Residency Review Thread 2013-2014

Not gonna tell everything to keep mildly anonymous, but happy to share a little of my story.

Med School: Borderline top 50 NE
Boards: Step 1: 220-230 Step 2: 250-260
AOA: Nope
Preclinicals: H/P system, I think I had 2 H
Clinicals: H in everything but IM (no one honors here), Peds, Ambulatory
Ortho: H at home and 3 aways
Aways: Can't really say where, but two were at places I thought I had a resasonable shot. One a clear reach. Ended up getting ints at all but the reach
Research: at the time, 6 publications, 20+ abstracts, couple of patents. Did a research year.
Extracurriculars: Research year, Firefighter/EMT for 7 years, bunch of school leadership, founded a high-tech start-up. Medical mission to Ecuador as surgical asst.

What I was looking for in a Program: Level 1 trauma center with the ability to do good research. Integrated research year preferred and prioritized


How many Programs:
Applied to: 128
Offered Interviews: 25
Attended: 20
(I should say that had I only applied to 80, I probably would have gotten the same 25 interviews. The places that were truly geographically isolated from where I'm from didn't consider me. Not sure if it was true for everyone, but an observation for me. That said, given how easy it is to check a box and thus everyone's apply everywhere - I can't advocate reducing interviews on that. Maybe your PD can).

Programs of interest (not in rank order, just a bunch I liked):
1. U Pitt - Really strong faculty support, residents are amazing people, facilities great. Huge high volume patient training. If you don't like trauma, don't come here. I liked how they staged your training and then fully immersed you surgically. Overall very impressed with the passion and influence of everyone there.

2. Johns Hopkins - Amazing facility top to bottom. Very impressed with camraderie amongst residents. Interviews were 3x30 mins, so you really got to know your interviewer and how much they respected the institution. Promoted international mission work. New chairman really seems to have a grip on programmatic direction. Mentioned that there may be a 6 year track in the near future.

3. North Shore - LIJ - AWESOME chemistry amongst faculty/students. Lab commitment here very strong, they seem to dominate the AAOS resident landscape. Trauma exposure is mostly at North Shore, so you get dedicated time at LIJ for other fields - no overshadowing. PD is a genuinely nice person. The type of place I'd see myself practicing at if ever given the chance. Cool thing - their anatomy lab and ambulatory surgery center are actually built into the original building that housed the UN before they moved to NYC.

4. Case Western - True innovators. Their chairman has a HUGE resident advocate. Residents are down to earth, decent human beings. Lots of fun to hang out with. Cleveland is an awesome city, and the incentives to move here (30K 0% interest forgivable loan if you live within city limits for 5 years - great for surgeons) are easily the best in the country. 2 a year go out for the Allen Fellowship, which has really strong support from the academic components of the dept. Early surgical exposure, high volume trauma center. UH may be going Level 1 adult soon too. Rainbow Children's may be the best peds facility I've ever seen.

5. Orlando Health - Top 3 trauma program in the US. Chairman might be one of the coolest and smartest people I've ever met. Faculty are down to earth, very egalitarian relationship with residents. You operate early, often, and a TON here. Facilities are gorgeous, and Arnold Palmer Children's is very well known. The residents are all constantly smiling and seem to authentically have FUN here. Great place.

6. Stanford - WOW. Gorgeous hospital, that they're transitioning from into an EVEN MORE gorgeous hospital. Palo Alto is expensive as hell, but amazing place to live in. Floored by faculty research commitment. Great surgical load. Residents are great people. Faculty truly love their jobs. Research-first institution, but with Level 1 trauma so you won't miss anything.

7. Temple U - First thing I noticed is how NICE everyone is. People are down to earth, horsing around, smiling ear to ear. No prim and proper stuffiness - they all seem to LOVE where they are. Lots of faculty interaction and passion for residency. Great trauma center, good research in conjunction with their anatomy dept, and PD seems like a great person. Actually regret I didn't rotate here. Prob would have had a great time.

8. U Rochester - If you like trauma + Research, this program was created for you. Arguably the #1 trauma center in NY, which gets a ton of trauma. Nice place to live, cheap to buy a house. Research is front and center here, #1 in NIH funding in US (almost 500K ahead of Wash U). Was interviewed by more Ph.Ds than MDs, and loved that. First sentence from PD during intro was "we make chairmen". Love that commitment to academia. No matter where you're from, consider this program. They're not afraid to bring up Texans, Californians, or Bostonians.

NOT RANKED - None. Inconvenient location >>>>> NO Job

Matched at: #1! Didn't rotate

Advice for future applicants:
1. Never let people tell you that you "can't" go to ortho. It's a hard road if you don't have the Step 1 (like I didn't), but obviously you can get interviews at a ton of top programs without it. Screening criteria do exist, particularly in NYC, but is not as prevalent or high as you'd think. That said - think rationally. The match rate is dropping every year. If you feel like you're borderline, don't lose out on getting a solid transitional year or other field program by not applying during the main match. No shame in going to an amazing training program in anther field.

2. Believe in yourself, and do what you're passionate in. But in doing that, don't force programs who believe otherwise to take you just because you rotated. If you don't like research, don't rotate at big name research institutions who are obviously looking for that. It doesn't help you. A LOT of great places with big names are clinical-first programs. Consider those first.

3. Research, in any field, helps a LOT. I'd say at least 1/3 of people I met on the trail had research years.

4. Don't hesitate to advocate for yourself. I e-mailed a few places after the first wave of interviews had gone out. A few gave me interviews a couple of days later. Does this always work? No. But many respect the attempt, will give a second look - and sometimes you just get passed over because of how many people applied. Speaking up for yourself helps distinguish you from the pack. Don't be obnoxious. Send ONE e-mail, unless responded to. And don't e-mail until after offers go out. But this helped a couple of times.

GOOD LUCK next year. You all will rock it, and celebrate. Just a year left! If I can help at all, feel free to PM.

Figured I would add my two cents to this thread. When I was preparing to do aways and then throughout the interview process I referred back to previous threads and found it very helpful. Not sure how everyone remembers in such detail about programs because the whole process is a blur.

Med School: Low-nonranked primary care state school in the south
Boards: Step 1: 260s Step 2: 270s, CS pass(both taken before ERAS release)
Rank: 4th
AOA: Senior
Preclinicals: True A-F: 4.0
Clinicals: 4.0 (A-F again on clinicals)
Ortho: 4th year is pass, got to look at evals and they were (imo) excellent
Aways: No home program, did aways at two very well regarded programs
Extracurriculars: Did ortho research between M1-M2 at a regional ortho program: poster, oral presentation, 2 acknowledgements in published articles. Also, prior to med school I have another advanced degree in a medical related field. Also the typical ortho interest group stuff, some volunteer work, yadda yadda

What I was looking for in a Program: clinical experience >>>>>>>> research powerhouse, I didn't bother applying to any of the mayos, johns hopkins, harvards that are usually reviewed ad nauseum in these threads:


How many Programs:
Applied to: 49 (didn't complete extra BS on about 6-7 of these after I found out [ie additional personal statement, additional LOR forms, etc])
Offered Interviews] AAOS presidents). Memphis is underrated. Fun city, cheap housing. PGY-4 and 5 seem a lot more relaxed when you aren't at the Med (preceptorship model).

14. University of Tennessee, Chattanooga - Blue collar program in Chattanooga which is an awesome city. Another family friendly residency, really nice residents. It's pretty rotator heavy from what I gather. Smaller, only take 3 a year. No oncology rotation which was a bummer for me (not that I want to do it but I'd at least like to rotate on the service). They have a trauma fellow but supposedly doesn't interfere with cases.

15. University of Texas Medical Branch - Most laid back program. Call seems almost too easy, mostly home even PGY2. Currently there is a lot of driving from Galveston to clinic building/SDS which is half way to Houston. You also do rotations in Houston - hand and oncology. Could be worse places to do oncology then MD Anderson, probably worth the drive. Trauma rotation seemed a little light as it's tied in with the Texas Department of Corrections. Still, residents coming out and going into general practice and say they feel well prepared for it.

16. Virginia Commonwealth University - Best interview day. Short and sweet and to the point. Facilities were among the best on the trail. Richmond seemed like a real nice city. I missed the pre-interview social since I was driving in from another interview but I got nothing but good vibes from the residents. I don't really have any other specifics that I can remember.

Interviews offered but not attended: University of Mississippi, Medical College of Georgia, University of South Carolina/Palmetto Health, University of Michigan, UC Irvine

NOT RANKED: ranked them all, I think it's ridiculous not to personally

Matched at: Not everyone can match at their number 1. I didn't. I can't lie, I was disappointed (as you should be since you know, its a preference list) but I'm going to an outstanding institution and going to do my dream job!

Advice for future applicants:
1. Choosing aways is probably the most difficult part of this whole process, particularly if you don't have a home program. Start narrowing down where you want to go as soon as you can.

2. Do whatever it takes to kill Step 1. Its obviously not the only thing and if you don't do great it's not the final nail in the coffin but it can make your life SO much easier.

3. Your senior medical students are your greatest resource. Don't be afraid to use them, and use them NOW while we still remember some details. Ask them about the types of questions they received on the trail. Be prepared.

4. Trust your gut about programs. I asked every single program about their perceived strengths. Every single program responded with the same answer: resident camaraderie and early hands on training. There's no way you can really gather this without rotating at a place, so trust your gut!

Feel free to PM me if I can be of any help.

4. Trust your gut about programs. I asked every single program about their perceived strengths. Every single program responded with the same answer]

Totally agree wholeheartedly. After 2 months of interviewing multiple times a week, all these places will start to blend together. Your gut feeling won't. Trust yourself.

I too would like to remain anonymous, but as a 3rd year student looking into programs, and 4th year figuring where I had a good chance for the sake of applying, I was appreciative of the guys before me who filled this out and posted reviews. I encourage those that matched and use this forum to post some info for the next group of orthopods.


