I've had a hard time with this one.
I'm a logical thinker and I often make the mistake of using objective criteria to exclusion of all others - throughout the interview process, I've learned, by default, that such a method won't work here.
1. Geography, +/-commute, since I'm staying in an urban area.
2. Gut - this is the least objective, but I definitely have had "impressions." Which is why I also think it's important to go back for second looks.
3. Resident happiness and fellowship prospects - these are tied, and tricky to reconcile if they don't match up.
4. Education - this means more than just training, because you can get good clinical experience without a good curriculum.
Currently, I've got my top three narrowed down:
-one has a big name but rumors of slavery,
-one has a good name and fellowship prospects but I got the impression that many residents were unhappy
-one has a good name (3rd of 3), decent fellowship prospects, but the residents are pretty happy, the PD is awesome, and the schedule is great.
I definitely need some second looks.
On the other hand, I would still have to keep in mind that residency is "only" a small portion of my future career, right?