AFTER INTERVIEW: SOFT SIGNS THAT SHOW PROGRAM IS STILL INTERESTED

First of all, get over the euphoria of "We will rank you high, hope you will highly consider us" reply that most Program Directors will tell all the interviewees. There is really not much to be happy about there. In most programs, it is not just the program director who makes the Rank Order List - but a board of people including director, faculty, chief residents often with the Department Chairman having the ultimate say. So, a response immediately after an interview really would not carry much water ...Rank Order Lists are prepared by the board during mid-february.


But the following signs may indicate that you are still in the game:

1. Offer you a "second look" i.e. an invitation to meet again with faculty and have a more detailed tour of the facility.


2. Have a resident give you his email or phone number (which I feel is a clever way of getting around the rule that a candidate or director should not directly let each other know how they ranking them)


3. Some programs, like Southern Illinois University, even send letters to candidates that have been ranked, informing them about the fact that are on their Rank Order Lists (Which is legal, since what is NOT allowed is telling candidates WHERE they stand on the Rank Order lists)




Now...the dilemma is, should a candidate prepare his own Rank Order List based on what he feels a chances at a program are ? OR should it purely be on what his program preferences are ? Can the Match Algorithm be fooled or 'manipulated' in anyway to improve your chances ? ...shall come up soon in a subsequent post :-)



Reader Comments:

img11 said...

hello digital doc....
i interviewd at a peds program...n was told to be in touch if i m interested...i did mention my interest in the thankyou letter.....askin abt prematch....but did not hear nything yet from them.....
smbody toldme they decide abt prematches in jan or late dec.....but i m not sure abt this...

Cud u pls tell me..shud i write them again a letter..or shud i call d Prog coordinator.....what shud i tell them again???

Pls suggest me somthing as soon as possible bcos i need to do this before the christmas vaction begins......

Thank you for ur time.....

bye..

At 5:51 PM, Anonymous said...

Dear Digidoc,

This is an awesome blog, I could find answers for lot of my questions.
I have a doubt, when a program offers a second look ...what should be the dress code, suit again or is formal shirt and trousers good enough. I would really appreciate your input.
Thank you,
veens

At 8:30 PM, Digitaldoc, MD said...

Answer 1 : Since you have already indicated your interest (as much as to accept as prematch), the program may offer a prematch if they consider your application strong - else, they seem sure to rank you. Not a bad idea for you to call up the program coordinator and ask about prematch policies and you are likely to be considered.



Answer 2: As they say, when in doubt, its always better to overdress...i would go back in a suit