i am curious to hear about iv experience at Yale or LIJ.
Official Interview Review Thread!
- Thread starter Doctor Bagel
- Start date
- Joined
- Sep 9, 2009
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Harvard Longwood
Interview overview
1. Food/accommodations – Dinner the night before at a Cambodian place. Somewhat limited options for vegetarians, although I think if you asked they would substitute tofu for meat in a couple of the dishes. Overall it was good. Decent turnout for the residents. They were very friendly, and overall seemed like a diverse and happy group. I stayed with family in the area and drove – if you drive, give yourself a good amount of time to maneuver Boston traffic.
2. Interview day – Get in at 8:30, pastries, coffee and juice. Program overview given by the PD. The associate director from B&W came by to say hi, and the chief resident in internal medicine also came by to answer any questions applicants had about doing medicine. 3 interviews before lunch (I had two ½ hour interviews with faculty and one 1 hour interview with a resident) and one more ½ hour interview with faculty later in the afternoon after the tour. Lunch was sandwiches (which were good), then a tour of the Longwood area, which included BI and B&W. I think Mass Mental was a little bit too far to walk. I finished at 2:30 but I think some ppl were there later depending upon their afternoon interview(s).
Program overview -- this is a large program with about 15 residents per class. The residents rotate through Faulkner Hospital (which is the psych facility associated with B&W – apparently they don't have their own psych units), BIDMC and Mass Mental Health (a state psych institution). Child rotations are done at Children's Hospital Boston (2 months inpatient in 2nd year). Medicine rotations (6 month block during intern year) are done at one of 3 sites – Carney Hospital (community hosp in south boston), Mt Auburn (a different community hospital) or the Brigham. Depending upon where you go (you get to rank your preferences once you're accepted into the program), you may have a month of elective time during this block, and will have 1 month of ICU and possibly 1 month of CCU. You have an additional 2 months of neurology (one can be a peds neuro month). The program seems to do a good job of bridging community psychiatry and psychiatry in a more academic setting. Outpatient work starts in 2nd year with 1-2 patients + supervision. C/L and geriatric psych are done half-time in 3rd year. Program also includes exposure to forensics while working on the partial hospitalization unit at MMHC during 2nd year. Didactics are 1/2 day. Call is ~Q7 in PGY-1 (when not on medicine), 3 weeks nightfloat as a PGY-2 plus occasional weekend coverage, ~q15 as a PGY-3, ~q15 home call as a PGY-4.
Other stuff:
-Moonlighting is available but I can't remember the details.
-The PD stressed that the program is fairly flexible and said several times that the residents "do want they want", which seemed to imply that they were able to somewhat tailor their experience to their own personal preferences.
-Research is available; they have a research track that you can enter (and leave) at any time which allows you additional protected time for research. I think you have to actually be involved in a project in order to enter the research track. You can use your elective time during medicine to pursue research as a PGY-1.
-PGY-2, 3, and 4 have one half day off per week for a "scholarly project" which can be whatever you want – research, book chapter, etc.
Program strengths – (this is very subjective based on my interests but) – time off for scholarly project, variety of clinical sites (that are actually fairly close together), earlier introduction to outpatient, allowing you to carry your initial patients for up to 3 years, flexibility of the program to meet each resident's needs. Also early forensics exposure.
Potential negatives – the medicine experience seems a bit more difficult than at other programs, but the residents did say something about how call isn't always overnight and some of the programs let you go home early the next day anyway. Seems like you can choose which type of medicine experience you want (B&W vs. community hospital) which is nice. Call seems more frequent than other programs, especially in 3rd year. I've heard residents at other programs say "don't the residents at Longwood work really hard?", and I'm not sure if they are referring to the call schedule or what. The schedule doesn't really look any worse than other top NE programs, and the residents I met seemed pretty happy and not overworked but who knows.
Interview overview
1. Food/accommodations – Dinner the night before at a Cambodian place. Somewhat limited options for vegetarians, although I think if you asked they would substitute tofu for meat in a couple of the dishes. Overall it was good. Decent turnout for the residents. They were very friendly, and overall seemed like a diverse and happy group. I stayed with family in the area and drove – if you drive, give yourself a good amount of time to maneuver Boston traffic.
2. Interview day – Get in at 8:30, pastries, coffee and juice. Program overview given by the PD. The associate director from B&W came by to say hi, and the chief resident in internal medicine also came by to answer any questions applicants had about doing medicine. 3 interviews before lunch (I had two ½ hour interviews with faculty and one 1 hour interview with a resident) and one more ½ hour interview with faculty later in the afternoon after the tour. Lunch was sandwiches (which were good), then a tour of the Longwood area, which included BI and B&W. I think Mass Mental was a little bit too far to walk. I finished at 2:30 but I think some ppl were there later depending upon their afternoon interview(s).
Program overview -- this is a large program with about 15 residents per class. The residents rotate through Faulkner Hospital (which is the psych facility associated with B&W – apparently they don't have their own psych units), BIDMC and Mass Mental Health (a state psych institution). Child rotations are done at Children's Hospital Boston (2 months inpatient in 2nd year). Medicine rotations (6 month block during intern year) are done at one of 3 sites – Carney Hospital (community hosp in south boston), Mt Auburn (a different community hospital) or the Brigham. Depending upon where you go (you get to rank your preferences once you're accepted into the program), you may have a month of elective time during this block, and will have 1 month of ICU and possibly 1 month of CCU. You have an additional 2 months of neurology (one can be a peds neuro month). The program seems to do a good job of bridging community psychiatry and psychiatry in a more academic setting. Outpatient work starts in 2nd year with 1-2 patients + supervision. C/L and geriatric psych are done half-time in 3rd year. Program also includes exposure to forensics while working on the partial hospitalization unit at MMHC during 2nd year. Didactics are 1/2 day. Call is ~Q7 in PGY-1 (when not on medicine), 3 weeks nightfloat as a PGY-2 plus occasional weekend coverage, ~q15 as a PGY-3, ~q15 home call as a PGY-4.
Other stuff:
-Moonlighting is available but I can't remember the details.
-The PD stressed that the program is fairly flexible and said several times that the residents "do want they want", which seemed to imply that they were able to somewhat tailor their experience to their own personal preferences.
-Research is available; they have a research track that you can enter (and leave) at any time which allows you additional protected time for research. I think you have to actually be involved in a project in order to enter the research track. You can use your elective time during medicine to pursue research as a PGY-1.
-PGY-2, 3, and 4 have one half day off per week for a "scholarly project" which can be whatever you want – research, book chapter, etc.
Program strengths – (this is very subjective based on my interests but) – time off for scholarly project, variety of clinical sites (that are actually fairly close together), earlier introduction to outpatient, allowing you to carry your initial patients for up to 3 years, flexibility of the program to meet each resident's needs. Also early forensics exposure.
Potential negatives – the medicine experience seems a bit more difficult than at other programs, but the residents did say something about how call isn't always overnight and some of the programs let you go home early the next day anyway. Seems like you can choose which type of medicine experience you want (B&W vs. community hospital) which is nice. Call seems more frequent than other programs, especially in 3rd year. I've heard residents at other programs say "don't the residents at Longwood work really hard?", and I'm not sure if they are referring to the call schedule or what. The schedule doesn't really look any worse than other top NE programs, and the residents I met seemed pretty happy and not overworked but who knows.
- Joined
- Apr 14, 2003
- Messages
- 1,516
- Reaction score
- 20
CPMC
Interview overview
Food/accommodations -- No dinner the night before. Two residents and I went out for lunch on Fillmore at a delicious salad and sandwich place. There were a few restaurants they recommended (the only other one I remember was Peruvian, I think), but that's what sounded best to me. If you go to the sandwich place I highly recommend the lavender lemonade. I stayed with family the night before, so I'm not sure about accommodations.
Interview day -- I had 45 minute interviews with 2 different faculty members and the PD, and a 30 minute interview with a resident. The day started with a brief (~10 minute) meeting with the PC to go over my schedule and get otherwise oriented. After that I had one of my faculty interviews, and then got to sit in on a wonderful psychotherapy class (it was just the professor, 2 residents, and me). Two residents came to pick me up for lunch afterward, and then took me on a brief tour of the hospital and back to the outpatient building for my interview with a resident. After that I walked back to the hospital and had my last two interviews of the day, ending with the PD. I was the only applicant that day.
