Official Eternal IM WAMC Thread

[flufighter]

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Thank you kindly for your comments! I modified the list incorporating some of the suggestions you mentioned. I decided to only include programs within the geographic preferences, which are New England (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont), Middle Atlantic (New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania), East North Central (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin).

Here is the list of 40 programs with follow-up questions below the list:
A. Gold signal (3 programs):
- Boston University Medical Center Program
- Tufts Medical Center Program
- Brigham and Women’s Hospital
B. Silver signal (12 programs):
- Brown/Rhode Island Hospital
- Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University/TJUH Program
- UConn
- UMichigan
- UMass - Worcester
- Wayne State/DMC
- Dartmouth
- Icahn School of Medicine at Mt. Sinai
- Henry Ford Detroit
- Rutgers
- New York Presbyterian (Cornell Campus)
- University of Pittsburgh
C. No signal (25 programs):
- Maine Health
- Case Western Reserve University/University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center Program
- Cleveland Clinic Foundation Program
- Cooper Medical School of Rowan University/Cooper University Hospital Program
- Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai (Morningside/West) Program
- Indiana University School of Medicine Program
- Loyola University Medical Center Program
- MGH
- Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
- Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science (Rochester) Program
- McGaw Medical Center of Northwestern University Program
- NYU Grossman School of Medicine Program
- Penn State Milton S Hershey Medical Center Program
- Pennsylvania Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania Health System Program
- Rush University Medical Center Program
- UMass Chan Baystate
- University at Buffalo Program
- University of Chicago Program
- University of Cincinnati Medical Center/College of Medicine Program
- University of Wisconsin Hospitals and Clinics Program
- University of Pennsylvania Health System Program
- Yale-New Haven Medical Center Program
- Ohio State
- University of Rochester Medical Center Program
- University of Minnesota Program

Follow-up questions:
1. What is your opinion of this list?
2. For academic institutions outside of the geographic preferences that you alluded to, such as Iowa, WashU, JHU, Bayview, UNC, Duke, Vanderbilt, is it still worth applying to (these programs will see that I did not include their region as a geographic preference)?

I wouldn’t bother sending apps to most of those mid tier programs without signals. Speaking from experience I sent extra apps to test the waters and only really heard back from community programs without signals. Academic programs can choose to be picky w/ signals and really have no need to consider a non signal. Only apply to 30 and save yourself money.

Programs I scored interviews at without a signal include:
Mayo Rochester
CWRU Metro
CCF

Programs that I sent my app to without a signal and never heard back include:
Rochester
Cincy
Minnesota
UPenn (waitlist)
NYU
Northwestern
Loyola

 

[FrontalLobe123]

Med School: Well-regarded upper mid-tier USMD (ranked between 20-25)
M1-M2 grades: Pass/Fail, all pass
M3 grades: All honors
M4 grades: All honors including sub-I
Class rank: N/A
Step 1: Pass
Step 2: 280
AOA: Yes
GHHS: No
Demographics: White male
Research: 2 pubs (one second author, one mid-author), 4 more manuscripts submitted (likely will not be accepted prior to application), ~15 poster presentations.
Extracurriculars: Strong, tons of meaningful leadership and service
LORs: 1 Department letter, 1 sub-I letter, 1 research letter- all should be strong
Geographic Signaling: Northeast
Red flags: None

Interested in top 10 programs and academic GI. I understand that my stats are competitive; my main concern is lack of significant research for these programs. Hoping that my research mentor LoR will speak to my genuine interest in research. Planning on gold signaling Penn and Brigham. Not sure on the third. Also not sure what to do with regard to more mid-tier/"safety" programs. It feels not worth it to apply to them without signaling but I also don't want to go unmatched by aiming too high.

Thank you in advance!

 

[Deecee2DO]

Med School: Well-regarded upper mid-tier USMD (ranked between 20-25)
M1-M2 grades: Pass/Fail, all pass
M3 grades: All honors
M4 grades: All honors including sub-I
Class rank: N/A
Step 1: Pass
Step 2: 280
AOA: Yes
GHHS: No
Demographics: White male
Research: 2 pubs (one second author, one mid-author), 4 more manuscripts submitted (likely will not be accepted prior to application), ~15 poster presentations.
Extracurriculars: Strong, tons of meaningful leadership and service
LORs: 1 Department letter, 1 sub-I letter, 1 research letter- all should be strong
Geographic Signaling: Northeast
Red flags: None

Interested in top 10 programs and academic GI. I understand that my stats are competitive; my main concern is lack of significant research for these programs. Hoping that my research mentor LoR will speak to my genuine interest in research. Planning on gold signaling Penn and Brigham. Not sure on the third. Also not sure what to do with regard to more mid-tier/"safety" programs. It feels not worth it to apply to them without signaling but I also don't want to go unmatched by aiming too high.

Thank you in advance!

lol dude youre good. Will match T10 I think likely will get big 4 interviews. I dont think youre research as a med student is “lacking” its good enough. Youre AOA, 280 Step T25 med school solid research all honors what else could they possibly want other than maybe being URM? I mean dang stellar app one of the best ive seen on here and I think you know that

 

[pseudopseudopseudo]

Hey all, got my Step 2 score back today and was hoping for some clarity while starting to cobble together a school list. Would really appreciate any insight or thoughts. For reference I'd especially like to match near NYC where my support system is, but I understand that programs there are very competitive.

Med School: USMD T25
M1-M2 grades: Pass/Fail, all passed
M3 grades: 5/7 honors including IM, 2 HP (FM, peds)
M4 grades: currently on second sub-I but heavily expect to honor both
Class rank: N/A
Step 1: Pass
Step 2: 252 (lower than I was hoping and has thrown me for a loop)
AOA: not offered
GHHS: not offered
Demographics: ORM
Research: 1 first-author in a short paper for an ophtho journal, 1 15th author (lmao) in a much bigger paper for a well-established oncology journal, 3 poster presentations (1 nationally), 1 poster award
Extracurriculars: Significant student government involvement. Lots of med-ed experience in M1 curriculum. Some decent volunteering (student-run free clinic, working with the local Asian elderly and local high school) but nothing extraordinary
LORs: 1 department letter from subI, 1 letter from IM division chief I worked with on subI, 2 IM letters from M3 (might replace one with another subI letter). Have been told by each that they will be very strong.
Geographic Signaling: Middle Atlantic, East North Central, Pacific
Red flags: None

Gold: Cornell, Mount Sinai, NYU
Silver: Columbia, BIDMC, UCLA, UPMC, Emory, USC, Brown, Northwestern, UChicago, Case Western, Georgetown, BU

Generally think this list is pretty top-heavy and am planning to apply to more safeties but unsure of which yet. Thanks!

 

[familymanMD]

Hi, I actually posted this on reddit but didn't get many responses. So here I am looking to get more thoughts.

I am mostly looking into getting into an academic IM program.

