Program information for the match

[dc2md]

Hey everyone. I'm a PGY-1 PM&R intern and I'm doing informal research for my program to see what everyone used to get info about the programs they were applying to. What website(s)? What database? What reviews?

Also, what did u like and dislike about your interview day experiences? Number of interviews? Formal or informal interviews? Did getting a program packet matter? Length of interview day?

Thanks,
Chris

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[dc2md]

alright, i'll start.
i liked short days and interviews...9-1or2pm and about 15min for each laid-back get-to-know-you type of interview. no quizing. no pimping. i thought an information packet (folder) was a bare minimum and anything else was icing on the cake. one prelim program gave a free-night stay with a gift bag waiting at the front desk upon arrival and a long-sleeved shirt as a gift. but, no PMR programs did anything close to this. a free dinner the night before was a definite plus. one program actually had the program director give the tour of the facilities (OSU)..that was nice to see. another program had the new PGY-2 residents trying to pawn the tour off on eachother (UTSW)...that wasn't cool.

and now for where i looked for program info. #1 place was definitely FREIDA. from there, i'd click on each individual programs website and look around....then i'd go to SDN and scutwork.com and look for reviews about each program. i LOVED when program websites had uptodate info and hated when the info was old and there wasn't a list of current residents (preferably with photos and where they went to med school).
that's about all i can think of. please provide your own opinions and thoughts.
thanks,
chris

 

[jonnylingo]

Freida
SDN
Scutwork

Interview loves/hates:

Big fan of good treatment (dinner, hotel, gift bag, city tour):

Mayo taking applicants out to dinner, 6 residents, 10 applicants. The residents were QUALITY and they turned ALL attention to us interviewees.The restaurant was NICE. Mayo also sported for a hotel.

Utah was a great sell. Dr. Willick (excellent Sports/Pain doc) put together a fantastic powerpoint about the program and Utah/Salt Lake City. It was great to have a visual, entertaining show about life there.

Missouri was also very impressive, with partial hotel paid for, nice lunch and very interested, cool residents who gave us a city tour as well.

Many Transitional progs went all out by giving gift bags full of treats, laptop carrying cases, and Akron OH even sported a city-wife sightseeing tour with a Realtor. VERY IMPRESSIVE!

I was impressed with f/u cards. UofM (AnnArbor) even sent a CD ROM/DVD about why we should rank it highly (similar to Utah's PP).

Calls were nice, but sometimes uncomfortable.

The LENGTH of interview day didn't matter so much as the QUALITY of the day. For example, Mayo was long, but the day was filled with quality interviews, lunch, and several comfortable interviews. On the other hand, some were long and filled with fluff.

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:

Colorado took us to a nice dinner, but the residents were disinterested and hanging out together. A few even left early for a hockey game, just up and left halfway through dinner. Big turn off. We interviewed in Radiology dept, and didn't even get a tour of PMR facilities (which I understand are great, but c'mon, we didn't even get to see the units where we would train for 3 years?). No hotel. Now I understand this all costs $$$, but even smaller progs like Missouri (which I loved) paid for a portion of hotel stay.

OSU came on a bit too serious and heavy on reserach, which is great for some/many. For me, it was too serious.

UVA had fantastic facilities, but the residents didn't make a good impression. There was a point when we interviewees were sitting in the conference room waiting for interviews, and a foul-mouthed attending was making comments to which the other residents were laughing hysterically.

There was much discussion on an earlier thread about perks on interview day and whether they matter. I think they reflect the program's overall flavor and the kind of treatment you will get in the future.

For what it's worth

 

[ampaphb]

Freida
SDN
Scutwork

Interview loves/hates:

Big fan of good treatment (dinner, hotel, gift bag, city tour):

Mayo taking applicants out to dinner, 6 residents, 10 applicants. The residents were QUALITY and they turned ALL attention to us interviewees.The restaurant was NICE. Mayo also sported for a hotel.

Utah was a great sell. Dr. Willick (excellent Sports/Pain doc) put together a fantastic powerpoint about the program and Utah/Salt Lake City. It was great to have a visual, entertaining show about life there.

Missouri was also very impressive, with partial hotel paid for, nice lunch and very interested, cool residents who gave us a city tour as well.