Program overview -- This is a small program with 4 residents in each class. The other residency programs at CPMC are IM, rad onc, and ophtho. The majority of patients in the main hospital have insurance, but most of the inpatients in the psych ward have medicare or no insurance. The program highly values psychotherapy and starts teaching it in the first year. You can pick up your first therapy case at the beginning of 2nd year.
PGY-1 -- 4 months primary care that can be done in pediatrics or internal medicine, with 2 months max of peds. 3 months are inpatient and 1 is outpatient. I don't remember the call schedule, but IM was fairly tough according to the residents, whereas a few of the peds options had no call. Two months of neurology, and 6 months of inpatient psych. One of the faculty I interviewed with said that residents are free to go home while on call as long as they can be back at the hospital relatively quickly should the need arise.
PGY 2 -- 5% outpatient, 6 months of adult inpatient, 3 months of C/L, and 3 months divided between child, ER, and crisis.
PGY 3 -- All outpatient, 11 months of adult full-time equivalent and 1 month of child FTE.
PGY 4 -- Extremely flexible according to the residents. One of the residents I spoke with was considering child but had decided not to fast track because she really wanted to stay for 4th year.
Faculty -- Everyone I met was great, and the residents said faculty are wonderful. The program is very open to resident feedback, and extremely supportive.
Location -- CPMC is located in a gorgeous part of San Francisco. It's extremely expensive to live nearby, but public transportation is good so it's possible to live in a cheaper area and take BART + MUNI to the hospital. San Francisco and the surrounding areas are probably my favorite place in the US (especially Berkeley) because there's so much going on and it's very beautiful. Short drives will take you to the mountains for skiing, to the redwoods, to great camping sites, and to sandy (but cold) beaches.
Benefits -- Meal tickets for any months you're on call, some parking reimbursement (but I'm sure it doesn't cover the whole cost), $250 educational stipend, $2000 for conferences, $300 one time for PDA purchase.
Program strengths -- Very supportive, friendly environment. Residents are really happy, nice, and pretty laid back. San Francisco! Great psychotherapy training. Lots of individual attention. Excellent reputation and track record for matching residents at big name fellowships throughout the country.
Potential weaknesses -- Call seemed a little heavy. It's a really small program, so that might be a turn off for some people. San Francisco is expensive.
Overall I was extremely impressed.
Interview overview
Food/accommodations -- No dinner the night before. Two residents and I went out for lunch on Fillmore at a delicious salad and sandwich place. There were a few restaurants they recommended (the only other one I remember was Peruvian, I think), but that's what sounded best to me. If you go to the sandwich place I highly recommend the lavender lemonade. I stayed with family the night before, so I'm not sure about accommodations.
Interview day -- I had 45 minute interviews with 2 different faculty members and the PD, and a 30 minute interview with a resident. The day started with a brief (~10 minute) meeting with the PC to go over my schedule and get otherwise oriented. After that I had one of my faculty interviews, and then got to sit in on a wonderful psychotherapy class (it was just the professor, 2 residents, and me). Two residents came to pick me up for lunch afterward, and then took me on a brief tour of the hospital and back to the outpatient building for my interview with a resident. After that I walked back to the hospital and had my last two interviews of the day, ending with the PD. I was the only applicant that day.
Program overview -- This is a small program with 4 residents in each class. The other residency programs at CPMC are IM, rad onc, and ophtho. The majority of patients in the main hospital have insurance, but most of the inpatients in the psych ward have medicare or no insurance. The program highly values psychotherapy and starts teaching it in the first year. You can pick up your first therapy case at the beginning of 2nd year.
PGY-1 -- 4 months primary care that can be done in pediatrics or internal medicine, with 2 months max of peds. 3 months are inpatient and 1 is outpatient. I don't remember the call schedule, but IM was fairly tough according to the residents, whereas a few of the peds options had no call. Two months of neurology, and 6 months of inpatient psych. One of the faculty I interviewed with said that residents are free to go home while on call as long as they can be back at the hospital relatively quickly should the need arise.
PGY 2 -- 5% outpatient, 6 months of adult inpatient, 3 months of C/L, and 3 months divided between child, ER, and crisis.
PGY 3 -- All outpatient, 11 months of adult full-time equivalent and 1 month of child FTE.
PGY 4 -- Extremely flexible according to the residents. One of the residents I spoke with was considering child but had decided not to fast track because she really wanted to stay for 4th year.
Faculty -- Everyone I met was great, and the residents said faculty are wonderful. The program is very open to resident feedback, and extremely supportive.
Location -- CPMC is located in a gorgeous part of San Francisco. It's extremely expensive to live nearby, but public transportation is good so it's possible to live in a cheaper area and take BART + MUNI to the hospital. San Francisco and the surrounding areas are probably my favorite place in the US (especially Berkeley) because there's so much going on and it's very beautiful. Short drives will take you to the mountains for skiing, to the redwoods, to great camping sites, and to sandy (but cold) beaches.
Benefits -- Meal tickets for any months you're on call, some parking reimbursement (but I'm sure it doesn't cover the whole cost), $250 educational stipend, $2000 for conferences, $300 one time for PDA purchase.
Program strengths -- Very supportive, friendly environment. Residents are really happy, nice, and pretty laid back. San Francisco! Great psychotherapy training. Lots of individual attention. Excellent reputation and track record for matching residents at big name fellowships throughout the country.
Potential weaknesses -- Call seemed a little heavy. It's a really small program, so that might be a turn off for some people. San Francisco is expensive.
Overall I was extremely impressed.
- Joined
- Apr 14, 2003
- Messages
- 1,516
- Reaction score
- 20
San Mateo Mini-Review
I went into the interview season thinking this would be one of my favorite programs, but I was kind of underwhelmed on the interview day.
They interview one applicant per day. The day started at 9:30 and consisted of 3 one-hour long interviews. I interviewed with the PD, APD, and one faculty member. Lunch was held in a room in the hospital that they also use for lectures. They were having their holiday party that day, so food was catered in. I'm not sure what lunch is like on a normal day. Due to the party, almost all of the residents were present, and I was kind of shocked at how small a group it was. There are 4 residents per class. I had 2 of my interviews before lunch and one after lunch. The interview with the PD is kind of interesting because he has a sheet that he fills in as he talks to you and it covers everything from schooling to childhood to family to current and future interests/plans.
Everyone I met was very nice, and the residents seemed really happy. One of the big positives of the program is there is no overnight call whatsoever. The PD believes in treating the residents as humanely as possible, and as such eliminated call and is very vested in making sure the residents' time is dedicated to learning. In exchange he asks each of the residents to read at least 1 hour per day, and to give back to the community. Some examples of giving back are leading community lectures/discussions on various psych topics, setting up a program in something that interests you, or getting involved in an already established community program.
The program definitely emphasizes community psychiatry (they send ~80% of their graduates into community psychiatry) and psychotherapy. It's a very friendly and supportive place, and if you're into small community programs it is probably near perfect. I felt that it was too isolated, though, since it's based out of a community hospital and is the only residency program there (with only 16 residents total). I hadn't realized that I actually very much enjoy academic environments and big training hospitals.
San Mateo is cheap to live in, but isn't nearly as fun as San Francisco. It's still close enough to SF to go there frequently, however, and many residents actually live in SF and commute to San Mateo.
Overall, it's an excellent program for people who want to go into community psych. There's no overnight call, it's in the bay area but still cheap to live there, everyone is very friendly, and the program is quite flexible.
Sorry this is shorter than usual, but if anyone has any specific questions feel free to PM me.
I went into the interview season thinking this would be one of my favorite programs, but I was kind of underwhelmed on the interview day.
They interview one applicant per day. The day started at 9:30 and consisted of 3 one-hour long interviews. I interviewed with the PD, APD, and one faculty member. Lunch was held in a room in the hospital that they also use for lectures. They were having their holiday party that day, so food was catered in. I'm not sure what lunch is like on a normal day. Due to the party, almost all of the residents were present, and I was kind of shocked at how small a group it was. There are 4 residents per class. I had 2 of my interviews before lunch and one after lunch. The interview with the PD is kind of interesting because he has a sheet that he fills in as he talks to you and it covers everything from schooling to childhood to family to current and future interests/plans.