Med School: Public, South, Not Top 50
Boards: Step 1: 240 Step 2: 240 (After ERAS - only a couple places asked if I took it)
Rank: Top 10% is all I know
AOA: Junior
Preclinicals: 4.0
Clinicals: 2 B's, rest A's
Ortho: Home,
Aways: 2 (SE Academic, NE Community Programs), Honors All:
Research: 1 Ortho publication, Co-first Author - came up on EVERY interview, Plenty of non-published Undergrad work that was actually brought up during several interviews
Extracurriculars: Several BMOC leadership positions from college through med school

What I was looking for in a Program: Honestly, as cliche as it sounds, well-rounded. I wanted to go to a place that would be known well enough to get me the fellowship I wanted (whatever it may be); I wanted the opportunity to be a research king if I wanted (even though I'm not sure if that's what I want); I want great hands-on operative experience early on (no exceptions); and I wanted a place where I liked the guys (believe it or not, this became a factor in my decision process, as not all guys in Ortho match each other's personality)


How many Programs:
Applied to: 70
Offered Interviews: 12
Attended: 12

Alphabetical:

1. Albert Einstein Medical Center (PHL) - 'The program exists for the residency.' Overshadowed in Philly with Jeff, UPenn, Temple, Drexel all in the city. But AEMC is in North Philly, trauma-heavy with Gun&Knife club. Two residents per year was the flaw to me - what if you don't like the guy you're with for 5 years? And that makes you wonder how much funding the program has. BUT - they operate really early, and are good at it. That speaks to their outstanding fellowship placement, especially for all you hand-weenies out there.

2. Allegheny - Friendly work place. Community program with a private-practice feel. They seemed keen on saying they stick to 80hrs/wk for residents, but spoke with some rotators from there who said that was the hardest month they've had as far as call and whatnot. The faculty was some of the nicest I met along the entire trail. Pittsburgh is an up and coming city, might be a cool place to live.

3. Atlanta Medical Center - See above. All I can offer is that AMC seems behind the times as they are still using paper charting, and with Emory just down the street, their name gets lost in the wind it seems like.

4. Baylor - Be ready to work. Residents 'joked' about how they are operating at 2AM because their attending 'wanted to.' Ben Taub probably gives one of the best trauma experiences in the country, but at a cost to personal time (which I know going into Ortho you're going to work, but their schedule is still rough). Residents were awesome, chill group of guys from all over. Interview day was rapid fire with probably 50 interviewees there. The program is going through some changes with new Chairman and recent loss of faculty to Methodist, but there is optimism with its new research funding it will bounce back to where it once was.

5. Brown - White collar, stats-driven, research. I was excited for this interview; sure it's 6 years, but have you seen where the residents place for fellowship? Anywhere they want! Plus, it's Brown. Providence is beautiful. The morning of the interview was spent with a slideshow telling us the average Step 1 score, AOA status, and all other crap stats of the residents. Presentation given by legendary Dr. Ehrlich, who was cool, but this demonstrated what was truly important to him and their program - numbers. Interviews went well, Dr. Ehrlich again lived up to this assessment by having a checklist where he would ask you questions and assign you a number based on your answer - right in front of you. i.e. Are you AOA? What was your step 1 score? How many publications do you have? Were you a Varsity athlete in college? It was probably the weirdest interview experience I have ever had. But the residents were great, and you'll come out getting whatever fellowship you want, probably a good surgeon.

6. Emory - Blue collar program with a white collar shirt on. Emory is IT if you are in Atlanta. They are always making headlines in research, other things. Bradbury (PD) and Roberson (Chairman) are awesome, down-to-earth guys that seem to really care about the program and its success. Residents are pretty cool for the most part, got amazing fellowships (particularly this year), and seem to be generally happy. Atlanta is a great city. Rotator-heavy program that gets people from ALL OVER the country. I don't know why everyone picks Emory, but you can have 12 rotators any given month, and I can only imagine it makes it impossible to stick out in that group. I think this plays a factor in Emory trying to make itself one of the true elite (ivy-league status) of Orthopaedics, even though it is already a top contender.

7. Medical College of Georgia @ Georgia Regents University - A truly southern program. Relaxed interview day, chill residents, slow-moving city that has the Masters and the medical school. These guys see a lot from the SE part of the SE states, as they are the only big academic program in that region. Not overworked, losing Chairman to Arizona, interim guy probably to take the spot, but may lose other big name faculty because of this. A very regional program as far as reputation, decent fellowship placement.

8. SUNY Downstate - On probation. Got an email from the chairman/PD stating the program was under review and went into probation, likely because lost faculty and training positions recently (but the email didn't say this). The program gets hot trauma a lot. I heard that some guy was held up at knife-point and robbed on the morning of his interview, and still showed up, talked to police, and did the interview - BAMF status. But speaks to the area? Probably. Cool residents, but seemed more interested in drinking and taking advantage of the bar tab than meeting applicants at the get-together, kind of turned me off. Brooklyn is expensive. Fellowships are good.

9. SUNY Stony Brook - You will know how to operate. Out in Long Island, didn't get to check it out but heard it's a great place to live if you have the money (and I think PGY1 salary is $55k so they try and help out). They get most if not all of the trauma in the area, with volume that requires at least another resident that they weren't approved for (have 5 now). Interview day was one of the best - a real guy's club where everyone was joking around, watching football during lunch. Interviews were mix of chill and intimidating, with me laughing in one room and sweating over 'what would you do' questions in the next. Research was discussed for almost the entirety of one interview, which is something they seem to be keen on improving even though it is already decent. Their fellowship placement is superb.

10. Toledo - Eh, welcome to Toledo. Honestly, the program seems good. The residents are cool, the facilities are new and nice, and faculty was welcoming. They probably handle most everything in their general area, but it's just that the general area is Toledo. Not a fan of location. Some guys don't go into fellowship, otherwise okay placement.

11. UMDNJ-Newark - We are now part of Rutgers. Trauma heavy secondary to being in a rough part of Newark. The residents were awesome, and do well for themselves. The PD was probably the nicest I have met at any interview, even gave us his cell to call him with questions later. You will know how to operate once you leave this place. Most wouldn't live near the hospital, so a little commuting, but no big deal.

12. Vermont - You like skiing? First interview of the season for me, as well as most people that were there. Burlington is a beautiful, cold place, and it gets dark early. They serve everyone in a huge radius because they are the only hospital there, and as a result the residents are very competent. The facilities are nice, and they are not overworked. Solid fellowships.

Matched at: Top 3. I really wanted the Number 1, but where I am going I have the opportunity to become an outstanding orthopaedic surgeon.

Advice for future applicants:
1. Rock Step 1 - Cannot stress this enough. It IS the deal breaker. Dr. Levine in a thread a long time ago said something like 'Before a 240 was a golden ticket, now it is fairly pedestrian when applying to Orthopaedics.' This cannot be more true. Sure there are guys out there with a lot more to offer than a high Step 1 score and thus get great interviews, but for the bulk of people applying, like me they are regular Joe's just trying to do the right stuff to get in, and a high Step 1 score is the measuring stick.

2. Get good LORs. Almost every interview I got commented on my LORs, as they were all solid. Really get to know an academic ortho guy and have him write you a phenomenal letter.

3. Do research. This is an ever-increasing importance in Ortho. Everyone is doing something, so you need to be too! Even if you don't like it, and even if the program is not known for it, they want to see someone who is capable of thinking analytically.

4. Believe in yourself. I heard 1200+ applicants for ~700 positions this year. That's a lot of people not matching, and I feel for those that did not. It is a supremely competitive field, but if you want it, go for it. Figure out a way to do it, and just do it.

Good luck to all.

OM19

Med School: Well-regarded state school
Step 1: 262
Step 2: 263, took in September of 4th year
Rank: who knows
AOA: nope
Preclinicals: Overall honors
Clinicals: Honors in surgery, neurology, radiology. High pass everything else.
Ortho: Honors in home rotation, 1 away honors, 1 away excellent
Aways: 2 aways outside of region, both well-regarded, got both interviews.
Research: undergrad non-ortho research in high-powered journals. 2 major ortho projects that had posters and podiums, no published manuscripts yet, but expect to.
Extracurriculars: Nothing crazy, i do have a background as a mentor/TA/camp counselor, etc.

What I was looking for in a Program: Overall wanted a place that would prepare me well for fellowship and private practice. Main emphasis on operative skills, broad experience, fun group of residents, in a outdoorsy or otherwise fun location for a single guy. Low cost of living. Well-supported opportunities to pursue research were a plus.

In general I’m a hard-working and down-to-earth guy, I like sports, the outdoors, and bike-commuting. I do not consider myself a gunner and generally think the med school mentality sucks. I’m also not a person that goes around posting on internet boards – however, I think this is a valuable resource and I wanted to pay it forward. Take it with a huge grain of salt and remember it is highly subjective. Good luck!

How many Programs:
Applied to: 54
Offered Interviews: 23
Attended: 16

Tier 1a (ecstatic about both the program and location):

Utah – Well-rounded and very ambitious program. Stunning facilities and location. Lots of emphasis on research and have the faculty to back it up. Well-rounded operative experience, lots of fellows but don’t seem to interfere much, no trauma fellows. Best didactics and education that I saw, hands down. Liked the residents although they seem a bit less cohesive. Incredible access to mountains for skiing etc.

OHSU – Well-rounded program with an equal emphasis on lifestyle. Stunning facilities on main campus, also rotate to private hospitals in Portland. Slightly lower volume is easily offset by very few fellows to compete with. Especially strong in tumor. Great residents, really liked the faculty. Portland is probably the coolest place in the world to live – city itself, plus outdoors, with adequate time to actually enjoy it.

Tier 1b (ecstatic about the program, but I’d rather be out west):

Wisconsin – Best group of residents I met. Awesome collegial mentality, well-rounded operative/clinical experience with emphasis on education. Really liked the faculty. Nice facilities. Madison is a great town, very manageable/inexpensive, lots of active outdoors stuff, Chicago is nearby for a weekend.

Grand Rapids – Community program, awesome emphasis on operative experience. High volume including trauma. Good group of residents, fratty culture, you can tell they love this place. Liked the faculty. Grand Rapids is a nice city although a little slow for my taste

Minnesota – Maybe the most comprehensive operative experience in the country, tons of trauma, impressive and huge faculty. Hard-working, no night float. Rotate through hospitals for the first 3 years rather than dedicated services. 6 different sites, with some extra driving as a result. Minneapolis is a hidden gem, lots of outdoors stuff nearby.

Tier 2a (very excited):

UC Davis – Well-rounded blue-collar program in a good location. Facilities are very nice, faculty seemed great, liked the residents. Sacramento is a quieter, cheaper, more manageable side of California (though more expensive than the Midwest). Tahoe/Sierras/Bay Area are within striking distance on a weekend off.

