what does eras provide?

[Haybrant]

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Why does ERAS charge so much? I mean if you apply to like 20 places it's not a big deal. But when you're applying to 40 residency then 20-25 prelim/transitional it is not cheap. Why do they try to de-insentivize us from applying to alot of programs by charging more the more you apply to. What difference is it to them? They just have to click boxes. And when i call them they hardly know what is going on. Any thoughts?

as a side note, so you know, the whole residency process is exempt from anti-trust laws.

 

[tetris]

Because they can and nobody can stop them.

 

[mcl]

Why does ERAS charge so much? I mean if you apply to like 20 places it's not a big deal. But when you're applying to 40 residency then 20-25 prelim/transitional it is not cheap. Why do they try to de-insentivize us from applying to alot of programs by charging more the more you apply to. What difference is it to them? They just have to click boxes. And when i call them they hardly know what is going on. Any thoughts?

as a side note, so you know, the whole residency process is exempt from anti-trust laws.

ERAS has done an incredible job of streamlining the application process making it more convenient for all involved. In the old system, you (the applicant) had to spend your time and money contacting all of the programs to which you intended to apply and request their individual application forms. You then had to complete and return those applications to their appropriate program (lots of writer's cramp). Each faculty member writing a letter of recommendation for you had to send an original letter to each program (you would have provided them with the list of names and addresses), which took up a lot of their time and their secretary's time. Even with the advent of word processors and list/merge systems it was a highly inefficient system. I believe you also would have had to secure your medical school transcript and any other ancillary documentation a program requested, and it was your responsibility to be sure it was received by each program's deadline. On my side of things, programs had to open and sort through tubs of mail every day and track applicant documentation by hand on massive spreadsheets.

ERAS is a godsend.

 

[tetris]

You're not answering OP's question regarding the cost.

ERAS has done an incredible job of streamlining the application process making it more convenient for all involved. In the old system, you (the applicant) had to spend your time and money contacting all of the programs to which you intended to apply and request their individual application forms. You then had to complete and return those applications to their appropriate program (lots of writer's cramp). Each faculty member writing a letter of recommendation for you had to send an original letter to each program (you would have provided them with the list of names and addresses), which took up a lot of their time and their secretary's time. Even with the advent of word processors and list/merge systems it was a highly inefficient system. I believe you also would have had to secure your medical school transcript and any other ancillary documentation a program requested, and it was your responsibility to be sure it was received by each program's deadline. On my side of things, programs had to open and sort through tubs of mail every day and track applicant documentation by hand on massive spreadsheets.

ERAS is a godsend.

 

[gutonc]

You're not answering OP's question regarding the cost.

Life without ERAS would suck so hard you would quit and go to law school.

And they are trying to keep a bit of a lid on the application #s. Not so much because it's work for ERAS themselves (it's not that much) but to spare the programs the work of sorting through so many apps. That's why there's a tiered system. There's minimal to no penalty for 10-20 apps. Up to 30 or so is still reasonable. But when you start spraying your app indiscriminately across the map, you start to pay for it. If it cost $8-10 to apply to as many programs as you wanted, people would think nothing of applying to >100 programs and you'd have program coordinators and PDs overwhelmed w/ apps. If you think the filters programs use now are strict, wait until their application #s triple overnight.

Got <250 on Step 1 or not AOA...bye bye.

I think that there should be some sort of break for couples matches when applying to the same program but I'm not sure how that would work logistically.There's already a break when you apply to prelim/TY and advanced programs.

Compared to med school apps, residency apps are a bargain. And the use of a centralized system is beyond great.

 

[tetris]

gutonc, I understand and agree with you. Limiting the # of apps per applicant (as a rule, not just by making it cost-prohibitive) would be an interesting idea. Despite the high cost, there are many IMGs who pay $5,000+ each year for 200+ programs (after a certain #, it costs $25 per program).

I think a cap of 100 or 150 programs would more than satisfy AMGs' needs while forcing IMGs to be more selective.

I also think programs should be required to make known their requirements in order to help applicants decide. Many don't, or aren't clear about them.

 

[mcl]

gutonc, I understand and agree with you. Limiting the # of apps per applicant (as a rule, not just by making it cost-prohibitive) would be an interesting idea. Despite the high cost, there are many IMGs who pay $5,000+ each year for 200+ programs (after a certain #, it costs $25 per program).

I think a cap of 100 or 150 programs would more than satisfy AMGs' needs while forcing IMGs to be more selective.

I also think programs should be required to make known their requirements in order to help applicants decide. Many don't, or aren't clear about them.

I don't work for the AAMC, so I can't comment on the cost of ERAS. I don't know if what they charge is barely maintining the service or whether they are turning a handsome profit. I know that it takes money to develop and maintain the system, train new users at the AAMC facilities and remote sites across the country, publish and mail manuals to all of the administrative users (Dean's offices and specialty/subspecialty offices at every participating institutuion), and hire knowledgeable staff for the help desk. They also have an active research and development division looking to update and improve how ERAS is accessed and used in the future (I saw a presentation during a conference I attended in July).

I also can't speak to whether or not it's fair to cap the number of programs to which an applicant can apply. I can see pros and cons of that scenario, and no matter what, someone would say "it's not fair." It probably isn't fair that applicants who have to apply for preliminary positions end up paying a lot more money.

My point was that when you add your time (which has considerable value) and postage together on the old system, and consider the lack of certainty as to whether programs actually received your application and supporting documents--the current, flawed, ERAS system still comes out to be more cost effective in the end.

Mileage may vary, of course.

As to the programs listing their requirements--I think that most will give you their general requirements, but we have to cast a fairly wide net since we don't know in advance what the strength of our applicant pool will be from year to year. I'm having to regret applicants now who would have definitely received an interview invitation last year, but five years ago we were inviting (and highly ranking) applicants we ordinarily would not have considered.

I'd like to think that students' academic advisors are helping them narrow down the programs where they historically have the best chances of matching in the geographic regions where they are most interested in living.