To the wise men and women that have matched

[PleaseCallMeDoc]

What would you have done differently in how you applied?

Do you wish you would have done more to make yourself more competitive? Any advise you can give MS1-MS3s?

Congrats everyone!

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[seelee]

I am almost done with residency but I am going to weigh in because I have been on both sides of the interview table.

Aside from academics, scores, etc. The interview and your interactions with the residents in the program are the biggest factor.

I think that medical school sabotages medical students in a way because many places expect you to be seen and not heard. In my school, I was penalized because I would be friendly and outgoing with attendings, and the residents felt that it violated the "unspoken order of the medical hierarchy". As a result I tried to restrain my personality and I think it hurt me in the interviews.

The most important advice I can give you when interviewing is to show interest in the program. If you really want to go to that program, tell the interviewer that. Resist the urge of looking too eager and playing your cards close to your chest.

Tell them "I want to come here. I think it is a perfect fit for me and I will work hard for you if you give me the chance".

If they ask about other places you have applied, feel free to share, but follow it up with "but I'll be honest, this place is my first choice".

If the topic of work hours comes up, communicate that you are interested in a program that will offer a strong degree of clinical experience. Don't ever give the impression that you are looking for a light work load. Even in programs that have easier hours, it is going to come across as weak.

Don't forget the residents. If there is an interview dinner, make sure to connect with the residents. They are auditioning you too and they do have a strong voice in the matter.

 

[trainofe4]

I don't think people told me how important sending post eras emails were. I got at least 3 interviews because I sent emails. I matched at my program because I sent an email.

Sent from my ONEPLUS A3000 using SDN mobile

 

[26B]

I would say that there is no such thing as "over-applying", even if you're a good applicant. I probably applied to a few too many places but I don't regret it at all. I ended up canceling about 15 interviews but in retrospect it's so much easier to cancel an interview than to get more interviews if you don't have them! I also had some really good interview experiences at programs that probably wouldn't have been on my radar if I hadn't gone to the interview. The only thing you might lose is a bit of money, but it's such a drop in the bucket compared to the cost of med school that it's basically a non-issue.


I also second the advice about sending post-ERAS and post interview emails to programs. I sent an email to my #1 but also a few more "will be ranking your program highly" emails, and I received responses from most of those programs. I don't think it can hurt you to send an email to your #2 or #3 programs expressing your interest.

 

[facted]

I can only speak for myself, but as an interviewer and admissions faculty, your post interview email is irrelevant. Send it if you'd like or if you have something you really need to say, but I'm not changing my rank based on it or the lack thereof.

 

[Nivens]

I want to echo what was said about not forgetting about the residents. The pre-interview dinner is a part of the process- don't let anyone tell you otherwise. I went to a lot of interview dinners this year, and there were a handful of people who were off the rank list before the interview day even started. On the flip side, I pushed really hard for two applicants who were middle of the road on paper but like awesome *people*. They'll be the juniors on my call team in a little over a year

 

[d9sccr]

I want to echo what was said about not forgetting about the residents. The pre-interview dinner is a part of the process- don't let anyone tell you otherwise. I went to a lot of interview dinners this year, and there were a handful of people who were off the rank list before the interview day even started. On the flip side, I pushed really hard for two applicants who were middle of the road on paper but like awesome *people*. They'll be the juniors on my call team in a little over a year

You have your schedule that far in advance?? Pretty impressive.

Agree completely with this post though. It's important for both sides. Residents are likely to be more open at the dinner than interview day plus you can see how many residents show up, how they interact, etc.

 

[Silo004]

1. I sent a love letter and it didn't work.

2. I received a love letter and didn't match there despite ranking the program highly.

3. There are a lot of cool programs out there. I would have been happy training at 6-7/10 of the places I interviewed.

4. I do think there's such a thing as over-applying, honestly. If you are going on >15 categorical interviews, you are doing something wrong.

5. Often, your academic advisers have no clue what they are talking about. Look at NBME stats and past match classes and come to your own conclusions.