Washington – Infamous trauma experience, your 2nd year would be incredibly busy but you would obviously learn a ton. Sounds like the lifestyle gets more manageable after that, operative experience is late but easily adequate. No deficiencies, I was tempted to rank this higher. Great research opportunities. Seattle is an incredible city, a tad expensive and a tad too much traffic.

MCW – Solid program, with a few deficiencies. Their spine and hand services are a little lighter. Busy trauma, overall you’d get a great experience. Milwaukee is very liveable.

UCLA – Westside LA is sooo seductive. Maybe the best group of residents. More academic program, apparently their operative volume has improved recently, seemed fine to me. Main 2 sites, Reagan hospital and Ortho surgicenter, are absolute palaces. Also have rotations at CHLA, Olive view(?), and Harbor. It would be a hassle to drive to all those sites. Good lifestyle. Expensive.

Kalamazoo – Hidden Gem, I was very impressed! Incredible lifestyle, very little scut/mindless work. Operate out of 2 private hospitals, which is the key – they have cast techs, PA’s etc doing all of the BS. Everything is geared towards your education and operative experience, not towards using you as cheap labor. Changed my concept of what a residency could be. City is small but does have a university and Bell’s brewery, close to local lakes and lake Michigan shore. Very affluent city with Stryker located here. I just thought the city was too small for me, and too few residents. Would be IDEAL for a married applicant.

Tier 2b (cool places with a flaw or two):

GWU – Solid program with strengths in some unique areas such as shoulder. More flexibility in terms of rotating with certain surgeons/services of your choosing, less rigid than other service-based programs. Operate at 3 main sites in DC. Incredibly expensive city, cool young scene though.

Tufts – Big-time on joints (NE Baptist hospital). Weaker on trauma, must go to Brown in RI for polytrauma experience. Otherwise rotate at 3 main hospitals around Boston. City was a little expensive for my liking. The dealbreaker is that boston sports fans are insufferable (that’s a joke. But seriously).

Miami-Jackson – Huge on trauma, very blue-collar experience. Faculty are into some really interesting research from the sound of it. Residents were the Bro-ey work-hard play-hard types, and Miami is a very flashy city – Although South Beach and Brickell are verrrry seductive, honestly I’m just not looking for that lifestyle.

Summa – Awesome community experience. Tons of operating, cohesive small group. 2 main sites, they keep saying one is going to be replaced soon by a brand new hospital. This is a great program, I just wasn’t into Akron as a single guy who likes the outdoors.

Tier 3 (Significant drawbacks in my situation, but you’re still a surgeon):

UIC – Spread over many sites. They reduced the number by cutting Cook County and the VA. Other sites are highly variable in character which I think is a plus – have a indigent-type hospital, rich elderly hospital, university, etc. However, you do have to drive, and wow the traffic here is terrible. Chicago is fun but expensive and a hassle. Saturday morning didactics were a turn off. They did not present themselves particularly well on the interview day.

Henry Ford – This is actually a great program. Probably heavy on penetrating trauma for my liking, but overall impressive facilities, opportunities, and faculty. 2 main sites (1 urban, 1 suburban), both are a significant drive from the main residential area. But most importantly, I just. Cant. Do. Detroit.

NOT RANKED – None. I would be VERY hesitant to not rank a program.

Matched at: In my tier 1. Very happy!

Advice for future applicants:
Didn’t send any thank you’s. Constantly got compliments on my letters, and I think this is a really important factor. Don’t forget you can get great letters from your away rotations! Try to be unique in your personal statement / activities section – interviewers want to get to know you and easily bore of talking about research projects. Keep an open mind! Try to stay objective – it’s easy to let a $50 cab ride get you nice and pissed off for the weekend (thanks Detroit).

Med School: Private / West
Boards: Step 1: 250s Step 2: 260s (August ‘13)
Rank: N/A
AOA: Yes
Preclinicals: Dean’s Recognition, MS1 and MS2
Clinicals: Honors (Ortho/ENT, General Surgery, IM, OBGYN, Peds, FM), High Pass (Psychiatry)
Aways: OHSU, San Antonio Military Medical Center
Research: 3 posters (2 at national conferences, 1 school)
Extracurriculars: Church and community volunteering, Air Force, student government, club leadership, former high school teacher and coach

What I was looking for in a program: I’m married with three kids. In a former life I taught high school science. After residency I owe the Air Force three years of service. I also have little interest in academic medicine. Bottom line: I wanted a program that would provide me an excellent foundation for generalist practice in a location where my wife and kids could flourish.

# Surgical training: balanced junior/senior subspecialty exposure, geographically close training sites (i.e. no traveling to another state for 3-9 months, no driving 45 minutes across town to cover multiple hospitals), preferred night float, approachable faculty who enjoy mentoring

# Resident collegiality: Did my interaction with residents leave me with confidence that I could call them to grab a beer, and call them for help in the middle of the night?

# Family-friendly: other married residents, other residents with kids, reasonable COL, classical Christian schooling for our kids, preferred proximity to our families

Applied to: 64
Offered Interviews: 20
Attended: 14

In no particular order (because my tiers wouldn’t be yours)…

University of New Mexico: Friends who rotated here absolutely raved about their experience! They loved the program culture, and said residents were significantly better in the OR compared to their home institutions or other places they had rotated. On my visit everyone was exceedingly warm to my wife and me. There was a very high turnout for both the social and the after-party at one of the chief’s home. Their interview day is relaxed and informative; not one hint of self-importance. The PD and residents had my application memorized, and really went out of their way to sell themselves without sounding desperate or insecure. Residents speak very positively about the faculty, and especially esteem Dr. Treme (PD). Because of their intern structure, almost every resident starts each morning at 6:30 without any pre-rounding responsibilities. Morning didactics are delivered in subject blocks by attendings, and there is a resident-run “Beer and Bones” session each Wednesday afternoon. They have a centralized campus for all rotations except the VA, which is about 4 miles away. There is infrastructure for research (2 required projects, 1 of which in pediatrics). Camaraderie was outstanding both within classes and between senior/junior residents. Residents come from every part of the country. 13 married, 4 engaged, 8 single, 12 kids. Albuquerque definitely has the Breaking Bad vibe in some parts (and actual tours!), but there are some nicer locations. The Nob Hill area (about a 10 minute walk from the medical center) is full of young professionals. Many of the families have large homes on the west side of town (15 minutes by car), while others prefer quick access to the mountains in Northeast Heights (also 15 minutes by car). Most residents are into mountain biking, skiing, or trail running, and they get about 320 days of sunshine a year to enjoy the numerous recreational opportunities. Sante Fe and Taos are 1.5 to 2.5 hours.

OHSU: I rotated here, and loved my experience. Dr. Yoo (Chairman) rebuilt a program that by their own admission was in ruins a decade ago. He has a grandfather-like quality to him, attends fracture rounds each morning (including most weekends), and seems to have expert knowledge in every field. Dr. Friess is a humble, affable, thoughtful PD who really enjoys mentoring. They are adding energetic faculty in all subspecialties — Dr. Marachi in hand/trauma and Dr. Mccarron in upper extremity are resident favorites, while Dr. Ching is fabulous in spine. I didn’t observe any malignancy during my rotation. Rotations are 10 weeks, and they do everything as a junior and then again as a senior. Fellows interact with residents on Spine, but are otherwise a nonfactor. There is exposure to both academic centers and private community hospitals. Trauma is steady, but not overwhelming. Didactics are very hit-or-miss. Research, historically a weakness, is starting to mature, especially in spine and hand. Residents were always eager to teach and involve me in consults. As individuals, I really liked everyone, although they didn’t seem to do a ton of things together outside the hospital. The current class of 2017 has some of the best quality human beings you’ll meet. The chiefs were very comfortable running the OR and clinic by themselves, and junior residents had great 1:1 operating time with attendings. Parking is expensive (~$1,200/year). Portland fit all of the stereotypes I’d heard: unparalleled microbrews, vast culinary options, nice public transit, plenty of hipsters and yuppies, lots to do in the outdoors, and of course the fairly steady presence of gray skies and rain.

Stanford: Really enjoyed my visit here, and my impression is their orthopaedics program will soon match the reputation of the parent institution. Dr. Maloney learned directly from Dr. Gelberman, and aims to replicate WashU’s success at The Farm. Lots of recent promising faculty hires. For whatever reason, Stanford orthopaedics historically has a less than stellar reputation on this forum. Residents are aware of this and tried to address any concerns about OR time, resident collegiality, etc. Most of the people I asked who either rotated here or were home students had very positive remarks. A few noted double/triple/quadruple scrubbing on the joint service, and a fairly heavy fellow presence overall. In addition to the massive expansions at SUMC and LPCH, they have a stellar outpatient surgical center and one of the flagship VAs. Everyone seems to especially love the autonomy at SCVMC (~40% of your residency; ~20 miles away). They are expanding to 7 residents (previously 5). All rotators are interviewed during their away. Palo Alto is incredibly expensive, but also one of the most desirable locations in the country. Again, I think Stanford will soon mature into an orthopaedic powerhouse. But with concerns about limited OR time, and with the program adding residents, I think it’d be most prudent to rotate and see it firsthand.

USCF Fresno: People who write this program off as too young, or located in an undesirable city are liable to miss a real gem. Loved Dr. Lindvall (chairman) and Dr. Brox (PD). The residents were incredibly friendly and took great pride in building a stellar program in Fresno. This is a spot ideal for anyone interested in trauma as CRMC is the 2nd or 3rd busiest trauma center in California. Residents also rotate at Kaiser (efficient HMO), Sierra Pacific Orthopedic Center (high end private practice), Childrens’ Hospital Central California, and the VA. As a PGY2 they also spend 3 months doing tumor in San Francisco. Mostly 4 month rotations. Two weeks of night float as an intern, otherwise q4-5ish call at CRMC; while at Kaiser, SPOC, and Children’s residents are 2nd call and only come in to operate. The entire faculty personally volunteers to participate in resident education (i.e. they aren’t distracted by their academic careers). Because this program is connected to UCSF, the research infrastructure is fully operational. Full disclosure, my wife and I lived previously outside Fresno, and we loved it. COL is great and the locals are salt-of-the-earth. Within an hour or two are numerous spots for rock climbing, backpacking, or camping in the Sierra (including Yosemite, King’s Canyon, and Sequoia national parks). Quality skiing/snowboarding is 75 minutes. And no place in the country has fresher agriculture.

