Play it safe?

[mts]

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Rad onc is insanely competitive now. Currently, this situation has not happened to me but it has happened to other people. What would you do?

Program A is a great program where you feel comfortable at, you know you can be successful at and you want to go there. You have a good shot at matching there as long as you rank and tell them that you rank them number one. But the location is not ideal due to personal reasons.

Program B is a great program with the same credentials and the location better suits your personal reasons. But, given the competitiveness of this field you may not be high on their rank list.

Should you rank Program A #1 and strain you personal relationship or should you rank Program B #1 with the possiblitiy of not getting into either program?

If I was to rank Program B, what can I do to improve my chances of matching at that program (even if I didn't apply for an externship).

 

[Thaiger75]

The decision would largely depend on what these personal reasons are and how much I (or you) value them. I am assuming that Prog B is more competitive than A? It may not matter much if A and B are pretty close in competitiveness. Not much you can do now to increase your chances with B now that the application process is pretty much done, except having someone you know well or one of your LOR writers to give a personal call to somebody from B (if they know them well).

Rad onc is insanely competitive now. Currently, this situation has not happened to me but it has happened to other people. What would you do?

Program A is a great program where you feel comfortable at, you know you can be successful at and you want to go there. You have a good shot at matching there as long as you rank and tell them that you rank them number one. But the location is not ideal due to personal reasons.

Program B is a great program with the same credentials and the location better suits your personal reasons. But, given the competitiveness of this field you may not be high on their rank list.

Should you rank Program A #1 and strain you personal relationship or should you rank Program B #1 with the possiblitiy of not getting into either program?

If I was to rank Program B, what can I do to improve my chances of matching at that program (even if I didn't apply for an externship).

 

[pikachu]

application process is "pretty much done????"

are you saying that the interview doesn't mean much?

 

[Thaiger75]

application process is "pretty much done????"

are you saying that the interview doesn't mean much?

Of course they do. I meant the application process as in the actual sending in of ERAS or written applications (I'm assuming that most of you have already sent them in).

 

[medduck]

Should you rank Program A #1 and strain you personal relationship or should you rank Program B #1 with the possiblitiy of not getting into either program?

If I was to rank Program B, what can I do to improve my chances of matching at that program (even if I didn't apply for an externship).

The match exists to protect applicants from such situations. I would rank program B #1 and A #2. If you think it will help, tell A that you ranked them #1. If you match there, they never see where you ranked them- it's confidential. If you match at B, who care's about A. Programs like A shouldn't be basing their decisions on who ranks them #1.

 

[mts]

The match exists to protect applicants from such situations. I would rank program B #1 and A #2. If you think it will help, tell A that you ranked them #1. If you match there, they never see where you ranked them- it's confidential. If you match at B, who care's about A. Programs like A shouldn't be basing their decisions on who ranks them #1.

Although I respect your opinion, I will be upfront and honest with any program during the application process and during the ranking process. This is a small field and it is not worth trying to play any games with my future colleagues. I would want people from both programs to respect me now and in my future career. The only way I can earn that respect is by treating each program the same way. In my opinion, being less than honest will only lead to trouble.