
- Cincinnati is crazy affordable and a lot of fun
- Cons include kindof a rough intern year and a night float system for 1 mo straight both CA2 and CA3 year, but reasonable call schedule overall because of it
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Y ur home program no love me? Haha
 
Eagles6389 said:
On a separate note, how much weight do PDs place in applicants telling them "I'm ranking you #1" at the end of January? Do some PDs not care at all and don't adjust their rank lists, do some PD's move applicants way up that tell them that you're my #1? Does it vary from program to program?
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I was told point blank by my home department not to do this unless I was actually going to rank the program number 1. Apparently, if a place really wants you, and your statement isn’t true (so you end up going to a different program), people get butthurt and anesthesia is a small field. Thus, I only told my number 1 that they’re my number 1. For all the others, I told them how much I love the program, that I think it would be an outstanding fit, and that I’d really love to be a resident there.

Other people have other methods which are equally valid etc, but on this front, I like to play it safe.
 
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Anyone interviewing later in January at Emory that would like to switch for Jan 10 - 11?
 
anyone get an email from kentucky saying Dr. Schell resumed his role as PD? Whats that about? Last i looked it was him already.
 
agent_purple said:
Yup. I extremely doubtful that I’ll receive any more interviews at this point. Hopefully I’m good at ranking 8.
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Don't worry! You're more than good with 8. I'm only ranking 5 and I honestly feel confident I'll match into my top 3. Maybe I'm delusional but I feel like we'll all be fine.
 
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docbsb2015 said:
So uhh how many prelim/TYs ya'll have....??
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4 prelims
GASLife said:
Don't worry! You're more than good with 8. I'm only ranking 5 and I honestly feel confident I'll match into my top 3. Maybe I'm delusional but I feel like we'll all be fine.
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Same tbh ... Keeping it realistic that it's not that 10+ saturation, but also what else can you do
 
Same I have 5 but have to cancel one of them so I was hoping 4 is enough...
 
MightBeACylon439 said:
How do you feel your interviews have gone? Post interview communication?
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I’ve actually only gone to one so far. The rest are this month. First was extremely conversational and felt like an anesthesia interview.
 
docbsb2015 said:
I’ve actually only gone to one so far. The rest are this month. First was extremely conversational and felt like an anesthesia interview.
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Try to get a feel for how they go, try to make a human connection with them to show them you are person who they can chat with during the mind numbing boredom that comes during a neuro remi/des case.

With 4 ranks historically you are at a 75%ish chance of matching. What I suspect is the 25% will have a bad interview or those “red flags” we love to talk about.

So relax, things aren’t as bleak as you may think they are.
 
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MightBeACylon439 said:
Try to get a feel for how they go, try to make a human connection with them to show them you are person who they can chat with during the mind numbing boredom that comes during a neuro remi/des case.

With 4 ranks historically you are at a 75%ish chance of matching. What I suspect is the 25% will have a bad interview or those “red flags” we love to talk about.

So relax, things aren’t as bleak as you may think they are.
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For clarification I was talking about my prelim/TY interviews. I suspect you meant anesthesia? But yeah hopefully 4 prelim interviews is enough!
 
MightBeACylon439 said:
With 4 ranks historically you are at a 75%ish chance of matching. What I suspect is the 25% will have a bad interview or those “red flags” we love to talk about.
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What are some of those "red flags" that we(?) love to talk about?
 
RedPhys said:
What are some of those "red flags" that we(?) love to talk about?
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Board failures, class failures, formal discipline for professionalism issues, etc. that find their way to the dean's letter, LORs that turn out to stab you in the back (not a borderline or generic letter, but one in which the letter writer actually says you're a terrible, no-good piece of ****), repeating a year, etc.
 
ButterButter said:
Board failures, class failures, formal discipline for professionalism issues, etc. that find their way to the dean's letter, LORs that turn out to stab you in the back (not a borderline or generic letter, but one in which the letter writer actually says you're a terrible, no-good piece of ****), repeating a year, etc.
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Wouldn't programs just not interview you if they had a real concern with those things? It's not as if those things become apparent to programs after the interview.
 
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ABCGas76 said:
Wouldn't programs just not interview you if they had a real concern with those things? It's not as if those things become apparent to programs after the interview.
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You’d be surprised how many programs don’t filter their applicants for some of those red flags, especially Letters of Recommendation. Pretty sure over half of the programs I’ve interviewed at hadn’t read my LoRs - I go by a name other than my first name, which is what is in all three of my LoRs and as my nickname on my ERAS CV, yet a lot of interviewers still miss it. Meaning they didn’t glance at any of the LoRs or at much of my application before interviewing me.
 
