what to look for in a match list

[nmbutah]

so how does one evaluate a school's match list. I hear alot of people saying school X has a good match, but how can you tell? it seems like most schools have a roughly equivalent number of students going to the various specialties, and whose to say differences aren't a matter of choice? and how can you tell what is a good residency minus name recognition? thoughts?

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[thesauce]

so how does one evaluate a school's match list. I hear alot of people saying school X has a good match, but how can you tell? it seems like most schools have a roughly equivalent number of students going to the various specialties, and whose to say differences aren't a matter of choice? and how can you tell what is a good residency minus name recognition? thoughts?

Might want to give the search function a try.

 

[armybound]

what's the point? where you match is 100% dependent on how well you do, not how well others have done.

 

[loljkttyl]

Might want to give the search function a try.

This topic has already been extensively discussed and debated on previous threads:
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=710856&page=4
(scroll towards bottom of page)

 

[thesauce]

what's the point? where you match is 100% dependent on how well you do, not how well others have done.

Well, maybe not 100%, but your personal performance is a lot more important than the school you go to.

 

[Parts Unknown]

so how does one evaluate a school's match list. I hear alot of people saying school X has a good match, but how can you tell? it seems like most schools have a roughly equivalent number of students going to the various specialties, and whose to say differences aren't a matter of choice? and how can you tell what is a good residency minus name recognition? thoughts?

Just wait until Law2Doc gets here. You'll get a talking to.

 

[thesauce]

Just wait until Law2Doc gets here. You'll get a talking to.

I was thinking the same thing

 

[lord_jeebus]

If I had to, here is how I would interpret a match list, without regard for available resources (assumes access to numerous attending physicians in a variety of specialties, which most premeds don't have):

Print it out. Have 5 attending physicians in academics cross out the 1/4 of programs perceived as the strongest, based on the prestige of that program within its field and without regard for how competitive that field is. My reasoning here is that the elite students from any school will do very well.

Next, cross out 1/4 of the programs that seem the least competitive, this time taking into account the competitiveness of the field. This is to eliminate the weakest, and those who were good students but really didn't care at all about the prestige of their residency program.

My goal is to determine, to the best of my limited ability, where the average students went.

Make a list of residency programs that were not crossed out more than twice. Show it to 5 other attending physicians and ask them what they think.

However, for reasons Law2Doc will soon share, I wouldn't place a whole lot of weight on even this interpretation.

 

[Moonglow]

so how does one evaluate a school's match list?

Evaluations are statistical, a numbers game. From a student's perspective, did most students get their #1 choice? For the school, did their students get into the best and/or most competitve programs?

Example:

http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/bin/c/c/2010 Match List.pdf

 

[guyski79]

I always look for Waldo in match lists.

 

[lord_jeebus]

did most students get their #1 choice?

Even this question is limited, because people only rank programs where they interview, and only get interviews where they have a chance at matching.

The real question is, do people get their top choice among all programs, not among programs they ranked. There is no way to answer this question.

 

[BBender716]

sorry to derail, I tried to use the search function but I can't find the answer



...what's a match list?

 

[mfrizzo3]

Whether or not a particular brand is water proof.

 

[BBender716]

Whether or not a particular brand is water proof.

Do some of these hospitals have roofing problems then????

 

[mfrizzo3]

Do some of these hospitals have roofing problems then????

 

[BBender716]

What!? Where are the PATIENTS?!

 

[phospho]

so how does one evaluate a school's match list. I hear alot of people saying school X has a good match, but how can you tell? it seems like most schools have a roughly equivalent number of students going to the various specialties, and whose to say differences aren't a matter of choice? and how can you tell what is a good residency minus name recognition? thoughts?

I had the same question a while back, till L2D explained it.

The simple answer to all your questions is that you can't. What if 99% of the class happens to wanna do psychiatry and family medicine? does that mean they had a bad match, or a really good match because everyone got what they wanted? Example: I go to Ohio State, and my best friend is top 10 out of over 200 of us. She went to medical school because she's only interested in rural family medicine. Her Dad is in FM, her 2 uncles are in FM, her grandfather is in FM, you get the point. If you see her name matching in FM, how would you know she was top 10 or had an insane board score? You couldn't.

