Visiting a program: How many hours should i spend?

[cool_vkb]

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How many hours are considered ideal when you are visiting a program.

Lets say next week iam going to boston for a day. Will it be a good idea to spend 4hrs at one program and 4hrs at another.

I cant afford to be spending 2-3 days in each city. the cost of hotels, flights,etc is killing me. so iam thinking from now onwards i will just visit the city in morning and spend 4-5 hrs at one or two programs and catch the evening flight back home.

What do you guys think? does 4-5hrs sound too little?

 

[dpmgrad]

How many hours are considered ideal when you are visiting a program.

Lets say next week iam going to boston for a day. Will it be a good idea to spend 4hrs at one program and 4hrs at another.

I cant afford to be spending 2-3 days in each city. the cost of hotels, flights,etc is killing me. so iam thinking from now onwards i will just visit the city in morning and spend 4-5 hrs at one or two programs and catch the evening flight back home.

What do you guys think? does 4-5hrs sound too little?

Ideally, most programs usually have the students spend the whole day with them. However, there are programs that have students visit for a certain amount of time with them. It really depends on the program. The best thing to do is that you can let the program know that you have a time constraint and I think that most programs will accomodate the student.

If you are on a budget, concentrate on visiting programs that you will be interested in, instead of randomly visiting as many programs as you can.

At my residency program, I have had 2nd year students visiting us over their breaks. I have encourage some of the TUSPM students (my program is located in Philadelphia) to start visiting programs on their breaks. This will allow them to develop a sense of what they are looking for in a residency program. It will also help them decide if a program is worth their time to revisit it during their 4th year.

Good luck.

 

[cool_vkb]

Ideally, most programs usually have the students spend the whole day with them. However, there are programs that have students visit for a certain amount of time with them. It really depends on the program. The best thing to do is that you can let the program know that you have a time constraint and I think that most programs will accomodate the student.

If you are on a budget, concentrate on visiting programs that you will be interested in, instead of randomly visiting as many programs as you can.

At my residency programs, I have had 2nd year students visiting us over their breaks.

Good luck.

Iam in 4th year. The programs that im externing at are M-F 6am to 7pm. So the only time i get is weekends or occasional friday. thats why i want to maximize.

With the sorry state of residency shortages, iam not visiting random programs. Iam only going to places where i have a solid shot.

 

[podpal]

Iam in 4th year. The programs that im externing at are M-F 6am to 7pm. So the only time i get is weekends or occasional friday. thats why i want to maximize.

With the sorry state of residency shortages, iam not visiting random programs. Iam only going to places where i have a solid shot.

This sounds like a good initial strategy. If you really hit it off with a program, and think you'll fit in well, and they express that they'd think you fit in with them, you could schedule to go back and visit for a longer period of time.
Likewise if you go to a program and it's clear you have no shot, you could thank them, politely leave, and move on to the next program.
Best of luck!

 

[dpmgrad]

Iam in 4th year. The programs that im externing at are M-F 6am to 7pm. So the only time i get is weekends or occasional friday. thats why i want to maximize.

With the sorry state of residency shortages, iam not visiting random programs. Iam only going to places where i have a solid shot.

As podpal said, it is not a bad strategy. If you tell a program that you can only visit for a certain amount of time due to whatever restraints, I think that most programs will accommodate you. I have had students externing at my residency program requesting a day here and there to visit programs. I have not had any problems granting students those days off because many program directors understand that students' need to visit other program. This will vary from program to program that you extern at. Some will allow you to take time off to visit programs and some will not let you take time off. Good luck.

 

[hyperpodia]

I am only a 3rd yr. I think you should plan to visit 4 the entire day. Arrive early leave late. You want the program to think you are seriously considering them. Unless it is a program in town where you could visit multiple times.
Also target the programs that require a visit to apply. IF a visit is not necessary, I am not flying and staying in a hotel.

I have visited programs that are, 15mins from my house, 15mins from my school or in towns where I have friends or relatives that I can stay with.

 

[krabmas]

As podpal said, it is not a bad strategy. If you tell a program that you can only visit for a certain amount of time due to whatever restraints, I think that most programs will accommodate you. I have had students externing at my residency program requesting a day here and there to visit programs. I have not had any problems granting students those days off because many program directors understand that students' need to visit other program. This will vary from program to program that you extern at. Some will allow you to take time off to visit programs and some will not let you take time off. Good luck.

I agree with this strategy. Try to take off a few days from each externship like thursday and friday in the 3rd week of the month. If the program is so strict and not understanding of your situation, do you really want to be a resident at "that" program?

If you express to the programs before visiting that you only have so many hours, they may be accomadating, but will they remember you? Most programs will not deny you the visit, but you may still be wasting your time.

Good Luck.

 

[165007]

I am only a 3rd yr. I think you should plan to visit 4 the entire day. Arrive early leave late. You want the program to think you are seriously considering them. Unless it is a program in town where you could visit multiple times.
Also target the programs that require a visit to apply. IF a visit is not necessary, I am not flying and staying in a hotel.

I have visited programs that are, 15mins from my house, 15mins from my school or in towns where I have friends or relatives that I can stay with.

I agree with this guy about visiting for longer than 4-5 hours.
Seriously, 4-5 hours?

If you cannot afford to go somewhere, then go to somewhere else where you can afford. 🙄

 

[Podfather]

How many hours are considered ideal when you are visiting a program.

Lets say next week iam going to boston for a day. Will it be a good idea to spend 4hrs at one program and 4hrs at another.

I cant afford to be spending 2-3 days in each city. the cost of hotels, flights,etc is killing me. so iam thinking from now onwards i will just visit the city in morning and spend 4-5 hrs at one or two programs and catch the evening flight back home.

What do you guys think? does 4-5hrs sound too little?

Other than programs who like or require a visit (why? I would ask), IMO it is difficult to impossible to get a feel for a program in a day. What if the day you visit the surgery schedule is abnormally slow or busy? What if the attending you meet that day is not the typical attending? Maybe the resident is having a bad day or week or having an absolutely positive week? My advice is to see how the past graduates are doing. Did they all pass the board qualification? Do they all have jobs? Are they good ones?

In the end you can do most of your homework at home and save the money......

 

[podpal]

Podfather makes a really good point. It reminded me of another point. Some programs allow their senior residents to assist in the choosing process. It may be valuable to make a good impression on the current residents, especially if there is some reason that the primary attending is unable to meet with you. It may help you get an interview.