Here are some details of my application:

• School: Low to Mid-tier USMD
• Step 1: Pass
• Step 2: 249
• Red flags: None
• Clerkships: 3 High Passes and 3 Passes (no Honors). I received a Pass in IM. My evaluations were generally strong. Honors from most outpatient preceptors(including IM); inpatient feedback was solid but not outstanding. Shelf scores were average or slightly below average (low to mid-70s)
• Sub-I: I will be doing a home program rotation next month. It's Pass/Fail, so won't dramatically change my clerkship grade.
• Letters: Expected to be strong
• Research: 20+ research items. Two first-author manuscripts currently under review. Two publications where I was a 4th and 5th author. 5 abstracts, 11 oral/poster presentations (some at national conferences including ASCO and AAN). Research award for presenting a poster at a regional conference. 2 textbook chapters (non-peer reviewed).
• Other activities: IM Interest Group and Oncology Group president, international premed mentoring, and music teacher at church.

I’m interested in pursuing a heme/onc fellowship after residency.

My geographic ties are all over the place. Went to high school in Mountain West region(e.g., UT, CO, AZ), college in West North Central(e.g., MN, IA, MO), and med school in Pacific West (e.g., OR, CA, HI). Also looking into programs at the east coast (i.e.Boston and NY) due to great school districts for my kids. Would it be better to say no geographic preference or choose those 3 based on my ties?

Here is my list so far:

OHSU(likely gold), Colorado (likely gold), Boston U, Iowa, Georgetown, Tufts, WashU(applying due to my regional tie), Utah, Hawaii, U of Washington, Ohio, U of Michigan, UC Irvine, UNC, UVA.

Any thoughts? I wasn't sure about programs in New York but will be adding a few into my list.

FYI: I am an international student who will be graduating from a USMD school. I also have kids and prefer places that are family-friendly. But feel free to disregard these two facts because they can skew things when coming up with a school list.

Thank you!

 

[DrMetal]

You're fine, you have a good rap sheet. Rank them in whatever order you wish, and apply. Not that complicated.

If your wife has somewhat of a geographic preference, take that into account. Happy wife means happy wife.

 

[TriadTachycardia]

Hey all! I switched from ENT to IM, planning to pursue GI. Would appreciate help with signals and figuring out competitiveness. I want to set myself up for matching academic GI and I enjoy the south/southeast but am open to anything. I’m unsure about geographic signaling too, as I’m equally interested in a couple places in the northeast and west south central (UPenn and Pitt vs Vandy and UAB). Also love Texas but don’t have ties to it besides friends living there, strong ties to the other regions though.

Med School: Mid-tier USMD
M1-M2 grades: All H
M3 grades: 4/7 H including IM, rest HP.
M4 grades: TBD
Class rank: 2nd quartile
Step 1: Pass
Step 2: 262
AOA: No
GHHS: No
Demographics: Asian male
Research: 30+ research items, 7 high IF pubs and several in submission with the rest being peer-reviewed national/international conference abstracts. All ENT-related, only a few first author because they were basically all multi-institutional studies. Couple research awards.
Extracurriculars: Average
LORs: 2 letters from IM sub-I, ENT research PI, and chair (they’ll acknowledge me switching to IM)
Geographic Signaling: South Atlantic, West South Central, East South Central
Red flags: None
Reach: Duke (S), U Penn (S), UTSW (S), Vanderbilt (G), Emory (S), UNC (S)
Target: Baylor (S), UAB (G), UVA (G), U Miami (S), UPMC (S)
Safety: UF (S), Wake Forest (S), USF (S), Tulane (S)

Would appreciate any recommendations or advice, thanks!

 

[Señor S]

Hey all! I switched from ENT to IM, planning to pursue GI. Would appreciate help with signals and figuring out competitiveness. I want to set myself up for matching academic GI and I enjoy the south/southeast but am open to anything. I’m unsure about geographic signaling too, as I’m equally interested in a couple places in the northeast and west south central (UPenn and Pitt vs Vandy and UAB). Also love Texas but don’t have ties to it besides friends living there, strong ties to the other regions though.

Med School: Mid-tier USMD
M1-M2 grades: All H
M3 grades: 4/7 H including IM, rest HP.
M4 grades: TBD
Class rank: 2nd quartile
Step 1: Pass
Step 2: 262
AOA: No
GHHS: No
Demographics: Asian male
Research: 30+ research items, 7 high IF pubs and several in submission with the rest being peer-reviewed national/international conference abstracts. All ENT-related, only a few first author because they were basically all multi-institutional studies. Couple research awards.
Extracurriculars: Average
LORs: 2 letters from IM sub-I, ENT research PI, and chair (they’ll acknowledge me switching to IM)
Geographic Signaling: South Atlantic, West South Central, East South Central
Red flags: None
Reach: Duke (S), U Penn (S), UTSW (S), Vanderbilt (G), Emory (S), UNC (S)
Target: Baylor (S), UAB (G), UVA (G), U Miami (S), UPMC (S)
Safety: UF (S), Wake Forest (S), USF (S), Tulane (S)

Would appreciate any recommendations or advice, thanks!

Decent list; a few others to consider would be MUSC, Maryland, Georgetown, Temple and VCU.

 

[Señor S]

Med School: USMD T15
M1-M2 grades: Pass/Fail, one remediation all rest past
M3 grades: 5/7 honors including IM, 2 HP (FM, Gyn)
M4 grades: currently on IM SubI Away
Class rank: N/A
Step 1: Pass
Step 2: 257
AOA: not offered
GHHS: not offered
Demographics: ORM
Research: 6 manuscripts, 3 first author 2 second author; 8 assorted posters and abstracts - grab bag of specialties including neuro, surgery, heme, cards
Extracurriculars: IM IG president 2nd year; student run free clinic volunteering; Med school newspaper writer and editor; volunteer for admissions support. Biggest ec is I spent most of med school doing MCAT tutoring
LORs: Pretty strong I think, one from PI, one from APD at home program, one from IM dept chair; currently working on more
Geographic Signaling: The two Midwest ones and south Atlantic
Red flags: The preclinical fail

Gold: Mayo, Wisconsin, UChicago
Silver: Minnesota, Kansas, Mayo FL, UVA, UNC, Loyola, rush, UIC, Iowa, others

Main concern is how the preclinical fail effects match prospects. Step 2 is alright, but I feel that it doesn't full cover the hole that the fail made.

Having reviewed applications I can say that the fail is the type of thing that could easily get missed; these application packet are looooooong and the school transcripts are non-standardized, often really wordy and imo not that helpful. I'm sure some people will ask about it but I doubt everybody will. You benefit from the fact that IM programs tend to be really large and thus have to interview hundreds of applicants, so the interview/not interview decision is often very algorithmic based on Step scores and things like that (I don't think there's any way to filter based on a pre-clinical fail, unless it's some box you had to check on your ERAS?). The actual rank list can be very algorithmic as well. Key is if you're asked about it to take ownership (i.e., don't blame the professor or the school) and talk about how you learned and grew as a result.

UChicago and Mayo are going to be reaches for you but still worth a shot. Places I would consider adding, based on your geography: Indiana, Case Western, MUSC, Maryland. FWIW I think a lot of your programs would be interested in you based on your med school, as they don't tend to get many matches from that caliber of place. I think you'd match with your current list but would consider adding the places I mentioned and maybe 5-10 additional, less competitive programs just in case, but as long as you get 10-12 interviews you can decline the invites. Good luck.

