And speaking of hard work… It’s time for third year medical students (and graduated IMGs) to get started on a plan for this coming Match season. As of this writing, I have a few Strategy Sessions slots left in April. Advising discussion topics at this time of year should include creating a fourth year schedule, if/where to do away rotations, potential letter writers, crafting an outline for a personal statement, understanding how to write solid ERAS activity descriptors, reviewing an individual’s prospects in a desired field – using data, and producing a timeline for the application process. Also, note that some applicants contact me to discuss their current indecision about what field to pursue, and that’s fine too; those conversations should happen soon.
Blog Archives
Residency Match!
Here is a list of my residency services. Contact me for help.
Congratulations!
Many congratulations are due to those residency applicants who had a successful Match. I would really appreciate hearing from this year’s clients regarding their Matches.
On a related note, unfortunately, as of July 1, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) will allow first-year residents to work 24+ hours without a break. I’ll come out as saying that I think this is a very poor idea.
Your Residency Application: Know Before You Go
I distinctly remember a very strong candidate whom we considered as a potential emergency medicine resident many years ago. Although multiple faculty members raved about the medical student, one of my colleagues pointed out that the applicant made it clear he did not want to move to Boston. “He wants to stay in California. If he’s not interested in us, why are we interested in him?”
Mathematically speaking, this strategy doesn’t make a lot of sense. Programs should rank strong applicants highly no matter what they believe the candidates’ desires are. (After all, the program may be wrong, and there is little disincentive to go for the gold.) But the point is that it’s critical that you don’t give off signals that you are not interested in the program at which you are interviewing. (If you would rather not Match than be at that residency, you shouldn’t be interviewing there – not a tactic I would generally recommend, however.)
Know the program well and be enthusiastic about its strengths. Every program has something to offer, and you’ll need to learn details of those positive qualities if you want to stay in the running for a spot.
SOAP®
Just a reminder that if you have received few or no residency interviews, it’s time to start getting ready for SOAP.
On March 14 SOAP begins, but you need to understand how it works and be prepared for its brisk schedule prior to that.
Here is an article on the history and basics of SOAP.
Breaking Up is Hard to Do
I found this article to be a sensitively-written piece by Dr. Thomas Cook, an emergency medicine program director. We spend so much effort trying to match into a good residency that we sometimes forget to consider the personal toll training takes.
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
