Preparing for the match

[rain_dancer]

I'm in the thick of it. I'm a planner who can't really plan until mid-March. We shall see, all I can do is hope for the best. I am not even close to zen about the process.

This exactly for me too! I'm looking forward to Match Day more than I was to my wedding day - and that was a lot! I feel like I'm standing at the start of a race, warmed up and ready to go, but stuck behind the corral waiting for the starting gun. And as soon as it goes off, it's going to be a mad, crazy dash. Too many changes to plan for in such a short amount of time.

That said, I am very lucky to a have a profession where I can find work anywhere we move. After all, where there are hospitals/doctors, there are PAs! My biggest problem right now is just not knowing what area of medicine I'd like to pursue. I've been in surgery for the past few years, but want something that will allow me to have family-friendly hours/go part-time when we have kids. Not sure that surgery will allow for that. The other problem is that I have to be registered in the state I work, so unless we end up staying in our current state, that means lots of paperwork/waiting/frustrating calls to a government office for me!

[alotofyarn]

That said, I am very lucky to a have a profession where I can find work anywhere we move. After all, where there are hospitals/doctors, there are PAs! My biggest problem right now is just not knowing what area of medicine I'd like to pursue. I've been in surgery for the past few years, but want something that will allow me to have family-friendly hours/go part-time when we have kids. Not sure that surgery will allow for that. The other problem is that I have to be registered in the state I work, so unless we end up staying in our current state, that means lots of paperwork/waiting/frustrating calls to a government office for me!

We had some friends who went through the match 2 years ago - he went into urology, she's a PA. They moved states, and I don't think she had any major problems, but I don't know for sure. My job is similar, where anywhere there are hospitals, there are going to be doctors who use computers, which is more or less what I do.

[alotofyarn]

I've got a phone interview tomorrow with a university near my husband's first choice. They know the situation, and I'll withdraw if we don't match there. It's actually with the university from which I received my undergraduate degree, so I know the entire search committee already. Hopefully it goes well!

[L.Jane]

I've got a phone interview tomorrow with a university near my husband's first choice. They know the situation, and I'll withdraw if we don't match there. It's actually with the university from which I received my undergraduate degree, so I know the entire search committee already. Hopefully it goes well!

Good luck!

[TulipsAndSunscreen]

Good luck! Isn't the early match on Monday?

[diggitydot]

Fingers crossed!

[alotofyarn]

Thanks all!

Good luck! Isn't the early match on Monday?

Match is on Wednesday, January 23rd - we're so close!!

[alotofyarn]

I think the interview went really well! They asked a handful of questions, and I think I had pretty good answers for all of them - I had talked to the search committee chair previously, and he gave me a heads up on some of the questions they'd ask, in addition to the kind of answers they were looking for. They asked about the moving situation, and I told them I'd let them know Wednesday shortly after we found out, which is convenient because that's when the search committee meets again.

[diggitydot]

Gah! I hate the waiting game. But yay for a great interview!

[SoonerTexan]

What a great situation!

I'm so close to dumping all the potential rads program in excel to create The Spreadsheet, but I'm holding off. I found one website that seems to include them all, but how can I be sure? What did everyone else do?

[SuzySunshine]

I'm pretty sure FREIDA has to have all of the programs, doesn't it?

[MissCrabette]

What did everyone else do?

I got my list from ERAS.

[scrub-jay]

Exactly, FREIDA & ERAS. Program websites are somewhat unreliable, some are incredibly up-to-date while others are not.

[poky]

I'm pretty sure FREIDA has to have all of the programs, doesn't it?

Yeah, that will be the complete list of accredited programs, just compare to that.

[diggitydot]

We did The Spreadheet From Hell with every. single. program. in the country in the dude's field. Um, it's a LOT. We weeded it down over a few years.

It seems like overkill, but the SFH really helps organize your thoughts and criteria into a manageable pile of info.