Everyone I met was very nice, and the residents seemed really happy. One of the big positives of the program is there is no overnight call whatsoever. The PD believes in treating the residents as humanely as possible, and as such eliminated call and is very vested in making sure the residents' time is dedicated to learning. In exchange he asks each of the residents to read at least 1 hour per day, and to give back to the community. Some examples of giving back are leading community lectures/discussions on various psych topics, setting up a program in something that interests you, or getting involved in an already established community program.
The program definitely emphasizes community psychiatry (they send ~80% of their graduates into community psychiatry) and psychotherapy. It's a very friendly and supportive place, and if you're into small community programs it is probably near perfect. I felt that it was too isolated, though, since it's based out of a community hospital and is the only residency program there (with only 16 residents total). I hadn't realized that I actually very much enjoy academic environments and big training hospitals.
San Mateo is cheap to live in, but isn't nearly as fun as San Francisco. It's still close enough to SF to go there frequently, however, and many residents actually live in SF and commute to San Mateo.
Overall, it's an excellent program for people who want to go into community psych. There's no overnight call, it's in the bay area but still cheap to live there, everyone is very friendly, and the program is quite flexible.
Sorry this is shorter than usual, but if anyone has any specific questions feel free to PM me.
- Joined
- May 16, 2002
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- 1,283
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Great review, GmailQueen; thanks for posting this. About the working hard thing, my impression was that the C/L experience was particularly taxing, e.g., covering multiple sites (in addition to the call). Not sure if the absolute number of call days is greater than at other comparable programs, though. What you wrote sounds like about as much PGY3 call as Cambridge, UW, and UCSF, although perhaps less than Penn.
-AT.
- Joined
- Dec 2, 2005
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- 1,963
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- 15
Just to clarify, unless things have significantly changed since my time there - while there are two separate rotation sites for CL at Longwood (Beth Israel and Brigham) a resident in only on service at one place at one time, i.e., you're covering CL for either BI or BWH that month, but not both at the same time.
- Joined
- Sep 1, 2008
- Messages
- 6,180
- Reaction score
- 5,616
UT-San Antonio
Food/Accommodations –No dinner the night before. Lunch is catered during the day of the interview and they provide Starbucks after before you leave.
Interview Day – One on one interviews 4-5 faculty + 1-2 residents. They provide you a packet that explains the curriculum. Interviews are back-to-back throughout the morning. The afternoon involves lunch, a tour, and ends early around 2pm.
Program overview – This is an integrated program between civilians and military. They "usually" take 10 civilians and 6 military, but it can fluctuate yearly. First two years are the same curriculum. Third year sends the military group to the military outpatient center. Civilians have their own outpatient facilities. The experiences civilians receive by being in a military center is pretty amazing. One of the faculty from UTSA will be 1 of 3 psychiatrists heading-up the evaluation of the Fort Hood shooter. They also have a psychologist "residency"/some sort of training program so you get to work with psychologists on different therapies. During your outpatient year, you can spend up to 40% of your time in college mental health centers.
Faculty – The faculty I met were very nice. Interviews were informal. Some of the faculty have been there for many years. The PD has been there 25 years.
Call – You take call with off service fields. Psych call seemed about average for most programs in the first two years. There is night float + weekend call. Slightly more weekend call than places I've interviewed at, but overall it didn't seem bad.
Location – Great cost of living. Houses are affordable and nice within 15 minutes of the hospital. Traffic is not bad.
Benefits – Salary was low, but with the low cost of living in the city it is doable. Retirement benefits were lacking compared to other programs.
Program strengths – Plenty of research to go around. Many fellowships. Military experience could be great to have. Faculty really seem to care about residents. Many residents to split call with. Fun to learn with military counterparts. C&A experiences were impressive.
Program weaknesses – Weekend call seems slightly excessive. Benefits were poor compared to other programs. Fellowships other than C&A are in the process of being built up.
Food/Accommodations –No dinner the night before. Lunch is catered during the day of the interview and they provide Starbucks after before you leave.
Interview Day – One on one interviews 4-5 faculty + 1-2 residents. They provide you a packet that explains the curriculum. Interviews are back-to-back throughout the morning. The afternoon involves lunch, a tour, and ends early around 2pm.
Program overview – This is an integrated program between civilians and military. They "usually" take 10 civilians and 6 military, but it can fluctuate yearly. First two years are the same curriculum. Third year sends the military group to the military outpatient center. Civilians have their own outpatient facilities. The experiences civilians receive by being in a military center is pretty amazing. One of the faculty from UTSA will be 1 of 3 psychiatrists heading-up the evaluation of the Fort Hood shooter. They also have a psychologist "residency"/some sort of training program so you get to work with psychologists on different therapies. During your outpatient year, you can spend up to 40% of your time in college mental health centers.
Faculty – The faculty I met were very nice. Interviews were informal. Some of the faculty have been there for many years. The PD has been there 25 years.
Call – You take call with off service fields. Psych call seemed about average for most programs in the first two years. There is night float + weekend call. Slightly more weekend call than places I've interviewed at, but overall it didn't seem bad.
Location – Great cost of living. Houses are affordable and nice within 15 minutes of the hospital. Traffic is not bad.
Benefits – Salary was low, but with the low cost of living in the city it is doable. Retirement benefits were lacking compared to other programs.
Program strengths – Plenty of research to go around. Many fellowships. Military experience could be great to have. Faculty really seem to care about residents. Many residents to split call with. Fun to learn with military counterparts. C&A experiences were impressive.
Program weaknesses – Weekend call seems slightly excessive. Benefits were poor compared to other programs. Fellowships other than C&A are in the process of being built up.
- Joined
- Sep 1, 2008
- Messages
- 6,180
- Reaction score
- 5,616
U of Arkansas
Food/Accommodations –Dinner the night of the interview at a more formal restaurant – dress nicely. They put you up in an AMAZING hotel for 2 nights!
Interview Day – One on one interviews with multiple faculty at multiple sites. They drive you to multiple sites so you get to see many of the facilities. Very long interview day. 7:45am – 8:30pm which includes breakfast, lunch, and dinner. You have a 1 hour break at your hotel before dinner. You are the only applicant interviewing that day. All the attention is on you. Does make it pretty intense when you are 1:1 or 2:1 residents:applicants during meals.
Program overview – Little Rock has almost all mental health facilities in Arkansas. Everything comes through this program. Multiple sites throughout the city. The facilities attached to the hospital are brand new and AMAZING. You are really spoiled here with aesthetics. The program obviously is well-regarded and has plenty of funding. There are also almost all fellowships provided here. Internal moonlighting is present, and the residents all seem to love it. You can now go to Fayetteville for a year (completely optional) to do outpatient medicine. They are trying to build up that site for the future.
Faculty – The faculty I met were exceptional. Interviews were informal and very friendly. Many have ties to the Arkansas program and stay because they love it.
Call – The call schedule is much different than before. What you can read in old summaries and scutwork is outdated. They previously had home call for almost everything. Now they have too much volume to allow this. Call is now with a night float + short call + some weekend call. I would still say that call is on the lighter side, but it is NOT home call. This should not matter to most as you get great experience, but be aware that other information on the internet is false.
Location – This is either a plus or minus depending on the type of person you are. Cost of living is nice, but if you are accustomed to a large urban environment…..it might not be the place for you. Great outdoors city with plenty to do outside.
Benefits – Salary was average. Benefits seemed average. Call adds significant to your income.
Program strengths – Plenty of research. Almost all fellowships within psychiatry and they appear well established. C&A is pretty strong and they have some addiction psychologists that are doing strong research in the C&A population (not sure how much contact we have with them though). Pretty good diversity for the south because you pull patients from a HUGE geographical region. Great outdoors city.
Program weaknesses – The location depending on who you are. Otherwise I found it a great place to train.
Food/Accommodations –Dinner the night of the interview at a more formal restaurant – dress nicely. They put you up in an AMAZING hotel for 2 nights!
Interview Day – One on one interviews with multiple faculty at multiple sites. They drive you to multiple sites so you get to see many of the facilities. Very long interview day. 7:45am – 8:30pm which includes breakfast, lunch, and dinner. You have a 1 hour break at your hotel before dinner. You are the only applicant interviewing that day. All the attention is on you. Does make it pretty intense when you are 1:1 or 2:1 residents:applicants during meals.
Program overview – Little Rock has almost all mental health facilities in Arkansas. Everything comes through this program. Multiple sites throughout the city. The facilities attached to the hospital are brand new and AMAZING. You are really spoiled here with aesthetics. The program obviously is well-regarded and has plenty of funding. There are also almost all fellowships provided here. Internal moonlighting is present, and the residents all seem to love it. You can now go to Fayetteville for a year (completely optional) to do outpatient medicine. They are trying to build up that site for the future.
Faculty – The faculty I met were exceptional. Interviews were informal and very friendly. Many have ties to the Arkansas program and stay because they love it.
Call – The call schedule is much different than before. What you can read in old summaries and scutwork is outdated. They previously had home call for almost everything. Now they have too much volume to allow this. Call is now with a night float + short call + some weekend call. I would still say that call is on the lighter side, but it is NOT home call. This should not matter to most as you get great experience, but be aware that other information on the internet is false.
Location – This is either a plus or minus depending on the type of person you are. Cost of living is nice, but if you are accustomed to a large urban environment…..it might not be the place for you. Great outdoors city with plenty to do outside.
Benefits – Salary was average. Benefits seemed average. Call adds significant to your income.
Program strengths – Plenty of research. Almost all fellowships within psychiatry and they appear well established. C&A is pretty strong and they have some addiction psychologists that are doing strong research in the C&A population (not sure how much contact we have with them though). Pretty good diversity for the south because you pull patients from a HUGE geographical region. Great outdoors city.
Program weaknesses – The location depending on who you are. Otherwise I found it a great place to train.
- Joined
- Jul 20, 2009
- Messages
- 204
- Reaction score
- 5
University of South Alabama
Food/Accomodations- Hotel not provided, but there are a number of decent hotels in the area that are inexpensive. No dinner the night before. Lunch was in one of the physician lounges at one of the hospitals.
Interview Day- The chief resident interacts with the candidates throughout the day, drives them around to the sites. Only three interviews- one with the cochair, one with the pd, and one with another faculty member. Everyone was really nice and laid back. The interview lasts until abou 3 oclock.
Program overview- This is more of a community program in the sense that Altapointe(which alabama contracts out for mental health services) is behind it. If you're looking to do a lot of research or eventually move up in academia, this is not the proram for you. No fellowships are available. The setup of the rotations was pretty typical. Right now none of the off service months have to be inpatient, but the new PD is planning on making at least one of the off service months inpatient for the future.
Call- 5-6 calls a month first year, 3-4 second year, and 3 third year. At first this seems heavy, but it's home call. The residents I spoke to said the average number of patients they had to actually drive to the hospital and go see any given call period was between 1 and 2. So they actually do stay home a good part of their call. It seems like in terms of total hours worked, this program would be less than most I've been at. Whether this is a good or bad thing depends on ones perspective I suppose.
Location- I really like the mobile area.
Benefits- salary is pretty typical, but in mobile it goes farther than atlanta or somewhere else. Moonlighting opportunities are available and some would do that, but there are no in house opportunities.
Strengths- Faculty are very down to earth. Seems the opposite of a malignant program. This is definately an attending driven program in the sense that the attendings do not depend on the residents to "get stuff done". I sense this is because not too long ago altapointe was functioning independently without residents, so the attendings at this program in many cases were used to not having residents around. If you want to work in community mental health one day this would be a great program because you already would be more familiar with community mental health than residents at larger programs with a more typical academic structure.
Weaknesses- As mentioned before, this is not a program that does a lot of research. No fellowships are available.
Overall I really liked the program and will rank it very high
Food/Accomodations- Hotel not provided, but there are a number of decent hotels in the area that are inexpensive. No dinner the night before. Lunch was in one of the physician lounges at one of the hospitals.
Interview Day- The chief resident interacts with the candidates throughout the day, drives them around to the sites. Only three interviews- one with the cochair, one with the pd, and one with another faculty member. Everyone was really nice and laid back. The interview lasts until abou 3 oclock.
Program overview- This is more of a community program in the sense that Altapointe(which alabama contracts out for mental health services) is behind it. If you're looking to do a lot of research or eventually move up in academia, this is not the proram for you. No fellowships are available. The setup of the rotations was pretty typical. Right now none of the off service months have to be inpatient, but the new PD is planning on making at least one of the off service months inpatient for the future.
Call- 5-6 calls a month first year, 3-4 second year, and 3 third year. At first this seems heavy, but it's home call. The residents I spoke to said the average number of patients they had to actually drive to the hospital and go see any given call period was between 1 and 2. So they actually do stay home a good part of their call. It seems like in terms of total hours worked, this program would be less than most I've been at. Whether this is a good or bad thing depends on ones perspective I suppose.
Location- I really like the mobile area.
Benefits- salary is pretty typical, but in mobile it goes farther than atlanta or somewhere else. Moonlighting opportunities are available and some would do that, but there are no in house opportunities.
Strengths- Faculty are very down to earth. Seems the opposite of a malignant program. This is definately an attending driven program in the sense that the attendings do not depend on the residents to "get stuff done". I sense this is because not too long ago altapointe was functioning independently without residents, so the attendings at this program in many cases were used to not having residents around. If you want to work in community mental health one day this would be a great program because you already would be more familiar with community mental health than residents at larger programs with a more typical academic structure.
Weaknesses- As mentioned before, this is not a program that does a lot of research. No fellowships are available.
Overall I really liked the program and will rank it very high
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Scott & White in Temple, TX
Food/Accommodations –Dinner the night before at a resident's house. No hotel provided, but there are cheap hotels near campus. Starbucks for breakfast is provided the day of the interview. Lunch is at a really nice steak/seafood joint.
Interview Day – One on one interviews with 3 faculty members. Be aware that residents have a say in the final rank order list of the program. A brief tour is given of resident friendly neighborhoods. The day is very relaxed.
Program overview – The majority of the program has you in Temple, TX but you will spend a couple months outside at places like Waco, TX. The program does reimburse you for traveling costs. The program is very strong on resident learning experiences. They have no other motives, and they are not in desperate need of funding. You have Texas A&M students to teach, and research projects are available although few residents take advantage. The program does not work at Fort Hood anymore. You do work at a VA in Temple and Waco.
Faculty – The faculty I met were very dedicated to student teaching. They were all very personable and very laid back.
Call – You do not take call overnight with off-service months (first 6 months). Over the next year you take call overnight (24 hour shifts) at about q7. The next year of time is about q10 I believe. The last 1.5 years is no overnight call besides maybe back-up.
Location – If you like laid-back living, this is the place for you. You can find cheap housing in Temple or a number of small cities near by. Definitely the great country lifestyle if that is what you enjoy. You are within a few hours of Austin, DFW, Houston, and San Antonio. Housing is inexpensive. No traffic.
Benefits – Salary was average. Benefits seemed average. Moonlighting is available later in the curriculum but it is outside of Temple, TX (For example in Austin).
Program strengths – Quality teaching. Laid back city. Very little scutwork. Good C&A faculty although they are relatively young. Everyone is friendly including the residents.
Program weaknesses – The location depending on who you are. Few fellowships. Not heavy on research.
Food/Accommodations –Dinner the night before at a resident's house. No hotel provided, but there are cheap hotels near campus. Starbucks for breakfast is provided the day of the interview. Lunch is at a really nice steak/seafood joint.
Interview Day – One on one interviews with 3 faculty members. Be aware that residents have a say in the final rank order list of the program. A brief tour is given of resident friendly neighborhoods. The day is very relaxed.
Program overview – The majority of the program has you in Temple, TX but you will spend a couple months outside at places like Waco, TX. The program does reimburse you for traveling costs. The program is very strong on resident learning experiences. They have no other motives, and they are not in desperate need of funding. You have Texas A&M students to teach, and research projects are available although few residents take advantage. The program does not work at Fort Hood anymore. You do work at a VA in Temple and Waco.
Faculty – The faculty I met were very dedicated to student teaching. They were all very personable and very laid back.
Call – You do not take call overnight with off-service months (first 6 months). Over the next year you take call overnight (24 hour shifts) at about q7. The next year of time is about q10 I believe. The last 1.5 years is no overnight call besides maybe back-up.
Location – If you like laid-back living, this is the place for you. You can find cheap housing in Temple or a number of small cities near by. Definitely the great country lifestyle if that is what you enjoy. You are within a few hours of Austin, DFW, Houston, and San Antonio. Housing is inexpensive. No traffic.
Benefits – Salary was average. Benefits seemed average. Moonlighting is available later in the curriculum but it is outside of Temple, TX (For example in Austin).
Program strengths – Quality teaching. Laid back city. Very little scutwork. Good C&A faculty although they are relatively young. Everyone is friendly including the residents.
