Thanking your interviewers

[Butch]

A simple, handwritten thank you note should always be appreciated. Yes, they tend to sound the same (applicants are thanking the faculty for taking the time and effort to interview).

I have no idea why a program would ask applicants specifically not to send thank you notes. Do they tell their patients not to send thank you notes also?

While getting a personal thank you note is nice, it must get tiring once every single med student starts sending the same freaking note. How many times would you really want to read, "I really liked X at your program and would love to train with blah blah blah." Do you really think your thank you letter sounds that different from all the others?

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[sacrament]

I've been putting a check in with my thank-you notes. Nothing over-the-top, just twenty bucks or so. I figure it can't hurt, right? Grease the ol' wheels?

 

[Poety]

I've been putting a check in with my thank-you notes. Nothing over-the-top, just twenty bucks or so. I figure it can't hurt, right? Grease the ol' wheels?

 

[robotsonic]

I've been putting a check in with my thank-you notes. Nothing over-the-top, just twenty bucks or so. I figure it can't hurt, right? Grease the ol' wheels?

Twenty bucks isn't going to make much difference to them. You've got to really prove to them that you want the spot. I've been writing the letters in my own blood; it shows dedication and an ability to withstand extreme pain, something I'll need for surgery residency.

 

[GoofyDoc]

Twenty bucks isn't going to make much difference to them. You've got to really prove to them that you want the spot. I've been writing the letters in my own blood; it shows dedication and an ability to withstand extreme pain, something I'll need for surgery residency.

Really? I thought lipstick was a better medium because it showed how absolutely infatuated I was with the program.

 

[chic]

you guys crack me up!

 

[DocMom]

Well, I've only just discovered this information. I've rotated at my two top sites x2 mos. each. I've communicated to everyone else that I am seriously considering their programs which seems to be what their communications to me convey they are interested in hearing. (And as I understand it, all that is legal to convey according to the Match rules.) I am going into Family Med and I've gone to as many callbacks as possible and indicated my interest to the best of my ability, and it has seemed to me that they are working overtime recruiting me, possibly as a result of my doing a dual-degree program (DO/MBA). However, I have not sent out thank-you notes to the 60+ people I came in contact with at the 5 programs I interviewed with. (Yes, it is at least that many.) Keep in mind all this process has been done doing rotations without time off and completing dual degree work, because you don't get an interview month when you're in a dual-degree program. But I didn't realize I was supposed to send off TY's to all these 60+ people - until now due to a friend's urging to check out this site.

So....am I screwed because now it's probably too late to send TY notes in spite of working my butt off to make myself more desirable to residency programs? --Especially FM which really appreciates/rewards training in the business side of medicine?

Thanks,
DocMom

 

[robotsonic]

So....am I screwed because now it's probably too late to send TY notes in spite of working my butt off to make myself more desirable to residency programs?

You aren't screwed. I'm realizing now that all of these thank you notes probably make no difference in how you are ranked. Sure, it's a polite thing to do. But will it affect how the program ranks you? I think it's probably only in a very very small number of cases.

If you are worried, you can still send a quick email to the program directors, just letting them know how much you liked their programs. It probably won't make a difference, but it might make you feel better.

 

[SurfingDoctor]

I agree. I only wrote thank yous to the people I interviewed with because they took the time to interview me. I did it simply to be polite. I highly doubt that since everyone writes thank yous, that they sit around and count the total number of thank yous each applicant sends and decide how to rank you based on that.

 

[KluverBucy]

Well, I've only just discovered this information. I've rotated at my two top sites x2 mos. each. I've communicated to everyone else that I am seriously considering their programs which seems to be what their communications to me convey they are interested in hearing. (And as I understand it, all that is legal to convey according to the Match rules.) I am going into Family Med and I've gone to as many callbacks as possible and indicated my interest to the best of my ability, and it has seemed to me that they are working overtime recruiting me, possibly as a result of my doing a dual-degree program (DO/MBA). However, I have not sent out thank-you notes to the 60+ people I came in contact with at the 5 programs I interviewed with. (Yes, it is at least that many.) Keep in mind all this process has been done doing rotations without time off and completing dual degree work, because you don't get an interview month when you're in a dual-degree program. But I didn't realize I was supposed to send off TY's to all these 60+ people - until now due to a friend's urging to check out this site.

So....am I screwed because now it's probably too late to send TY notes in spite of working my butt off to make myself more desirable to residency programs? --Especially FM which really appreciates/rewards training in the business side of medicine?

Thanks,
DocMom

you have to be kidding me...this is some sort of joke, isn't it?? of course! i'd be a bit worried if i were you cause i sent out TY letters to everyone I met on my FP interviews. i think i ended up sending close to 80 letters! but then again, it all depends on how much you want it...