SOAP 2014 Thread

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Which field are you trying to SOAP into?

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Only one call so far. Applied available psych programs + rest prelim/TY.
 
streamer said:
for the people who were contacted, what questions were asked? any help would be appreciated
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why do you think you did not match? (I almost burst into tears the first time I heard this question from a pd) What are your strengths and weaknesses?
 
I was checking the quota on a family medicine residency to see how may slots they have and their status is "withdrawn". I just had an interview with this program yesterday. Does anyone know what that means?
 
xylinus said:
I was checking the quota on a family medicine residency to see how may slots they have and their status is "withdrawn". I just had an interview with this program yesterday. Does anyone know what that means?
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Oh, I think they were listed twice and the second listing was "withdrawn". Sorry, I believe waiting for interviews has put me on edge.
 
I went through SOAP last year - and if you did recieve an email from a program/interview you are allowed to contact them yourself. As long as they have already contacted you. I would write a thank you email if I were you.
 
2 calls yesterday, a follow up interview from one program via skype today.
 
In my case (did not match ENT) the focus has mostly been: why I'm pursuing a different specialty, exposure with the new field, why I didn't match, and some assurance that I won't pull a fast one by taking a categorical spot and trying to vanish next year (which, in my mind, would be completely unacceptable behavior). Aside from this, pretty standard interview Q's like tell me about yourself, what are you looking for in a program, tell about an experience dealing with someone difficult, etc
 
nomz said:
I went through SOAP last year - and if you did recieve an email from a program/interview you are allowed to contact them yourself. As long as they have already contacted you. I would write a thank you email if I were you.
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nomz said:
I went through SOAP last year - and if you did recieve an email from a program/interview you are allowed to contact them yourself. As long as they have already contacted you. I would write a thank you email if I were you.
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In the rush of things, I can't remember one of the PD's name. Would it be better to just email the program coordinator than not emailing at all?
 
do we have to be contacted by phone/email to get an offer on wed mar 18,2014? Or are there times when people get offers without any contact
 
streamer said:
do we have to be contacted by phone/email to get an offer on wed mar 18,2014? Or are there times when people get offers without any contact
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I just asked the head of student affairs at my school the same question. She seemed to think that this happens, but she didn't sound very sure of herself. It doesn't make a lot of sense to me.
 
"why didnt you match" is such a tough question to answer! Anything you say is going to be negative and you cant make up for it the way you can with a general weakness because then it doesnt answer the question as to why you didnt match. (for example if you say i think my step 1 score is holding me behind but i really worked hard and did significantly better on step 2, then it still doesnt answer why you didnt match since you technically "made up for it" and should therefore still be able to match)

How did you guys answer that question?
 
sys71082 said:
"why didnt you match" is such a tough question to answer! Anything you say is going to be negative and you cant make up for it the way you can with a general weakness because then it doesnt answer the question as to why you didnt match. (for example if you say i think my step 1 score is holding me behind but i really worked hard and did significantly better on step 2, then it still doesnt answer why you didnt match since you technically "made up for it" and should therefore still be able to match)

How did you guys answer that question?
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I ended up reading some blog about why students don't match and have pretty much regurgitated the answer. Some reasons could be unreasonably high expectations, poor interview, poor board scores, grades, some random mishap. But, you have to turn into a positive outlook so you don't seem completely depressed.
 
omg, just got a phone interview with anesthesia and it lasted for like 2 minutes. never imagine interview could go that fast.
 