Chattanooga: 3 residents per year, traditionally dominated by guys from the southeast who rotated there. When I asked Dr. Tew (PD) about this he explained that because they only have 15 total residents it’s critical to continue maintaining a tight knit group from R1-R5. However, one of the interns was from CA, and they are clearly hoping to draw people from across the country that fit their program ethos. They have outstanding trauma (and Dr. Kiner is one of the coolest attendings I met on the trail), with excellent sports + FA exposure. Spine is done in the community, and they don’t take any spine call. There is no tumor service; you go to a course in Florida. As for didactics, they employ a Socratic method each morning, with hardly any lecture or passive learning. Everyone is expected to have a solid working knowledge of the day’s assigned reading material, and the attendings then force residents to explain and defend their learning. Even though it’s demanding, it’s clearly working in terms of their results as these guys dominate the OITE (97-99% percentile) and their boards pass rate is 100% for >5 years. For those folks looking for family friendly programs, the interview social was packed with resident spouses and there were tons of little kids toddling around. Many of the residents own homes. The chairman, Dr. Alvarez, meets monthly with residents to do QI, and he always ends by reminding the residents to really work hard at taking care of their families. UTCOM has nice perks for residents, including moving stipends, iPads, and daily food allowances. Chattanooga reminded me of Portland in terms of its budding brew, coffee, and culinary culture, outdoor recreation, and “green” initiatives - just replace rain with humidity.

Iowa: I can’t say more about Iowa than what has been said in previous threads. This place has earned its storied and coveted reputation as arguably “the best program in the country,” yet continues to carry itself with humility and class. My wife and I had an absolutely delightful time on our weekend visit, despite the single digit weather. If you are confident that living in a small college town in the Midwest fits your personality, I can’t imagine a better program.

WashU: What I said about Iowa is equally true about WashU. It’s another perennial contender in “the best program in the country” debate. Dr. Wright (PD) aims to recruit game changers, so make sure your aspirations are high and your CV is stacked.

UC Davis: Trauma heavy program with recent expansions in hand and FA. They also cover the preeminent Shriners alongside residents from UCSF and St. Mary’s. Everyone seems to LOVE their 4-month R4 rotation at Kaiser South, where they are granted rather significant autonomy. Residents generally have a laid-back west coast vibe, but still take pride in working very hard. Their call schedule is a bit unique, with alternating heavy and “less-heavy” call weeks. It’s expected everyone stays post-call. The PD commented that they really look for residents with a “Midwestern work ethic.” Fellows are definitely a presence (positively and negatively) per residents. Excellent research infrastructure. Sacramento is quite affordable for CA. Access to Tahoe or the Bay Area is about 2 hours.

Loma Linda: They are unashamedly a religious institution (which they will tell you during the interview day), but few of the residents are Adventists. Everyone seems to agree that the only significant influence is in the cafeteria, where the food is frankly not very good. Moving past the SDA questions, Loma Linda offers a really outstanding surgical training experience. Attendings at my home institution are quick to praise the pragmatic, hands-on, high volume OR time offered here. A rather brutal R2 at LLUMC year prepares you to fully run your own service as an R3 at ARMC...as in, you actually fully run your own service. R3s and R4s spend almost all their time away from LLUMC at ARMC, the VA, or their outpatient surgical center. Pediatrics appears to be a particularly favorite service for most residents. They are never double-scrubbed, and there are no fellows. Research is available, but not emphasized. The chairman is fairly new, coming from the private practice world, and really wants to know about applicant’s leadership philosophy + leadership roles. Dr. Wongworawat (PD) is a dynamic (and somewhat eclectic) renaissance man…helped build and landscape a 16-bedroom pagoda in the hills above the medical center. Residents get outstanding healthcare benefits, as health and fitness is a major initiative of the SDA. Loma Linda and Redlands are nice communities, while neighboring San Bernardino is…umm…not. Even though they’re in southern CA, anything interesting is still about 1 hour away.

Utah: In recent years their reputation has really climbed the proverbial ranks, with some folks drawing comparisons to Iowa, WashU, or Vanderbilt in terms of the synergizing academics and operative experience. Balance and depth seemed to be the mantra. The faculty was universally hospitable on my visit. Dr. Stott (PD) and Dr. Aoki (resident selection chair who personally calls you during invite season) were phenomenal. The R1s and R2s who took us on the tour were very friendly, but I didn’t get to meet many of the seniors. I know a handful of folks who rotated here, and their feedback was not always 100% positive (e.g. questionable malignancy, seniors uncomfortable in the OR), but hearsay is a tricky mistress. They have centralized facilities, including a real gem of a dedicated orthopaedic center. Trauma varies by season, and is mostly blunt (the penetrating trauma primarily goes to IMC). Residents say they have an unpredictable call schedule on peds (q2, q3, q4) depending on fellows. 10 weeks of night float as an R2. 4 weeks of elective time as an R4. SLC is not as influenced by the LDS as the rest of Utah, but there are still odd liquor/beer laws. Residents have probably the quickest access to world-class mountain sports and outdoor recreation in the country (hospital-to-lift in 30 minutes), plus really magnificent cultural events (e.g. Sundance Film Festival, Utah Shakespeare Festival).

Ohio State: Dr. Glassman (chairman) has provided stability and vision to a formerly turbulent program, and residents say Dr. Mayerson works tirelessly in his role as program director. There was excellent resident turnout at both THE social and interview luncheon, and all my conversations were pretty easygoing. Training at THE OSU Medical Center seemed pretty standard for a large academic Level 1 complex. I didn’t get to see OSU East, but my impression is that its facilities aren’t as nice. As an R3 they start rotating at a private hospital, Riverside, which is reportedly high volume. THE one drawback at Riverside is that residents are working with new faculty, and thus have to restart THE process of earning an attending’s trust rather than smoothly progressing in their surgical training. Pediatrics at one of THE sleekest facilities in the country, Nationwide Children’s Hospital, is a major highlight. Columbus seems to a perfect place to raise a family. Safe, affordable, plenty of activities for kids, including a top-ranked zoo and aquarium. Everyone is infatuated with THE Ohio State Buckeyes (even my rental car service agent deemed me an “honorary Buckeye”), and you get THE impression it might be nauseating if Ohio State events aren’t your preferred entertainment.

Orlando: Aiming to be a standout “privademic” training program, this place is often compared to Carolinas Medical Center, or Greenville Health System. Dr. Haidukewych is a magnetic dynamo, and you can tell he’s invested the proverbial blood sweat, and tears into this place. He’s the kind of leader you’d move across the country to follow – bold, thoughtful, winsome, and jovial. At the interview orientation he explains the philosophy for how each year of training was designed, and during your interview he tells jokes that would make a sailor blush. The faculty he’s collected (not just Dr. Koval) has intimately bought into resident training and really enjoys education. Trauma, like many southern programs, is a big deal here. But they also operate at outside private practices. Community rotations are only kept if residents give great feedback. Even though there are tumor cases at ORMC, residents spend ~3 months in Tampa for a dedicated oncology experience. For the social, the program rented a luxury suite for a hockey game at the Amway Center. The residents here all ranked this place 1st or 2nd, and really appear to enjoy being together in and out of the hospital. Their surgical case volume is on the higher end of the spectrum, which of course means that they work pretty hard.

Emory: I’ll echo previous statements — Emory has the best camaraderie chairman to interns that I’ve seen. They party hard together, including weekends out at faculty lake homes. I also agree that they have a blue-collar workload wearing a white-collar shirt. They have always savored the controlled chaos of Grady trauma, where boys become men. But now there is an intentional effort to harness the previously uncoordinated resources at Emory (as well as local assets like the CDC and Georgia Tech) into a highly respectable academic research institution. Back to pragmatics, they cover hospitals all over Atlanta, which obviously means lots of driving. We were told if you live “inside the perimeter,” commuting isn’t much of a hassle, but camping out on the freeway during our interview tour wasn’t exactly reassuring. No night float. When residents work out of their specialized orthopaedic surgical hospital (EOSC), they get to see the pinnacle of efficiency (including the chairman Dr. Roberson bust out 8-12 joints before leaving at 4pm). Dr. Bradbury (PD) exudes the qualities he told me Emory wants in a resident: grit, holistic drive, and an expectation of rising to excellence and prominence.

UC Irvine: I’m secure enough to just laugh about the “stress room” during their interview day. The stories are legion, although mine was fairly benign. A faculty member looked at my application for about 5 seconds before confidently announcing, “You have no chance to match here, and will probably struggle to match anywhere. Do you have any questions?” Someone ought to collect the anecdotes because they’d make a funny coffee table book. And because they generally hold interviews on days that won’t conflict with other programs, many folks will go just to have another program on their ROL. Let me save a few of you some headaches: don’t wear purple and don’t wear cufflinks. Yes, it gets that petty. My mother told me that “If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all,” but I just couldn’t help myself.

Conflicts: USC, University of Rochester, Atlanta Medical Center, Beaumont, John Peter Smith, Baylor


Matched at: My #1.

Advice for future applicants:

1) Some of this forum is gold. Some of it is pyrite. Try to be discerning.

2) Make a list of the factors that are absolutely essential to your future satisfaction BEFORE you carpet-bomb the country with your application. (Akin to grocery shopping with a specific list, rather than ravenously wandering through each aisle with a fresh credit card.) Use this rubric to choose where you apply (unless you have extensive resources). More importantly, use it as a scaffold for taking notes about programs after you visit. How well does a place actually meet the criteria you already said you wanted?

3) Do away rotations at places where you really see yourself being happy (see point #2). This means doing as much possible research about places before VSAS. I think conjecture that “big name” away letters, or geographic proximity opens up other schools is balderdash in most cases.

4) Encourage and help the other students at your home institution. Match *with* them, instead of *against* them.

5) Have fun on the interview trail. Be a decent human being. Enjoy meeting your future colleagues.

6) Give honor and gratitude to all those who helped you along the way. I’m foremost grateful to Jesus. My wife and family have sacrificed so much for my pursuits (and will more so in years to come). Faculty and colleagues mentored and advocated for me. There are numerous others, and as often as possible, I try to convey my appreciation.

