Although I believe I have my top 5 on my ROL determined at this point, I'm really quite uncertain about how the rest of my list should look like. I'm also worried that I may very well match below my top 5. I'm in the northeast and would ideally prefer to live in or near(suburbs) a large city. My friend from another school who is also participating in the match this year advised me on my rankings and stated that it's a much better idea to go to a University program over community programs. My dilemma is that after my top 5, the rest of my University programs are not really in locations I have a strong desire to live in. My community programs, however, are located in or near large cities. My friend keeps telling me that it's only 4 years and that my diploma will be with me forever. 4 years to me seems like such a long time especially since I'm at an age in my life where it would be such a great opportunity to live in a happening city(27). I'm also gay so I'm really worried about dating prospects. Would it be a good decision to rank any of the community programs in the list below above the University ones?
University Programs:
UCONN: Loved the facilities. The new PD and the now associate PD seem to work well together and have many great plans in the works for the program. Biologically focused but seem to have solid therapy training as well. Not too sure about the work hours since some of the residents stated they work very hard and although they never reach 80 hours on Psychiatry, during intern year on medicine they are known to break the 80 hour limit.
SUNY Upstate: Have family in the area. Great Psychotherapy training which is a huge plus, seems like a very supportive program with individualized faculty mentors for each resident. Well-funded and many research opportunities available. Upstate medical students seem to prefer staying on to complete their Psychiatry residency here. Dislike the heavy snow, rain, and cloudy days that Upstate NY is known for though and dating prospects seem limited.
SUNY Buffalo: Got a great vibe from this program and really liked the program director. They seem to incorporate the arts, media, and film in educating residents psychologically which is a very positive aspect. Very busy CPEP services. Seems to be a very supportive program as well. Again, dislike the heavy snow, rain, and overcast weather.
Indiana University: Absolutely stupendous program. Would be very high on my ROL if it weren't for the fact that I don't know if I can fathom moving such a great distance. It seems like such a big transition on my part to move from the northeast to Indianapolis. I have no family in the area(closest would be Ohio) and I don't really want to feel isolated. Indianapolis, although doesn't compare to cities on the eastern seaboard, is the 14th largest city in the country. I think the LGBT population is rather low though.
Virginia Commonwealth University: Great facilities. Solid training and support but the list of fellowships that alumni have secured seem to all be in the South. Richmond is a small city and has nice weather(compared to what I'm used to) and is a day trip away from D.C. Dating prospects are probably limited here as well especially in regards to LGBT. This was the one program my friend advised ranking below some of my community ones just because it's too far south.
Community Programs:
Institute of Living: This is one of my community programs that is NOT in a good location. Not completely sure whether this is a community program but I had a very wonderful impression on my interview day. Apparently it is well-known in Psychiatric circles due to the institute's long history in treating the mentally ill. This is most definitely an education-focused program with strong didactics. Residency size is small. Excellent psychotherapy training and a plethora of options for elective rotations. UCONN residents also do some of their electives here. I loved how supportive the faculty and program director are. That being said, I did hear that perhaps residents might be lacking in autonomy by their 4th year compared to other programs. Can someone tell me how to compare this program to UCONN and how to rank them?
NYMC Westchester Medical Center: Is this technically a University program since it's NYMC's residency? Great location since only 20 minutes outside of Manhattan. I was very impressed by the PD and his philosophy. Liked the facilities and the faculty are supportive. Residents seemed happy and cohesive as a group. Have heard many negative things about this program on SDN but the last thread that mentioned it was back in 2012 and the PD has changed. Also, residents can get very cheap subsidized housing for the first two years if they choose to live in Westchester instead of Manhattan.
Einstein Medical Center in Philly: Residents seemed very happy, cohesive, and friendly. Dr. Best made a great impression on me and I loved how close-knit and supportive everyone was at this program. Heavy emphasis on Psychoanalysis which I consider a positive. Great camaraderie. It appears that the residents who graduate from here become solid clinicians.
Maimonides Medical Center: Great location in Brooklyn. Appears to be a decent program with great residents but who are mostly all IMG. Would love to live in Brooklyn but the program is probably not worth it considering the quality and the fact that I have loans.
Richmond University Medical Center: Solid impression during interview day but appears to be mostly IMG. Did not get the impression that this was a NYC sweatshop program. No one seems to have heard of this program though and I suppose I'll rank it low even though it's on Staten Island.
