A few clients have asked me about the new supplemental ERAS application for dermatology, internal medicine (categorical and preliminary), and general surgery (categorical) applicants. The application is more work for these candidates, but the AAMC says the supplemental app will foster a more holistic approach to the residency process. For more information, check out the PowerPoint presentation from a recent webinar the AAMC held on the topic. The supplemental application opened last week.
Last week ERAS Communications sent out a notice to candidates that while applicants may certify and submit their MyERASes as early as Wednesday, September 1 at 9 am EST, applications submitted on or before September 29 at 9 am EST will display an application date of “September 29” to programs. (Applications submitted after September 29 will display the actual application date.) This means that there is no penalty for candidates to wait to submit their applications until the 29th at 9 am EST. This date is considerably later than recent past years.
This is great news for applicants who are still working on their written materials. Use the time to make sure yours are in the best shape possible.
A few years back, the NRMP published a short document called the Impact of Length of Rank Order List on Main Residency Match Outcome:2002-2016. There, the NRMP reported that matched applicants consistently had longer rank order lists than unmatched applicants.
This data is a bit old, but it assesses over a decade of Matches, so I take it seriously. In my mind, what it means to those approaching the residency application process is that candidates should throw a wide net in choosing programs at which to apply. Of course, there is a financial cost to this strategy, and that expense needs to be balanced. However, according to this data, starting out with more options usually will provide more opportunities to interview and thus, the ability to create a longer rank order list.
Congratulations to a few applicants who have already received medical school interview invitations. For most, the season will start in the next month or so. Remote interviews are still with us, and my assertion is that the virtual interview process reduces discriminatory practices that have plagued the system for a while. See my Doximity article “How Virtual Interviews Might Mitigate Systemic Sexism in Medicine” for a personal story.
In writing their personal statements, many residency applicants ask me, “Isn’t it regurgitating my CV if I highlight my accomplishments?” After all, they say, their achievements have already been noted in the application, MSPE, and letters of recommendation. Think of the residency admissions process as an onion. Your ERAS and letters serve as one layer of that onion, albeit a thin one. In other words, your accomplishments are conveyed simply and succinctly there. The personal statement is your opportunity to apply a thicker layer, one in which you flesh out your achievements, thus persuading the reader of your distinctiveness. Finally, the interview is your chance to add on the thickest peel. Discussing your accomplishments in detail can seal the interviewer’s positive impression of you.
So yes, you are going to be redundant throughout the residency application process, but each part serves a different and additive purpose. If you do not include your achievements in your personal statement, how will you be viewed as distinctive? Remember: Who you are is what you’ve done… and what traits and skills you’ve gained accordingly.
Dr. Finkel is a graduate of Stanford University and Harvard Medical School. On completing her residency at Harvard, she was asked to stay on as faculty at Harvard Medical School and spent five years teaching at the world-renowned Massachusetts General Hospital. She was appointed to the Assistant Residency Director position for the Harvard Affiliated Emergency Medicine Residency where she reviewed countless applications, personal statements and resumes. Read more
