pre-interview dinners in Path

[SLUsagar]

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i've heard a lot about pre-interview dinners taking place for residency candidates on their interviews...for specialities like EM, IM, etc.

how common is this for PATH? anyone have any such experiences during interviews? WHERE at ? 😕 😕 😕


thanks

 

[yaah]

My pre interview dinners....

Penn: 2 residents at a great restaurant. Penn was the only place that paid for liquor, if that is anyone's bag (Andy). We all got samplers of different wines. Great stuff. Plus, they took us out to lunch at a nice place the interview day. Penn knows how to handle interviewing students.

Iowa: pre interview dinner with 2 residents at another nice restaurant.

Dartmouth has a pre-interview breakfast with one of the attendings. Very non-stressful.

It was an option at a couple of other programs - Mayo was one. Most of the places provided a nice lunch - only a couple had typical, wrap sandwich or sponge pizza type cafeteria catered lunches.

 

[b&ierstiefel]

Penn: 2 residents at a great restaurant. Penn was the only place that paid for liquor, if that is anyone's bag (Andy).

I see where you're going yaah...so that's what you think of me ey?

"Look, I'm just a normal person like all o'you! I eat ahrice and drive ahreally slow, just like the rest o'you!"

OK yaah, if you can identify the name of this south park episode, you get a box of dots. It's one of my favorite episodes of the ones I've watched recently.

BTW, do any programs provide cheesy-poofs?

 

[b&ierstiefel]

The topic of alcohol reminds me of my MSTP interview experience at JHU several years ago. I was there with 2 other candidates and they actually wanted to go there. Having gone to undergrad at JHU and wanting to go elsewhere geographically for med school, I had no intention of going there. But pressure from my parents led me to apply and interview there.

So I'm sitting in the MSTP library room chatting it up with the other two candidates. Somewhere in the conversation I mention that I didn't really want to go there for med school. Sitting incognito in the background was an MSTP student who was pretending to read a journal. Of course when we introduced ourselves to him, he said he was a JHU MSTP student. Go figure...damn spies everywhere! Anyway, I knew at this point my chances of getting admitted were slim to none as he heard everything I had just said.

So we go out to dinner later that night at the Cheesecake Factory in Inner Harbor...everything is cool and totally chill. The waiter comes by and requests our drink order:

1st year MSTP student: water please
4th year MSTP student: water please
6th year MSTP student (this guy looked like Mr. Sulu on Star Trek): coke
Interviewee #1: water
Interviewee #2: water
Me: Two Sam Adams please
2nd year MSTP student (my host) while glaring at me: water

And the rest was history...got my rejection notice in the mail 4 days after my interview...snail mail my ass!

Clearly the way I acted was stupid and preposterous but oh well, one learns from mistakes right? Let's just say that this guy here won't be drinking much on the interview trail if at all.

 

[yaah]

OK yaah, if you can identify the name of this south park episode, you get a box of dots. It's one of my favorite episodes of the ones I've watched recently.

Lousy Mongorians! You tear down my ****ty wall last time!

I love that episode, I can't remember the name of it though. But I truly did enjoy that episode - as I do every episode with the chinese restaurant owner (city wok) (and the "City (although not pronounced like city) airlines" owner).


p.s. Iowa doesn't provide Cheezypoofs but they do provide a basket of treats in your hotel room when you arrive (popcorn, cookies, pretzels, other stuff).

 

[b&ierstiefel]

Stupid American! No Dots fo yoo!

Reminds me of the chinese dodgeball episode...when the two chinese commentators are making joke about americans:

"What do you call american with PhD in math and physics?"
"I dunno."
"Stupid American...ah hah hah hah"
"Dude, that is not cool...you gonna get us into trouble again!"

 

[BeastNovot]

I had pre-interview dinners at East Carolina University and at UT Knoxville... I think that was it, though. UAB and UVA had nice lunches, though.

 

[Doctor B.]

Stupid American! No Dots fo yoo!

Reminds me of the chinese dodgeball episode...when the two chinese commentators are making joke about americans:

"What do you call american with PhD in math and physics?"
"I dunno."
"Stupid American...ah hah hah hah"
"Dude, that is not cool...you gonna get us into trouble again!"

I love that episode! "I American! I buy with credit card!" or something like that 🙂

I had dinner at several of my interviews. At Vanderbilt, I had breakfast on the interview day rather than dinner the night before. These dinners are very important to go to b/c you can ask questions in a somewhat low-pressure situation and you can get the scoop on who you will be interviewing with.

I loved the treat basket from Iowa! They really set you up.

 

[b&ierstiefel]

I love that episode! "I American! I buy with credit card!" or something like that 🙂

"Ooh ooh ooh lemme try lemme try. [using fingers to open eyes wide open] I'll yoose my cre-dit card."
"Ahahahahahahaha"

and then there's

"I haven't seen American die like that...since Abraham Rincoln! Ahahahahahah"

 

[GreatPumpkin]

We do not officially have a pre-interview dinner. But, if someone was coming to town early and they wanted to meet with a resident or two we would gladly arrange it. If that is something you want to do, be sure to inquire about it through the chief residents or residency coordinator.

P.S.
I sure wouldn't be against having a margarita or two with the candidates. It would be a great way to see if they are going to fit in well. We like to have fun.

 

[b&ierstiefel]

So I have scheduled 5 interviews and all the programs have told me that "your day will start at ____am and end at ____pm". They make no mention of the pre-interview option.

I can do interviews pretty much anytime during the next 4 months so I'm totally willing to spend an extra day or two at a program to meet more residents and staff.

I only brought this up in my phone conversation with the Emory secretary and she thought that would be a wonderful idea. She went further to recommend that I interview on a Friday so that I can go out with some of the residents that night.

Are pre-interview dinners or any pre-interview/post-interview activities usually offered up front at the time when you schedule the interview? Or is it something you have to request?

Personally, I would think pre-interview and/or post-interview activities are a great idea since one could talk about the pros/cons of the programs at a neutral and informal setting...one can also further observe how the residents get along and interact with one another.

 

[yaah]

Well, I think the Emory secretary might be doing a little bit of wishful thinking. If Emory's program is like others, I am not sure if residents would get together on friday to go out with a prospective applicant. Sometimes we try to set up resident get togethers on fridays and all I hear is I'm busy, I'm going out of town, whatever. Weeknights are better.

But generally if this is a standard thing with the program they will let you know about it ahead of time (like U Penn or Iowa or Mayo). These places PAY for the residents to take you out. If you ask them if such a thing happens you might have to pay for it yourself, if that is a concern.

 

[b&ierstiefel]

Well, I think the Emory secretary might be doing a little bit of wishful thinking. If Emory's program is like others, I am not sure if residents would get together on friday to go out with a prospective applicant. Sometimes we try to set up resident get togethers on fridays and all I hear is I'm busy, I'm going out of town, whatever. Weeknights are better.

But generally if this is a standard thing with the program they will let you know about it ahead of time (like U Penn or Iowa or Mayo). These places PAY for the residents to take you out. If you ask them if such a thing happens you might have to pay for it yourself, if that is a concern.

Thanks for the info. Regarding Emory, I already scheduled that for a friday in November. If the post-interview get-together with a few or several of the residents is not to be...so be it. Hot-lanta has a lot of cool bars I could check out.