What struck me positively about USC was how happy faculty and residents seemed. The comraderie was fabulous and I liked the casual and mutually respectful attitudes. Every faculty member I talked to was absolutely great, some of the best in terms of friendliness and interest. As I was hanging out in the office waiting for an interview, faculty coming and going were introducing themselves and joking with me and the staff. I also liked the philosophy that residents can and should take a lot of responsibility in making their own diagnoses early on. The residents all seemed to be having a great time and seemed busy but not overworked. They also have a very busy cytopath service, but I had a hard time figuring out how they compared in other areas, as this interview was pretty early on for me. I'd love to hear others' thoughts on this. The downsides...If you've visited already, you don't need me to tell you about the aging county facilities, or that faculty and residents both note funding issues (no book fund, correct me if I'm wrong). The last visit of the day was with the program coordinator, who obviously takes great pride in recruiting the best residents. She picked my brain for the names of every resident I had talked to during the day (so she could debrief them, I'm guessing), and even eyed the notes I had scribbled on my itinerary sheet. She said they interview and rank only 20 of the very best applicants, and was pretty aggressive in gauging my interest in the program, which got me sweating a little. Despite the strong positive impressions from the faculty and residents, I left feeling a bit conflicted (maybe due to the perceived pressure?)...so I'd love to hear your impression of the program as well. Feel free to comment on the other LA programs too. I would also add that it seemed like the residents are really prepared to practice pathology in the community when finished and that there is a strong link between the faculty and those hiring in the community. It was unclear to me, and those that I talked with, how the program is going to change as the 5 year residents phase out and it becomes a 4 year program. Overall, I liked the program and think that I will fit in nicely. 
LADoc00 said:
