Countdown to Match day. Join in - gannicus

[ArchivalUser]

@philosoraptor85 Yes I totally agree with you. Quality of interviews really matter and i personally felt it. But you had 9 IVs last year thats a very good number and I am surprised. Do you need visa ? What are your creds ?

[ArchivalUser]

You are making me nervous lol. This year I had exactly 9 IVs. Do you mind sharing the reasons why you did not match last year. I believe it's not only the number of interviews that matter but also the places where we interviewed. If all our programs are high tier then they might go filled way above our rank.

[ArchivalUser]

@philosoraptor85, of course that is okay with me! Haha.

4 more days til we find out, guys!

[ArchivalUser]

@usmlekid1988. Nope don't need visa, US citizen. Creds suck man, I'd rather not post them but my USMLE scores are over 200, at least. Looking back at last year, my interview performance sucked. I was nervous, unsure of myself and maybe either I came off as arrogant, overconfident, or maybe a combination of the two. I probably would have matched last year had my IV performance been better and if I had better letters. But all things happen for a reason and I got to prove myself at my #1 choice program this year. We'll see how it all works out next week but I have that nervous excitement about me as it gets closer!

[ArchivalUser]

@enchante. If you think you've done well in your interviews, well enough to be ranked high enough that you have the potential of matching, then you got a solid shot. At the same time though, you gotta realize that the program has to rank you high enough, or they go far enough down their rank list, in order for you to have a shot. There are two sides to the whole Match story and the NRMP really doesn't do a good job of explaining the program's side of it.

[ArchivalUser]

Thank you for the advice. But how can we predict how well we performed in the interviews lol. I have mixed feelings. Some ivs I did well, some I screwed. Only they know. How can we judge ourselves? I think that you realized your mistakes later on when you knew that you did not match. I hope it would have been great if Frieda has the option to check the length of each program's rank order list. They provide the data regarding how many candidates they interviewed, why not add one more detail.

[ArchivalUser]

Did you interview at any low tier programs last year? or All university-based or university-affiliated programs. I think if you ived in atleast few low tier programs, you got a good shot, don't you think? because I've heard new programs and some programs in regions such as New York City and Flint will go way below in their rols.

[ArchivalUser]

@enchante.

Honestly it's hard to predict because we all want to think that we did the best that we could. The art of interviewing itself was new to me, as I've never really done it before. After improving my application last summer, I went back and critically analyzed my performance. I don't know if you've read it, but "The Successful Match" is a great book. I picked up the latest edition last year before interview season. Also, there is a powerpoint by OHSU med that has great tips on how to approach residency interviews and what questions to ask. I think the real key of interviews is what kind of questions you ask. If you ask thoughtful, insightful ones and not the same boring old ones that everyone else does, that will put you on a higher plane. There are so many little things that go into the interview as well, like the way you sit (guys shouldn't cross their legs-apparently it shows arrogance), your tone of voice, what you say, how you talk with the coordinator and your fellow interviewees, etc. I didn't know about this stuff really, last cycle. The way you answer questions from the interviewers is also important as well. My buddy sent over a worksheet with sample answers, and then he helped me out with my answers when I ended up interviewing at his program. Funny thing is though, by then, I was pretty solid and I didn't even have to use the answers that we had come up with the night before. If the interviewers see you at ease, you can take the interview in any direction you want it to go. I actually got into a bit of a jam with one of the interviewers during one of my mini interviews (he sort of trailed off), so I ended up looking around his office and saw that he had a few books by my favorite author. I started talking to him about those books and it got us back on track. The interview ended up with him checking out the author's website to read up on the next novel, lol. Always engage the interviewer and many times they will end up talking to you about anything but medicine, lol.

I'm hoping everything works out for me this year; fingers crossed! I did interview at some low tier programs last year (Coney Island in NYC for IM, Yonkers for IM, a couple of other ones. I had some University based and University affiliated programs in there as well. Again, it all goes back to your interview performance. I thought I did fine at Coney Island but then again I look back on it now (I was the last candidate of the day, I was tired and I was not on my game) and I can see my mistakes. Coney Island interviews like 500 people a year but I'm sure their match list actually only goes down to like half of that. You gotta be on top of your game 100%, even at low tier programs. Honestly, knowing the length of each program's rank list is rather pointless cause you don't know where you will be on it.

[ArchivalUser]

Thanks for a detailed post. It is really helpful. 100% agree with what you said. The same thing happened with me at woodhull this year lol. I was the last candidate they interviewed and that too at 5:30 pm. I was tired and could not give my best. Just 4 days more for this uncertainty. Fingers crossed! All the best to you!

[ArchivalUser]

nrmp just released a statement
saying that anyone who requires visa (not just
from the 7 banned countries) will experience
delays...not too optimistic
good news for green card holders and US citizens
it really sucks for everyone else