Program weaknesses – The location depending on who you are. Few fellowships. Not heavy on research.
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UTSW-Austin formerly AMEP
Food/Accommodations –Dinner the night before was at a fun restaurant on 6th st. Pretty casual. 2 residents joined us. Lunch on the day of interviews was at a Mexican food joint (looked family owned).
Interview Day – One on one interviews with 4 faculty. The day started with an informational ppt with the chief resident. The day lasted from 8-2:30pm. The afternoon involved a tour of outpatient and inpatient facilities. Prepare lots of questions to ask faculty.
Program overview – Pretty basic set-up with curriculum. 6 off-service months intern year. Inpatient peds is mandatory however. I believe you can choose between IM or Fam for inpatient months. The program is currently set-up to provide you with a very strong clinical education. Research definitely takes a back-seat. The department chair told me that she wasn't aware of anyone (faculty or residents) currently involved in research with the general residency program (not sure if this is common at community programs or not – my only one). Now that they are associated with UTSW, they are trying to bring in research. This process will probably be evolving over years. All residents are US medical graduates (MD and DO). No FMG's in the general residency program according to the chief resident. Most residents I met had a strong Austin background, but not all. A select few residents (2 or 3 of the 6) can spend 6 months part-time at UT-Austin for outpatient during 3rd year. The other group spends the time at the VA. They can't accommodate more students because they have a quota at the VA supposedly. No residents appeared overworked. 50 bed inpatient I believe. The rumors I've heard about Austin being in turmoil seemed unfounded. The program is growing rather quickly.
Faculty – The faculty I met were very nice. Interviews were informal. They are mostly just wanting you to ask them questions. They all seemed very nice and interested in resident education.
Call – You take call with off-service rotations except neurology supposedly. Inpatient psych is approximately q6 short call. One 24/hour weekend shift/month. Night float for a total of 2 months. 3rd/4th years are on back-up call – don't get called in often at all.
Location – Austin is a big selling point. A majority of the residents I met seemed to be drawn to this program based on the city.
Benefits – Salary was about $45,000. Free food at all Seton facilities. Free parking at all locations. Insurance benefits also seemed to be free for the entire family. I overheard one of the residents talking about how since Seton is a Catholic facility that they don't pay for certain female health stuff (Didn't quite catch it all)????
Program strengths – They talked about the child fellowship being strong. UTSW name on your diploma. They focus on clinical education. 1:1 with faculty is the norm at clinical sites. Residents seemed happy.
Program weaknesses – No research available. The UTSW change-over will probably bring changes to the program, so prepare to be a little flexible. The UT-Austin connection could be strengthened in my opinion.
Food/Accommodations –Dinner the night before was at a fun restaurant on 6th st. Pretty casual. 2 residents joined us. Lunch on the day of interviews was at a Mexican food joint (looked family owned).
Interview Day – One on one interviews with 4 faculty. The day started with an informational ppt with the chief resident. The day lasted from 8-2:30pm. The afternoon involved a tour of outpatient and inpatient facilities. Prepare lots of questions to ask faculty.
Program overview – Pretty basic set-up with curriculum. 6 off-service months intern year. Inpatient peds is mandatory however. I believe you can choose between IM or Fam for inpatient months. The program is currently set-up to provide you with a very strong clinical education. Research definitely takes a back-seat. The department chair told me that she wasn't aware of anyone (faculty or residents) currently involved in research with the general residency program (not sure if this is common at community programs or not – my only one). Now that they are associated with UTSW, they are trying to bring in research. This process will probably be evolving over years. All residents are US medical graduates (MD and DO). No FMG's in the general residency program according to the chief resident. Most residents I met had a strong Austin background, but not all. A select few residents (2 or 3 of the 6) can spend 6 months part-time at UT-Austin for outpatient during 3rd year. The other group spends the time at the VA. They can't accommodate more students because they have a quota at the VA supposedly. No residents appeared overworked. 50 bed inpatient I believe. The rumors I've heard about Austin being in turmoil seemed unfounded. The program is growing rather quickly.
Faculty – The faculty I met were very nice. Interviews were informal. They are mostly just wanting you to ask them questions. They all seemed very nice and interested in resident education.
Call – You take call with off-service rotations except neurology supposedly. Inpatient psych is approximately q6 short call. One 24/hour weekend shift/month. Night float for a total of 2 months. 3rd/4th years are on back-up call – don't get called in often at all.
Location – Austin is a big selling point. A majority of the residents I met seemed to be drawn to this program based on the city.
Benefits – Salary was about $45,000. Free food at all Seton facilities. Free parking at all locations. Insurance benefits also seemed to be free for the entire family. I overheard one of the residents talking about how since Seton is a Catholic facility that they don't pay for certain female health stuff (Didn't quite catch it all)????
Program strengths – They talked about the child fellowship being strong. UTSW name on your diploma. They focus on clinical education. 1:1 with faculty is the norm at clinical sites. Residents seemed happy.
Program weaknesses – No research available. The UTSW change-over will probably bring changes to the program, so prepare to be a little flexible. The UT-Austin connection could be strengthened in my opinion.
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No, things probably haven't changed -- I was just talking off the cuff about my impressions. Thanks for the correction.
-AT.
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they didn't tell you you could just give them the reciept and they would reimburse you a certain amount?(up to 90 dollars or so iirc).....
that's what I did and they sent a check within 10 days.....
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Sorry, you are right.
You get to pick the hotel and pay for it. Wasn't thinking about the reimbursement later.
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Hi everyone,
first thanks so much to everyone who's been posting!
I just wanted to ask about your thoughts on Baylor Houston if you interviewed there or are in the program. I got the impression that you are a workhorse without too many perks (no on call food, lots of parking fees, lots of commuting)
Any advice/thoughts would be much appreciated! Thanks in advance!
first thanks so much to everyone who's been posting!
I just wanted to ask about your thoughts on Baylor Houston if you interviewed there or are in the program. I got the impression that you are a workhorse without too many perks (no on call food, lots of parking fees, lots of commuting)
Any advice/thoughts would be much appreciated! Thanks in advance!
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Hi everyone,
first thanks so much to everyone who's been posting!
I just wanted to ask about your thoughts on Baylor Houston if you interviewed there or are in the program. I got the impression that you are a workhorse without too many perks (no on call food, lots of parking fees, lots of commuting)
Any advice/thoughts would be much appreciated! Thanks in advance!
Well this review might start a firestorm but here it is....
Baylor
Interview basics Program did not provide hotel but there was a dinner the night before with residents. When we arrived on site there was a light breakfast and a welcome by the Chief Resident. There were four interviews three of which were one-on-one and one which was a group interview. There was also a group meeting with the Vice Chair and another faculty. There was a group lunch in between some of the interviews. Finally, there was an optional tour of Ben Taub Hospital.
The program provided a very nice bound information booklet about the program. It has a lot of information on the program, residents, and faculty.
Facilities Some of the facilities mentioned include Ben Taub General Hospital, Methodist Hospital, the VA, Baylor Psychiatry Clinic, Texas Childrens, and the Menninger Clinic. I didnt get to see most of the facilities so I cannot really say what they are like one way or the other.
Schedule/Call, etc. PGY-I consists of 4 months of adult medicine (one month of peds can be substituted). 2 months of neuro. 5 months of inpatient psych (includes geri). 1 month of ER psych. There is also ½ day of didactics every Tuesday afternoon for 12 months. From the sounds of it call is basically q6 for most of the first year and if you lose residents within your class for an extended amount of time (pregnancy, illness, etc) can get all the way down to q3 before anything will be done about it.
The booklet explicitly states that the schedule is subject to change annually. That was one of the themes of the interview day, if you want to come to Baylor you need to be very flexible. However, I got the distinct sense that the program was not nearly as flexible as it expected the residents to be.
Setting/Location/Culture This is a relatively large program with 12 residents per class. The group seemed relatively diverse.
Houston is a large metropolitan area. The cost of living is on the lower end and there is quite a bit to do. There are some great restaurants in the area. If you can stand the humidity and the traffic its a pretty decent large city thats not nearly as expensive as other large cities.
