the dinner before the interview

[Snuffleupagus]

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hello everyone...i'm a fourth year but new to this forum.

quick question about the dinner that happens the day before the ophtho interview...

...are they generally mandatory? my big concern is, if i have an interview at program x on the west coast, and have an interview the next day at program y in the midwest, clearly i will have to miss the midwest dinner. is that bad?

what did you veterans do about this when you were interviewing?

thank you!

 

[jonnyboy]

as a resident at a program that has a dinner the night before, i can tell you, at least at our program, that the dinner has absolutely nothing to do with the application decision making process. it is merely a chance for the applicants to get to know some of the residents outside of the clinic/hospital and ask whatever questions they would otherwise not ask in an interview. no attendings are even present. as an applicant, i don't remember any of the dinners seeming to have any influence on the interview process. i wouldn't worry about missing a dinner.

 

[ryangeraets]

Even though there are situations where you can't avoid missing the dinner the night before, I would be hesitant to say that it doesn't matter. You have a very limited time to meet the people with whom you will be training under, and if they (the residents) have any any input into the rank-list process it can be a very big deal.
Think of it like this, you can use the dinner to get a feel for the personality of the program; moreover, it could be an opportunity to meet a resident who could become an advocate for you during the rank-list meeting (if the residents have any input).

 

[MedEye]

Absolutely, it does not affect ranking of applicants.
I missed the dinner for both my medicine and ophthalmology programs, and I still ended up matching there.
It is just an opportunity for you to meet with the residents in a nonformal setting and ask questions that you shouldn't ask the program director/faculty.

Good luck.

 

[fatman41]

Like many things on the interview trail, the dinner before may help you little, but can potentially hurt you. For example, occasionally there is someone who makes an ass of themselves at the dinner by getting drunk. Residents can easily report this to the program director. I think this is fair game and begs the question on whether you would trust this person to make decisions if they can't lay of the bottle for 2hrs. May personal advice on these occasions is to drink one less beer than the most important person in the room. This way you don't appear socially awkward, but also don't drink too much. You should try to attend as many dinners is possible b/c this is a rare opportunity to meet the residents away from faculty to get the real info on a program.

 

[Krony]

I didn't make too much of dinners and wasn't able to attend all of them - but I was surprised at one interview when one of my interviewers that I had never met started the interview by saying: "I've heard all about you from (name of sr. resident I sat next to at dinner the previous night)" Fortunately what she heard was positive - but this was not a case where we were given any info about who sits on the committee or to what level residents have input. Some programs specifically state that residents have no input - but in general assume that everyone you interact with from the secretary to the shuttle driver offers input.

 

[brownsdawg]

I've heard from residents at a couple programs that they do have input, and that you are being watched from the first minute you are in their presence. I'm sure this varies, but it's something to keep in mind.

 

[Pastrami King]

If you're interviewing at Stanford, try to make the dinner.

Not because it's important for the match (I actually didn't attend our dinner back when I interviewed).

But we've got a couple of real foodies in our group and we plan on milking the department's charge account for all it's worth😀

 

[MedicalDoctorV]

Stupid question - but wtf is one supposed to wear to these dinners? Suit? shirt+pants+no tie? I'm guessing jeans are out.

 

[ophthogirl]

Stupid question - but wtf is one supposed to wear to these dinners? Suit? shirt+pants+no tie? I'm guessing jeans are out.

oooh i remember reading this maybe on another forum or another website
i think its no suit
shirt, pants, +/- tie, no suit jacket
definitely not jeans

granted i'm not a guy so the one thing i really remember is no jeans

hmm somehow in my head this seemed more helpful, now, not so much...

cheers
goodluck

 

[ophthoapplicant]

shirt, pants, +/- tie, no suit jacket
definitely not jeans

granted i'm not a guy so the one thing i really remember is no jeans

I was recently at a pre-interview dinner held at a resident's place and every guy was wearing jeans (both applicants and residents).

Not sure there are any hard and fast rules.

 

[MedicalDoctorV]

no rules ... hmmm
awesome, i call dibs on wearing a tux

 

[ophthoapplicant]

no rules ... hmmm
awesome, i call dibs on wearing a tux

Sounds like a guaranteed spot in the residency to me!

 

[DiveMD]

If you're interviewing at Stanford, try to make the dinner.

Not because it's important for the match (I actually didn't attend our dinner back when I interviewed).

But we've got a couple of real foodies in our group and we plan on milking the department's charge account for all it's worth😀

Patrón and Jägermeister for everyone!!!

 

[Donald Draper]

Does anyone have any additional thoughts to missing interview dinners? Does it really have as little input in applicant rankings as the previous posters suggested?

I currently have this problem for a couple programs and it is mostly due to traveling between time zones. I'm wondering if I should cancel an intervew in order to go to a dinner of a program that I am really interested in. But then again, I would be so mad if I cancelled an interview and then ended up not matching.

Any thoughts?

 

[JMK2005]

Does anyone have any additional thoughts to missing interview dinners? Does it really have as little input in applicant rankings as the previous posters suggested?

I currently have this problem for a couple programs and it is mostly due to traveling between time zones. I'm wondering if I should cancel an intervew in order to go to a dinner of a program that I am really interested in. But then again, I would be so mad if I cancelled an interview and then ended up not matching.

Any thoughts?

I wouldn't cancel an interview just for a pre-interview dinner. These functions can help you if you if you make a good impression with the residents, but won't hurt you if you are not there.

 

[ParsPlicata]

...just like everything else matters. Any time spent with anyone from any program outside of a formal interview setting should be considered an "extended interview".

It's an opportunity to get in face time with people in a more relaxed setting. You can (and should) let loose- A LITTLE. Agree with previous statements regarding drinking and such. The whole point of the dinner before/after the interview is to get to know people in a more informal setting.

That said, it can help, be neutral, or hurt. Information will find its way back to the program director, trust me. Be your nice, social self and you shouldn't have any problems.

Should you miss an interview for a dinner? Probably not, but it depends on how important that interview is to you- if it is a backup of a backup, and the dinner is your top choice...then it is a tough call. No hard and fast rules though.

 

[BuckleExtrusion]

The dinner is not important.