God willing, this may be the last time I log onto this site. This is the fullest record I can create. I hope it helps all y'all coming behind. It is finally over.
Ivy League
AOA/class rank/GPA do not exist at my school. Grades are H/P/F
Step 1: 223/90 (two-digit score is all that matters. PDs can't interpret 3-digit--not a joke)
Step 2: Taking it in April
pre-clin: honors in neuroanatomy, path, histo. Mandatory P/F in gross.
Clin: Honors in Surg and Psych. Grades not back for Peds yet (like it matters) Honors in home and all away ortho rotations, though away grades never made it to application.
Research: Strong research, but not stellar. 1 ORS presentation, but tons of awards/grants/fellowships, Co-wrote one book chapter in The Adult Hip.
Extracurric: President of Med school (didn't matter), lead several do-gooder type projects (may have helped), nightclub dj (certainly helped)
Aways: HSS, RUSH, Emory
Letters: 3 from home faculty (couple of v. famous folks), and one from an away. All were very very strong (I think this is probably the best part of my app)
Personal Statement: I write very well, and it was good.
Interviews: I wanted to be in a big city. Applied to 49 programs. Interviews offered at ~14. Declined 2-3 due to conflicts.
HSS,St. Luke's, Maimonides, Mt. Sinai, Einstein/Montefiore, RUSH, Emory (incl. in rotation), UCSF, UPEnn, BU, UF-Jax, URochester, Yale, Brown, Howard.
Rejected by many, including Harvard, Columbia, HJD, Tulane, Temple, Miami, UVA, Hopkins, MD, Union Memorial, Ochsner, Georgetown, Duke, Carolinas MC, UNC, allegheny, Northwestern, UIC, Loyola, Stanford, UCLA, USC, UF GAinesville, UMDNJ, SUNYs (take your pick--they all canned me).
I ended up ranking 10 schools, though 3 had 6-year spots and I ranked a total of 12 (Ranked Rochester's 5 year only)
I received the "not good, not bad" letter from HSS, and a v. encouraging call from RUSH. Several other programs also sent v. nice letters, but usually shy of the "we are in love with you and ranking you No. 1" letter. Take all these with a grain of salt, however.
My top 3 (which rotated several times prior to finalizing)
1. HSS
2. RUSH
3. UCSF
Ended up at #2--RUSH and am thrilled. I was lucky to have such a deep list, that the difference between No. 1 and #3 isn't huge and #3 and #5 is non-existent. I had ivies that didn't crack the top 7. Chicago is one of the best cities in the country, and certainly my favorite of all that I'd been considering (personally hate NYC, but can tolerate). RUSH is a very strong program with great research and NO OVERNIGHT CALL. EVER. You have to love it.
My take on the programs, in brief:
HSS and RUSH are quite similar, though on different scales. Strengths include excellent faculty, cutting-edge research, ridiculous facilities, experience with tons of cases, strong sports and joints and spine. Great cities, obviously. HSS gives you cheap housing, which is good, but in the Chi, you can afford to own property, which is definitely a plus. Nice to leave residency with assets > liabilities.
Weaknesses include limited hot trauma experience, limited clinic experience, occassional feeling that you are a a cog in the surgery machine.
Differences: Rush has the benefit of being a real hospital, not a boutique, so you can still see patients with non-ortho ailments and get consults like you'll do in the real world. The downside, of course, is that you have all those annoying consults and have to share resources with other depts. Also, as it's smaller, its positives are not in the same abundance as HSS, but are still present. Added, but silly benefit: Rush's OR has the most amazing panoramic view of downtown chicago. Really beautiful.
Other programs: UCSF is awesome. seemingly v. well balanced. Experience at several different types of hospitals, wonderful location, though ungodly expensive and your salary is crap. Interim chair is nice, but they haven't had a real chair for several years now. Some folks worry about HIV rate. This was No. 1 for a while for me.
Don't sleep on Mt. Sinai, Brown, Emory, Yale, Penn.