Program did not seem very resident or family friendly. I also have quite a bit of concern regarding the financial situation of BCM. The proposed merger with Rice fell through and they are now discussing remerging with Baylor University. There were quite a few issues that caused these two institutions to separate in 1968 and this proposed reconciliation looks pretty desperate to me (just an opinion). The residents said that you can pursue any opportunity that interests you but you need to be persistent and ask three or four times (which seems like it would be frustrating to me). The positive aspect of the culture that I noted was the commitment to community service. The residents have multiple opportunities to serve the community though various programs (womens leadership, minority, etc.).
Benefits The pay seems to be on the low end of the scale, but cost of living seems to be on the low end as well. Health and dental are fully paid by the program. Otherwise the benefits look pretty standard. I dont remember anything that really stands out.
Strengths Ample research opportunities. Ability to do community service through various organizations. Opportunities to work in various specialty clinics. Strong psychoanalytic training. Working in the Menninger Clinic seems like it would be an amazing experience. In general there seem to be opportunities to work in an area of interest you might have.
Weaknesses The call schedule seems relatively heavy and can get much worse if a few of your fellow residents are out for an extended period (and from the sounds of it you are really expected to suck it up). I didnt get the feeling that the program was very family friendly. You may need to ask multiple times to pursue your area of interest. The program expects you to be flexible but doesnt seem to reciprocate. The faculty really talked up the merger with Rice. Now that the merger has fallen through the merger with Baylor University doesnt seem to be a panacea either (in my opinion).
Overall There are a lot of exciting training opportunities available at Baylor. Almost all of my areas of interest are available and the ability to work in the Menninger Clinic is extremely exciting. But there are enough red flags that I will not be ranking this program.
FWIW there was at least on other candidate that was impressed with the program and was going to rank it highly. So to each their own!
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thanks so much trophyhusband!!
did you have any thoughts on UT Houston compared to Baylor?
I interviewed early in the season at UT Houston and was surprised to find myself as the only American grad in the interview bunch. I didn't get to meet many residents, and when I asked about the demographics of IMG to AMG, the few residents I did meet said it's about 50/50 per class. While I had some down time in the waiting room I saw a picture of residents past and present on the wall and most seemed to be IMGs.
I liked UT Houston, I'm just not sure if the heavy percentage of IMGs has an effect on the program.
thanks in advance!
did you have any thoughts on UT Houston compared to Baylor?
I interviewed early in the season at UT Houston and was surprised to find myself as the only American grad in the interview bunch. I didn't get to meet many residents, and when I asked about the demographics of IMG to AMG, the few residents I did meet said it's about 50/50 per class. While I had some down time in the waiting room I saw a picture of residents past and present on the wall and most seemed to be IMGs.
I liked UT Houston, I'm just not sure if the heavy percentage of IMGs has an effect on the program.
thanks in advance!
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Just adding some further impressions and corrections to the review above:
Interview Day We were told to arrive early and then were given some materials to read and but the day did not start until the originally scheduled time. There was a PowerPoint overview presented by the PD at the HSC. One interview (a faculty) was conducted at HSC and then we had boxed lunches with two residents (PGY-II and PGY-III). We were then taken to HCPC. The group of applicants was split in two with one group going on a tour of HCPC and one group being interviewed. The groups then switched off. The tour was conducted by a PGY-I and a PGY-II. The interviews at HCPC were with the Chair, PD, and two faculty. Some of the interviewers were late to the interviews and the schedule seemed fairly disorganized.
Program Overview Along with the new PD the Chair is also new. Also, there are 10 residents per class.
There is a separate research track and as noted above the program seems to be pushing for more research. There is lots of opportunity for imaging. The program has a 89.7% board pass rate vs. the national average of 88%; which would seem to be within the margin of error but they seemed very proud of it.
Faculty The new chair has a vision of more specialty clinics, more research, and independent faculty time. Another faculty was especially interested in cross cultural psych. Research interests I noted were bipolar, fMRI, substance abuse, autism spectrum disorder. The faculty were said to be good teachers. The PD has an open door policy. I was told the didactics were good.
Call Agree with most of what was written above. Except, short call is actually from 3PM to 8PM, though if it's busy there is flexibility to stay until 10PM to finish notes without going over the 80 hour week (you also get to pick your short call day). The average workweek was said to be around 55 hours. The beeper call in 3rd year is back-up call. There is also a big buddy system in place to help the interns during their first few month of call.
Location Don't have much to add here.
Benefits Agree on the salary being a little low. There is an extra week of vacation during either Christmas or New Year that is not counted in the normal vacation time. Sick days roll over. $100 for books in PGY-III and PGY-IV. Parking is expensive at HCPC ($80/month) and no professional association dues are paid by the program.
Program strengths The residents seemed like a diverse bunch. The faculty are said to be good teachers. Research opportunities with the program's new focus. HCPC looks to be pretty much a one stop shop for psychiatric needs. There are new specialty clinics planned. The program seems resident friendly. The PD has an open door policy. There is early exposure to therapy. There is a new outpatient facility. There is an autism clinic if that is a point of interest for you. Houston is a diverse city and there shouldn't be an issue working with any patient population that interests you. The didactics are said to be good.
Program weaknesses HCPC, with it being a one stop shop the residents spend a lot of their training there and I got the sense that maybe they felt they spent too much time there. The future specialty clinics sound great but it didn't look like many (if any) of them had been started to this point. Houston traffic is generally pretty horrible. Minimal exposure to ECT (none at HCPC).
Overall Seemed like a pretty good program and the residents seemed pretty happy. The call schedule seems very manageable and there looks to be good therapy exposure. I don't know that it has many of my areas of interest up and running at this point.
As you can see we've been holding out on a few reviews (my wife has been extremely busy and hasn't had a chance to review these before I post) please forgive us! At any rate, I don't think she got a sense that the program was IMG centric and I don't think that would bother her anyway so I don't know that she would notice normally. There were funding issues at Harris for a few years if I remember correctly and interns had to spend almost a year doing primary care so I wouldn't be surprised is this turned off AMG's during that period and caused an increase in IMG's. We've heard the funding issues had been cleared up but we didn't get the sense that there was absolutely no way it could happen again... so caveat emptor and all that. We will be ranking this program so we're not too concerned about it.
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Sorry for another, but I wanted to add that I spoke with a 4th yr from UTH on the interview trail and she said that the residents there were all really genuinly happy, the call is as good as it seems, its not all just an interview day ruse!
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thanks to you both for the input!! much appreciated!
well its community program only University is only for name you do only non Psych rotations there
Didactics sucks, not so balanced program mostly psychopharm most of the residents are IMG and Old grads
Most of the faculties are new and young that means not so good in terms of learning cos you never know when they ll leave as lots of peole left recently
but otherwise everything is fine is you are looking for a perfect laid back program and not looking for fellowship
Didactics sucks, not so balanced program mostly psychopharm most of the residents are IMG and Old grads
Most of the faculties are new and young that means not so good in terms of learning cos you never know when they ll leave as lots of peole left recently
but otherwise everything is fine is you are looking for a perfect laid back program and not looking for fellowship
I'm sorry for not seeing this earlier, I've been out of town interviewing. But if you're still trying to decide, I'll throw in my two cents.
I interviewed at Monte and loved it. Some of the nicest, down to earth and friendly people I've met. Great atmosphere in terms of people. Big program with lots of great residents.
The Bronx, like most other big city areas, is ugly. Not that much uglier than any other part of New York but without all the cute little shops and stuff that more popular (and expensive) areas in NY would have. But all the residents assured me that the areas was very safe.
Amazing benefits. I have the feeling you work very hard when you're at work, and the patient population is, well, the Bronx. Which could be a plus or a minus depending on your preferences.
Great didactic schedule - in fact you don't go to work on Thursdays, you just go to classes.
Overall I liked the program very much and the residents seemed really happy, which is important to me. But it might now be where you want to live, etc. etc.
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Please allow myself to quote... myself. The wife and I were going over the UT-Houston benefits again and I noted that the malpractice insurance they provide is limited to $100,000/$300,000. This seems extremely low to me. Would anyone who has more experience with malpractice insurance than I do care to chime in on whether this would be adequate? Thanks in advance.
Edit: After thinking about it Texas is a tort reform state so maybe that is why the coverage amounts seem so low. I'd still like to know if anyone has any thoughts though. Thanks.
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Good review. Got a little confused about your call notes though. You mention that short call is only until 8pm as to stay under work hour rules, but you also mention that the average week is only 55 hours. Did you get those numbers right?
The biggest negative I had with the program was the benefits. For one of the most expensive cities in TX (if not the most expensive), I don't understand why they are compensating residents so poorly.
