Ranking Programs

[Shazam243]

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How important is the program director when you are making your own rank list? There's this great program a couple hours from my home that I really like. Literally, every thing else about the program is great-I loved the faculty members, the residents, the location, great benefits, and it is very strong in some of the fellowships that I am interested in. The only problem is that I didn't like the program director- feeling was less than neutral. How much should this play in to ranking a program (definitely going to put it on my list, but not sure whether to put it above a program that is father away and academically less strong but loved everything else about the program? I'm conflicted because I had less than 10 interviews and this is one of the few that is close to home.

 

[NeuroDO3536]

I think the program director is very important. In our program the program director is a major strength. He advocates for residents, helps us design our schedule in a way that is useful for whatever career path we're looking to follow, and is always available for questions or issues when they arise.

 

[Shazam243]

So, here's the thing, many of the residents actually spoke quite highly of him, and he has been the PD for over 10 years. It's just that the PD didn't give off a great welcoming vibe, and some of the other applicants (who interviewed there at other days) said they felt the same thing. At the current moment, I feel like I would be fine working with him but that's about it, not friends or confidant, or be comfortable talking to him about any nondepartmental issues. He might be one of those people who you need to warm up to or something, and I'm not sure if I should take the risk over other programs just for the strength of the program and the proximity.

 

[Thama]

IMO the PD can be a nice bonus but a great PD doesn't make up for other institutional shortcomings. Things like volume and exposure, call schedule, resident independence, ample elective/research time are all more important. A good department/residency culture will provide these things, while even the best PD can't move mountains in the face of an administration that wants to use residents as expendable labor to offset their own struggling finances.

 

[Shazam243]

Thanks everyone for your input.

IMO the PD can be a nice bonus but a great PD doesn't make up for other institutional shortcomings. Things like volume and exposure, call schedule, resident independence, ample elective/research time are all more important. A good department/residency culture will provide these things, while even the best PD can't move mountains in the face of an administration that wants to use residents as expendable labor to offset their own struggling finances.

Thankfully both programs are pretty good, just that one is a bit better than the other in terms of number of faculty and "reputableness" of faculty and program. Not sure how accurate this is, but I keep hearing from everyone that the vast majority of neurology programs, at least those on the east coast will offer a sufficient, if not great, training and produce more than competent neurologists who can function independent.