Duke post-interview recruitment letter (snail mail)

[ChessMaster3000]

I got one of these from Duke internal medicine recently, and figured they sent it to all interviewees post-interview, but wanted to see if anyone else did or did not get these letters.

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[RaetheChef]

Unfortunately, Duke only sends out letters to individuals they do not plan on ranking to match as a way to soften the blow come Match Day. Think of it as southern hospitality, if you will.

 

[merkeley]

Can anyone else comment on this? I also received a letter, though it was quite personal. It did not feel like a means to "soften the blow." At least I hope not.

 

[rd31]

Can anyone else comment on this? I also received a letter, though it was quite personal. It did not feel like a means to "soften the blow." At least I hope not.

*sigh*

 

[dyeguy21]

Can anyone else comment on this? I also received a letter, though it was quite personal. It did not feel like a means to "soften the blow." At least I hope not.

And that's why it works so well. You feel like they got to know you and what you had to offer. Thus, when the inevitable happens you won't feel slighted as you were clearly good (and they know that) there were just others that were better.

 

[dggopal]

Can anyone else comment on this? I also received a letter, though it was quite personal. It did not feel like a means to "soften the blow." At least I hope not.

The internet does not have a sarcasm indicator... but it should.... Not program specific.... but these letters go out to candidates programs like... doesn't necessarily mean your going to match there because they may like a lot of candidates... but at least you are on the short list...

 

[ChessMaster3000]

The internet does not have a sarcasm indicator... but it should.... Not program specific.... but these letters go out to candidates programs like... doesn't necessarily mean your going to match there because they may like a lot of candidates... but at least you are on the short list...

well that was the original question of this forum--do they send it out to ALL interviewees, or some fraction of them? even if they send it to 80% of the interviewees, that;s significant.

 

[FrisbeeDocIM]

I believe the send them to everyone. There were comments about it in years past (and I got a hand written letter from Duke two cycles ago, too). Although I'm sure you're plenty special, you're not in this regard.

 

[gutonc]

This of course brings up the most important question of this, and every match season, which is, why does it matter? What action will you take based on the information?

Lest you think I'm just being a pedantic douchebag (and I'm not arguing that I'm not being a pedantic douchebag, just that I also have a valid point to make), this question actually has huge implications for next year and your career in medicine in general. There are a million questions you can ask your patients, labs you can get, imaging studies you can order, consults you can get...but to what end? What will you do with that information? Is it actionable? Will it change your next step or the patient's outcome?

In this particular case, what would you do with your rank list if the answer was "they only send it to people ranked to match"? How about "they send it to people who they ranked within the general range where they end up on their rank list"? What about "they send it to everyone on their rank list"? And if "they're just being polite Southern gentlemen and sending it to everyone they bothered to interview"? The answer to every one of these questions is the same..."whatever...I'm ranking them X on my list of Y programs". Any other answer to that question is ridiculous.

If the reason for trying to figure out exactly who gets these letters is to help you feel better about yourself, this is a medical advice question and you need to bring it up with your psychiatrist/counselor/weed dealer, not SDN.

 

[Applicant9999]

how far after your interview did you receive the letter? I interviewed a while back and did not receive anything in the mail.

 

[ChessMaster3000]

This of course brings up the most important question of this, and every match season, which is, why does it matter? What action will you take based on the information?

Lest you think I'm just being a pedantic douchebag (and I'm not arguing that I'm not being a pedantic douchebag, just that I also have a valid point to make), this question actually has huge implications for next year and your career in medicine in general. There are a million questions you can ask your patients, labs you can get, imaging studies you can order, consults you can get...but to what end? What will you do with that information? Is it actionable? Will it change your next step or the patient's outcome?

In this particular case, what would you do with your rank list if the answer was "they only send it to people ranked to match"? How about "they send it to people who they ranked within the general range where they end up on their rank list"? What about "they send it to everyone on their rank list"? And if "they're just being polite Southern gentlemen and sending it to everyone they bothered to interview"? The answer to every one of these questions is the same..."whatever...I'm ranking them X on my list of Y programs". Any other answer to that question is ridiculous.

If the reason for trying to figure out exactly who gets these letters is to help you feel better about yourself, this is a medical advice question and you need to bring it up with your psychiatrist/counselor/weed dealer, not SDN.

agreed. doesnt change my rank. im just naturally curious about these processes, as I always have been (med school admissions, college admission, etc).

 

[gutonc]

agreed. doesnt change my rank. im just naturally curious about these processes, as I always have been (med school admissions, college admission, etc).

And I want to be clear that I wasn't really targeting you...but this question about love letters comes up every year so I was trying to head it off at the pass.