 

[Señor S]

Thanks for the input! A related question- in my current PS iteration, I just call out the fail directly and talk about how I learned from it in a body paragraph. (It isn't all about it). What are your thoughts on that? I figured it's best to put it out in the open so no one thinks I'm trying to bury it

Tough call. Personally I'd lean towards not addressing it in the PS; based on your overall academic record it seems like an aberration, it doesn't represent a moral failing and I do genuinely think it's the type of thing a lot of people wouldn't notice. IIRC there's a section of the application where you talk about overcoming adversity, or something to that effect? That might be a better place to address it imo.

 

[TriadTachycardia]

Decent list; a few others to consider would be MUSC, Maryland, Georgetown, Temple and VCU.

Thanks! Do you think Duke, UPenn, and UTSW are too far of reaches and it would be smarter to replace with some of the programs you suggested?

 

[ga449]

Hi, I am wondering how the application will fare with top programs in the Chicago and NE regions.
Med School: Unranked MD
M1-M2 grades: Pass/Fail
M3 grades: All passes. No HP at my school
M4 grades: P/F Sub-I
Class rank: N/A
Step 1: Pass
Step 2: 266
AOA: not offered
GHHS: not offered
Demographics: ORM, first gen
Research: 5 First author manuscripts, 7 poster/abstracts
Extracurriculars: Unique extracurriculars
LORs: 3 Sub-I IM Letters, and 1 Chair letter
Geographic Signaling: Mid-Atlantic and East North Central
Red flags: All passes

Gold: SKMC, Rush, Mt Sinai
Silver: UPenn, NYU, Cornell, UChicago, or Northwestern, others are targets/safeties (UIC etc)

are these programs too top heavy, given my school rank and clerkship grades?

 

[Señor S]

Thanks! Do you think Duke, UPenn, and UTSW are too far of reaches and it would be smarter to replace with some of the programs you suggested?

In the old days I'd have told you they're all definitely worth the application fee, but this signaling stuff I admit I have no feel for. My general sense is that UTSW is a little less competitive than the other two, and thus it's the one most in your wheelhouse. UPenn might be a stretch from a mid-tier school without AOA.

 

[OncOncOnc]

Hi, I am wondering how the application will fare with top programs in the Chicago and NE regions.
Med School: Unranked MD
M1-M2 grades: Pass/Fail
M3 grades: All passes. No HP at my school
M4 grades: P/F Sub-I
Class rank: N/A
Step 1: Pass
Step 2: 266
AOA: not offered
GHHS: not offered
Demographics: ORM, first gen
Research: 5 First author manuscripts, 7 poster/abstracts
Extracurriculars: Unique extracurriculars
LORs: 3 Sub-I IM Letters, and 1 Chair letter
Geographic Signaling: Mid-Atlantic and East North Central
Red flags: All passes

Gold: SKMC, Rush, Mt Sinai
Silver: UPenn, NYU, Cornell, UChicago, or Northwestern, others are targets/safeties (UIC etc)

are these programs too top heavy, given my school rank and clerkship grades?

Honestly, yes. I think the silver programs that you named are probably wasted signals.

 

[Unrelenting_Premed]

Med School: Low-tier MD (rank ~80 USNWR)
M1-M2 grades: P/F, all P
M3 grades: 5H (IM and Surgery), 3 HS
M4 grades: H IM SubI
Class rank: N/A
Step 1: Pass
Step 2: 268
AOA: No
GHHS: No
Demographics: ORM
Research: 7 pubs (6 basic science in high IF journals, no 1st author, mostly 2nd author), 1 abstract, 7 poster presentations
Extracurriculars: Solid leadership, lacking in volunteering
LORs: 1 Chair letter, 1 Sub-I letter, 1 3rd year letter, 1 Sub-specialist letter
Red flags: None
Golds: BIDMC, Cornell, UPMC
Silvers: 2 state schools, JKMC, Temple, Tufts, BU, UVA, Yale, Emory, Upenn, Sinai, NYU

I was wondering what are my chances at matching T20 - T30 given that I come from a low-tiered MD program without AOA and GHHS; I want to make sure I'm not wasting signals for gold and silvers. Thanks in advance, I appreciate you!

 

[RedDragon14]

Med School: Mid-tier USMD
M1-M2 grades: All Honors
M3 grades: All honors, except HP in IM
M4 grades: Honor sub-I in IM
Class rank: Top quartile
Step 1: Pass
Step 2: 256
AOA: Yes
GHHS: No
Demographics: White male
Research: 5 pubs (one first author, the rest mid-author) 2 poster presentations (local)
Extracurriculars: average with some leadership
LORs: 1 Department letter, 2 IM letters (average), 1 Peds letter
Geographic Signaling: South
Red flags: None

Reach:

• Vanderbilt
• Emory
• Wake Forest
• Baylor

Target:

• UAB
• UNC
• UF Gainesville
• U Miami
• USF Tampa
• UT Houston
• UT Galveston
• UT San Antonio

Safety:

• UF Jacksonville
• Jackson Mississippi
• Orland Health
• Bay Health St. Petersburg

I am worried because of my non honors in IM and lack of research presentations. My dream program is to attend Emory. I am not sure how competitive I am after seeing all the posts on here. How can I improve my list?

 

[jstargirl17]

Hello,

I saw that you are interested in doing IM primary care. I’m a 4th year student currently working on my ERAS application and doing my IM sub-I (yes it’s been a lot [emoji28])

I was wondering how many IM programs to apply to and what are good things to look for in an IM program? I really like the patients on IM but handling all of the dispo, placement, social work, discharges, consults, etc is a lot… not sure if I want to further subspecialize yet but want to keep the door open

My current list of IM programs are (most are primary care tracks):
1. OSU primary care track
2. University of WA primary care track/women’s health track
3. Univ of Pittsburgh
4. Northwestern
5. Brown
6. Brigham and Women’s
7. George Washington primary care track University
8. Univ of Miami
9. Johns Hopkins urban health primary care track
10. Emory
11. Cambridge Health Alliance
12. Cleveland Clinic Foundation


As background, I am a U.S. MD student, passed step 1 on the first attempt and passed step 2 on the first attempt but with a low pass score (which has been stressing me out/worrying me..)

Any guidance or tips would be greatly appreciated!

 

[eleanorroosevelt]

Med school: Top 20 USMD
M1-M2 grades: All pass (P/F)
M3 grades: All honors (H/HP/P/F)
M4 grades: All pass (P/F including sub-i)
Class rank: No specific language is used
Step 1: Pass
Step 2: 270-275
AOA: Yes
GHHS: No
Demographics: First-generation college; from Florida, med school in mid-Atlantic region
Research: 1 first-author paper accepted/in production, 1 3rd author paper published in low impact journal, 2 3rd author abstracts published, 7 posters in local conferences, 1 poster accepted for national conference later this fall; few other projects without tangibles
Extracurriculars: Clinical director of student-run clinic, admissions, mentoring, tutoring, medical assistant before med school
LORs: Department letter, sub-I, IM subspecialty, research letter - all I believe are strong
Geographic signaling: South Atlantic, Middle Atlantic, New England
Red flags: None
Goals: Academia, perhaps primary care vs ID/HIV vs addiction; think I'd like to stay close to the East Coast. Will be applying primary care and categorical.