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Sorry for another, but I wanted to add that I spoke with a 4th yr from UTH on the interview trail and she said that the residents there were all really genuinly happy, the call is as good as it seems, its not all just an interview day ruse!
I was able to talk to about 5 interns there. They seem very happy with the psych months, but all seemed to not like off-service months at all. I'm glad they enjoy the psych months though since so much time is spent at HCPC.
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Yeah, the numbers don't quite work out but it's pretty much a direct quote from them (the residents). So it seems like there could be weeks where you could hit the 80 hours but the overall average is 55 hours. At least that's how we interpreted it.
Actually, after thinking about it they must have been describing a week when you would have a couple of late calls and a 24 hour weekend call which would put you near 80 hours.
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There's more to work hour rules than 80 hours/week. There's also a required number of hours off between shifts (10, last I checked, but there's talk of upping it to 12) - so that might be the rule requirement to have short call end at a certain time.
I'm sorry for not seeing this earlier, I've been out of town interviewing. But if you're still trying to decide, I'll throw in my two cents.
I interviewed at Monte and loved it. Some of the nicest, down to earth and friendly people I've met. Great atmosphere in terms of people. Big program with lots of great residents.
The Bronx, like most other big city areas, is ugly. Not that much uglier than any other part of New York but without all the cute little shops and stuff that more popular (and expensive) areas in NY would have. But all the residents assured me that the areas was very safe.
Amazing benefits. I have the feeling you work very hard when you're at work, and the patient population is, well, the Bronx. Which could be a plus or a minus depending on your preferences.
Great didactic schedule - in fact you don't go to work on Thursdays, you just go to classes.
Overall I liked the program very much and the residents seemed really happy, which is important to me. But it might now be where you want to live, etc. etc.
Thanks so much, Psychelle!!
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General: The UW psychiatry training programme in Seattle, WA utilises a variety of training sites. Main training sites include the Seattle VA, the UWMC, Harborview Medical Center, and Seattle Childrens. There are 11 residents per year, plus residents on the Spokane and Idaho tracks.
Call: Call is complex, and does not work out to a simple q-number system. You take off-service call when you are off-service. There is call all four years, but decreasing in number. The first two years you take standard psychiatry call on-service, but in the 2nd two years, you take training call in which you are the backup and supervisor of the junior resident on-call, and as such you have far fewer duties. Call at Harborview is overnight, as there is a PES which you must cover when not involved in floor duties. At other hospitals it is home call.
Interview: There is dinner the night before the interview but I wasn't able to make it. I had four hour-long interviews with 2 faculty, 1 third-year resident, and the PD. My interviews were all in different (Harborview, Roosevelt Outpatient Center) and I was asked to utilise the UWMC shuttle system which came by every 15 mins and was easy to use. I should mention that I interviewed on a special day they set aside especially for me since I could not make one of their regular days. Thus I was the only person interviewing that day. They were extremely accommodating and I was grateful they worked around my schedule.
Strengths: The University of Washington programme is one of the most complete and prestigious of the west coast. UWs psychiatry programme is a full-service, 5-star level traditional research powerhouse with hundreds of faculty and the opportunity to do just about anything you want. In one phrase, boundless opportunity.
You get indigent patients, PES exposure, and involuntary inpatient experience at Harborview, a county hospital. You get higher-functioning, middle-class patients and voluntary units at the University of Washington Medical Center, a tertiary care university hospital. You get rotations at the VA with its population, and exposure to child at Seattle Childrens. There are limitless research opportunities. If you are interested in DBT (as I am), this is the institution where it was developed, albeit by Marsha Linnerman(?) of the psychology department. However there is a year-long longitudinal elective for DBT, and you can decide exactly how much and how deep you want to go with it. ECT is very strong, all residents are required to be exposed to it, but you are more than welcome to train to certification and proficiency at your discretion. There is opportunity to get involved in womens mental health, cultural psychiatry, rural away rotations at the WWAMI states, etc. There are 4 psychoanalytic institutes in Seattle. All-in-all, anything and everything you could want to do.
There is free lunch 3 times a week. Faculty that I met were all very nice, and residents say the PD is wonderful and responsive to resident concerns. Facilities were very nice; the inpatient units at Harborview were some of the nicest and cleanest Ive ever seen, especially impressive considering it is a county hospital. Most of the charting for the hospitals are electronic. Orders are still hand-written but may be changing soon.
Perhaps one of the greatest strengths of the programme is the location of Seattle. Seattle, and the Pacific Northwest in general, is gorgeous. The natural beauty of the city and its surroundings are undeniable even to the most cynical east-coaster. Mount Ranier looms majestically in the background. Everywhere there is water, as the city is bounded on both sides by large bodies of water (Puget Sound and Lake Washington). The city is hilly, giving it a striking sense of dimension similar to SF, and allowing you great views as you drive downhill. The population of Seattle is well-educated and diverse. Authentic ethnic foods abound. Cultural and sporting events are abundant. The weather is right up my alley. Some people dont like the rain and need sunshine, but I dont mind it. The weather is mild year-round, with winters around the 40s-50s. Snow is a rare event. However, when it does snow the city is paralyzed, as can be anticipated. Summers are absolutely gorgeous, I am told.
Weaknesses:
Residents at UW work hard. There is no way around it. However, it is bearable and not as bad as it used to be, I am told. A month-long night-float system similar to the one used by CU Denver has been put in place, and this has helped decrease call volume. Unlike most programmes, here is indeed call all four years. UWs prestigious internal medicine residency programme is legendary for its hardcore-ness and frequent work-hour limit violations in the past. Thus, as can be expected, your internal medicine experience in intern year of psychiatry is likewise legendarily hardcore. However, the 3rd-year resident I interviewed with assured me that it is not as bad as she thought it would be, and she still feels like she had plenty of free time during residency to pursue her interests, go hiking, etc. Even on internal medicine she estimates she never got over 60 hours a week, and usually she is around 40-50 hours on avg. So take everything with a grain of salt. All in all she said she was extremely happy with her training at UW, and plans on staying in Seattle for life (she grew up in Toledo, OH).
UW has a reputation for being a biologically oriented programme, possibly the most biologically oriented on the west coast. However I have gotten mixed reports from my interviewers. One faculty said that this reputation is probably true, and that people at UW do not put a lot of stock or faith in psychodynamic theory, and have a difficult time talking about things like transference with a straight face. The PD felt that this reputation is a bit outdated, and that it stemmed from the historical reason that the chair during the early 1980s once wrote an (in)famous article proclaiming that Psychotherapy is Dead. However, PDs and chairs have long since changed, and there are faculty with a wide variety of interests and viewpoints. However, even she admits that UWs curriculumn probably puts more emphasis on the more evidence-based and practical psychotherapy modalities such as supportive and CBT, rather than old-school psychoanalysis. She also admits that, despite having 4 psychoanalytic institutes in the city, there are no analysts on the entire faculty. This is in stark contrast to OHSU where the PD himself is an analyst with couch. The resident I talked to felt she got plenty of psychotherapy training, including lots of psychodynamic theory. In fact she felt maybe she is getting a bit too much for her taste, since she has little interest in practising psychotherapy in her career, and doesnt really believe in psychodynamics anyway. My feeling is that the truth probably is there is some slant, but there is probably plenty of opportunity to shore up any shortcomings in the first 2 years with 4th year electives if it is very important to you.
There is a mandatory research/scholarly project that you must complete during residency. I think this is annoying, and thus I list it as a negative.
Parking is a hassle, and is expensive. My resident interviewer elects to take the bus instead. In fact, parking is a mess in Seattle in general, like in SF. Unlike SF the public transportation is not up to par to compensate for lack of parking. There are some proof-of-concept monorail lines here-and-there, but for the most part bus is the only way to get around if you are not driving. Seattle is not a cheap place to live. It is less expensive than the Bay Area (but isnt everywhere?) however I felt the cost of living was (at least anecdotally) comparable to the greater Los Angeles area, particularly my hometown area of the San Gabriel Valley. Its not Malibu prices, but still a 1 bdrm will cost over $1000 in city limits. Overall Seattle is an awesome city, but it did feel a little grungier, and little less well-planned, and a little dirtier than nearby Portland. Also, despite the streets looking very simple on a map, Seattle has some of the worst-planned, most confusing streets I have ever driven through west of the Mississippi. They are absolutely awful for a newcomer to drive through. Certain streets and certain lanes go in certain directions during certain times of the day.
