Pleasant Surprises on the interview trail

[racerx]

---

Members do not see this ad.

Now that the interview season is almost over, what programs were pleasant surprises for you?

For me, it was the University of Vermont program. Small, but good clinical experiences. Faculty is laid-back and very approachable. In observing some interaction between the residents and faculty, it appears very collegial. The surrounding city of Burlington is small, and might not be everyone's cup of tea, but has everything one may need during residency.

 

[RedAnesthesia]

Now that the interview season is almost over, what programs were pleasant surprises for you?

For me, it was the University of Vermont program. Small, but good clinical experiences. Faculty is laid-back and very approachable. In observing some interaction between the residents and faculty, it appears very collegial. The surrounding city of Burlington is small, and might not be everyone's cup of tea, but has everything one may need during residency.

I completely agree racerx. I didn't have high expectations going into the interview at Vermont but was really surprised by the whole visit. All the residents were friendly and there was like 10-11 residents at the dinner which is impressive considering they only have 18 in the whole residency(barring 2 categoricals). The residents called attendings by first name and got a similar sense of collegial atmosphere. My only concern about Vermont is getting a job back in the Midwest after residency given Vermont doesn't have a strong name in the field of anesthesia, other than that it is on Lake Champlain and Burlington is awesome.

 

[Sdp]

Baylor...quite shocked at how incredible this program is, arguably the best program without a name.

 

[Camel]

Honestly, I did not have high expectations for Beaumont only because it is a new program; however, they did a fantastic job of addressing the concerns that wold follow their position as a newcomer. The hospital was beautiful, and 110,000 surgeries last year certainly does not hurt 🙂

If the economy of Detroit does not hold them back, I could definitely see Beaumont as another Mayo or CCF in the future (which is their purported goal as a hospital).

Was also pleasantly surprised by WVU.

 

[wena17]

.

 

[DScully]

Agreed with the comment regarding UC-Irvine. The chair is incredibly smart and knows how to sell the program.

 

[2win]

Now that the interview season is almost over, what programs were pleasant surprises for you?

For me, it was the University of Vermont program. Small, but good clinical experiences. Faculty is laid-back and very approachable. In observing some interaction between the residents and faculty, it appears very collegial. The surrounding city of Burlington is small, and might not be everyone's cup of tea, but has everything one may need during residency.

I think Vermont could be a comfortable residency.
On the other way I couldn't stay more than 1 hour in that stinky liberal town.
They are lost in time...
GLTY

 

[racerx]

I think Vermont could be a comfortable residency.
On the other way I couldn't stay more than 1 hour in that stinky liberal town.
They are lost in time...
GLTY

LOL. I hear you on the liberal town part. However, I am very adept at surviving in, ahem, hostile environments.

Not ranking them first, but they are going to be higher than a couple others, regardless of the political environment.

 

[2win]

LOL. I hear you on the liberal town part. However, I am very adept at surviving in, ahem, hostile environments.

Not ranking them first, but they are going to be higher than a couple others, regardless of the political environment.

I tend to overreact when I hear Vermont - way to liberal on my taste.
Otherwise great scenery and open space. I don't have any idea about the program, I didn't even know that they have one .
Take care buddy!

 

[WholeLottaGame7]

I liked both UF and Maryland more than I thought I would. Of course, I might have been a little more negative going in, but still.

 

[lfesiam]

I liked both UF and Maryland more than I thought I would. Of course, I might have been a little more negative going in, but still.

To OP, Pleasant surprises for me last year:

Maine Medical Center

Vermont

Univ New Mexico

St. Luke's

 

[cfdavid]

I have to plug one for my home program, Wayne State/Detroit Medical Center.

Also, I really liked Albany. Nice faculty, good program, happy residents, big focus on didactics and passing the ABA exams.

cf

 

[checkov]

I was very surprised at how good Yale was -- very collegial residents, good research opportunities, and robust clinical rigor.

 

[Sdp]

I was very surprised at how good Yale was -- very collegial residents, good research opportunities, and robust clinical rigor.

I was also very surprised by how good the Yale package was, especially considering some of the negative reviews it has gotten. Still in disbelief that they didn't fill last year. Either they've made some huge changes or we caught them on a really good day. Glad to hear someone else felt the same way.

 

[IlDestriero]

I was very surprised at how good Yale was -- very collegial residents, good research opportunities, and robust clinical rigor.

🤣🤣🤣

 

[checkov]

IlDestriero, just out of curiosity, did you have a bad experience with Yale?

I really liked the people I interacted with during my interview day [Dr. Hines, Kurup, etc.], and plan to rank the program extremely highly, above Brigham & Womens, Mayo, UCSF, Beth Israel Deaconess, and others.

 

[MCYan]

I was also very surprised by how good the Yale package was, especially considering some of the negative reviews it has gotten. Still in disbelief that they didn't fill last year. Either they've made some huge changes or we caught them on a really good day. Glad to hear someone else felt the same way.

+1 on Yale. Also I was very impressed with Sinai in NY. Their PD is an awesome guy, their department is very rich, exceptional clinical experiences (major transplant center in NYC), great location. I would rank them first within NYC, and even above harvard programs and hopkins.

 

[DScully]

I was very surprised at how good Yale was -- very collegial residents, good research opportunities, and robust clinical rigor.

When I interviewed at Yale, I was also very pleasantly surprised by the program. The people seem very satisfied with the education they receive and the support they have. Also they seem very innovative, which is a quality that can be sometimes hard to come by in this field.

I happened to attend the grand round led by Barash and he is simply amazing (also very funny too). After the interview, I chit-chatted with both the PD and the chair and they are also very down to earth. Overall, I think Yale has a very solid program (but again, that's just based on my interview experience).

 

[IlDestriero]

.

 

[Sdp]

🤣🤣🤣

I know 3 faculty that left Yale. I only know what they've told me.
Perhaps it is great training. There are lots of programs that are fine for training and toxic to faculty. Don't plan to stay on. That's all I'll say, as I'm not going to pass on any hearsay. Look hard at Yale.

Dude, this isn't helping much. Could you please elaborate so the deficiencies can be addressed?

Previous critiques of the program:
1. Location sucks.
2. Residents are unhappy.
3. Poor work environment/long work hours.

New Haven was pretty shady but the other two seemed unfounded. Any help/advice you can provide would be much appreciated, thanks.

 

[Sdp]

Another dark horse: USC Trojans

 

[IlDestriero]

.

 

[lord_jeebus]

Another dark horse: USC Trojans

Interesting...I ranked them last when I applied.

One of their interviewers accused me of lying when I told her about my research...she said it was "impossible" and that "you must be mistaken or making it up"...no reply when I emailed her a PDF of the published paper.

Another accused me of lying when I mentioned that anesthesia residents on the SICU rotation at my medical school took care of CT and Trauma patients, told me that "no program in the country does that."

Not sure why I ranked them at all.

 

[foxtrot]

I completely agree racerx. I didn't have high expectations going into the interview at Vermont but was really surprised by the whole visit. All the residents were friendly and there was like 10-11 residents at the dinner which is impressive considering they only have 18 in the whole residency(barring 2 categoricals). The residents called attendings by first name and got a similar sense of collegial atmosphere. My only concern about Vermont is getting a job back in the Midwest after residency given Vermont doesn't have a strong name in the field of anesthesia, other than that it is on Lake Champlain and Burlington is awesome.

Vermont does have a good residency program. However, I do agree with this poster's comment that if you plan on going anywhere outside of the New England region, you may have a difficult time finding a job because no one really knows much about them. PM me if you have any questions.

 

[bluehighlighter]

I liked both UF and Maryland more than I thought I would. Of course, I might have been a little more negative going in, but still.

I was only pleasantly surprised by Maryland..

 

[Sdp]

Interesting...I ranked them last when I applied.

One of their interviewers accused me of lying when I told her about my research...she said it was "impossible" and that "you must be mistaken or making it up"...no reply when I emailed her a PDF of the published paper.

Another accused me of lying when I mentioned that anesthesia residents on the SICU rotation at my medical school took care of CT and Trauma patients, told me that "no program in the country does that."

Not sure why I ranked them at all.

Sounds like a rough day! I had heard only negative things and was expecting the above when I went, however I was pleasantly surprised. Facilities were top-notch, residents were happy, clinical training was strong and most importantly...California!

It seems no one else felt the same way though...

(Where you been all this time lordjeebus? Always liked your posts way back when you were going through this🙂)

 

[darkmansaad]

VCU in Richmond.....def liked that more than I thought I would

 

[wmc24]

St barnabas in NJ and univ of illinois chicago. UIC especially, awesome and friendly staff, seem to be conducting good clinical research, good clincal opportunities along with good didactics and time to read.

 

[lfesiam]

VCU in Richmond.....def liked that more than I thought I would

2nd VCU. Friend loved it there.

 

[Ignatius J]

Asked a friend going into anesthesia:

He was very impressed with UIC.

Also impressed with Baylor in light of their recent struggles.

Scott & White was also a very good program that has a nice hospital with a laid-back approach.