All great programs. Brown and Emory have the most incredible trauma experiences you can want. Emory's may be a bit too incredible. People at both are very nice, especially Emory. Brown has several world-class, world-famous folks and a very resident-friendly chair. He can get you whatever fellowship you want. Must note that there is a mandatory 6th year which is a built-in trauma fellowship. You lose a year, but you gain great skills and experience autonomy, but with a net. You are also v. marketable with a trauma fellowship in your pocket--definite plus over just a 6th research year. Emory balances its Grady trauma experience with brand new, beautiful private office space and ORs in the 'burbs. ATL is awesome. Providence is much better than expected. Very liveable city and close to NYC and Boston.
Don't believe the going story about Yale. It's a great program with early hands-on experience, great faculty and great residents. Downside is New Haven, though that's better than it was.
Sinai is nice. Small and v. hard-working. If you love NYC, consider it strongly.
Penn was very impressive. Incredibly nice and concerned Chair--wouldn't leave until he knew that we all had travel/lodging arrangements as we got caught in a blizzard. Super facilities. CHOP has to be seen to be believed. Philly is better than expected too.
Others still--
U of Rochester may be the single best program I visited (honestly, I think it's probably the best program in the country and would rank it above HSS, RUSH, and UCSF for sheer training and research). Brilliant Chair who is so nice, you think he's hiding something. first-rate faculty. Great hospital. BUT IT'S IN ROCHESTER, NY. Deal-breaker for a single guy, but probably ideal if you have a S.O. and certainly if you have a family (good schools, cheap real estate, etc.)
Howard--DC is great. This program is better than anticipated. V. small, but dedicated faculty. Good trauma experience. Nice facilities and lifestyle. Not overly academic, but working on it.
Einstein/Montefiore
Blue-collar, in a good way. Very Nice chair. Good facilities. Bronx has low cost of living for NYC.
UF Jacksonville
Growing program. Fantastic Chair--clearly the strength here. Weather is nice, but not miami Jax is a bit down-trodden, but real estate is cheap. Frat atmosphere to program (ivy league background and research were actually seen as negatives here by many). Young faculty, not much depth/experience. Informal, though. You will learn to operate, but not much else. Could be great fit for someone who isn't me.
St. Luke's
On probation. Avoid.
TAKE HOME MESSAGE(S):
1) I know how ludicrous this sounds, but don't stress about the process, 3rd years. Not because it isn't stressful, but because it doesn't help. Note that my numbers are not that impressive, but I still got interviews at the top programs in the country. I also got rejected by some top programs and some programs that I considered sure-bet safeties. The process is fickle.
2) The best thing you can do to match is away rotations. Period. Rotate where you want to end up. Don't sell yourself short--if a school is a safety, it's a safety; don't waste a month somewhere you wouldn't want to live. Do well on rotations by showing up on time, being nice, and being interested. That's all there is to it, I promise.
3) Rank programs according to your desires, no one else's (unless you have a S.O. to consider, then make them happy or you'll both be miserable). There is no gain to trying to anticipate how programs will rank you.
4) All the games--thank you notes, 2nd looks, calls from people--are just that. Don't get sucked in. Clearly department connections can help (but they can also hurt; many PDs get off on trading applicants like baseball cards). Just do what you do, because these people will do what they do. And remember, these people DO NOT LOVE YOU. You are at best an employee and all employees are replaceable. If you match at your first choice dream program and they send you wine and roses, don't forget that you are expendable. If you got hit by a bus before you started there, they would not change their OR schedule to attend your funeral. They might send your folks flowers. It is sad, but true. All the same, try to work with people who seem nice and concerned about your well-being at least a bit. It will make your life easier.
The process is ugly, it's cold, but it's manageable. Just don't think you have any more control than you do. Letting go can be the best thing, sometimes.
This shit is just a job, nothing more. There are tons of other great jobs, arguably better, both in and out of medicine. Don't be afraid to pick something else. If I hadn't matched, I was going to law school and would finish at least 2 years earlier and make more money. While I admire and respect the attitude of the "ortho is the only thing that will make me happy" people who try and try again, and do, eventually achieve their goals, I don't get it. Life is too precious. But we all just have to do our thing, I suppose.
Okay, kids. Best of luck. I still may check PMs from time to time.
-Grizzle-
