As a PGY-4, there are 2 of us (that I am aware of) who transferred and we were both out of the same program. I transferred in the middle of my PGY-2 year and my co-resident transferred at the completion of his PGY-2. For me, this was not an easy thing to do but proved to be one of the best decisions I ever made.
First, you have to recognize that transferring to another program may solve some problems and create others. There simply is no perfect program. Leaving because of locale really is a poor reason. Residency is finite. Leaving a program that is in chaos is valid if you feel your education is truly being compromised. Have prior residents passed their boards? If so, sometimes it is easier to look at the residency as a means to an end as poor as it sounds. In my situation, failing/conditioning was the norm and there was little didactic construct to hold on to. Further, as a PGY-3, you are pretty far along to just up and switch.
Second, you need to find out what programs have vacancies. Through ARRO you could contact Daniel Flynn, MD who keeps tabs on this.
Third, any reputable program will require you to have a release from your current chair/program director. This can obviously be tricky. Remember RadOnc is small.
Fourth, don't look past the fact that you likely signed a 1-year binding contract. Getting past this turned out to be the hardest part of the whole process for me.
In summary, this was the best move I ever made. The stars were aligned though and I landed a spot in what I consider to be a top program. I had rotated as a med student at this program and this played a large role in this happening. For my co-resident, it also proved to be beneficial where he ended up.
Hope it helps.
