I am so mad at myself. I typed up almost this exact post then it got lost when I tried to post this. So as you can see how late I stayed up typing this, forgive me if I have typos or don't make sense. Also, pardon my long post but I want to try to do these programs some justice and not do a few word description of a program. Let me preface this post by saying that I am not reviewing any programs that I didn't interview at as I don't want to tell you just rumors. I am only giving a brief program description of the eight interviews I went on. Two of the eight I also externed at. I feel like you are not really an expert of a program unless you went there so please consider the fact that I obviously haven't finished any of these programs. FYI-in house call means you are spending the night at the hospital and at home call means you are can sleep in your own bed but have to drive to the hospital as needed. Q2 call means you are on call every other day. Q3 means every 3rd day.
Loma Linda University-2 4 yr spots usually it just depends on how many 6 yr spots they have I think their total spots is 5. They had one interview day (Sunday) for the four years and the following sunday was for the 6 years. They interviewed only 9 people for the two 4 yr spots. Two interview panels with a mix of attendings and residents. Chill interview. About an hour east of LA and Orange County. Gets hot in summer, great in winter and cost of living not bad, around $900 or less for a one bedroom. They are getting a reputation as a hidden gem in the west coast. I feel like I would be a great oral surgeon if I went to this program. Lots of trauma, great orthognathic guy, good sedation clinics. I think there are surgeries going on every weekday at one of three hospitals. You take call from home which is nice. Program Director is a Parkland guy so you will have to buy an expensive camera ($1000) and be prepared to take lots of pictures for case presentations. Great residents. I learned so much from them when I externed here for two weeks. They work extremely hard here. You can pre-round as early as 5:30 am and not end your day because of conferences or presentations until 8 pm or later. Family life takes a little hit here but aren't we there to work hard and learn a lot? Other perceived negatives would be that one of the three hospitals you cover is 30 min away so if they call you in the middle of the night, that gets old. Craniofacial presence is minimal although they said they know this and hope to get more for the residents. Also, it is a religious institution that requests you not to drink alcohol and attend a religion class which would scare most of you away right? It is not as bad as it seems because you can drink if you want when you are not on call and nobody really cares as long as you are not public about it. The religion class is minimal. I ranked this program high but I was looking for a change of scenery as I had already gone through 4 yrs of dental school here.
Arizona-Good Samaritan- 2 4 yr spots-Brand spanking new program. I think they ended up interviewing 40 people for two spots. They interviewed me in a group of 6 applicants. We had 4 separate interviews. One was with the program director-Dr. Burrow, another with a gen surg guy, another with the dean of Midwestern dental school, and another with a group of attendings. Really chill interview. He said at home call. Great city but death in the summer due to the heat (100 degrees at 10 pm during 4 months) Great winters and great golf. I think this is going to be a great program. They are going to be only trauma presence-no ENT or plastics. Dr. Burrow is so nice and seems to be a real stud of an OMFS. He does many different things, even microvascular stuff. Great city and great facility. It seems like they will have great financial support from the hospital. Dr. Burrow told us that he looked at many different programs across the nation and tried to choose the best qualities of each one and incorporate that into his program. He said he came from a very busy program and wanted to make sure his program was relatively family-friendly. Great sim lab-you can practice on the Wii for your surgical skills and also had manakins in fake OR to practice stuff on where you can get feedback from people. You can even practice intubating fake patients with a virtual screen which for me seemed nice to me because I have never done that before and am pretty scared
Midwestern dental school is ridiculously nice. They have spent a lot of money on their facilities and it shows. They hadn't built the OS clinic yet but I am sure it is going to be first class. Perceived negatives would be a brand new program so there are a few worries with that although I think the potential to cut earlier would be there. There is no history of people taking and passing boards which is important to me. No definite history of the program in general. There is also no buffer between you and the attendings because there are no senior residents there which may be good or bad. Although I think Dr. Burrow is really nice so I think he will be a great and patient teacher. I lived in Arizona for a few years so a change of scenery was on my wishlist.
