Read this: Your Med School name does matter

[Qpworueury]

If school name was the issue why would the residency programs have bothered interviewing you in the first place? This to me suggests your interview performance was an issue.

From my understanding a school will interview a wide range of candidates and cast a broad net. Could have met the net in periphery due to other metrics but not been ranked highly once everyone was looked at

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[gyngyn]

Could have met the net in periphery due to other metrics but not been ranked highly once everyone was looked at

Maybe all the "better" programs thought you were too good for them.

 

[Sidus1011]

From my understanding a school will interview a wide range of candidates and cast a broad net. Could have met the net in periphery due to other metrics but not been ranked highly once everyone was looked at

Residencies don't like to waste their time, they are run by people who are busy with jobs outside of recruitment. Majority of students they interview all appear the same as well, you may have just not stood out positively or negatively. That's not necessarily a bad thing and you are going to be a physician. I understand your goal was something higher, but try to find peace in that you did what you could. Many are in much more difficult positions in the country.

 

[LunaOri]

When you look at the lists of interns at the programs where you were interviewed but did not match, are all those interns graduates of top medical schools? If so, there’s your answer. If not, the issue was with you and not with your school’s reputation.

 

[Qpworueury]

Maybe all the "better" programs thought you were too good for them.

I do actually think this played a roll in the middle of my list

 

[cj_cregg]

From my understanding a school will interview a wide range of candidates and cast a broad net. Could have met the net in periphery due to other metrics but not been ranked highly once everyone was looked at

Residency programs receive at least hundreds of applications for a handful of spots, and interview a small percentage of these. I promise you they are not interviewing candidates they are not seriously considering. Yes, there will be candidates that are weaker/stronger based on the paper application alone (including grades, evals, LORs, test scores, school might provide a boost but in my experience does not take away). But going to the worst school in the US will not keep an otherwise stellar candidate out of a residency program once they have been interviewed. A bad interview will. This is especially true if you received numerous interviews, as you claim you did, and still fell low on your list.

 

[throwawayftw]

I'm willing to take the OP's comments at face value without digging through their post history. I don't think it's controversial to argue that where you go to med school matters. Just compare match lists between top and bottom tier med schools. Or look at the where residents in a top tier residency went to med school.

The tricky part is separating the effect of top schools having top students from the education/research options at each school. Research is probably the big differentiator.

Yes it does matter a lot but it’s not just due to school name. Many lower tier schools have faculty that barely ever publish and are not well known in their field. This makes it extremely tough to be productive research wise and difficult to make connections with people who can vouch for you during match. For example, I know somebody who goes to Hopkins who apparently has like 10+ publications as an M3 because many PIs let her just edit/write part of the manuscript and get her name on it.

The problem with this argument is that it focuses on the extreme cases. The best candidate from the worst MD school can match well. But what about the strong but not stellar candidate? A boost for students from a top school is the same as a hindrance for student from mid or low tier schools.

Residency programs receive at least hundreds of applications for a handful of spots, and interview a small percentage of these. I promise you they are not interviewing candidates they are not seriously considering. Yes, there will be candidates that are weaker/stronger based on the paper application alone (including grades, evals, LORs, test scores, school might provide a boost but in my experience does not take away). But going to the worst school in the US will not keep an otherwise stellar candidate out of a residency program once they have been interviewed. A bad interview will. This is especially true if you received numerous interviews, as you claim you did, and still fell low on your list.

 

[cj_cregg]

I'm willing to take the OP's comments at face value without digging through their post history. I don't think it's controversial to argue that where you go to med school matters. Just compare match lists between top and bottom tier med schools. Or look at the where residents in a top tier residency went to med school.

The tricky part is separating the effect of top schools having top students from the education/research options at each school. Research is probably the big differentiator.




The problem with this argument is that it focuses on the extreme cases. The best candidate from the worst MD school can match well. But what about the strong but not stellar candidate? A boost for students from a top school is the same as a hindrance for student from mid or low tier schools.

OP is claiming they were otherwise a stellar candidate - I was focused on their situation specifically. As I acknowledge, school name probably does play a role in matching in the more competitive programs in the competitive specialties that a small percentage of students will be applying to. The students who are a middle of the road student at a middle of the road medical school probably never had the option to go to Harvard to begin with, so it's kind of a moot point.

 

[candbgirl]

I do actually think this played a roll in the middle of my list

There isn’t an emoji available for my thoughts or feelings about this statement.

 

[Angus Avagadro]

Residency programs receive at least hundreds of applications for a handful of spots, and interview a small percentage of these. I promise you they are not interviewing candidates they are not seriously considering. Yes, there will be candidates that are weaker/stronger based on the paper application alone (including grades, evals, LORs, test scores, school might provide a boost but in my experience does not take away). But going to the worst school in the US will not keep an otherwise stellar candidate out of a residency program once they have been interviewed. A bad interview will. This is especially true if you received numerous interviews, as you claim you did, and still fell low on your list.

Agreed.I'd like to add that residencies consider that the applicant will be in their program for several years. Looking for a candidate who will be a good fit is high on their list of considerations. There may also be information of concern in the OP's MSPE that turned the selection committee off. Programs aren't looking for applicants who are lacking interpersonal skills.

 

[Qpworueury]

Agreed.I'd like to add that residencies consider that the applicant will be in their program for several years. Looking for a candidate who will be a good fit is high on their list of considerations. There may also be information of concern in the OP's MSPE that turned the selection committee off. Programs aren't looking for applicants who are lacking interpersonal skills.

I read through my MSPE. No issues

 

[Rxbound]

Hey dude, not to be mean or anything but I can think of one more reason: you're not as uber-intellegent as you think you are, and I'm sure it showed in your interviews.

You can tell the OP has no sense of what the problem really is...

aren't you the guy that literally said "I was hacked" to sending an inappropriate email LMAO

Indeed.

 

[mistertwister]

Just spend a good 40 minutes reading through OP's incredible post history. My man's narcissism is a thing to behold.

 

[GoSpursGo]

I do actually think this played a roll in the middle of my list

I read through my MSPE. No issues

As we have once again reached the part of the thread where we are just dissecting why the OP didn’t match as well as he/she had hoped, I’m going to lock this thread. Nobody is arguing that school name/prestige is important.