Rank List Anxiety

[irlandesa]

hi, I am starting to get anxious b/c I received a personal e-mail from my Dean of Students (in response to my response to a "checking to see how your interviews are going" message) that "urged you to not get too caught up in the name of the program and rank the program that best fits your style of learning." Considering that none of my friends applying in IM got this message, and that my record isn't that hot, and that I'm not exactly a prestige hound, this concerns me. It seems as if she is saying that I am not a strong enough candidate for programs like BU, Brown, Yale PC, Maryland, etc. If that is true, why did they interview me, and why did I get 20/25 interviews (oh yeah, the OTHER Dean of Students convinced me I needed to apply to that many programs, what great advice)? Should I be worried? I don't plan on modifying my rank list, but have to admit I'd be a bit disappointed to match below my top 5..

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[Burt Bachrach]

it sounds like your deans are friggin' nuts. why are they all up in your grille? just say 'back off biz-natches.'

no, seriously, it's totally bizarre, and from what i gathered, you won't be staying at that hell hole for much longer. and, yeah, you got all those interviews b/c you deserved to, which means you can rank them any way you want.

bb

 

[nycIMdoc]

Dont change your rank list but rank all of them except those you definitely do NOT want to go. That's the advice from my Dean of Student and I think she is right. I did know people had over 20 interviews offer but did not match in IM, more like a personality problem, but that person scamble successfully. You have 20 interviews and if you can rank 12 programs, you will match.

GOOD LUCK!

 

[Pili]

hi, I am starting to get anxious b/c I received a personal e-mail from my Dean of Students (in response to my response to a "checking to see how your interviews are going" message) that "urged you to not get too caught up in the name of the program and rank the program that best fits your style of learning." Considering that none of my friends applying in IM got this message, and that my record isn't that hot, and that I'm not exactly a prestige hound, this concerns me. It seems as if she is saying that I am not a strong enough candidate for programs like BU, Brown, Yale PC, Maryland, etc. If that is true, why did they interview me, and why did I get 20/25 interviews (oh yeah, the OTHER Dean of Students convinced me I needed to apply to that many programs, what great advice)? Should I be worried? I don't plan on modifying my rank list, but have to admit I'd be a bit disappointed to match below my top 5..

I think it was just friendly advice offered because many people going for name programs have been disappointed. I don't think she meant that you were not competitive. You got the interviews, you obviously made the cut for those programs.
Also, I don't understand your constant mentioning that you are not a top candidate. You are a US graduate with top USMLE scores coming from a quite prestigious institution.

 

[bof]

hi, I am starting to get anxious b/c I received a personal e-mail from my Dean of Students (in response to my response to a "checking to see how your interviews are going" message) that "urged you to not get too caught up in the name of the program and rank the program that best fits your style of learning." Considering that none of my friends applying in IM got this message, and that my record isn't that hot, and that I'm not exactly a prestige hound, this concerns me. It seems as if she is saying that I am not a strong enough candidate for programs like BU, Brown, Yale PC, Maryland, etc. If that is true, why did they interview me, and why did I get 20/25 interviews (oh yeah, the OTHER Dean of Students convinced me I needed to apply to that many programs, what great advice)? Should I be worried? I don't plan on modifying my rank list, but have to admit I'd be a bit disappointed to match below my top 5..

1. sounds like your school isn't the most supportive.
2. don't modify your rank list.
3. don't get your hopes up too high (ie: don't be too disappointed if you do happen to fall to program number 6).

good luck, sounds like you did well in your interviews and i say you have done as much as you can. it is time to finalize that list and just sit back and wait for march 17th.

 

[irlandesa]

hi, thanks for all your input.. It turns out there was a class meeting (which I declined to attend) and the Dean gave the exact same advice to everyone there via a friend of mine who was there.. whatever, I'm going to leave it alone b/c I am sick to death of trying to figure out what either of the Deans mean. The main thing I've learned in being back at good ol' T-NEMC is that I am far from the only person who doesn't feel a supportive warm fuzzy atmosphere and an ecstatically happy relationship with the administration here. One person I know is afraid to attend Match Day b/c she doesn't want to be disappointed in front of the whole school if things don't turn out right, and I'm starting to think the same way. So all I can do now is to make decisions on how the issues with the bottom 3-5 programs can be worked out (if they can) so that I can make the decision as to whether or not I want to rank them. good luck, ireland.

 

[powermd]

One more thing to take away from this is to avoid ranking a program highly just because it's prestigious. I have two friends that matched at very prestigious programs at MGH and Hopkins and were UPSET on match day because they didn't really want to match at those programs, but ranked them highly simply because of the name. You will very likely match in your top 5, if not your top 3- make sure those ranks are programs you would be happy matching with!

 

[irlandesa]

oh, no worries about that in my case.. JHU and MGH are notoriously tough programs with a reputation for being malignant, though they certainly will leave you a well-trained physician. Like one PD said, it's best to go with gut and geography, and that is essentially what I will do. However, I think that many prestigious programs (like BWH and BIDMC) tend to treat their residents quite a bit better than community programs like St. E's with low morale and an unstable administration. Anyway, I'm probably going to rank UMass above Yale-New Haven's IM/PC program; and turned down interviews at U Pitt and Rochester b/c of geographical issues. I think that says it all re: my concerns w/prestige. good luck to all.