Gold: Cornell, Brigham, UPenn
Silver: NYU, Columbia, Mt Sinai, BUMC, BIDMC, Mayo-MN, Yale, Jefferson, Emory
No signal: MGH (not offered), UF

Debating: Mayo-FL, UAB, Montefiore, Vanderbilt, Duke, UVA, Temple, UPMC, UChicago, Northwestern, Brown, WashU, JHH, UCSF

I worry my list is top heavy. I would really appreciate any insight on how to finish out my silver signals. Thanks!

 

[whoknows2012]

Med school: Top 20 USMD
M1-M2 grades: All pass (P/F)
M3 grades: All honors (H/HP/P/F)
M4 grades: All pass (P/F including sub-i)
Class rank: No specific language is used
Step 1: Pass
Step 2: 270-275
AOA: Yes
GHHS: No
Demographics: First-generation college; from Florida, med school in mid-Atlantic region
Research: 1 first-author paper accepted/in production, 1 3rd author paper published in low impact journal, 2 3rd author abstracts published, 7 posters in local conferences, 1 poster accepted for national conference later this fall; few other projects without tangibles
Extracurriculars: Clinical director of student-run clinic, admissions, mentoring, tutoring, medical assistant before med school
LORs: Department letter, sub-I, IM subspecialty, research letter - all I believe are strong
Geographic signaling: South Atlantic, Middle Atlantic, New England
Red flags: None
Goals: Academia, perhaps primary care vs ID/HIV vs addiction; think I'd like to stay close to the East Coast. Will be applying primary care and categorical.

Gold: Cornell, Brigham, UPenn
Silver: NYU, Columbia, Mt Sinai, BUMC, BIDMC, Mayo-MN, Yale, Jefferson, Emory
No signal: MGH (not offered), UF

Debating: Mayo-FL, UAB, Montefiore, Vanderbilt, Duke, UVA, Temple, UPMC, UChicago, Northwestern, Brown, WashU, JHH, UCSF

I worry my list is top heavy. I would really appreciate any insight on how to finish out my silver signals. Thanks!

Great list. You’ll almost certainly match at one of your gold/silvers.

On your debating list-the odd man out is Mayo-Fl. It does not belong

 

[JXC_600]

Applying IM, preferably academic programs region does not matter as much as program

School: lower tier midwest MD

Step 1: P
Step 2: 277
Pre-clerkship grades: All passed (preclinical is p/f)
Clerkship grades: 7/7 H, AOA, top quartile of class

Research: 1 first author and 2 co-author pubs, 1 case reports under review, 10 poster presentations, 2 oral presentations
ECs: 4 volunteering (longitudinal), 3 research, 2 teaching/mentor, 1 assistant track and field coach

Awards: Community service volunteer award, academic excellence scholarship, $5,000 research grant funding, three grants totaling ~$40,000 towards running local free clinic

Geographic signals: East North Central, Middle Atlantic, South Atlantic

Gold: Michigan, Ohio State, Hopkins

Silver: Cleveland Clinic, Duke, University of Pennsylvania, UChicago, Northwestern, Icahn at Mount Sinai, Brigham and Women's, Emory, Vanderbilt, WashU Barnes-Jewish, UPMC, Columbia

Applying but not signaling: MGH, UCSF, Mayo Clinic (Rochester), NYU Grossman, University of Washington, Mayo Clinic (Arizona), University of Alabama Birmingham, UTSW, Stanford, UCLA, Beth Israel, Yale, UVA, UNC, University of Colorado, Baylor

Not sure of swapping around gold/silver/not signaling but any suggestions or critiques is much appreciated!

 

[Señor S]

Applying IM, preferably academic programs region does not matter as much as program

School: lower tier midwest MD

Step 1: P
Step 2: 277
Pre-clerkship grades: All passed (preclinical is p/f)
Clerkship grades: 7/7 H, AOA, top quartile of class

Research: 1 first author and 2 co-author pubs, 1 case reports under review, 10 poster presentations, 2 oral presentations
ECs: 4 volunteering (longitudinal), 3 research, 2 teaching/mentor, 1 assistant track and field coach

Awards: Community service volunteer award, academic excellence scholarship, $5,000 research grant funding, three grants totaling ~$40,000 towards running local free clinic

Geographic signals: East North Central, Middle Atlantic, South Atlantic

Gold: Michigan, Ohio State, Hopkins

Silver: Cleveland Clinic, Duke, University of Pennsylvania, UChicago, Northwestern, Icahn at Mount Sinai, Brigham and Women's, Emory, Vanderbilt, WashU Barnes-Jewish, UPMC, Columbia

Applying but not signaling: MGH, UCSF, Mayo Clinic (Rochester), NYU Grossman, University of Washington, Mayo Clinic (Arizona), University of Alabama Birmingham, UTSW, Stanford, UCLA, Beth Israel, Yale, UVA, UNC, University of Colorado, Baylor

Not sure of swapping around gold/silver/not signaling but any suggestions or critiques is much appreciated!

Unless there's something drawing you to Ohio State in particular I wouldn't use a signal there; you are competitive at every program on your list so why not use your signal on MGH or Northwestern or WashU or some other, more competitive place? I'd add Case Western, would prioritize it over Cleveland Clinic too. Add Cornell since you seem interested in NYC and I'd put it in Sinai's place. Mayo Arizona is nothing special imo, I'd drop it and add another Ohio program (Cincinatti?) or some place in the Wisconsin/Iowa/UIC/Rush tier. Wouldn't hurt to add a few places from that list just to hedge your bets although you'll still probably be fine without it.

 

[Frigidcold]

Thinking of switching from a different competitive specialty to IM after not liking the elective. Have a research year lined up in this other specialty. Wondering if just taking that year anyways would strengthen my app at all (more pubs and ECs for both residency and fellowship apps) or if I'd be better off applying straight through. Projecting ahead a bit, but what would my chances of Big 4/~T10 if these things pan out? Thanks y'all!

Med School: T5
M1-M2 grades: P/F, all P
M3 grades: P/F, all P
M4 grades: H IM Sub-I, H IM subspecialty
Class rank: N/A
Step 1: Pass
Step 2: 264
AOA: N/A
GHHS: N/A
Demographics: ORM
Research: 9 publications (half of these are from undergrad, although my 3 firsts/co-firsts are from med school), some related abstracts/posters
Extracurriculars: 2 leadership positions in med school (one of them directing a program with $50k budget and >100 volunteers), some volunteering, research as above, service-y gap years before med school
Awards: Only small research funding award in med school, some older stuff but not sure how relevant
LORs: 1 Chair letter, 1 Sub-I letter, 1 sub-specialist letter or PCP letter (should I just go with the stronger one?) (should I get a research letter if none of my PIs are IM-related?)
Red flags: I'm average looking at best lol
Career goals: Heme/onc, PCP, or allergy/immunology (worth applying to primary care track programs?)

Golds: BWH, UCSF, JHU or Penn
Silvers: JHU or Penn, Duke, Columbia, Mayo, Michigan, Stanford, BIDMC, UTSW, UCLA, WashU, UW, Yale

 

[PugsAndHugs]

Thinking of switching from a different competitive specialty to IM after not liking the elective. Have a research year lined up in this other specialty. Wondering if just taking that year anyways would strengthen my app at all (more pubs and ECs for both residency and fellowship apps) or if I'd be better off applying straight through. Projecting ahead a bit, but what would my chances of Big 4/~T10 if these things pan out? Thanks y'all!