Thank you to all who have posted. If you haven't, please do so as this is very helpful for rising 4th years and beyond!

Great posts so far. I also found this helpful when applying and sorting through away rotations, so have decided to type out my thoughts. Enjoy the process and good luck!

Med School: top 50
Step 1: mid-250s Step 2: high-250s (taken before ERAS submitted)
Rank: top 10%
AOA: Yes
Preclinicals: ~50% H’s
Clinicals: > 50% H’s
Ortho: All Hs
Aways: 2- both big academic places in difference geographic regions
Research: 20+ ERAS papers, abstracts, presentations

What I was looking for in a Program:

- Good clinical training: Wanted a place with a strong, academic main hospital but also a wide variety in terms of patient population and hospital affiliations. Adequate trauma was important, but a representative number of weeks on that rotation was ideal (i.e. not 9 months per year). Wanted subspecialty rotations, everything covered, and to rotate through more than once. Balance of teaching and learning by experts, with enough autonomy to gain confidence and skill. Did not want a place with a ton of double scrubbing, or a place with no guidance whatsoever. A solid lecture series was a positive, as were other opportunities for structured learning (AO course, AAOS, intern boot camp, skills labs or anatomy dissections).

- Research: Ability and resources to do as much as I can handle.

- Good people: Wanted cool residents and friendly attendings. Residents that were overly competitive with each other or things that hinted at baseline malignancy were negatives (although I didn't actually see this too much on the trail or aways, to be honest).

- Location: Everybody obviously has to decide what this means. For some it's cost of living, for others it's city life, and some people just want to be close to family. I figured out what I wanted and it was a reasonably important factor when making my rank list.

- Name: Less important to me personally, but still wanted a place with consistently good (academic) fellowship placement and some big name attendings to write the letters and make the calls.

I figured out that no program was going to deliver a 10 out of 10 in all of these categories, although some came close. Overall balance between these things was key for me.

Applied to: ~60
Offered Interviews: ~20
Attended: ~15

Debated about whether or not to include tiers, since they are not going to be applicable to everybody. Decided to do so, since I feel that they are a metric of how well these programs fit into the criteria outlined above. I was less strict about location since it is so heavily dependent on personal preference. I thought every place I saw was solid and capable of producing well-trained orthopaedic surgeons.

Tier 1- All criteria met and well balanced; some of the best places in the country.
(alphabetical)

Brown:
An academic powerhouse with excellent clinical volume and training. Very good operative experience, although somewhat back-loaded. As you've read, it is a 6 year program with a mandatory "super chief" year during which your main role is to staff the trauma cases. There is also time for research, and to some degree time to get exposure to other subspecialties of interest. Residents felt that this was a very useful year; some have said that it is necessary since the junior residents do not operate as frequently as they might in another setting. Like many programs the junior residents here work extremely hard. The research here is probably the best I saw on the trail. Multiple basic science PIs with more than enough work to do, and prolific bioengineering researchers were producing as well. Best of all, the residents were into it, and I saw many of them in the research lab during my tour. Residents basically get whatever fellowships they want, and the chairman likes to brag about how they have the highest percentage of graduates in academics orthopaedics of any program. Residents were great, attendings were excellent, friendly, and eager to teach. Providence is a decent city with enough to do. It's close to Boston and the ocean, has a good variety of dining and shopping options on its own, and has a relatively low cost of living.

Bottom line: A program vying for "best in the country." This place is a solid competitor for that title, and would be an excellent place to start an academic career. Need to decide how you feel about the 6th year.

Cleveland Clinic:
This is how an incredible, machine-like institution does orthopaedics. You will see the rarest of the rare, and learn how to operate from very well-known (and very pleasant) attendings. This place could almost run itself, and so while the residents play a vital role, they aren't required for very many things. This translates into a ton of protected didactic time. Most services are essentially mentorship-style, which means direct learning. There are a number of fellows, but active learning seemed to be occurring. Overall the operative experience is probably better than average for all programs. It is certainly not as good as smaller, community programs with no fellows, but probably better than most academic institutions with an equivalent reputation. Research is great, and an optional research year is possible (but not forced on anyone). Lifestyle is better than most places. The downside here is trauma, which goes to a county hospital a few miles down the road. The residents do rotate there, but the overall proportion of time spent on trauma is lower than most places. Cleveland is also a decent city, but not for everyone.

Bottom line: Impressive academic place with good clinical training and friendly people, but in a city that's not for everybody.

Iowa:
Believe the hype-this place will blow you away, and was one of my favorites on the trail. I won't go into too many details as they have been discussed endlessly, but there really are no flaws to be found. The rotation schedule is composed of small, team-based subspecialty rotations that are repeated multiple times. There is trauma and tertiary care; there is learning and active participation. The history is amazing in the sense that the department is 100 years old and has only had 4 chairmen (search is underway currently for the 5th, something that absolutely no one there is worried about). The faculty is a list of legends, all of whom are humble, kind, and passionate. Research is excellent, and the rumors of a data-mining army seem to be true. A few residents had published 5-10+ papers while there. The drawback is obviously Iowa City, which small, cold in the winter (below 0F when I was there), and far away from everything else.

Bottom line: Possibly the best program in the country with excellent clinical training, impressive research, excellent fellowship placement, and a ton of famous attending who are also great people. In Iowa City.

Stanford:
An outstanding program. Between the University Hospital, the county facility, VA, and Children's, the patient population is as diverse as anywhere. Operative experience seemed good at all locations, but excellent at Valley Med, where the residents have a ton of autonomy and spend around 1/3 of their time. Also thought that there was plenty of trauma between the different hospitals, but not a trauma-warzone type place. Very strong in joints, sports, hand. The research opportunities are nearly unlimited, and the department is well-connected with Stanford engineering (and others) and capable of producing truly unique projects. On the other hand, research didn't seem to be forced on anybody, although most people seemed to participate in at least a few projects (and some churned out multiple papers per year). Excellent fellowships, well known faculty, great academics. Best of all, the residents (recently expanded to 7 per year) were class-act individuals and enjoy a good time. The Bay Area is expensive, but perhaps one of the most exciting destinations in the country.

Bottom line: One of the outstanding academic programs in the west, with the elusive combination of great hands-on clinical training and outstanding academics and research.

UC San Diego:
Another favorite. Smaller program than expected, both in terms of volume and personnel (4 residents per year, smallish faculty). However, there are multiple hospitals to be covered (Hillcrest, VA, Thornton, Rady, Navy) and clinical training seemed very strong, with great autonomy and relatively little fellow-interruptions. Lifestyle was also very good, and the intern year was the best I saw anywhere. This program is dedicated to producing academic orthopaedic surgeons. There is a mandatory research year following the PGY1 year, which is carried out under the direction of one of 6-7 PIs, many (all?) of whom have won a Kappa Delta. Most of these labs are tissue engineering/soft tissue healing. There are not quite as many well known attendings at this program as at others in this category, but mostly I think this is just because the number of faculty in general is relatively small, and the chairman Dr. Garfin makes up for it. Extremely strong in spine, very strong in hand, trauma, peds. The other real strengths of this program are: the residents (probably the most fun of any on the trail), the working relationship with the attendings, the attitude and drive of the PD, and the location.

Bottom line: Excellent smaller, academic-oriented program with mandatory research year. Good lifestyle and operative training with solid history of producing physician-scientists as well as private practice docs.

University of Pennsylvania:
Big name institution with some big name attendings. The chairman is inspiring, and really is striving for excellence in all things. I thought that the rumors of militancy were exaggerated. Having said that, there did seem to be a certain competitive atmosphere here, and the residents ragged on each other more than I saw elsewhere. I’m sure they push each other to do great things, but not for everyone. It was difficult to judge the clinical training, but I would guess that it’s about average for a big academic center, and headed in the right direction. They are building a new standalone trauma center (think shock trauma), which will certainly be a benefit to the program. They also rotate through multiple other hospitals (5 or 6?) including CHOP, which is world famous for peds. I did get the sense that the 80 hour work limit is pushed to the brink here frequently. Research opportunities were outstanding, and probably tied for 1st place with some of the other programs I saw. Philly seems to be a very fun city, but it’s unclear if the residents are able to enjoy it.

Bottom line: Another excellent place with everything you need. More of a traditional east coast vibe.

USC:
This is a really interesting program. Picture an ultra-trauma place, where the residents have outstanding autonomy and volume, but get worked harder than anybody and didactics/academics are limited. That’s what USC used to be all about. Now add the new chairman, a game-changer, former PD at UCLA and former chairman at UConn. The result is something very special. There is a huge focus on turning this into an outstanding academic institution, which has resulted in many new faculty, a new research block, and a great didactics schedule (chairman is editor of the AAOS board review book). The trauma is maybe the best anywhere, and sports/upper extremity have always been strong. Spine and joints are now great too. The unknown here is just how far this program will rise, and how the program will deal with the many additions to the curriculum while still covering LA County, which is no small task (my impression is that the next few classes of residents are going to work harder than ever). If successful, this could be one of the top programs in the west in 5 years. In its current state it would still be a great place to train and live.

Bottom line: Outstanding clinical training, and the steps to transition into a powerhouse program have been outlined. This program could rocket to the top in the coming years.

Tier 2- Most criteria met although balance may not be perfect; great programs.
(alphabetical)

Arizona:
Small program in the southwest with a very friendly atmosphere. Excellent OR experience, even as an intern. Most rotations are 4 months long, and they cover everything once (but not everything twice). Must go to Utah for peds and Phoenix for tumor. Most rotations are mentorship style, and I got the sense that double scrubbing was extremely rare. Trauma is outstanding and largely the focus of the program, with 4 traumatologists on staff including the chairman. Extremely friendly faculty, great PD, all about fit. Residents got along well, hung out, seemed happy. The weakness here is research, which is not emphasized; residents do their mandatory project and that's pretty much it. Tucson was nice, lots of outdoor activities, good weather though definitely the desert. Cost of living is very affordable.

Bottom line: Small, friendly program with excellent clinical training and outstanding people.

