Difference between Residency Interview Applications and....

I was wondering if anyone could tell me the difference between applying to difference hospitals for interviews for residency, and the meetings that take place in Frisco, Texas in January?

Is it silly to only be going to Frisco for the interviews and not looking at other options?

I swear I am becoming MORE confused rather than less with this whole process!

[SuzySunshine]

I have no idea what is in Frisco, TX in January. A conference? The clinical part of Step II?? I think you'll have to help us out, each hospital interviews at their home site.

Now I am even more confused!
I will have to ask S.
He hasn't finished his application for hospital interviews - but I am assuming that the only way you will be successfully matched is if you complete the away rotations and interviews.

He is so tired when he gets home right now - that our conversations aren't very long or detailed. I just don't want him to make any mistakes in these final stages before residency!

[DCJenn]

Interviews take place at the hospitals. You'll have to find out from him what's happening in Texas but it's not any kind of interview process.

J.

[ladymoreta]

I'm not sure what is in Frisco. The match process consists of the application he will submit, interviews, rank list, then Match Day. He needs to have his application submitted soon if he hasn't already. Places are already sending out interview invitations, so he'll want to get those scheduled soon.

Interviews will be scheduled, in general, for November-January. He will need to provide his own transportation, so the sooner the better for scheduling flights. A lot of places will provide lodging.

In February (I think), he will submit his rank order list of all the places where he interviewed. Then on Match Day, in March, he will find out where he matched.

Away rotations can improve his chances of being matched into a program, but he can definitely match in a program where he didn't do a rotation. He will (probably) apply to 10-20 programs, so there's no way he could do rotations at all of them.

Hope this helps (and hope I didn't have too many mistakes/typos).

Thanks for the description Laurie - I am going to ask him about that tonight if I get the chance. I don't want to stress him out more, and really - he should know about this right?!
He is doing five away rotations - he is on his third right now.

Thanks for all the info ladies

I copied and sent the information that I was given here... man he stressed me out last night talking to him!!

I asked him what he would do without me

I think I am going to head down to Portland to see him next week so we will get this done!

Thanks for all the help ladies

[ladymoreta]

Good luck! Let us know if you have any specific questions. This is a really complicated process, so there's a lot of information!

Thanks Laurie - the worst part was that he sounded like he wasn't sure what is going on.
Now he is a VERY bright individual... haha... but both his sisters are doctors and I swear he just goes to school/hospital and they have gotten him to that point!

He hasn't been in the same city as them for a few months and now look where we are!

So with the applications - can you just do one up and send it away to wherever you need to interview? Is there an example of what this application looks like? Example of the personal statement?

[spotty_dog]

Amber, did you say he's trying to match ortho? He's going to want to get a move on. Interviews are filled on a first-come first-served basis, usually, and those invitations are already going out from what I see here. In a highly competitive specialty, he'll want every advantage in the process.

It might help you both to read up about the National Residency Match Process: http://www.nrmp.org/res_match/index.html and the Electronic Residency Application Service: http://www.aamc.org/students/eras/ and he needs to talk to his dean to get some guidance on the process and advice on whom to request letters of recommendation from.

[medpedspouse]

So with the applications - can you just do one up and send it away to wherever you need to interview? Is there an example of what this application looks like? Example of the personal statement?

There should be an education/student affairs department at his school that has addressed this. Granted, some prepare their students better than others but I still wanted to let you know that they are still there to help. Sometimes the students do not pay a whole lot of attention during these type of lectures because they are sleep deprived/stressed during clerkships and they are in self preservation mode and this is not something that has to be done today. So, when the time comes to get applications/personal statements/recommendations/rank lists/etc. ect. those departments are still there for information and support.

Thanks Alison - this is what I was telling him last night.
I am going to send him those links so he completely gets it... and I will get him to email the dean also. I am so far away that I feel fairly helpless in all of this!

And I am getting that he is going to need to get his butt in gear ASAP! Men. Very frustrating!

[spotty_dog]

Thanks Alison - this is what I was telling him last night.
I am going to send him those links so he completely gets it... and I will get him to email the dean also. I am so far away that I feel fairly helpless in all of this!

And I am getting that he is going to need to get his butt in gear ASAP! Men. Very frustrating!

Our friends who matched into more competitive specialties (like anesthesia) really played to the politics of it. Everything from professional quality photos to go with the app, to getting letters from THE people to know at their program (and at away programs), and networking so they could drop names at the interview. The people we knew who matched less competitive specialties but who really wanted specific programs without having the top scores to bolster their apps, also worked all angles. There's a lot more to medicine than doing good work and having it recognized, I'm afraid. I hope your boyfriend has some good resources to help him get it together ASAP! I'm sure it's frustrating to see a future with him but to have no control over that future. Unfortunately that's kind of how it goes. It's on him to make his career work. You're great for trying to help, but he can't rely on you, you know? Good luck to you both!

Yes, Alison - it is true, totally up to him to get this done.
I feel like he is pretty good at "working the angles" as you put it. In all of his away rotations he seems to have met and become buddies with the important people, getting email addresses, phone numbers and contacts in that way. I am hoping that will help.

I do think interviewing and ranking with other programs is going to be important too, though. So I am going to pass this on to him tonight and see what he has to say about it all. He is seriously the ultimate procrastinator and it hasn't gotten him into trouble yet - but quite honestly, I am thinking NOW is not the time for his luck to run out!!

[spotty_dog]

I do think interviewing and ranking with other programs is going to be important too, though.

I think what I'm trying to say is, getting enough interviews to be able to rank a LOT of programs is the absolute bare minimum he needs to do. But with such a high failure to match % in ortho, he *probably* needs to go above and beyond that to guarantee a spot, even if he's an excellent student with excellent scores who will make an excellent doctor. So he probably needs to be working with someone at his school who will help him to figure out those nuances. You're right that procrastination will not be rewarded this time!