Many Transitional progs went all out by giving gift bags full of treats, laptop carrying cases, and Akron OH even sported a city-wife sightseeing tour with a Realtor. VERY IMPRESSIVE!

I was impressed with f/u cards. UofM (AnnArbor) even sent a CD ROM/DVD about why we should rank it highly (similar to Utah's PP).

Calls were nice, but sometimes uncomfortable.

The LENGTH of interview day didn't matter so much as the QUALITY of the day. For example, Mayo was long, but the day was filled with quality interviews, lunch, and several comfortable interviews. On the other hand, some were long and filled with fluff.

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:

Colorado took us to a nice dinner, but the residents were disinterested and hanging out together. A few even left early for a hockey game, just up and left halfway through dinner. Big turn off. We interviewed in Radiology dept, and didn't even get a tour of PMR facilities (which I understand are great, but c'mon, we didn't even get to see the units where we would train for 3 years?). No hotel. Now I understand this all costs $$$, but even smaller progs like Missouri (which I loved) paid for a portion of hotel stay.

OSU came on a bit too serious and heavy on reserach, which is great for some/many. For me, it was too serious.

UVA had fantastic facilities, but the residents didn't make a good impression. There was a point when we interviewees were sitting in the conference room waiting for interviews, and a foul-mouthed attending was making comments to which the other residents were laughing hysterically.

There was much discussion on an earlier thread about perks on interview day and whether they matter. I think they reflect the program's overall flavor and the kind of treatment you will get in the future.

For what it's worth

This is the arrogant, entitled, self-important candidate who I would never rank highly for any program I was affiliated with.

Are you kidding? A gift bag? God, what a *****.

What matters is what kind of education you will get in the next 3-4 years

The worst program in the city of Philadelphia learned this trick a few years ago, puts out a nice spread of food, lays it on thick with a good dog and pony show, and now they get ranked better, even though their program has not improved one iota.

In case you don't get it, a good powerpoint, and a good lunch, do NOT equate with a good program. Oh, and arranging a realtor? Yes, that certainly gives you a good indication of the quality of the education you will receive - NOT!

Most state schools don't have budgets, either to spring for hotels, or to pay for books. In the long haul, that shouldn't matter, and doesn't unless you are more concerned with your travel plans than the quality of your education.

Oh, and my all-time favorite - an attending who not only arrives for the presentation, but then jokes around with his residents, indicating camaraderie, and you interpret that as a negative?

Clearly you are not someone I would EVER want in any program I was affiliated with.

 

[dc2md]

WOW!!! ampaphb ain't too happy eh? you're both right i'm my opinion. you're interviewing for your specialty education and should therefore pick the program with the best education. both other stuff matters too. location for instance. if u HATE cold weather and won't be happy in cold weather and therefore won't learn as well at a place like Mayo, then that does in fact matter, just like the quality of education. but lingo's point is that u want to go somewhere where you're going to be comfortable learning and living. and if a program springs for a free night stay and a dinner, that just gives an idea that that program may care about its residents more than average too. i mean, if u went to a kessler or mayo interview and the interviewers were jerks and the whole process was unorganized and there was just a total lack of respect for you as the prospective resident, you're not gonna want to go there...no matter how good the reputation is. we all want to work and learn in an environment where we're respected and appreciated, and the first impression we get from a program is gonna be a lasting one.
alright, i don't want this thread to become a back-and-forth argument about interview day swag. so if that's what someone wants then start another thread please.
thanks,
chris

 

[mdvol]

I was just going to lay low but your comment about the attending showing up and joking around showing camaraderie was spot on. I was probably one of the residents in the room that day laughing hysterically and that attending was one of the attendings who get's "the system", makes us laugh and arranges happy hour out sometimes with the residents - a true asset to the program. I'm no longer there but I wouldn't have wanted any potential resident who thought it was a bad representation to even come close to matching!!

 

[Louisville04]

UVA had fantastic facilities, but the residents didn't make a good impression. There was a point when we interviewees were sitting in the conference room waiting for interviews, and a foul-mouthed attending was making comments to which the other residents were laughing hysterically.


the attending showing up and joking around showing camaraderie was spot on. I was probably one of the residents in the room that day laughing hysterically

If the attending is making inappropriate comments even if he is joking (using the f word, etc) some people will be offended.....an interview goes both ways.