Denver Health- 1 4 yr spot. 25 or so interviewers for one spot. Multiple dates of interviews was chosen by Denver Health with a couple of residents per interview day. One interview with program director and time to speak to residents who I think have a say in who gets in. Chill interview. I externed there one week. At home call most months. Great city. Cost of living not bad. You can live in suburb for $600-800 a month or in the city for around $1000 a month for a one bedroom. Program director is retiring and residents seemed excited about who is potentially replacing him. Lots of trauma. Great sedation clinic. Implants with a renowned private practice guy if you want. Great residents. Got along with them really well. I was relatively new to the field of OMFS and they were so patient with me which I will never forget and appreciated a lot. They have one dedicated surgery day though they will operate on other days as necessary. Perceived negative would be only one resident per year although that might change in future. I wanted to be in a program with multiple residents for the comraderie. For the busy trauma month of July the first yr resident is q2 and all residents even the chief take first call in July. For this month, it is in house call. Why July so busy for trauma? They told me since it is so cold in the winter time people don't go out as much and get drunk and drive or get in fights during this time. Hilarious, I know
I was a little concerned about a change in program and not knowing how the program will fully run with new director. Also, you don't get a lot of cutting in until your chief year some third year, but rightfully so, chief gets dibs. I also live here now and was ready for a change.
St. Josephs-2 4 yr spots. I think they interviewed 40 or so people for 2 spots. They gave us a choice of morning or afternoon and a choice of two days. Interviewed with just program director and attending together. Really chill interview. In House call. Dr. Ephros is a super nice guy. He was the only program director I interviewed with that gave us a tour. He wrote back on my thank you email thanking me for coming in. Lots of trauma. I feel like I would be a great oral surgeon coming out. Residents seemed to get along well. Dr. Ephros is head of craniofacial team so he makes sure the residents get great exposure there, probably most in nation amongst 4 yr programs. They also said their attendings used to give the boards so they prepare their residents well to pass the boards. Also they had in the past and will in the very near future have an MD option so if that is your cup of tea, that is nice. Percieved negatives would be that Paterson, NJ is a very sketchy city but that just means more trauma for the residents. You can live in Clifton (10 min away) and be in a much safer neighborhood. Also, from a train station in Clifton, you can be in Manhattan in 30 minutes which is nice. Also, facilities are older but they are renovating which probably won't be completely finished until after 4 yrs.
Washington Hospital Center in Wash DC-3 4 yr spots. Interviewed people only one day (Sat) with I want to say 33 applicants. At night after the interviews, they go to a bar/restaurant for drinks/apps which is nice and you get to talk more informally to the attendings and residents because they don't get to really know you enough during the interviews so I would highly recommend not missing this function. One interview with a group of about 10-15 attendings. Chill, fast interview. Great facilities. In house call. Great on call room with internet in your room although they said you would be extremely busy to use it. Program director seems extremely nice. Very well loved by his residents. They said they would not hesitate to call him in the middle of the night when on call which I hear is not the norm at other programs. He also got his OMFS in England and then again in the states. Lots of trauma. I feel like I would be very well trained here. Perceived negatives would be cost of living. This was big for me. Some residents live in Maryland and Virginia for semi-affordable housing. One resident lives in DC and pays $2000 a month for rent but enjoys the city life and commute. You can get cheaper in DC but it will be sketchy.
University of Mississippi- 2 4 yr spots. Two possible interview dates with a dinner function between the two interview dates. I am guessing here but I think there were 20-25 people interviewing for 2 spots. 4 separate interviews with one-on-one interviews with PD, chair, and two separate attendings. Chill interviews. I think it was in house call but not sure. Residents were really friendly. Cost of living I would imagine be really low although I didn't research this extensively. The program is in Jackson MS so no shortage of trauma there. Relatively new program where I would have been only the third group of OMFS residents ever to the program. Great program director. He is a Parkland guy who did a fellowship in Cosmetics so I think you get exposure there. I was pleasantly surprised with the program I think it will be a good one. Perceived negatives would be city for a lot of people but I think lots of people woudn't mind it and some will prefer it. Also newness of program and lack of implant presence due to no VA rotations for now. They are aware of this and hope to get more later.