Med School: T5
M1-M2 grades: P/F, all P
M3 grades: P/F, all P
M4 grades: H IM Sub-I, H IM subspecialty
Class rank: N/A
Step 1: Pass
Step 2: 264
AOA: N/A
GHHS: N/A
Demographics: ORM
Research: 9 publications (half of these are from undergrad, although my 3 firsts/co-firsts are from med school), some related abstracts/posters
Extracurriculars: 2 leadership positions in med school (one of them directing a program with $50k budget and >100 volunteers), some volunteering, research as above, service-y gap years before med school
Awards: Only small research funding award in med school, some older stuff but not sure how relevant
LORs: 1 Chair letter, 1 Sub-I letter, 1 sub-specialist letter or PCP letter (should I just go with the stronger one?) (should I get a research letter if none of my PIs are IM-related?)
Red flags: I'm average looking at best lol
Career goals: Heme/onc, PCP, or allergy/immunology (worth applying to primary care track programs?)

Golds: BWH, UCSF, JHU or Penn
Silvers: JHU or Penn, Duke, Columbia, Mayo, Michigan, Stanford, BIDMC, UTSW, UCLA, WashU, UW, Yale

You are competitive pretty much anywhere. Shoot for the stars.

What tier med school are you at? You have a good application but unless you're at a T20 med school I think your signals are way too top heavy (and even then, I'd still say it's too top heavy)

He wrote T5 medical school on his post

 

[Señor S]

Thinking of switching from a different competitive specialty to IM after not liking the elective. Have a research year lined up in this other specialty. Wondering if just taking that year anyways would strengthen my app at all (more pubs and ECs for both residency and fellowship apps) or if I'd be better off applying straight through. Projecting ahead a bit, but what would my chances of Big 4/~T10 if these things pan out? Thanks y'all!

Med School: T5
M1-M2 grades: P/F, all P
M3 grades: P/F, all P
M4 grades: H IM Sub-I, H IM subspecialty
Class rank: N/A
Step 1: Pass
Step 2: 264
AOA: N/A
GHHS: N/A
Demographics: ORM
Research: 9 publications (half of these are from undergrad, although my 3 firsts/co-firsts are from med school), some related abstracts/posters
Extracurriculars: 2 leadership positions in med school (one of them directing a program with $50k budget and >100 volunteers), some volunteering, research as above, service-y gap years before med school
Awards: Only small research funding award in med school, some older stuff but not sure how relevant
LORs: 1 Chair letter, 1 Sub-I letter, 1 sub-specialist letter or PCP letter (should I just go with the stronger one?) (should I get a research letter if none of my PIs are IM-related?)
Red flags: I'm average looking at best lol
Career goals: Heme/onc, PCP, or allergy/immunology (worth applying to primary care track programs?)

Golds: BWH, UCSF, JHU or Penn
Silvers: JHU or Penn, Duke, Columbia, Mayo, Michigan, Stanford, BIDMC, UTSW, UCLA, WashU, UW, Yale

You'll be fine. I'd apply to a few university/communiversity programs in whatever region you want to live in for the unlikely event that you fail to match with your list, but I'd bet all the money in my pockets that you match at one of that you listed. I'd add Northwestern and University of Chicago, also NYU. Some other places to consider: Montefiore, Dartmouth, UNC, MUSC, Wisconsin.

 

[charactercomic2]

Applying to IM from mid-tier USMD in the Midwest. Hoping to stay in the Midwest, specifically heavily targeting Chicago programs (fiance + family works/lives here). Did not attend medical school in Chicago. Wondering how much weight a 270 Step 2 gives me coming from mid-tier USMD with minimal research?

Med School: Mid-tier USMD
M1-M2 grades: P/F all pass
M3 grades: 30% / 40% / 30% P/NH/H bell curve; honored 3/7 (Peds, neurology, surgery), Near-honored 4/7 (OBGYN, FM, Psych, IM), no passes. Honored every shelf (school reports them separately).
M4 grades: Honored IM Sub I with great comments (“currently performing at the level of intern”); completing MICU elective in 2 months
Class rank: 1st quartile
Step 1: pass first attempt
Step 2: 270
AOA: eligible, pending results
GHHS: pending results
Demographics: ORM
Research: 1 third-author publication in a peer-reviewed journal, 3 posters/oral presentations
Extracurriculars: 2 leadership positions in medical school, one service/tutoring in an underserved area; TA in undergrad; mentorship lead in medical school. All around focus is on Medical education/mentorship
Awards: $3,500 fellowship award/grant for competitive summer research fellowship, miscellaneous student-voted awards
LORs: 1 strong letter from sub-I, 1 letter from sub-I + ambulatory rotation attending, 1 from 3rd year FM doc, Chair letter, and potentially 1 from upcoming MICU rotation
Red flags: none
Career goals: hospitalist, potential allergy/immunology vs GI

Golds: UIC, Rush, Uchicago
Silvers: Northwestern, Advocate Christ, Advocate Lutheran General, Loyola, WashU, Wisconsin, Ohio State, Michigan, MCW, Cincinnati, Vanderbilt, UChicago Northshore

Home program does not require a signal

 

[true_royal]

Applying to IM from mid-tier USMD in the Midwest. Hoping to stay in the Midwest, specifically heavily targeting Chicago programs (fiance + family works/lives here). Did not attend medical school in Chicago. Wondering how much weight a 270 Step 2 gives me coming from mid-tier USMD with minimal research?

Med School: Mid-tier USMD
M1-M2 grades: P/F all pass
M3 grades: 30% / 40% / 30% P/NH/H bell curve; honored 3/7 (Peds, neurology, surgery), Near-honored 4/7 (OBGYN, FM, Psych, IM), no passes. Honored every shelf (school reports them separately).
M4 grades: Honored IM Sub I with great comments (“currently performing at the level of intern”); completing MICU elective in 2 months
Class rank: 1st quartile
Step 1: pass first attempt
Step 2: 270
AOA: eligible, pending results
GHHS: pending results
Demographics: ORM
Research: 1 third-author publication in a peer-reviewed journal, 3 posters/oral presentations
Extracurriculars: 2 leadership positions in medical school, one service/tutoring in an underserved area; TA in undergrad; mentorship lead in medical school. All around focus is on Medical education/mentorship
Awards: $3,500 fellowship award/grant for competitive summer research fellowship, miscellaneous student-voted awards
LORs: 1 strong letter from sub-I, 1 letter from sub-I + ambulatory rotation attending, 1 from 3rd year FM doc, Chair letter, and potentially 1 from upcoming MICU rotation
Red flags: none
Career goals: hospitalist, potential allergy/immunology vs GI

Golds: UIC, Rush, Uchicago
Silvers: Northwestern, Advocate Christ, Advocate Lutheran General, Loyola, WashU, Wisconsin, Ohio State, Michigan, MCW, Cincinnati, Vanderbilt, UChicago Northshore

Home program does not require a signal

Great app. Your signals only make sense to me if you're DEAD SET on wanting to go to Chicago though (even at the cost of stronger training). Imo you shouldn't be golding UIC or Rush, and you probably shouldn't be signaling Advocate Christ/Lutheran, Loyola, MCW, or UChicago Northshore at all. Since you're dead set on Chicago though I understand it. You should consider including Indy (especially if you're considering GI), Iowa, and some other strong mid-tiers in your silvers list since they're close to Chicago and would offer better training than the other ones listed