Baylor:
Solid program with outstanding clinical training, a ton of trauma, and plenty of time spent in the OR (including in the middle of the night). Everything is covered, but residents don't rotate off of the trauma service until later in the program. The operative experience is also backloaded, with the R2s seeming to be mostly just doing floorwork on the Ben Taub (county) rotation. The new chairman seemed focused on research and academics; this is another program that could be a rising star if his leadership is successful. Interestingly, one attending came straight out and said that the program is not interested in training academicians, so this goal may not shared by the entire department. The fellowship list was good, with many/most people staying in the South.

Bottom line: Excellent clinical volume, although operative experience is backloaded. Academics is not a huge priority although this could be changing.

UC Irvine:
A smaller program, but outstanding operative experience. Unique setup that basically has the second year residents running the hospital (including doing all of the cases, especially the trauma). If you want early operative experience look no further. The academics seemed fairly good, with average didactics and solid research, although most residents go into private practice. Fellowship placement seemed very good in hand and spine, average in other subspecialties. Apparently there has not been a sports attending at the main hospital for a few years, but residents rotate through the VA and a couple of other community hospitals where they get this experience. Location was arguably the best on the trail.

Bottom line: Good hybrid program that delivers excellent operative experience in a great location.

UCLA:
You will be impressed if you interview here. Everything is new and shiny, there are a lot of attendings you've heard of, and the lifestyle and location are difficult to beat. The research opportunities are outstanding, although not all residents participate extensively. Fellowship placement is very good. The drawback is operative experience. This is a very fellow-heavy place. This translates into double and triple scrubbing, and senior residents doing things that juniors did at other programs. The trauma was also a bit sparse, and relied heavily on rotations at Harbor (which has its own residency program) as a chief. A number of faculty (including some very famous ones) have recently been recruited to USC.

Bottom line: Great academics, lifestyle, and location traded off for operative experience.

Tier 3- Some criteria unmet; still solid places.
(alphabetical)

Loma Linda:
It would be difficult for me to add much about this program that has not already been said. Yes, it is a religious institution. Yes, the operative experience is very good. For me, however, multiple criteria were unfilled, such as research and well-known faculty. While it is located in southern CA, the surrounding towns are pretty quiet and really in the desert, and you need to visit for yourself to decide whether or not that's for you. Probably an outstanding location for married applicants with kids. Aside from all of that, the interview day seemed a bit behind the times, with multiple physical "task" rooms, including the PD's room.

Bottom line: A program that churns out great community surgeons.

UCSF-Fresno:
Small program with three residents per year that is very focused on training competent surgeons. Rotations are mostly at Community Regional/UCSF-Fresno (pseudo-academic/county facility), Central Valley Children’s, Kaiser, and an upscale private practice facility. Unfortunately, there was minimal research going on, although the PD wanted to change this. For some reason only two residents were present the entire interview day. Fellowship placement is, at this point, unknown. Locations is average: there is access to major cities on the weekends, but Fresno is not impressive.

Bottom line: Great clinical training with little research and average location. Could be an excellent program in the future.

St. Mary's:
Another small program (3/year) based in San Francisco and Oakland. The training seemed to be excellent in terms of case variety and autonomy. Residents did take in-house call as chiefs. Research opportunities were better than expected, but did not stand out. The SF location is excellent, but approximately 2/3 of the residency is spent in Oakland, so city of residence throughout the 5 years is a difficult decision. Again, I am confident this place turns out excellent surgeons, but the limited academic experience wasn't for me.

Bottom line: Good clinical training. Fantastic location, but multiple sites make the living decision difficult.

NOT RANKED: None

Matched at top choice.

A few places I was forced to cancel but would have loved to see: Boston U, Miami, Cincinnati, Minnesota, Case

Advice for future applicants:
- Choose away rotations at places you would like to do residency. In practice, everyone seems to do a rotation at a location across the country. While this does seem to be expected by some PDs, I am not actually sure how useful it is as a tool to “open a region.” If you must, do one of these, but pick a place you can actually envision yourself training.
- Do research. It’s basically become a requirement.
- Apply very broadly. IMO, pick a number that feels safe and add 10 or more programs. It can be expensive, but with over 1000 applicants for around 700 spots, ortho has become more competitive than ever. There also hasn’t been a new version of Charting Outcomes in the Match released recently, so average scores are relatively unknown at this point.
- Have fun!

I know all the 4th years are (almost) done, but please contribute to this. It has been unusually sparse!

Med School: Middle of the road, not Top 40
Boards: Step 1: 260ish, Step 2: 275ish (before 4th year)
Class Rank: Top 5%
AOA: Junior
Preclinicals: All honors
Clinicals: All honors
Ortho: Home rotation and two away rotations, all honors
Research: 3 pubs and multiple podium presentations in non-ortho research, 1 pub in high level journal from ortho research project (but late in interview season)

Applied: ~50
Interview Invites: ~30
Interviews Attended: ~15
Ranked: all of them

Extracurriculars: lots – international volunteering, leadership in many students groups, free clinic volunteer, teaching experiences in medical school, etc – I was asked about these extensively on some interviews but most just completely ignored it; I think it is good to have this stuff but not at the expense of the things that will help get your foot in the door (grades, USMLEs, letters, etc)

What I was looking for: I kind of had a pre-interview rank list but it definitely changed quite a bit once I really figured out what I wanted – it took me away rotations and even quite a few interviews to really narrow down what I actually wanted rather than what I thought I wanted. This would be my biggest suggestion of all – really be honest with yourself and figure out what you want. I wanted a reputable academic program with great research opportunities, excellent fellow placement, a skills lab, good operative experience (hard to tell from interview day though), with adequate trauma but that doesn’t dominate the experience, in a small/medium sized town (location was something that became important to me and that programs cannot change), with friendly/down-to-earth but hardworking residents/faculty, and a culture of approachable faculty/chair/PD that are dedicated to resident education. Too much to ask, ha? There are no perfect programs (except the one you make in your head after visiting so many places and picking pieces from each one); it is all about finding a right balance for you.

Post Interview contact/thank you letters: In my mind there are 2 reasons for post-interview contact – 1) legitimate and sincere thank yous and 2) the “I am highly interested” emails/letters. I did a little of both. I sent a few e-mails to residents that I thought went above and beyond to talk to applicants during the interview process and a few attendings/PDs that I really enjoyed meeting, but I did not send blind thank yous to every program I visited. I eventually e-mailed my #1 letting them know and a couple other programs saying that I would be very happy there. I got the feeling that the programs that really emphasized post-interview contact (ie selling your fit or emphasizing your interest) will let you know somehow during the interview day; I will also try to highlight those below. Otherwise, I am not sure how much e-mails or letters of interest actually help; if I was a PD I would want people who really wanted to be there but I also would not drastically change my list because of it. I definitely would not tell multiple programs they are #1 (orthopedics is a small community). Many programs call or e-mail applicants numerous different things – anywhere from “ranked to match” or “ranked in top x” to “we think you would fit in here” or “we will rank you highly.” I would take these cautiously – it is obviously nice to get some positive feedback about your interviews, but most programs are also doing this for their own benefit. I probably moved a couple programs a spot or so because of post-interview contact from programs, but definitely did not drastically alter it. I would suggest sitting down and making your ROL right after your interviews and not drastically changing it because of calls/e-mails from programs.

Second Looks: I did not end up doing any second looks, but was scheduled to – I ended up canceling for numerous reasons, one of which being I knew it would not be my #1 so did not think it would be as “high yield” to make the trip. If a program really emphasizes a second look and you think it may be in the top 3 or so programs for you (no hard and fast rule on this obviously), I would suggest it; if not, I wouldn’t go.

On Ranking Programs: I have seen a lot of posts on here that basically say “you are an idiot if you do not rank all programs.” Obviously, orthopedics is very competitive and it is to your advantage to go on as many interviews as possible and rank everyone. However, if you would rather not match or do another specialty than match at one of the places you interviewed (ie you really did not like it)– then don’t rank it.

Other Suggestions:
1) I have seen this multiple times elsewhere and agree with it – if you are a 1st or 2nd year –study hard for Step 1, do well in your courses, and most importantly (here is my two cents) HAVE FUN. Probably the last time in your life (besides 4th year, of course) you can go out on random nights of the week, sleep in, and that TIME IS YOUR OWN. Work hard, but also enjoy yourself. I do not think USMLEs are the end all be all and you can match without the best scores, but that said it makes it that much easier if you do well. If you did not do as well on Step 1, take Step 2 early and study hard for it. Also, get involved with your ortho department early – meet with the Chair/PD and tell them you are interested and ask for advice, do research, involved yourself in the ortho student group, etc. I think this helped me good really good letters from my home PD and Chair.
2) If you are a 3rd year, work hard on ALL of your rotations – many programs look at 3rd year grades with even more weight than USMLEs. Further, it is a good time to show people in your department that you are a hard worker – helps you get solid letters. Just being a good person and showing you can work with all types of people in all specialties goes a long way.
3) Take notes after every interview. I went a lot off of gut feeling but found it difficult to rank a lot of the solid programs in the middle tier. My notes helped a lot, especially because I really did not hone in on exactly what I wanted from a program until mid-way through.
4) Apply broadly (at all levels of the competitive spectrum), but especially in your region. There is definitely a degree of randomness to how programs select people for interviews. You are most likely to get interviews from your region. It is better to have to turn down interviews than to wish you had more. Most of the interview invites that I did not get I actually thought I would have been very competitive for. Also, if there are quite a few people from your school going into ortho and you are very similar applicants, I would apply even more broadly then – the top places probably won’t interview a ton of applicants from the same program unless maybe you go to the “big name” medical schools.
5) Choose aways wisely – I did not realize how big of a deal this was when I was figuring out where to do aways (almost every interviewer will ask). Before you go, figure out how they interview rotators – everyone, only a few, half, etc. Many people I spoke to were really upset they spent a month somewhere and did not get an interview there. I chose 3 very different programs (one being my home) which helped me figure out what I was looking for in a program. Ask colleagues in years ahead of you for advice. I definitely felt some places were almost offended I did not do an away rotation at their institution – nothing you can do about it, you only have a limited amount of time and picking aways is somewhat arbitrary for a lot of students. I also thought doing an away in a certain geographic region and getting a letter from there would help me get interviews at a lot of other big name places in that region (ie NE for me), but that was not the case for me. Not sure if others had more success than I did
6) Pay attention to the hobbies portion on your application – tons of faculty members just flip to that and like to talk about things or ask you what you like to do in your free time. Having some interesting things on there or really just things that show you are a “normal-ish human being that would be fun to hang out with” help out a lot.
7) Take everything you hear from other applicants with a grain of salt , including on this forum - I talked to multiple people (whom I trusted) that had very different opinions of the same program. Everyone is looking for something different and has different experiences and pre-conceived thoughts/feelings about programs going into the interview season. It is good to listen to the chatter and if everyone says the same thing it is probably true, but form your own opinions also.

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Have fun on the trail – it is a grind for sure and I was happy when I finished, but it is also a great time. I made some good friends throughout the process that I hope to stay in touch with.

Here are my personal opinions and experiences interviewing at each of these programs – I encourage you to use everyone’s opinions as a guide, but formulate your own based on your experiences and what you are looking for:

Programs I really loved (alphabetical) –

Iowa: Tons will be written about this program so I will not carry on too much. Pros: Obviously great academic reputation, lots of research, train enthusiastic and competent residents that get the best fellowship positions after residency, approachable/dedicated to teaching faculty, truly a “residency centered” program. Call schedule was pretty light after 2nd year, was told operative experience was great. Low cost of living, most residents have kids and own their own house (may be a con if you are not in the same boat) Cons: felt like a college town which I was not as interested in, their big name faculty are somewhat aging and retiring, the subspecialties they seemed to focus a lot on (at least as it appeared on interview day) I was not as interested in, weather and location

Mayo: amazing program top to bottom – Pros: mentor model – you work 1 on 1 with an attending physician for 3 months at a time except when on trauma (huge seller for me), academic reputation among highest in country, faculty interested in teaching and really get to know the residents, research support/opportunities amazing, skills/wet lab weekly fully stocked and impressive, perks from reps unlike any place I have ever seen (conferences, labs, dinners, etc), top fellowship placement, strengths were subspecialties I am interested in, affordable town – most residents own their house but good mix of married/not married residents, rotations in Jacksonville in Sports or Peds, opportunities to go to Shock Trauma for 3 months, all 5th year except 3 months of trauma is elective time, lighter call schedule, trauma was adequate but not overwhelming, amazing facilities Cons: weather, q4 in house call during your 3 months of trauma as a 5th year (but then no call rest of year), possibility of having a very different experience than your coresidents (mentor model), wear a suit when not operating

Michigan: this program felt very similar to Iowa but probably not as high a level in its academic slant; great rotations in a community hospital, VA, and university setting; great town; weather is terrible; residents seemed friendly and like a cohesive group, solid program all around

Programs I also loved but had a few less appealing aspects to me(no particular order):

Duke: interview day and experience is really impressive as I am sure you have heard – they have read over every line of your application. Pros: great academic name, great faculty/resident relationship, awesome fellowship placement, amazing didactic schedule (almost too intense), moonlight at nearby hospital with only ortho calls from ED, lighter call schedule besides 5th year, awesome location in NC and weather Cons: q5 in-house call your entire 5th year, away rotations in either Atlanta or Asheville during 3rd year for 6 mos, hierarchy/formality of the program (interns wear short white coats and white pants), intern year rotations (6 weeks night float, 6 weeks day float are your “ortho” months), trauma light, basically “require” a second look which rubbed me the wrong way (much more than it should have)

Vanderbilt: great program that would train you very well; trauma heavy with a busy call schedule and tons of calls/consults when you are on call there – and the residents definitely let you know about it when you interview there in almost an arrogant way (one resident strongly questioned my work ethic or stated that I did not like to be busy as the away rotations I chose were not on the trauma/busy level as Vanderbilt; another went on and on about how they were the best and hardest working residents in the hospital; etc)- the attitude kind of turned me off; Nashville is an awesome town; all of the faculty seemed great, most of the residents seemed like cool people; major cons for me was the above vibe from many of the residents, major strengths in Peds and Tumor (you complete two 10 week rotations in tumor and the PD and Chairman are both tumor docs) - I am not interested as much in either, and a couple other minor things; great program overall though and would have been very happy there

Rush: a ton is also said about this program so I will not go too in depth – Pros: awesome academic program, tons of research being done by residents (yes the 30+ papers per resident by the time they graduate is true, if not higher), strong in sports/joints, weaker in peds and tumor, most of the residents seemed like good people, most of the faculty did also (with some exceptions), good location in Chicago, residents match at the best fellowships in the country, all residents were super enthusiastic about their program/experience, great perks as residents (lead, loops, skills labs, conferences, etc), they would not stop talking about how awesome their operative experience is (I think they emphasize this as it has been rumored in the past that their op experience was not the best) Cons: trauma is very light except on dedicated trauma rotations at other hospitals, heard a lot of rumors from rotators that the faculty/resident interaction was not the best, that research was forced, and that the operative experience was not actually that great at all – take all that with a grain of salt as I did not rotate here – this would have been a lot higher on my list if my social situation was different

Northwestern: I was really excited about this interview and it disappointed me; Pros: the chairman is amazing – extremely honest and dedicated to resident education; the PD seems very laid back and resident focused; clinical rotations and research experiences seemed excellent; great academic reputation; awesome location in the heart of downtown Chicago; the interview day was set up terribly; a few of the residents showed up but not many – they seemed like they are cool people and go out a lot; location is awesome; large emphasis on sports and arthroscopy; Cons: they are moving from 9 to 6 residents per year this year due to concerns about their operative experience – the op experience and transition period both concerned me; I also did not get along with a few of the faculty members (some asked really odd questions) which kind of turned me off; trauma is very light which is similar to pretty much all of the Chicago and bigger city programs

John’s Hopkins: great academic reputation and will return to being a top program very soon – Pros: academic reputation, PD was very friendly and dedicated to the program, just hired a new chairman (former army, trauma surgeon) that seems like a genuine and motivated guy ; I think some of the concern with this program in the past was the lack of a chairman and the loss of a lot of faculty in the past 3-4 year (especially in joints); the faculty that I did meet were great; research opportunities are endless; fellowship placement was good Cons for me: location, trauma light (Shock trauma is very close – but the new chair is also a trauma surgeon), weak on joints, at the end of a transition period; however, the biggest concern for me was that only 2-3 residents showed up to the interview day to talk to candidates which worried me and blatantly said they don’t hang out outside of work

Loyola: also a great program; probably one of the best organized interview days that I have been to; every resident was there early on the Saturday morning and some of the nicest/most cohesive residents that I met on the trail; weaknesses in research, lost some faculty to other Chicago programs recently, great program but overshadowed somewhat by the strong academic programs of Rush, NW, UofC; would have been an excellent program

Yale – also a great program; resident perks and compensation were unmatched by any program; I was concerned about living in New Haven but it was definitely not as bad as I expected and there were some great suburbs to live right around it if you are looking to buy a house; my concerns were that, especially in the past, the private practices in New Haven have a bigger stronghold in the orthopedic community than the Yale program – ie the private group has taken care of the Yale athletics (until next year when Yale just secured the contract), had a better academic reputation in town, etc. It seemed a lot of this was changing as Yale was expanding, but still not quite there yet; research was present but not as big of a focus; fellowship placement was good but not HSS/Rush/Harvard/Mayo good; residents seemed very happy and the faculty seemed dedicated to teaching; I liked the different clinical environments that residents trained in (VA, university setting, community hospital)

Other great programs that I would have been happy at just didn’t feel they “fit” as well based on what I was looking for (in no order):
Baylor
Stanford
Columbia
Missouri
Nebraska
Colorado

Matched at #1 and excited to start! – Be genuine, work hard, and have fun throughout all of medical school and the application/interview process. PM me if you have any specific questions.

I had to stop studying for the boards for a second, and I decided to look on the ever entertaining orthogate. It's been a long time, but the posts have not changed at all
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I would like to say a couple things that are meant to be helpful from the perspective of a pgy5 about to graduate in a few weeks as concerns these ranking posts.

The information at the top always reads like an application to residency. I'm not sure how helpful listing your numbers, publications, honors and so forth is in this forum other than giving you a chance to announce it and puff out your chest a little. I don't know if the point is to give yourself credibility or if some people think it will help them to see if they should apply to the same places. Honestly, most applicants are applying to around 100 places, so chances are they're applying to the same places by default. The programs will decide who to interview based on the numbers and so forth. No need to ask orthogate where you should apply or where you will match. Orthogate, frankly doesn't know. In my own program we have some very impressively high numbers and a few numbers that make me wonder how those people got in. At the end of the day it doesn't seem to predict the quality of the resident. Keep the numbers on your application. When we're taking call together I couldn't care less what your step I score is.

The reviews of programs are sometimes helpful. Unfortunately, most of these reviews are based on a half day interview. I wish we had a better way than the current interview process, but we don't so it is what it is. Take everything you read about someone else's half day experience with a grain of salt. In fact be careful how much you believe from your own half day interview experiences. The worst residency program can make itself look pretty stellar for a half day and visa versa. The more information you can gather about the programs you end up really liking after interviews the better. The formal reviews written by people who have actually rotated or are residents at the program are a little more reliable and meaningful. Look over there too.

I would interview very differently if I had it to do again. I would likely come to the same program, but I would look at programs much differently. I would be less distracted by the shiny new hospital or really neat looking facilities and focus more on what they are accomplishing in those shiny facilities. After 5 years, the most beautiful hospitals are still hospitals where you work your tale off every day. New and shiny means very little at 2AM. It may mean the program has some money, or it may mean the hospital has money and the program is broke. Look into that, and then look into what the program is spending that money on. Do they spend it on residents? The residents you work with should in my opinion be one of the top if not THE top factor in your decision. You will spend more time with these people than anyone else over the next 5 years (yes, that usually includes your family). If they are nice people, whom you can feel comfortable around, that can make up for a multitude of deficiencies in the program. If they suck, your life will too no matter how wonderful the program. GO TO THE NIGHT BEFORE SOCIALS!!!!! Don't ask the stupid "what to you see as the strengths and weaknesses of your program" and "how do you see your program changing in the next 5 years" questions. The residents and faculty have been asked those prepaired, dry, idiotic questions hundreds if not thousands of times. Their answer is as prepaired, dry and idiotic as the question, and it tells you absolutely nothing. Those types of questions just make you annoying at the end of a long interview day. When you ask about operative experience, get specific. Anyone can tell you, "we get in the OR early" or "we operate a ton". Do residents double scrub cases? How often? Is the attending always scrubbed in or do they let residents do cases while they sit in the corner or operate in another room? Do the senior residents get to formulate the preoperative plan, make intraoperative decisions and manage the post-operative care of the patients? Ask some of the senior residents how many cases of a specific type they've done. If it's important to you to get a good trauma experience, ask a pgy 4 or 5, "how many pelvis fractures have you done this year?" "how many nails have you put in?" "Was the attending scrubbed on all those?" "How much of the case did you do?" "Did you get to take a junior resident through the case without the attending scrubbed?" That can apply to other specialty areas too. I would suggest seeking out a very good GENERAL orthopeadic experience in residency. Most of us will do a fellowship. I'm certainly doing one. Don't go somewhere because they do a lot of spine and you want to go into spine. You should probably actually go somewhere that does less spine if you're sure that's what you want to do. You'll do the fellowship anyway, but you MUST get a well rounded GENERAL orthopaedic experience out of this. If research is your thing, find out how many papers the upper levels have published. Ask when in the program the residents generally get started with a project. "We do a lot of research" means nothing. "Everyone in our class has published at least 4 or 5 articles" is meaningful. No that does not describe my program, thankfully.