I think the problem lies in the fact that as premeds we've always been competitive. We've always been comparing everything. Apples to apples. Now we're sitting here (with an apple and an orange) scratching our heads wondering how the hell we're supposed to compare match lists. I enjoyed watching our 4th years this year in the match. For the first time in their life they had to make a decision for themselves! Before, they would choose the best high school that took them, then the best undergrad that accepted them, then the best med school that accepted them, then the best electives that they were allowed to take, etc etc. All of a sudden, it was time for "life" and they had to choose what it is that THEY wanted!

 

[armybound]

sorry to derail, I tried to use the search function but I can't find the answer



...what's a match list?

it's a list of where all of the 4th year students will be doing their internships/residencies the next year.

 

[gravitywave]

sorry to derail, I tried to use the search function but I can't find the answer



...what's a match list?

it's a list of where all of the 4th year students will be doing their internships/residencies the next year.

 

[armybound]

I must have missed something

 

[BBender716]

Jking about the match list question, just lightening the mood here

 

[VincentAdultman]

I want to take a shot at this too!

So match lists are useless to look at for reasons already discussed. You don't know what influences people. Their interests, their ties to locations, family, etc. So just because someone matched in Peds or someone matched in Wyoming (no offense to Wyomans) doesn't mean it's a bad match for them.. For all you know, that's where they wanted to go from the start.

Also, medical schools have residencies of varying levels of competitiveness. Sompleace not well known for internal medicine may have a big-time neurosurg or pathology program or something like that. Just because it doesn't say "Harvard" next to someone's name doesn't mean that person didn't match into an elite program.

Finally some programs are just malignant. Duke has a pretty sweet name, but ask around the surgery folks what they think of the gen surg residency. This is basically the converse of what I just said above (or is it inverse?).

In conclusion don't trust match lists.

 

[lovemesomeTJ]

Off-topic: I LOVE your avatar, Pompacil. Even though I could care less for diamonds.

Carry on!

 

[Appless]

Off-topic: I LOVE your avatar, Pompacil. Even though I could care less for diamonds.

Carry on!

I want to take a shot at this too!

So match lists are useless to look at for reasons already discussed. You don't know what influences people. Their interests, their ties to locations, family, etc. So just because someone matched in Peds or someone matched in Wyoming (no offense to Wyomans) doesn't mean it's a bad match for them.. For all you know, that's where they wanted to go from the start.

Also, medical schools have residencies of varying levels of competitiveness. Sompleace not well known for internal medicine may have a big-time neurosurg or pathology program or something like that. Just because it doesn't say "Harvard" next to someone's name doesn't mean that person didn't match into an elite program.

Finally some programs are just malignant. Duke has a pretty sweet name, but ask around the surgery folks what they think of the gen surg residency. This is basically the converse of what I just said above (or is it inverse?).

In conclusion don't trust match lists.

love the avatar too! Family guy is so epic !

 

[drizzt3117]

I think the lists are useful if you are evaluating the existence of a pipeline to certain programs in a specific field in which you know the territory quite well. In recent years my school has put people into programs that I'm very interested in, so the track record won't hurt when it comes to matches in future classes.

 

[thesauce]

I think the lists are useful if you are evaluating the existence of a pipeline to certain programs in a specific field in which you know the territory quite well. In recent years my school has put people into programs that I'm very interested in, so the track record won't hurt when it comes to matches in future classes.

The counter-argument to this is that if they keep taking people from the same schools, they'll be perceived as incestuous and their applications from other schools will drop.

 

[drizzt3117]

The counter-argument to this is that if they keep taking people from the same schools, they'll be perceived as incestuous and their applications from other schools will drop.

I think that's not generally true for the top programs though. Pipelines like Columbia -> Barrow and Baylor -> Bascom-Palmer don't seem like they'd decrease applications to these programs. My school seems to have pipelines in rads to MIR and some of the bay area programs which I am very interested in.

 

[lord_jeebus]

I think that's not generally true for the top programs though. Pipelines like Columbia -> Barrow and Baylor -> Bascom-Palmer don't seem like they'd decrease applications to these programs. My school seems to have pipelines in rads to MIR and some of the bay area programs which I am very interested in.

I agree. Applying to residency is cheap and things like that don't seem to discourage applicants from trying.