Synthesis: Hardcore training in every sense; boundless opportunities and educational variety. However, the work is likewise hardcore, as it is in most A-class research university programmes. Unfortunately as good as the training is, it may not be as balanced as at other places. However, it probably is what you make of it. Seattle is an awesome city and a wonderful place for someone like me to settle down in, but I didnt love it quite as much as I thought I would. Nevertheless, UW will be in my top 5.
Call: Call is complex, and does not work out to a simple q-number system. You take off-service call when you are off-service. There is call all four years, but decreasing in number. The first two years you take standard psychiatry call on-service, but in the 2nd two years, you take training call in which you are the backup and supervisor of the junior resident on-call, and as such you have far fewer duties. Call at Harborview is overnight, as there is a PES which you must cover when not involved in floor duties. At other hospitals it is home call.
Interview: There is dinner the night before the interview but I wasn't able to make it. I had four hour-long interviews with 2 faculty, 1 third-year resident, and the PD. My interviews were all in different (Harborview, Roosevelt Outpatient Center) and I was asked to utilise the UWMC shuttle system which came by every 15 mins and was easy to use. I should mention that I interviewed on a special day they set aside especially for me since I could not make one of their regular days. Thus I was the only person interviewing that day. They were extremely accommodating and I was grateful they worked around my schedule.
Strengths: The University of Washington programme is one of the most complete and prestigious of the west coast. UWs psychiatry programme is a full-service, 5-star level traditional research powerhouse with hundreds of faculty and the opportunity to do just about anything you want. In one phrase, boundless opportunity.
You get indigent patients, PES exposure, and involuntary inpatient experience at Harborview, a county hospital. You get higher-functioning, middle-class patients and voluntary units at the University of Washington Medical Center, a tertiary care university hospital. You get rotations at the VA with its population, and exposure to child at Seattle Childrens. There are limitless research opportunities. If you are interested in DBT (as I am), this is the institution where it was developed, albeit by Marsha Linnerman(?) of the psychology department. However there is a year-long longitudinal elective for DBT, and you can decide exactly how much and how deep you want to go with it. ECT is very strong, all residents are required to be exposed to it, but you are more than welcome to train to certification and proficiency at your discretion. There is opportunity to get involved in womens mental health, cultural psychiatry, rural away rotations at the WWAMI states, etc. There are 4 psychoanalytic institutes in Seattle. All-in-all, anything and everything you could want to do.
There is free lunch 3 times a week. Faculty that I met were all very nice, and residents say the PD is wonderful and responsive to resident concerns. Facilities were very nice; the inpatient units at Harborview were some of the nicest and cleanest Ive ever seen, especially impressive considering it is a county hospital. Most of the charting for the hospitals are electronic. Orders are still hand-written but may be changing soon.
Perhaps one of the greatest strengths of the programme is the location of Seattle. Seattle, and the Pacific Northwest in general, is gorgeous. The natural beauty of the city and its surroundings are undeniable even to the most cynical east-coaster. Mount Ranier looms majestically in the background. Everywhere there is water, as the city is bounded on both sides by large bodies of water (Puget Sound and Lake Washington). The city is hilly, giving it a striking sense of dimension similar to SF, and allowing you great views as you drive downhill. The population of Seattle is well-educated and diverse. Authentic ethnic foods abound. Cultural and sporting events are abundant. The weather is right up my alley. Some people dont like the rain and need sunshine, but I dont mind it. The weather is mild year-round, with winters around the 40s-50s. Snow is a rare event. However, when it does snow the city is paralyzed, as can be anticipated. Summers are absolutely gorgeous, I am told.
Weaknesses:
Residents at UW work hard. There is no way around it. However, it is bearable and not as bad as it used to be, I am told. A month-long night-float system similar to the one used by CU Denver has been put in place, and this has helped decrease call volume. Unlike most programmes, here is indeed call all four years. UWs prestigious internal medicine residency programme is legendary for its hardcore-ness and frequent work-hour limit violations in the past. Thus, as can be expected, your internal medicine experience in intern year of psychiatry is likewise legendarily hardcore. However, the 3rd-year resident I interviewed with assured me that it is not as bad as she thought it would be, and she still feels like she had plenty of free time during residency to pursue her interests, go hiking, etc. Even on internal medicine she estimates she never got over 60 hours a week, and usually she is around 40-50 hours on avg. So take everything with a grain of salt. All in all she said she was extremely happy with her training at UW, and plans on staying in Seattle for life (she grew up in Toledo, OH).
UW has a reputation for being a biologically oriented programme, possibly the most biologically oriented on the west coast. However I have gotten mixed reports from my interviewers. One faculty said that this reputation is probably true, and that people at UW do not put a lot of stock or faith in psychodynamic theory, and have a difficult time talking about things like transference with a straight face. The PD felt that this reputation is a bit outdated, and that it stemmed from the historical reason that the chair during the early 1980s once wrote an (in)famous article proclaiming that Psychotherapy is Dead. However, PDs and chairs have long since changed, and there are faculty with a wide variety of interests and viewpoints. However, even she admits that UWs curriculumn probably puts more emphasis on the more evidence-based and practical psychotherapy modalities such as supportive and CBT, rather than old-school psychoanalysis. She also admits that, despite having 4 psychoanalytic institutes in the city, there are no analysts on the entire faculty. This is in stark contrast to OHSU where the PD himself is an analyst with couch. The resident I talked to felt she got plenty of psychotherapy training, including lots of psychodynamic theory. In fact she felt maybe she is getting a bit too much for her taste, since she has little interest in practising psychotherapy in her career, and doesnt really believe in psychodynamics anyway. My feeling is that the truth probably is there is some slant, but there is probably plenty of opportunity to shore up any shortcomings in the first 2 years with 4th year electives if it is very important to you.
There is a mandatory research/scholarly project that you must complete during residency. I think this is annoying, and thus I list it as a negative.
Parking is a hassle, and is expensive. My resident interviewer elects to take the bus instead. In fact, parking is a mess in Seattle in general, like in SF. Unlike SF the public transportation is not up to par to compensate for lack of parking. There are some proof-of-concept monorail lines here-and-there, but for the most part bus is the only way to get around if you are not driving. Seattle is not a cheap place to live. It is less expensive than the Bay Area (but isnt everywhere?) however I felt the cost of living was (at least anecdotally) comparable to the greater Los Angeles area, particularly my hometown area of the San Gabriel Valley. Its not Malibu prices, but still a 1 bdrm will cost over $1000 in city limits. Overall Seattle is an awesome city, but it did feel a little grungier, and little less well-planned, and a little dirtier than nearby Portland. Also, despite the streets looking very simple on a map, Seattle has some of the worst-planned, most confusing streets I have ever driven through west of the Mississippi. They are absolutely awful for a newcomer to drive through. Certain streets and certain lanes go in certain directions during certain times of the day.
Synthesis: Hardcore training in every sense; boundless opportunities and educational variety. However, the work is likewise hardcore, as it is in most A-class research university programmes. Unfortunately as good as the training is, it may not be as balanced as at other places. However, it probably is what you make of it. Seattle is an awesome city and a wonderful place for someone like me to settle down in, but I didnt love it quite as much as I thought I would. Nevertheless, UW will be in my top 5.
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It's Marsha Linehan, founder of DBT.
And, BTW, what does it mean when someone "doesn't believe in psychodynamics?" Does it mean that they don't believe that there is such a thing as the unconscious mind? Not to hijack the thread, but isn't it a bit silly to think that people are completely aware of every thought, feeling and wish that motivates their behavior?
And, BTW, what does it mean when someone "doesn't believe in psychodynamics?" Does it mean that they don't believe that there is such a thing as the unconscious mind? Not to hijack the thread, but isn't it a bit silly to think that people are completely aware of every thought, feeling and wish that motivates their behavior?
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I agree with this. Seattle is one of the most beautiful cities where I've ever driven.
There may be a 'slant' there, but I think the important thing to realize is that you can do whatever you want if you take a little initiative. One of the current PGY4's got the American Psychoanalytic Association fellowship and will be entering analyst training after finishing.
-AT.
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I completely agree, and that's pretty much what I said, that there probably is a slant, but your experience will likely be what you make of it. I got the sense that you can have all the old-school psychoanalysis training you want if you have the urge to seek it out. It just may not be served up on a silver platter.