 

[charactercomic2]

Great app. Your signals only make sense to me if you're DEAD SET on wanting to go to Chicago though (even at the cost of stronger training). Imo you shouldn't be golding UIC or Rush, and you probably shouldn't be signaling Advocate Christ/Lutheran, Loyola, MCW, or UChicago Northshore at all. Since you're dead set on Chicago though I understand it. You should consider including Indy (especially if you're considering GI), Iowa, and some other strong mid-tiers in your silvers list since they're close to Chicago and would offer better training than the other ones listed

I am pretty dead-set on Chicago (have done distance with SO for 4 years of medical school, will be tying knot soon and happy wife = happy life). Was wondering if non-signalling the community programs + low/midish academic tier programs in chicago area would potentially make them yield protect

 

[true_royal]

I am pretty dead-set on Chicago (have done distance with SO for 4 years of medical school, will be tying knot soon and happy wife = happy life). Was wondering if non-signalling the community programs + low/midish academic tier programs in chicago area would potentially make them yield protect

That makes sense, totally valid. In that case I'd probably gold UChicago, NW, and Rush and keep your silvers as-is, while considering including Indy/Iowa/Minnesota etc

 

[charactercomic2]

That makes sense, totally valid. In that case I'd probably gold UChicago, NW, and Rush and keep your silvers as-is, while considering including Indy/Iowa/Minnesota etc

I recently was awarded AOA and GHHS. Does this realistically change anything? Was thinking about adding Mayo or gold signalling Northwestern (instead of silver)

 

[Deecee2DO]

I recently was awarded AOA and GHHS. Does this realistically change anything? Was thinking about adding Mayo or gold signalling Northwestern (instead of silver)

AOA matters A LOT. Yes it makes a difference especially with a 270. Id be very surprised if Mayo and NW didnt interview you

 

[charactercomic2]

AOA matters A LOT. Yes it makes a difference especially with a 270. Id be very surprised if Mayo and NW didnt interview you

Coming from a mid tier USMD (80 ish), does this hinder getting interviews from top programs? Have read a lot of forums and posts saying school name matters a lot for top IM programs, even with sky high Step 2/AOA/great grades

 

[gutonc]

Coming from a mid tier USMD (80 ish), does this hinder getting interviews from top programs? Have read a lot of forums and posts saying school name matters a lot for top IM programs, even with sky high Step 2/AOA/great grades

I came from a bottom tier USMD school (granted, 20 years ago before all this "signaling" BS got started). The saying there was that, to get T20 residency interviews, in addition to a solid CV, you needed 3 extra letters after your name. Either PhD or AOA would do the trick.

 

[true_royal]

I recently was awarded AOA and GHHS. Does this realistically change anything? Was thinking about adding Mayo or gold signalling Northwestern (instead of silver)

Even if you didn't have AOA/GHHS I still would have golded Northwestern given your strong preference for Chicago. I think this is all the more reason to do it. Definitely add Mayo too if you're okay with the location!

 

[Conrad96]

Hi! I was looking for advice for generating my list of schools to signal and apply to. Any advice about my competitiveness for IM would be appreciated too.

I grew up in Indiana, but my family lives in Ohio now. I go to school in New York. My parter lives in New England but is open to moving to NYC since its her home. I would love to stay at my current institution, but it is pretty competitive. Would be happy to match in NYC, Boston, Phili or other big city program on east coast. Probably would want to apply to a few places in Chicago / midwest given family ties. Partner has relatives in west coast so I'd be open to that too maybe.

Med School: T15-20ish
M1-M2 grades: P/F, all P
M3 grades: H/HP/P/F
High Pass: IM, Psych, Peds, Family Medicine
Honors: Surgery, OB/GYN, Neuro
M4 grades: P/F starting subI soon but is P/F (honestly feeling kind of rusty having come back form research year)
Class rank: N/A
Step 1: Pass
Step 2: 251
AOA: No
GHHS: No
Demographics: Male, Black / AA
Research: Undergrad nature comm middle author. Gap year C/N/S middle author. 1 third author clinical paper from med school. Middle authors C/N/S paper from research year during med school.
Extracurriculars: 1 leadership positions in med school. Mentored pre-meds from underserved groups at local college as part of school club.
Awards: $7,000 summer research award between M1 and M2 year at NY institution. $30,000 fellowship for research year between M3 and M4 to support a basic research work I did at another institution in MA.
LORs: 1 Chair letter, 1 or 2 Sub-I letters, 1 from research year mentor
Red flags: Minimal leadership. Modest volunteering. Mid grades
Career goals: academic still deciding on specialty


Gold: Columbia, BWH, UPenn
Silver: Cornell, Tufts, BU, OSU, UChicago, Temple, NYU, Einstein, Yale, Northwestern, Brown, Mt, Sinai

 

[ducksquadron]

Trying to decide how many programs to apply to - school has told me 15. Normally wouldn't be worried, but I will likely be couple's matching with someone with similar stats (~270/community clinic/5+ research papers) - both in internal medicine.

Med School: T10
M1-M2 grades: N/A
M3 grades: All honors
M4 grades: All honors
Class rank: N/A
Step 1: Pass
Step 2: 275
AOA: N/A
GHHS: N/A
Research: ~10 research papers, mostly first-authored including in top journals, all related to internal medicine.
Extracurriculars: Led a community clinic, worked in government.
Awards: Research grants.
LORs: 1 chair letter, 2 sub-I letters, 1 from research mentor - all "top medical student in career" or "intern-level" language per mentors.
Red flags: None.
Career goals: Academic, TBD

In terms of geography, my partner and I don't feel attached to any particular region, apart from a dislike for NYC (downtown is crazy). I value walkability and am not a huge fan of driving, but I've also been everywhere and like everywhere except NYC. I'm from the Northeast, partner is from the West Coast (loves SoCal) but family now in TX. The list doesn't look very optimized for couples matching because we would like to both match to top programs, but our priority is staying together (while ideally matching well).

Gold: BWH, Penn, UCSF
Silver: Duke, BIDMC, Yale, Columbia, Cornell, Mount Sinai, Northwestern, UChicago, Stanford, UCLA, Baylor, UTSW
Non-signaled: MGH, maybe Brown or Mayo

Would love advice on whether we should apply to programs beyond just our 15 signals. Our school says it's not necessary as our couple's matches usually match well. Some additions could include the following, which are all great per our school, but a few may limit academic career prospects.
- Boston: BMC, Tufts, maybe Brown or CHA?
- Philly: Jefferson, Temple, maybe Pennsylvania Hospital or Cooper? (not enthused about Temple)
- NC: UNC
- NYC: NYU, Montefiore, maybe others (not excited about locations)
- Chicago: Rush, Loyola, UIC, Cook County
- LA: USC, Cedars-Sinai, KP-LA
- TX: UTH, Houston Methodist, UTMB

We also like WashU, UPMC, Michigan, Vanderbilt, Mayo, Emory, UW, UVA, etc etc but it seems kind of hard to couple's match in those places when there are so few programs there. For the same reason, may have to consolidate by dropping a few programs in order to add other programs in signaled regions (ex: Boston/Philly/Chicago) - but we both like all of these programs...