Hello guys,
I am so sorry to hear you guys didnt match- I was in your shoes last year and its a terrible feeling.
Im writing because i didnt match to IM last yr, but this year I re-applied and did. I have great advice (what I wished someone would have told me last march but I had to piece together myself)on what to do this year, and if any of you want to contact me personally please feel free to PM me. Again, I was in your shoes and I get it, its super stressful and draining, but you have no time to waste if you want to re-apply next year, you need to get started. You need to be a MUCH STRONGER applicant next year, so you need to do tons of stuff.
-this will be financially tough- you are gonna need money to do these things- move back with your parents. Get rid of your data plan, etc. My spouse supported me through the whole ordeal, but its tough if you cant afford that.
-do an MPH- most programs I interviewed at asked me about my MPH. You can do one online so you can continue through residency and you dont have to physically go. Classes are expensive. Take 1-2 classes if that's all you can afford. Ask for fin aid. They wont ask you how many classes have you taken so far when you interview next year. If you manage to enroll full time, you wont have to pay your loans for a while.
-volunteer at a community clinic. Email all community/free/shelter clinics in you area and see who will take you. See patients. Work with a Dr if you can, if not, a nurse. You need to be able to say you have not been away from patient care. Do as much as they'll let you at the clinic. Teach patients. Give a class on diabetes.
-Do research- literally email every medicine (and its sub specialties ) doctor in all academic hospitals around you and ask for a research opportunity. Clarify this is an UNPAID appointment you are looking for. Ask them if they know anyone offering research, help people write grants. Look at the hospital websites for paid research opportunities if you can find one, great. Prioritize how good it will look on your resume not how much money you will get, if you can afford that. Chose more than 1 if you can- it does not need to be in your field. Remember you are applying for a medicine spot, not a renal spot right now.
-take step 3!!!! This is especially important if your steps 1 or 2 are not stellar. You need to do well, not amazing. If you didnt match in IM you are probably not Harvard material, so dont worry about getting a 260 on step 3. Just get 220+ to show them you are a solid candidate. Do not delay taking step 3 to get a 260! You need to get this in before applications go out or ASAP afterwards.
-email every PD where you interviewed and asked them why you didnt match there. Ask them for advice. Stay in touch with those PDs that seem more receptive to you application, tell them what you are doing throughout the year, email them once every 6 months or so, including right before re-applying. If a PD tells you you were totally not up to their standards, dont apply there again, particularly if money is tight.
-email the PD at your school and ask him for advice. Ask him to critique you PS.
-Tutor if you need money (as little as you can, this is not the ideal). They want to see you are a teacher and a leader.
-Get involved in health policy- contact NIH drs for opportunities.
-apply to as many programs as you can afford next year. This means 100+. Email PDs of programs you really like 1 month before applications open to let them know you will be applying there and you love the program. Be ready to tell them why you love it (VERY SPECIFIC). Apply to more than 1 specialty, perhaps a few FM programs, perhaps peds if you like it. Be very realistic. If you have money for 150 programs, dont waste money on 50 Northwestern/Emory/UT. 5 dream ones are ok, but dont do 30 of those. Include community and university ones. If money is a limiting factor regarding your applications, DO NOT apply in NY/Chicago/LA. Programs in these areas can have the luxury of being very low quality and still getting top applicants due to location only. Applicants will turn down an invite to Mayo because its in the middle of nowhere to interview at a low quality community program in NY. Never think of programs in these locations as "safe" options.
-be ready to tell each program you interview at next year why you want to train there. I disagree you need to have questions, i think you need to be able to tell them why you love them. If they dont ask you say "I want you to know I am really serious about this program because..."
-be on top of your ERAS application, make sure all documents are in including your picture and transcript. Call your school to make sure they put everything in.
-Have an updated resume
-be ready to answer why you didnt match last year and explain all red flags on your resume. know you application in and out. Find a positive spin to everything. Emphasize what you've learned. If there is an obvious red flag that you can compensate for (lets say, you failed step 2 but now you really did well on step 3) bring it up even if they dont ask (at least to 1 interviewer at each place). Say "I imagine you might be concerned about my step 2. I want to let you know this was the problem and this is how I fixed it". Always take responsibility for the red flag. Dont say "my school didnt prepare me well... I got divorced..." say "I didnt realize how unprepared I was... I got divorced and it was hard for me to concentrate, now I know how I should have managed that more effectively and it will not happen again because Ive learned this... that this wont happen again is exemplified by..." If they dont ask it doesnt mean they dont care about it.
-Call everyone you know in the field (even remotely) to ask them to put a good word for you to get research opportunities and to get interviews when the time comes. Not the time to be shy. Send people your resume. Call that high school friend whose father works at a hospital you want to match at.
-get a credit card with point that will allow you to travel to interviews on points so you dont spend a fortune on tickets and hotels.
-Pray and be thankful for all the blessings you have

Good luck everyone! It gets better, but you gotta make the best of this year!
 
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uncal_hernia said:
i'd really like to know this
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According to the NRMP twitter feed: Most programs will want to interview you before they list you on a preference list; however, it is not required they do so. Pretty Vague though!!
 
streamer said:
do we have to be contacted by phone/email to get an offer on wed mar 18,2014? Or are there times when people get offers without any contact
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I can't say that it would never happen, but it would be really rare--it's hard to imagine making a commitment to someone without ever speaking with them. That's the bad news. The good news is that there are multiple rounds. This is all still a very new process and PDs who have never been in SOAP before (or who didn't watch the tutorials in order to fully understand the process) may be underestimating how many applicants they need to consider for their rank list.