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ABCGas76 said:
Wouldn't programs just not interview you if they had a real concern with those things? It's not as if those things become apparent to programs after the interview.
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Lots of courtesy interviews get thrown out to away rotators with red flags and some programs just may not be interested
 
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Eagles6389 said:
You’d be surprised how many programs don’t filter their applicants for some of those red flags, especially Letters of Recommendation. Pretty sure over half of the programs I’ve interviewed at hadn’t read my LoRs - I go by a name other than my first name, which is what is in all three of my LoRs and as my nickname on my ERAS CV, yet a lot of interviewers still miss it. Meaning they didn’t glance at any of the LoRs or at much of my application before interviewing me.
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Hmm I guess that might be reflective of those programs, and I'm sure some places overlook things. However, with how stingy many programs seem to be about offering interviews, I'd be shocked if they didn't screen for red flags on a dean's letter.
 
ButterButter said:
Lots of courtesy interviews get thrown out to away rotators with red flags and some programs just may not be interested
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That's still a very very small portion of interview invitations that get sent out.
 
ABCGas76 said:
That's still a very very small portion of interview invitations that get sent out.
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True but the proportion of interviewees that make the interview cut in general with a red flag must be small. Unless you’re talking about lower tier programs that would rather fill their ranks with AMGs over IMGs.
 
Eagles6389 said:
You’d be surprised how many programs don’t filter their applicants for some of those red flags, especially Letters of Recommendation. Pretty sure over half of the programs I’ve interviewed at hadn’t read my LoRs - I go by a name other than my first name, which is what is in all three of my LoRs and as my nickname on my ERAS CV, yet a lot of interviewers still miss it. Meaning they didn’t glance at any of the LoRs or at much of my application before interviewing me.
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Just because the people who interviewed you hadn't read your letters, doesn't mean that SOMEONE didn't read them prior.
 
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I’m just putting this out there again. But please please please don’t cancel interviews last minute. Hell, I had an interview last week where one applicant straight up didn’t show up- the coordinator was rather upset since she had an active waitlist too.
I got a call last week for a last minute opening as well with literally a 24 hour notice before the interview date.

It’s extremely unprofessional and it screws over your fellow colleagues. You’ve had ample time to plan for the date. Unless your flights are delayed or you have a family that takes priority, there really isn’t a good reason to cancel last minute.
 
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towelonthefloor said:
I’m just putting this out there again. But please please please don’t cancel interviews last minute. Hell, I had an interview last week where one applicant straight up didn’t show up- the coordinator was rather upset since she had an active waitlist too.
I got a call last week for a last minute opening as well with literally a 24 hour notice before the interview date.

It’s extremely unprofessional and it screws over your fellow colleagues. You’ve had ample time to plan for the date. Unless your flights are delayed or you have a family that takes priority, there really isn’t a good reason to cancel last minute.
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I’ve had multiple interviews were somebody doesn’t show up. Our school warned us not to do it and told us to give the place a two week notice.


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towelonthefloor said:
I’m just putting this out there again. But please please please don’t cancel interviews last minute. Hell, I had an interview last week where one applicant straight up didn’t show up- the coordinator was rather upset since she had an active waitlist too.
I got a call last week for a last minute opening as well with literally a 24 hour notice before the interview date.

It’s extremely unprofessional and it screws over your fellow colleagues. You’ve had ample time to plan for the date. Unless your flights are delayed or you have a family that takes priority, there really isn’t a good reason to cancel last minute.
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I want to add don’t go to a place that you absolutely hate and then openly state how much you hate it. One guy at an IV I pushed hard for and got last min did this and it was beyond annoying. If you are going to go to an IV to just show off and troll please don’t and let a waitlisted person take it. Everyone can see through your bs and you likely won’t get ranked anyway.
 
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quincyfuturemd said:
I want to add don’t go to a place that you absolutely hate and then openly state how much you hate it. One guy at an IV I pushed hard for and got last min did this and it was beyond annoying. If you are going to go to an IV to just show off and troll please don’t and let a waitlisted person take it. Everyone can see through your bs and you likely won’t get ranked anyway.
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Talk about expensive trolling .


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abolt18 said:
Just because the people who interviewed you hadn't read your letters, doesn't mean that SOMEONE didn't read them prior.
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Very true. Just trying to point out that not every interviewer will read each person’s LoRs and thus red flags can be missed there.
 
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