Boston University- 3 4 yr spots. Only one interview day with 33 or so people interviewed. Dinner the night before with the residents. The residents said they don't have a say in who gets in and I think I believe them so relax and have fun and ask the residents what life is like for them. In house call. Program director and chair seemed nice. 3 separate interviews with groups of 3-4 attendings each. 2 of three interviews for me were chill, a bit harsh for me on one of them. I was glad that there were no academic questions during interviews. They used to have some but stopped this year. I think you would be a good oral surgeon coming out. Residents seemed to get along well. Perceived negatives and in the interest of full disclosure, I am a die-hard Yankee fan and couldn't stand being in this city but remained committed to pursuing OMFS at all costs-$10000 tuition though I think the stipend is a little more than most to offset this and I heard they might be getting someone to pay for the tuition in the future. They do a full year of gen surg which is odd for a 4 yr program so this may or may not appeal to you. They don't do sedation until you are done with anethesia in your 2nd year so this might not work for you as well. Cost of living is high. They do offer resident housing although it is really difficult to get and according to the residents, in a shady neighborhood where if you have a family, they wouldn't recommend it. On a side note, this was the worst interview experience due to how it was set up. I was coming from mountain time and we had to be there at 6:30 am for a short presentation (30 min). I made the horrible mistake of letting them know weeks before the interview that I had all day to interview with them. Stupid me, I felt like I didn't want to offend the program by saying I had to leave earlier. After the presentation, I had a less than hour tour. Then I waited almost 4 hours till lunch just sitting in a room with 30 or so residents. I had lunch, waited another hour, had my first interview, waited another two hours, then had my last two interviews ending around 6 pm. I don't know about other people but I don't feel too comfortable in a suit and it was a long time. I know I sound like I am bitching but if I can save even one person the trouble I went through it will be worth it. So if you get an interview there, say you have an early flight!
Montefiore-Last but not least since I ranked it #1 and matched there. 5 4 yr spots 33 or so interviewed for 5 spots. Choice of am or pm on one of two separate days. One interview total with PD,assistant PD, and two attendings together. Chill interview. As I stated before, I wanted to be in a program with lots of residents to go through with it together and learn from each other. Great program director. He called me before match to ask if I had any questions (not illegal) and then called me to personally congratulate me on matching with them. Great attendings well loved by residents. They kept saying how the attendings were just holding the sticks while the residents cut. They also said it was nice having 9 full time attendings who didn't have to worry about their private practice patients. Since the residents cut a lot, the senior residents let the junior residents cut some of the cases. It is nice since GPR takes tooth call and calls you only if needed. At home call except when you are on call at the Jersey City Hospital which is in house call. The PD gets guest lecturers to come in quarterly like Marx, Ruggiero, etc. This program just seemed to fit into what I was looking for in a program. Residents seem to get along really well. It was weird cause each resident I talked to said they ranked Montefiore #1. I don't know if they are all telling the truth, but if so, I think it speaks well of the program. Lots of trauma, orthognathic, 3rds, and according to the program, they place the most implants in the nation. I had heard some rumors of the PD placing the implants but the residents assured me this was not the case. They did say the PD tx plans the implants but I'd like to think it is something you do together and you can learn from someone with a ton of experience tx planning it. There is resident housing available and since I live in Colorado, they said I will get it no problem since it is based on how far you live from NY. It is a screaming deal for being in the Bronx. $750 a month for gas, water, electric included for a relatively nice apartment and it is right across the street from the hospital. Great hospital facilities. They are very tech savvy and seem very financially stable. Bronx as you know is where the World Champion Yankees play so that is a nice perk not having to pay for the MLB package. (FYI I was born in Manhattan and Reggie Jackson gave me baseball when I went to a game when I was five and have been a fan ever since.) I was excited about a place I never got to live in as an adult. Perceived negatives-$5000 tuition but you start at $53000 a year and cap as a chief resident at over $60000 a year so it ain't that bad considering housing as well and the fact that most programs are mid 40's for stipend. They make you read up on two journal articles out of a possible eight or so. This is not a big deal. Just read them and be prepared to discuss them. I think they just want to know that you can read something and discuss it somewhat intelligently. Also the whole implant thing but I will try to let you all know more about it as I progress in the program.
I want everyone to know I would have been happy to match at any of these programs to pursue my dream of being an OMFS. I ranked every single one of them. It was a very difficult decision on where to rank them. Not every program is going to fit each resident. I think you should do your research on different programs and when you interview with them, find out if you can envision yourself there. Not even Parkland will be a good fit for every resident. There are so many factors in deciding what program is right for you like what location you want to be in for four years, what you want to do when you get out meaning if you want more cancer you should go to a place that has lots of that, where the wife wants to go, cost of living, board passing rate, how many people you want in your program, etc.
I know some people will disagree with what I am posting here. I am not doing this for them. They didn't put anything on these forums for people like me to see about these programs. I am doing this for the people who are going to go through what I went through. I promised myself that if I ever got into a program, I would try to help out as many people as I can. This site has helped me so much and I know if you are like me, you read these posts a lot even if you never post something yourself. I wish I had gotten even more info on these programs and help from these forums. This post isn't intended to be a full description of these programs but merely my honest opinion of my time there and asking a ton of questions with each of the residents and attendings there. Best of luck to you all! If you have any questions, you can ask me here or PM me.