So keep your phone handy, but do something to take your mind off the interminable waiting. If it makes you feel any better, programs feel the stress as well: they are imagining all the scenarios in which they send an offer to a candidate who gets multiple offers and always ends up choosing another program.
 
Prelim surgery applicant here.. no calls yet..
not sure how it works here but seems many people do believe we can get ranked without interview!!
 
mcl said:
I can't say that it would never happen, but it would be really rare--it's hard to imagine making a commitment to someone without ever speaking with them. That's the bad news. The good news is that there are multiple rounds. This is all still a very new process and PDs who have never been in SOAP before (or who didn't watch the tutorials in order to fully understand the process) may be underestimating how many applicants they need to consider for their rank list.

So keep your phone handy, but do something to take your mind off the interminable waiting. If it makes you feel any better, programs feel the stress as well: they are imagining all the scenarios in which they send an offer to a candidate who gets multiple offers and always ends up choosing another program.
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I would imagine categorical spots ranked applicants would be interviewed first.. especially if the program has a limited number of openings, one or two or three. but for 1 year prelim positions with programs having more than a handful of spots to fill I would imagine they may be more lax in their interview process if any..
again, its all dreams and hopes at this point! tomorrow we will know! there is literally nothing to be done now but wait for the phone to ring!
 
How do we initiate conversation to program directors through ERAS? They said we can't initiate conversations outside of ERAS. Does that mean there is a way?
 
scramblerpatel said:
How do we initiate conversation to program directors through ERAS? They said we can't initiate conversations outside of ERAS. Does that mean there is a way?
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you cannot initiate contact with programs.. that's why all we can do now is just sit and wait for tomorrow, hoping the phone rings!
 
barefootrunner said:
In the rush of things, I can't remember one of the PD's name. Would it be better to just email the program coordinator than not emailing at all?
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Look up the program and see if you can find the PD name. Try to get it from their website maybe. even if u don't have teh PD's email - address to them and just email the PC
 
Just got another call. Only two so far.
 
Anyone else applying to rads? Got my application in this morning and haven't gotten anything
 
still nothing from prelim surg 🙁
I hope they are just busy doing procedures
Man i thought they need students....
 
iPodtosis said:
still nothing from prelim surg 🙁
I hope they are just busy doing procedures
Man i thought they need students....
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I feel the same way. Prelim surg spots are like 25% of the SOAP.
 
Applied to both FM and Psych.... so far no calls 🙁.... Do you think I'm being filtered out because I am an IMG and failed step 2 CK the first time ... Feeling like my application isn't even getting looked at ..... I'm so eager to contact a program, but don't want to start on a bad note by not following SOAP rules.... Anyone else feeling like this? or is it just me??
 
I am hoping they will just send out offers without doing the phone interviews haha
 
One program (Surgery prelim) that called me told me that there is some system wide update the programs were supposed to do with ERAS, but no one did, and this slowed down the process of downloading the applications. She said all programs were having a hard time with it - having to call in IT support. So, maybe there will a rush this afternoon, or tomorrow morning. Hopefully...
 
polarbear68 said:
Applied to both FM and Psych.... so far no calls 🙁.... Do you think I'm being filtered out because I am an IMG and failed step 2 CK the first time ... Feeling like my application isn't even getting looked at ..... I'm so eager to contact a program, but don't want to start on a bad note by not following SOAP rules.... Anyone else feeling like this? or is it just me??
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It's just not you. I would love to pick up the phone and start calling programs - possibly even start looking at D.O. Programs (since I am a D.O). This process is going to make me completely bald and give me an ulcer.

Just went through the entire 2013 thread - definitely much more livelier last year. I hope everyone receives more interviews later today and good news tomorrow. Good luck!!!
 
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Any update for anesthesia interviews folks? I'm still waiting on my first unfortunately
 
Got my first call about an hour and a half ago. For some reason I thought that was a sign that I was going to all of the sudden be flooded with calls. Not the case.
 
polarbear68 said:
did anyone else log onto MyERAS and check if your phone number and email were correct like 4 different times?! :eyebrow:
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Welcome to the OCD club!🙂 I even called myself twice from a different phone to make sure the cellphone network was not playing games on me🙂
 
I applied to 30 programs in EM, TY, Prelim Med, Prelim Surg, all at 2PM yesterday. Haven't heard from a single program? Getting really nervous.
 
Can we have a head count here for SOAP participants? IMG or US grad?
IMG here. No calls
 
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