St. Elizabeth's Medical Center: Nice location outside Boston. PD seems very approachable, caring, and invested in the residency program. Apparently the program was on probation recently. All of the residents seem to be IMGs.
Baystate Health: Again, this is the other community program that's in an undesirable location(Springfield, MA). Faculty seem to have trained at top notch institutions in New England. Residents are mostly a mix of foreign and american IMGs. Everyone seemed friendly. I am making mention of this program here to see if there's any reason as to why I should rank it high.
University Programs:
UCONN: Loved the facilities. The new PD and the now associate PD seem to work well together and have many great plans in the works for the program. Biologically focused but seem to have solid therapy training as well. Not too sure about the work hours since some of the residents stated they work very hard and although they never reach 80 hours on Psychiatry, during intern year on medicine they are known to break the 80 hour limit.
SUNY Upstate: Have family in the area. Great Psychotherapy training which is a huge plus, seems like a very supportive program with individualized faculty mentors for each resident. Well-funded and many research opportunities available. Upstate medical students seem to prefer staying on to complete their Psychiatry residency here. Dislike the heavy snow, rain, and cloudy days that Upstate NY is known for though and dating prospects seem limited.
SUNY Buffalo: Got a great vibe from this program and really liked the program director. They seem to incorporate the arts, media, and film in educating residents psychologically which is a very positive aspect. Very busy CPEP services. Seems to be a very supportive program as well. Again, dislike the heavy snow, rain, and overcast weather.
Indiana University: Absolutely stupendous program. Would be very high on my ROL if it weren't for the fact that I don't know if I can fathom moving such a great distance. It seems like such a big transition on my part to move from the northeast to Indianapolis. I have no family in the area(closest would be Ohio) and I don't really want to feel isolated. Indianapolis, although doesn't compare to cities on the eastern seaboard, is the 14th largest city in the country. I think the LGBT population is rather low though.
Virginia Commonwealth University: Great facilities. Solid training and support but the list of fellowships that alumni have secured seem to all be in the South. Richmond is a small city and has nice weather(compared to what I'm used to) and is a day trip away from D.C. Dating prospects are probably limited here as well especially in regards to LGBT. This was the one program my friend advised ranking below some of my community ones just because it's too far south.
Community Programs:
Institute of Living: This is one of my community programs that is NOT in a good location. Not completely sure whether this is a community program but I had a very wonderful impression on my interview day. Apparently it is well-known in Psychiatric circles due to the institute's long history in treating the mentally ill. This is most definitely an education-focused program with strong didactics. Residency size is small. Excellent psychotherapy training and a plethora of options for elective rotations. UCONN residents also do some of their electives here. I loved how supportive the faculty and program director are. That being said, I did hear that perhaps residents might be lacking in autonomy by their 4th year compared to other programs. Can someone tell me how to compare this program to UCONN and how to rank them?
NYMC Westchester Medical Center: Is this technically a University program since it's NYMC's residency? Great location since only 20 minutes outside of Manhattan. I was very impressed by the PD and his philosophy. Liked the facilities and the faculty are supportive. Residents seemed happy and cohesive as a group. Have heard many negative things about this program on SDN but the last thread that mentioned it was back in 2012 and the PD has changed. Also, residents can get very cheap subsidized housing for the first two years if they choose to live in Westchester instead of Manhattan.
Einstein Medical Center in Philly: Residents seemed very happy, cohesive, and friendly. Dr. Best made a great impression on me and I loved how close-knit and supportive everyone was at this program. Heavy emphasis on Psychoanalysis which I consider a positive. Great camaraderie. It appears that the residents who graduate from here become solid clinicians.
Maimonides Medical Center: Great location in Brooklyn. Appears to be a decent program with great residents but who are mostly all IMG. Would love to live in Brooklyn but the program is probably not worth it considering the quality and the fact that I have loans.
Richmond University Medical Center: Solid impression during interview day but appears to be mostly IMG. Did not get the impression that this was a NYC sweatshop program. No one seems to have heard of this program though and I suppose I'll rank it low even though it's on Staten Island.
St. Elizabeth's Medical Center: Nice location outside Boston. PD seems very approachable, caring, and invested in the residency program. Apparently the program was on probation recently. All of the residents seem to be IMGs.
Baystate Health: Again, this is the other community program that's in an undesirable location(Springfield, MA). Faculty seem to have trained at top notch institutions in New England. Residents are mostly a mix of foreign and american IMGs. Everyone seemed friendly. I am making mention of this program here to see if there's any reason as to why I should rank it high.