Summary: 1) apply to more than just 15? 2) how important is region-based signaling? Is there any extra value to non-signaled applications to other programs in the region if we both aren't signaling? <- would it even help my partner if I applied but didn't signal?

 

[LancesDragonite]

Trying to decide how many programs to apply to - school has told me 15. Normally wouldn't be worried, but I will likely be couple's matching with someone with similar stats (~270/community clinic/5+ research papers) - both in internal medicine.

Med School: T10
M1-M2 grades: N/A
M3 grades: All honors
M4 grades: All honors
Class rank: N/A
Step 1: Pass
Step 2: 275
AOA: N/A
GHHS: N/A
Research: ~10 research papers, mostly first-authored including in top journals, all related to internal medicine.
Extracurriculars: Led a community clinic, worked in government.
Awards: Research grants.
LORs: 1 chair letter, 2 sub-I letters, 1 from research mentor - all "top medical student in career" or "intern-level" language per mentors.
Red flags: None.
Career goals: Academic, TBD

In terms of geography, my partner and I don't feel attached to any particular region, apart from a dislike for NYC (downtown is crazy). I value walkability and am not a huge fan of driving, but I've also been everywhere and like everywhere except NYC. I'm from the Northeast, partner is from the West Coast (loves SoCal) but family now in TX. The list doesn't look very optimized for couples matching because we would like to both match to top programs, but our priority is staying together (while ideally matching well).

Gold: BWH, Penn, UCSF
Silver: Duke, BIDMC, Yale, Columbia, Cornell, Mount Sinai, Northwestern, UChicago, Stanford, UCLA, Baylor, UTSW
Non-signaled: MGH, maybe Brown or Mayo

Would love advice on whether we should apply to programs beyond just our 15 signals. Our school says it's not necessary as our couple's matches usually match well. Some additions could include the following, which are all great per our school, but a few may limit academic career prospects.
- Boston: BMC, Tufts, maybe Brown or CHA?
- Philly: Jefferson, Temple, maybe Pennsylvania Hospital or Cooper? (not enthused about Temple)
- NC: UNC
- NYC: NYU, Montefiore, maybe others (not excited about locations)
- Chicago: Rush, Loyola, UIC, Cook County
- LA: USC, Cedars-Sinai, KP-LA
- TX: UTH, Houston Methodist, UTMB

We also like WashU, UPMC, Michigan, Vanderbilt, Mayo, Emory, UW, UVA, etc etc but it seems kind of hard to couple's match in those places when there are so few programs there. For the same reason, may have to consolidate by dropping a few programs in order to add other programs in signaled regions (ex: Boston/Philly/Chicago) - but we both like all of these programs...

Summary: 1) apply to more than just 15? 2) how important is region-based signaling? Is there any extra value to non-signaled applications to other programs in the region if we both aren't signaling? <- would it even help my partner if I applied but didn't signal?

Just a fellow applicant but some of these programs dont really accept non-signals. BUMC, Tufts, Jeff, Temple takes 0-2% without signal, p sure KPLA is also pretty low. I would check with Residency Explorer

 

[true_royal]

Just a fellow applicant but some of these programs dont really accept non-signals. BUMC, Tufts, Jeff, Temple takes 0-2% without signal, p sure KPLA is also pretty low. I would check with Residency Explorer

True, but that guy shouldn't be signaling those programs anyway imo. If he wants to apply to them regardless just to make himself less worried and eat the cost of the application then sure. Otherwise he'll probably be fine only applying to his signaled programs anyway

 

[LancesDragonite]

True, but that guy shouldn't be signaling those programs anyway imo. If he wants to apply to them regardless just to make himself less worried and eat the cost of the application then sure. Otherwise he'll probably be fine only applying to his signaled programs anyway

Selfishly, can I dm you for help on my app? I posted my app here previously but didnt get any reply and removed it. TYIA!

 

[true_royal]

Selfishly, can I dm you for help on my app? I posted my app here previously but didnt get any reply and removed it. TYIA!

Sure!

 

[LancesDragonite]

Sure!

It seems like I cannot message you, would you be able to?

 

[true_royal]

It seems like I cannot message you, would you be able to?

Try again, just updated it

 

[ToasterGoblin47]

Looking for some feedback on overall competitiveness! Also trying to decide if I should signal community programs or if I'm shooting too high. Aiming for heme/onc fellowship, and prefer to stay in a big east coast city. Thanks!

School tier: Mid/low-tier northeast
Step 2: 261
Grades: H (sub-i, IM, Surg), HP the rest
Class Rank: 3rd quartile
AOA/GHHS: No
Research: 2 published abstracts, 1 first author manuscript in submission, 3 posters.
Awards: National Conference poster competition winner
Extracurriculars: volunteer clinics, leadership in student clinic role
Misc: Masters in healthcare related field (did a thesis), URM

Gold: Columbia, Sinai, Georgetown
Silvers: NYU, Cornell, Montefiore, BU, BIDMC, Tufts, Brown, Hopkins-Bayview, Maryland, Sinai West, GWU, home program

 

[gutonc]

Looking for some feedback on overall competitiveness! Also trying to decide if I should signal community programs or if I'm shooting too high. Aiming for heme/onc fellowship, and prefer to stay in a big east coast city. Thanks!

School tier: Mid/low-tier northeast
Step 2: 261
Grades: H (sub-i, IM, Surg), HP the rest
Class Rank: 3rd quartile
AOA/GHHS: No
Research: 2 published abstracts, 1 first author manuscript in submission, 3 posters.
Awards: National Conference poster competition winner
Extracurriculars: volunteer clinics, leadership in student clinic role
Misc: Masters in healthcare related field (did a thesis), URM

Gold: Columbia, Sinai, Georgetown
Silvers: NYU, Cornell, Montefiore, BU, BIDMC, Tufts, Brown, Hopkins-Bayview, Maryland, Sinai West, GWU, home program

TBH, your gold signal is probably wasted on Columbia, but you can obviously use it as you see fit. I think your list is a pretty good mix of reach/reality.

 

[ToasterGoblin47]

TBH, your gold signal is probably wasted on Columbia, but you can obviously use it as you see fit. I think your list is a pretty good mix of reach/reality.

Thanks! When you say wasted do you mean its such a big reach it won't make a dent, or Columbia doesn't care much for gold/silver?

 

[gutonc]

Thanks! When you say wasted do you mean its such a big reach it won't make a dent, or Columbia doesn't care much for gold/silver?

I mean that they probably have 3-5x applications for the number of spots they have to fill from AOA/PhD, T10, 260+ applicants who are gold signaling them. Your gold won't move the needle for you with them.

I honestly have no idea what any specific program thinks about the stupid signaling system. But apparently PDs are getting massive wood over it, so as stupid as the system is, looks like it's here to stay.

 

[ihoop24]

What's up y'all! Feels crazy to finally be posting this. Would appreciate any advice on my program list and overall competitiveness.