One thing I notice skimming these "here are my numbers and the programs I liked" sections is the variability is high. Someone else's top program is not yours. However, some of the evaluation of the program (albeit from a very limited half-day experience) can be helpful. The ranking is useless to anyone but the person who ranked it. Ask good questions, be sincere and you're likely to find a program that will work very well for YOU. It may not be the place for the guy whose post you read yesterday or last month, but who cares. He's not seeing your consults or taking your calls.

Now that I've blown some board study time and pretended to be full of great advice for a minute, I have to get back to work. In the end, this specialty is awsome. I LOVE orthopaedics. I'm a bit worn out and tired, but it's been so much fun along the way. I've never heard someone say they regret going into ortho. I cannot say that about other specialties. With all the problems, frustrations, very long days and nights that are ahead for those just starting, it's so worth it! I'm having a blast, and it's about to get much better still.

Med School: I assume not a top NIH funded school, which matters to some programs.
Boards: Step 1: 148 Step 2: 167 (July)
Rank:#2 (damn you Peds rotation)
AOA: Yes
Clinical: one Pass, the rest Honors
Ortho: Honors in each away (most ppl get these)
Research: 10+ peer reviewed
Extracurricular: Multiple leadership in school; President; Student Affairs; Interviewer;
What I was looking for in a Program: Not Northeast; fun/normal city with pro sports teams; Level 1 trauma center; Household name; 6 or more spots; High m:f ratio; Bros
Applied to: 65
Offered Interviews: 25-30
Attended: 21
Advice/Disclaimer- Thinking of programs by tiers is something you will only do at this point of your life. Someone’s tier 1 is another’s tier 3. It’s easy to say HHS, Duke, Miami or Mayo are top tiers, but you’ll soon learn that this is really just based on undergraduate reputations and NIH funding levels. For example, I ranked Mayo, Iowa, and UCLA outside of my top 13, but that’s based on what I wanted. All I’m saying is don’t base your choice on reputations or presumed rankings. Here is what I’d recommend, in this order:
1- City (and gf/wife’s thoughts); 2- Presumed quality of life; 3-# of spots and programs m:f ratio; 4- Fellowships PGY5’s go to (also debatable bc who knows at this level which are good); 5- Trauma experience (Being busy for 3-4 years will make you a better orthopedic surgeon for the next 30-40 years)
Programs in random order:
UTSA- really under the radar; They have a TON of big names and leaders that I didn’t know about; Liked the program, but not in love with San Antonio. Good people in the program. Handful of Mormons.
UCLA (Harbor)- I really like this program; LA was awesome and the guys were very real with me. Didn’t like how it was only 4 ppl a year; It’s a very tough program and I think some would rather do UCLA due to lifestyle and hospital quality. UCLA harbor just got a new wing which is awesome and will help.
Colorado- Rotated here; Cant say enough good things about this program; Good lifestyle and city; The bad parts would be their trauma attendings can be a bit overkill with attitude and intensity. For trauma the hours are very rough, some of the other rotations have great hours which make up for that. Wasn’t thrilled with all of the ppl in the program, but their most recent class is solid and some of their old guys are great. Denver is a great city. If you are going do you can ski, that is possible but not as easy as one would think. It will take several hours with traffic to get to the slopes, longer for better slopes.
Iowa- Looking over the google doc that shows where everyone went I know 5/6 of the people that matched there. Some of the best guys I met on the trail and rotating. The draw backs is that I don’t want to live in Iowa City, and want high level of trauma so that I don’t have to do a trauma fellowship yet will still be comfortable taking call in private practice. That may still be the case there, but again it’s the city and coldness that ruled this out. If single, maybe stay away.
Vanderbilt- Rotated here; Nashville is just a great American city. A down side to the program is the call schedule and more importantly how often the backup person on called is needed to come in. The quality of life isn’t as wonderful as I would have expected. The training seems fantastic and the residents were all very into teach the students which is unique in a great way. They got some solid people this year. Really like the program, knew going into it that of all of their rotators they only interview maybe 9 of them, so know that before you rotate. Usually take 0-1 home students, 1-2 rotators, 1-2 non rotators.
UT Houston- Super busy; I think it (and they do as well, and should) that it will be the best program in Texas in a few years. They are adding needed spots to distribute the work load; I had friends rotate here and thought it was just very tough right now in terms of hours. The residents I met were okay, same with the city, didn’t love it or hate it.
BU- Went in with low expectations only bc of this site! Left with just good things to say. Seems like they get along well, have high level of trauma (again- this is important if you ever have to take call on your own in 6 years), and they like Boston. It’s a cool city.
Penn- Same as stated above; Cool city and cool group. The things I really like was how much technology the program uses. Way ahead of other programs. The residents seem very overworked.
Miami- Was one of my favorite programs; Large solid group (7 per year, guys only, a plus in my ranking), awesome city/weather (likely 2nd to California), high volume of trauma and rotate on it each year, 2 separate blocks for research. It was cool seeing the interns being very tight with the PGY4s and PGY5s. Their cohesiveness and ‘broing out’ was apparent. They have no time for cocky interviewers though, so don’t be too casual. They really have a work hard play hard mentality. The interview day seemed like it could be organized better, but that shouldn’t affect how one ranks. Heard their cut off is >245 (but review all). They were diverse in that they had guys from all over the country. They have very prestigious attendings whom were easily attracted from top places to live in South Florida. All PGY5s go to top fellowship spots. They emphasis how they do work very hard, but as opposed to any other program they can drive 5 mins to a beach or pent house condo pools some of them share. I liked how they seem open to all types of guys- if you want to chill w a gf or wife then there are many ppl and areas to do that with, and if you want to get after it bc are single or just like to party, well, its Miami. They take advantage of South Florida- Many of the guys have boats they cruise on, many of them have become big into scuba diving and deep sea fishing, and a lot of them have become great at golf. Interesting fact- I think officially they go by Jackson Memorial Hospital (level 1 county) due to inherent malpractice caps as opposed to officially being called University of Miami which would be unlimited malpractice cap. Helps to rotate here.
Utah- Was one of my favorite programs until rank day, then I had a change of heart. They were really into research and teaching which is something (at that time) I really wanted. The guys didn’t seem bad, but many programs stood out more. I was really into the fact that they can ski very easily, much easier than UC, but the allure of this wore off as I didn’t know if that would outweigh living in SLC for 5 years. Getting an interview here is impressive as they only look at a handful of people. If you rotate, know they only interview about 30-45% of you all, which actually is a fare way to do it.
NYU- Went just to say I did. Like mentioned above, I am sure it’s a great program (bc ppl have written that one this site before), but I couldn’t live without a car and in a box for 5 years. One of their interns is the man. Helps to have research and rotate.
UTSW- Rotated here; Building a new hospital which will be nice; Program is in a bit of a stall, hasn’t hired new faculty in a while and need to appoint a Chair; If they didn’t have Scottish Rite the program would be in trouble. Still, I liked the program, and at first really wanted to love it but just didn’t which is sad. Some say it is a bunch of bullies. People drop the malignant car, but that is not true. I liked how most of them get dinner together on Mondays. This might be a program where you have to tell them they are your #1, really only hurts a program to think this. Have a 240 cut off. They have a few guys in the program that turned me off to it, but some really stellar older guys. Dallas seems legit.
Emory- If you like the South, chances are you rotated or will rotate here; ATL isn’t the best city ever and the rumors about the traffic really get to you even after 4 weeks. They have a stellar PGY2 class. Get good fellowships; Ppl complain that you have to drive a lot bt hospitals which is kinda true, but only 2x a week. The program is spread out, but most programs are going that way.
Orlando- You know the city isn’t that bad. The Florida weather is great, the people are nice. They have amazing perks and seem like a really solid group of residents. Their chair is the man, just don’t know enough about the program. Personally, if I was going to do a Florida program, I’d just go all in and do Miami. Same argument with Cali programs and Harbor-UCLA.
Duke- (usually) you have to tell them they are your #1 and do a 2nd look or rotate. Very prestigious name bc of a very prestigious undergrad. These guys enjoy a more simple way of life. Living in Durham for 5 years would be tough. I didn’t feel like the guys knew each other that well. I saw an intern put on a splint and he had to go online before to see how. Then a PGY3 was telling us how cool it was he did a nail with just an attending. The lack of trauma really worried me. Must rotate or do a second look. Don’t be tricked by the hype.
Mayo- Great name. Couldn’t live there for 5 years. The residents were very friendly, maybe not a bro program. Do a fellowship here if you want the name.

Advice for future applicants: Go where you think you (and your gf or wife) will be happy. Look at the current group and where they are from. This is your only chance to move for 5 years with no strings attached and then you can move back to what you think is home. Step out of your comfort zone. Don’t focus on anonymous tiers or magazine rankings, those are too arbitrary for such a big choice. Also, don’t judge a program by the organization of its interview day; that is the admins role and doesn’t reflect the medical training other residents and attendings will be providing you.

I wanted the opportunity to be a research king of sports injury if I wanted (even though I'm not sure if that's what I want); I want great hands-on operative experience early on (no exceptions);

Did you get to take a junior resident through the case without the attending scrubbed?