Island Med Student

I plan on writing a more official list for Differential post, but I thought I’d share some tips here as well (I’m not allowed to cross-blog).

I received a pretty good response from my residency applications so far. I have already had some interviews, but still have many more to go. Obviously, you don’t have to believe anything I say. I haven’t yet matched, so I could be completely off. However, there are some things that I have picked up on during my interviews so far, and from other sources on the web. I thought I’d make a nice list of tips to share. Read at your own risk!

1) Stay Organized! A very awesome doctor (Katrina!) told me last year to make sure and stay organized during residency interview season. How right she was! I am completely organized to the max, and it has been super helpful. Here are some things I’ve done and recommend doing:
a) Create email folders and sub-folders, if necessary. You will send and receive many emails. Keep them organized.
b) Create a binder for program info. I have a sweet color coded, chronological system set up.
c) Keep all your interview dates on a calendar! I have mine both on paper and electronically, which has worked super for me.
d) Keep all the papers and info they give you. I have mine in a nice expandable file folder system.

2) Research the programs. The more you know about the program, the better decisions you can make, and the better you look on interview day. Almost every program has asked me, “why are you interested in this program, in particular?” If you can’t answer this question, you will look silly!

3) Dress professionally. Wear a suit. Use common sense here. No chest hair showing, no huge gold dollar sign necklaces, no hooker make-up. Note: I love hooker make-up just like the next girl, but it just doesn’t work in this setting.

4) Be on time. Seriously, I can’t emphasize this enough. Leave WAY early to get there in time. Expect traffic delays and build in time for them.

5) Be prepared for questions. There are many great resources on the web with lists of common residency interview questions. You should try and go though most of them and come up with an idea of an answer. You don’t need to memorize every single question, but you should be prepared to answer the commonly asked ones.

6) Ask questions! It’s not a bad idea to make a list of questions about the program in advance. Trust me, you will hear “do you have any questions?” one hundred million times on interview day. If you don’t have any questions at all, you look like you’re not really interested in the program.

7) Write thank you notes to your interviewers. Either electronic or paper, or both.

8 ) Know your strengths and weaknesses. Be able to give examples of both. Know how to sell yourself. Be confident about yourself as a candidate!

9) Have water accessible during the interview. Maybe this is just me, but I tend to get super dry mouth when I’m interviewing. I always make sure to have a cup or bottle of water nearby. I learned this lesson the hard way.

10) If you are really interested in a program, go back for a second look. This helps you remember the program, and shows that you are truly interested!

I hope this list helps some folks out there! I will likely be adding some more items to this list as time goes on. Good luck to everyone who is interviewing right now!