6. SDN spreadsheets were more helpful than I anticipated.

 

[Bru]

I would have gotten TSA Pre-Check a lot earlier!

 

[Drowzee]

Travel: TSA Pre-Check is money. I never had to wait in line at the airport. Flying Southwest is helpful if you plan on cancelling or rescheduling some interviews.

Application/CV stuff: Start working on your personal statement at least six weeks before ERAS is due. That thing takes forever. Don't freak out about getting letters in early. I had one (very important) letter turned in at the beginning of November and everything turned out fine. I did a month of anesthesiology research in July of fourth year. I feel like it helped to have an anesthesia-related project to talk about in interviews, but most programs don't place a lot of stress on research.

Choosing where to apply: If you're really interested in programs that have a large number of advanced spots, be sure to apply to multiple prelim/TY programs in the area. Yes, you have to go on more interviews, but the prospect of moving twice or scrambling for a prelim spot is terrifying. I applied only to programs in places I'd consider living, which I would do again. I also tried to apply to programs in areas where I have friends and/or family. It was great to visit them on the interview trail and it was nice knowing I'd have friends in the area if I matched there.

Interviews: Pay attention to the culture of the program and the morale of the residents. Be yourself on the interview trail. If they don't like the "real" you for a day, how do you think they're going to like the real you for four years of residency? I met a few characters during interview season and hope they ended up at programs where their unique personalities will be appreciated. Also, don't be intimidated if/when you interview at big name programs. They invited you there for a reason.

After the interviews: Don't get all eaten up with post-interview communication. Instead of writing a thank you email to every single one of your interviewers at every place you interview, consider just enjoying fourth year/friends/family/the outdoors. Keep a running rank list. I kept one on a notepad throughout interview season along with pros and cons for each program. It's pretty fun to look back on after the interview process and match.

Good luck!

 

[loveumms]

I can only speak for myself, but as an interviewer and admissions faculty, your post interview email is irrelevant. Send it if you'd like or if you have something you really need to say, but I'm not changing my rank based on it or the lack thereof.

Agreed - post-interview emails/calls/letters/etc are irrelevant and do NOT have any bearing on your ranking (at least at our program).

 

[Katheudontas parateroumen]

For the average US MD applicant aka No red flags, step 1 215-230 (I know I said average but really, just to match a serviceable program is plenty) this is my advice. All in all, manage expectations.

1. Programs to apply- Do about 30-40. You can definitely gauge the competitiveness of a program by just looking at their resident class list. If they have people from schools like yours, you are probably good to apply there. Vast majority of the programs out there. You'll get 10-20 interview invites with just applying like that. Go to about 10-15 interviews to truly get a good sense of what is out there.

2. Questions to ask/things to look for- Caveat of course still MS4 and no real knowledge other than all the programs i went to... But go to the dinners. Usually pretty fun to eat at nice places in different cities; if anything usually informative. Most of your true questions will be asked/answered at the dinner as that's when residents have the time. You can think of your own set of questions that are important to you. but here are some to get started:
-Basic stuff: call schedule, vacation, specialty rotations, attending/faculty relationships, things to do around the area/time off, how is the intern year (if categorical).
-Some specific things: quality of specialty rotations (when on CV/peds/neuro etc, are you only doing speciality cases or is it mixed in), autonomy things (how often inducing/extubating by yourself), numbers (what's one case/procedure/experience etc you wish you had more of), quality of lectures

 

[vector2]

Agreed - post-interview emails/calls/letters/etc are irrelevant and do NOT have any bearing on your ranking (at least at our program).

Disagree. Granted, I'm 5 years out, but I think my post-interview email telling the director I was ranking them 1st helped me match even though it was a program that takes a large number of applicants with close geographic proximity.

 

[facted]

Disagree. Granted, I'm 5 years out, but I think my post-interview email telling the director I was ranking them 1st helped me match even though it was a program that takes a large number of applicants with close geographic proximity.

This is different than sending an email to everyone who interviews you at every program. This email you describe can be a bit helpful but not nearly as much as you think.