questions you wish you had asked

[isomer79]

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September 1 looms near. The interview trail is on the horizon and is moving in fast. My question for the rads residents is this:

Was there anything that you didn't ask or know about while applying that has come back to haunt you? What questions, if any, do you wish you had asked while trying to evaluate different programs?

Thanks in advance for any and all posts.

 

[hans19]

#1 MRI
#2 MRI
#3 MRI

MRI is going to be as common as CT in a few short years.
It is imperative that you get as much exposure to it as possible.
Ask specifically what DEDICATED MR experience you get.
Are there dedicated MR neuro, MR MSK, MR body rotations?
If you don't learn MR in residency then you will need to do an MR based fellowship, or you'll be left behind.

3T magnets... does the institution have one, or will it be getting one?

#4 PET-CT does the institution have it, or will it be getting one?
The hardest part of PET-CT is knowing how to interpret the CT information. If you get decent body CT exposure, picking up PET, in theory should not be too difficult.

Don't worry about interventional experience. If you plan to be a general rad, you will be doing simple biopsies, LPs, line placements which you can learn at any residency. If you are truly interested in interventional these days, you can land a strong or better fellowship no problem.

Good luck.

 

[isomer79]

Thanks Hans19.

Your advice is almost verbatim what a chief resident said to me today: if you find yourself or your program deficient in an area, pursue fellowship for more comprehensive training.

He also mentioned that Fellowship training -- or lack thereof -- could potentially be a sticking point if a private group is considering layoffs. This is especially true if the group would like to market itself as "fellowship" material, and you are the only one without it. Obviously this varies from group to group and region to region, and wouldn't apply to those already interested in furthering their training or considering academic radiology.

Since you mentioned it, IR is definitely on my long term list of priorities. From what you and others have posted on SDN, it sounds like research-intense, high-profile university exposure to this field isn't necessary during residency to land a fellowship. What is necessary and by what means do fellowship programs (IR and otherwise) evaluate potential residents?

Thanks again!

 

[isomer79]

for anyone interested, here's a post about my previous question.
still looking for others....

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/archive/index.php?t-80282.html