Why are the top programs on top?

[twintiger32]

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Why do these programs consistently come out on top (bascom palmer, iowa, wilmer, doheny, jules stein, etc etc) in your opinion? Is the training that much better than middle tier or other unranked programs? What is the emphasis at these programs? Is it more resident focused? A strong research team? Good surgical training? Or does it have to do mainly with reputation?

Basically I want to know what these programs have to offer other than the pride one gains when hired/picked to train there.

I hear talk about some of these top programs having "malignant attendings," and i'm sure this is not true at all the programs. how does one go about finding out the truth about each of the programs?

Also, it seems that some of the programs favor applicants from big name schools. i noticed this trend looking at doheny's website with most of their residents coming from JHU. is this a familiar trend and something i should consider when applying (or not applying) to programs?

Curious,
sophomore med student

 

[rubensan]

i think it has to do with a combination of the factors that you listed. research and the amount of $ that a program can bring in from the NEI is important, but at the end of the day (and Dr. Doan or JR, feel free to correct me if i'm wrong) a survey goes out to a bunch of dept chairs across the country re: best ophthalmology programs and every october the opthalmology times announces their top 10 list. thus the top ten programs tend to stay in the top 10. i think that some of these programs are resident friendly and i believe doheny is one of these programs. you're also correct in observing that USC and other programs of its caliber attracts residents from top medical schools. however, i did not come from Hopkins. some also say that top fellowship programs attract fellows from top ophtalmology residency programs. hope this answers a few questions.

 

[nylee]

Why do these programs consistently come out on top (bascom palmer, iowa, wilmer, doheny, jules stein, etc etc) in your opinion? Is the training that much better than middle tier or other unranked programs? What is the emphasis at these programs? Is it more resident focused? A strong research team? Good surgical training? Or does it have to do mainly with reputation?

Basically I want to know what these programs have to offer other than the pride one gains when hired/picked to train there.

I hear talk about some of these top programs having "malignant attendings," and i'm sure this is not true at all the programs. how does one go about finding out the truth about each of the programs?

Also, it seems that some of the programs favor applicants from big name schools. i noticed this trend looking at doheny's website with most of their residents coming from JHU. is this a familiar trend and something i should consider when applying (or not applying) to programs?

Curious,
sophomore med student

so the rumor with JHU and Doheny is that there is a great relationship between the two schools in light of the fact that the chair of ophthalmology at USC is from hopkins med and wilmer. Oftentimes, doheny is called the "wilmer of the west" because there are a lot of faculty members that move from jhu to usc and vice versa. I don't think that the number of JHU alumni at USC is solely reflective of the program "favoring" jhu students...i'm sure they choose residents based on individual credentials as well.

 

[twintiger32]

So top programs attract top faculty, which in turn attracts top medical students...i guess that makes sense. I was just wondering if there really is a significant difference in training i guess...

So according to Dr. Sanchez, USC is a resident-friendly program. any thoughts on the other popular programs? UCLA? BPEI? Iowa?

 

[Andrew_Doan]

Iowa is awesome and resident friendly. I had great training there. I highly recommend anyone who can get an interview to check it out. Don't mind the small town. Buy and house and walk away with a profit.

You need to be independent and ready to swim at UCLA. Residents are pretty much on their own and have significant autonomy. You can't beat the weather here.

BPEI is strong surgically, and residents have great autonomy. Autonomy may not be what you want, however, during residency because some learn better by working closely with faculty.

In the end, the rankings are like beauty contests that's only subjective banter. Defocus on the rankings, and concentrate more on if you'll be happy with a program. No matter how strong a program, if the resident is unhappy with the faculty and city, then the resident will under perform.

 

[Visioncam]

I hear talk about some of these top programs having "malignant attendings," and i'm sure this is not true at all the programs. how does one go about finding out the truth about each of the programs?

The truth is often a well kept secret. During interviews, the worst programs will often insist that they are the best. Residents will not want to "out" the really malignant attendings.

If a program only has one attending in a particular subspecialty, that's not good. However, a well intentioned, good teacher can do much to advance resident education. For example, there are some attendings who teach cataract surgery by saying "just do it" and there are some that are very good teachers.