Med School: low/mid tier Midwest state school
M1-M2 grades: P/F M1 (all pass) H/P/F M2 (4/8 honors, rest pass)
M3 grades:
Honors: IM, surgery, OB, psych
High pass: Neuro, FM, Peds
M4 grades: TBD
Class rank: TBD
Step 1: Pass
Step 2: 271
AOA: Still waiting, decent chance
GHHS: Yes
Research: 1 first-author paper in a high-impact journal, 1st-author published abstract, 4th-author conference paper, multiple posters at local and national conferences
Extracurriculars: medical education rep, lots of volunteering (mentorship, free clinic leadership), a few interest group leadership positions
Awards: random student award for med-ed work
LORs: 1 chair letter, 1 from research mentor, 1-2 from sub-I (TBD)
Red flags: None
Career goals: Academic, interested in cardiology and pulm/crit
Geographic preferences: East North Central, South Atlantic, TBD on third (debating Pacific vs. Middle Atlantic)

Gold signals: UChicago, Northwestern, UCLA/Duke
Silver: Duke/UCLA, UNC, Emory, Georgetown, WashU, UIC, Case Western, Rush, UCSD, USC, Colorado, Wisconsin
Other programs I am considering: Penn, Pitt, Jefferson, UCSF, UW, Columbia

I am not geographically limited. Main factors are location (preference for big cities), program culture, and fellowship match.

 

[TelemarketingEnigma]

Trying to decide how many programs to apply to - school has told me 15. Normally wouldn't be worried, but I will likely be couple's matching with someone with similar stats (~270/community clinic/5+ research papers) - both in internal medicine.

Med School: T10
M1-M2 grades: N/A
M3 grades: All honors
M4 grades: All honors
Class rank: N/A
Step 1: Pass
Step 2: 275
AOA: N/A
GHHS: N/A
Research: ~10 research papers, mostly first-authored including in top journals, all related to internal medicine.
Extracurriculars: Led a community clinic, worked in government.
Awards: Research grants.
LORs: 1 chair letter, 2 sub-I letters, 1 from research mentor - all "top medical student in career" or "intern-level" language per mentors.
Red flags: None.
Career goals: Academic, TBD

In terms of geography, my partner and I don't feel attached to any particular region, apart from a dislike for NYC (downtown is crazy). I value walkability and am not a huge fan of driving, but I've also been everywhere and like everywhere except NYC. I'm from the Northeast, partner is from the West Coast (loves SoCal) but family now in TX. The list doesn't look very optimized for couples matching because we would like to both match to top programs, but our priority is staying together (while ideally matching well).

Gold: BWH, Penn, UCSF
Silver: Duke, BIDMC, Yale, Columbia, Cornell, Mount Sinai, Northwestern, UChicago, Stanford, UCLA, Baylor, UTSW
Non-signaled: MGH, maybe Brown or Mayo

Would love advice on whether we should apply to programs beyond just our 15 signals. Our school says it's not necessary as our couple's matches usually match well. Some additions could include the following, which are all great per our school, but a few may limit academic career prospects.
- Boston: BMC, Tufts, maybe Brown or CHA?
- Philly: Jefferson, Temple, maybe Pennsylvania Hospital or Cooper? (not enthused about Temple)
- NC: UNC
- NYC: NYU, Montefiore, maybe others (not excited about locations)
- Chicago: Rush, Loyola, UIC, Cook County
- LA: USC, Cedars-Sinai, KP-LA
- TX: UTH, Houston Methodist, UTMB

We also like WashU, UPMC, Michigan, Vanderbilt, Mayo, Emory, UW, UVA, etc etc but it seems kind of hard to couple's match in those places when there are so few programs there. For the same reason, may have to consolidate by dropping a few programs in order to add other programs in signaled regions (ex: Boston/Philly/Chicago) - but we both like all of these programs...

Summary: 1) apply to more than just 15? 2) how important is region-based signaling? Is there any extra value to non-signaled applications to other programs in the region if we both aren't signaling? <- would it even help my partner if I applied but didn't signal?

Not really a comment on your overall list/numbers but will say that from my experience Baylor seems pretty friendly to couples matching, I know quite a few couples who matched there (though some were in different specialties). Might have to sacrifice walkability unless you never plan to leave the med center though

 

[ihoop24]

What's up y'all! Feels crazy to finally be posting this. Would appreciate any advice on my program list and overall competitiveness.

Med School: low/mid tier Midwest state school
M1-M2 grades: P/F M1 (all pass) H/P/F M2 (4/8 honors, rest pass)
M3 grades:
Honors: IM, surgery, OB, psych
High pass: Neuro, FM, Peds
M4 grades: TBD
Class rank: TBD
Step 1: Pass
Step 2: 271
AOA: Still waiting, decent chance
GHHS: Yes
Research: 1 first-author paper in a high-impact journal, 1st-author published abstract, 4th-author conference paper, multiple posters at local and national conferences
Extracurriculars: medical education rep, lots of volunteering (mentorship, free clinic leadership), a few interest group leadership positions
Awards: random student award for med-ed work
LORs: 1 chair letter, 1 from research mentor, 1-2 from sub-I (TBD)
Red flags: None
Career goals: Academic, interested in cardiology and pulm/crit
Geographic preferences: East North Central, South Atlantic, TBD on third (debating Pacific vs. Middle Atlantic)

Gold signals: UChicago, Northwestern, UCLA
Silver: Duke, UNC, Emory, Georgetown, WashU, UIC, Case Western, Ohio State, UCSD, USC, Colorado, home program
Other programs I am considering: Penn, Pitt, Jefferson, Rush, Wisconsin, Cincinnati, Stanford, UCSF, UW

I am not geographically limited. Main factors are location (preference for big cities), program culture, and fellowship match.

bump

 

[gutonc]

bump

Rank wisely since you'll be in good shape pretty much anywhere on that list.

I'm not sure how one gets a sense of the culture or vibes of a program (or hospital, or city) during a half day of Zoom meetings these days, so I'm not sure anyone who hasn't been at one of those programs in the last 2-3 years can help you there.

 

[slightlycharred]

Med School: Mid-tier, Northeast
M1-M2 grades: Pass/Fail; all pass
M3 grades: Honors (4/7) IM, Surgery, Psych, and OBGYN, HP Neuro, Peds, FM
M4 grades: Honors in SubI
Class rank: Unsure, probably 2nd quartile based on 4/7 honors
Step 1: Pass
Step 2: Mid 270
AOA: Yes
GHHS: No
Research: 20 "publications", 1 first author pub submitted, 8 other manuscripts (some second authors), 11 abstracts

Extracurriculars: school tutor, peer mentor, club founder,

LORs: 2 IM faculty, 1 research mentor, 1 chair

Red flags: None
Career Goals: Cards fellowship

Geographic Signaling: Middle Atlantic, Northeast, and ?

I'm worried about my lack of honors being an issue/have gotten this feedback. Curious if anyone would be able to help with my list. I mostly want to be northeast but have a few schools in other locations...

- Gold: Penn, BIDMC, Yale
-Silver: Cornell, Sinai, RWJ, Georgetown, Jeff, Brown, BU, Virginia, UNC, Michigan, Cleveland Clinic, UPMC

I've avoided Columbia, NYU, and Brigham based on school advice. Otherwise, am I fine here? Should I change the gold signaling? Thanks in advance for the help.

hey, was wondering how match went for you. I'm a very similar applicant