 

[paz5559]

I was just going to lay low but your comment about the attending showing up and joking around showing camaraderie was spot on. I was probably one of the residents in the room that day laughing hysterically and that attending was one of the attendings who get's "the system", makes us laugh and arranges happy hour out sometimes with the residents - a true asset to the program. I'm no longer there but I wouldn't have wanted any potential resident who thought it was a bad representation to even come close to matching!!

MD VOL is one of the nicest guys I have ever met, and the attending who was making the "foul-mouthed attending was making comments to which the other residents were laughing hysterically" is one of several young attendings who remember what it was like not so long ago to be residents. That you are night insightful enough to understand why what you observed is an incredibly good relationship between residents and attendings says far more about you than it does about UVA. The fact that they were willing to let their hair down and not pretend the way many programs do on interview days should show you they are confident about what they have to offer

Two of the best guys there when I was are now in top notch fellowships (Furman and MCV, respectively), and yes, MD VOL is one of those two.

Karina, the residency coordinator, just as an aside, is the single most efficient, kindest, most over-qualified person in that position I have ever come across. She keeps track of all the residents, basically creates their posters for them, and just generally does the work of three normal human beings, all the while smiling with this air of grace and humility I have rarely found in academia.

Full disclosure - I was displaced by Katrina, and was afforded a spot for my final three months of training by the University of Virginia. They were not the only program that offered me a position, but they did eat the cost of my salary and training for the time I was there. Basically residents, staff, and administration were as kind and accommodating as any program possibly could be. Yes, it has its warts, but overall, it is an extraordinary place I was exceedingly fortunate to land at, and I highly recommend it.

I would be happy to discuss it with anyone who wishes to pm me.

 

[jonnylingo]

Ouch! ampaphb, I didn't mean to offend, and I'm sorry I did. Reading my original posting, I can see how it seemed superficial. I agree with a lot of what you said. Still, I think we are talking about two different things:


ampaphb:"What matters is what kind of education you will get in the next 3-4 years"

I whole-heartedly agree. I feel this goes without saying. I was answering the OP's question "what did u like and dislike about your interview day experiences? Number of interviews? Formal or informal interviews? Did getting a program packet matter? Length of interview day?"
To me this question dealt with the layout of the interview day including the more "superficial" perks of the experience. As far as what kind of education you're going to get, that question was answered long before interview day (i.e. with the help of Freida, Scutwork, networking, etc.).




ampaphb:"The worst program in the city of Philadelphia learned this trick a few years ago, puts out a nice spread of food, lays it on thick with a good dog and pony show, and now they get ranked better, even though their program has not improved one iota."


No doubt this is the case with some. Still -and this is a broad brush stroke - I generally found correlation between the overall quality of the prog and how well they treated the interviewees on interview day, be it with tours, attention, or dolling out kitchy perks.





ampaphb:"In case you don't get it, a good powerpoint, and a good lunch, do NOT equate with a good program. Oh, and arranging a realtor? Yes, that certainly gives you a good indication of the quality of the education you will receive - NOT!"


Very true, but still, the question being answered here is "what did you like on interview day" not "how did you investigate the quality of the education you will receive". The powerpoints just helped give more of a picture of life inside and outside of the residency. Colorado and Utah had great shows that were enticing by showing life outside the program (skiing, hiking, etc.). It was definitely something I found helpful interview day.





ampaphb:"Oh, and my all-time favorite - an attending who not only arrives for the presentation, but then jokes around with his residents, indicating camaraderie, and you interpret that as a negative?"

Point well taken. There was however a large span of professionalism that I saw between different progs on interview day. The more professional ones impressed me more, that's all.




paz5559: "Karina, the residency coordinator, just as an aside, is the single most efficient, kindest, most over-qualified person in that position I have ever come across. She keeps track of all the residents, basically creates their posters for them, and just generally does the work of three normal human beings, all the while smiling with this air of grace and humility I have rarely found in academia."

I completely agree. She was tops. UVA overall was an excellent experience.