Hi everyone,
Yesterday at 3PM, Brett released our first interview invitations. Since late September, I’ve screened thousands of residency applications. This year, it took longer than ever to choose who to interview since the pool is so talented. By Friday night, I still had a hundred more candidates selected than we had room for, so I had to move a hundred to the waiting list.
So what does it take to get an interview around here? Here’s a partial list:
- Clinical performance: We look for top clinical grades and evidence of stellar skills. With each application, I ask myself: will this candidate be ready to for the MICU on Day 1? Can they handle multiple admissions overnight at the VA? Can they meet the needs of our complex clinic patients? For a candidate to be viable, the answers to these questions have to be a solid yes.
- Step 2 Scores: After 30 years on faculty, I can confirm that Step 2 correlates with resident success. High scores reflect medical knowledge and commitment to studying. Students with good scores can interpret blood gases, choose the right antibiotics, and create targeted differential diagnoses. Step 2 scores are the only objective metric that allows us to compare candidates across schools since all students take the equivalent test.
- Compelling Letters: Structured department letters and MSPEs are priceless, particularly those that objectively rate skills like communication, openness to feedback, medical knowledge, and patient care. As I review applications, I go school by school to compare students within institutions. Next, I read letters of recommendation from attendings and research mentors, which tell me if a candidate works hard, follows through on tasks, navigates stress, gets along with others, and has the courage to speak up when something’s wrong. I find it noteworthy when a letter writer says they hope to keep a student at their own institution, that they’d trust the student to care for their own family, and that the student stands out among others they’ve worked with. Sometimes, the absence of statements like these tells me all I need to know.
- Research: We train academic physicians, so we seek candidates with research experience, advanced degrees, podium presentations, and publications, especially first author papers in reputable journals. Because not all candidates have the same opportunities, I seek candidates who make the most out of the opportunities they have.
- Leadership: We train academic leaders, so we seek clinic coordinators, student chiefs, interest group directors, and candidates who contribute to organizations like the AAMC, AMA, ACP, AMWA, SNMA, LMSA, PHR, and AMSA. Sustained, successful leadership speaks to collaboration, cooperation, and communication. Successful leaders bring creativity, problem-solving skills, and openness to fresh ideas, which means they’re likely to leave our program better than they found it.
- What Doesn’t Matter: This year I got hundreds of emails from candidates asking me to review their application (aka “begging to be seen”). At first, I wrote back, thanking them for their interest, but eventually I stopped replying. While I understand the candidates’ motivation, all that really matters is the application.
- Signals: With thousands of applications to review, I need to focus on candidates who convey sincere interest with a Gold or Silver Signal. Interview slots are precious and if you don’t signal, I assume you’re already ranking 15 programs above ours and that you’re exceedingly unlikely to match here. So, for all practical purposes, no signal means no interview.
- Distance Traveled: I take special note of applicants who have overcome poverty, illness, and setbacks. It takes special grit to get into, let alone succeed in, medical school, especially when you’re the first in your family to attend college, when you have to support yourself financially, and when you lack the advantages other candidates have. In my mind, distance traveled speaks to adaptability, resilience, and character.
- Diversity: We recruit residents from every region of the country and all over the world. Our residents represent multiple religions, ethnicities, genders, and sexual orientations, and they speak many different languages. We’re especially proud of our program’s diversity, which mirrors the rich diversity of New Haven. Because we care for a large Spanish-speaking population, we pay special attention to candidates who speak Spanish.
- Mission: Our program views healthcare as a human right. We believe all people deserve respect, and we see caring for vulnerable populations as a sacred responsibility. We seek candidates committed to serving vulnerable populations such as immigrants (documented or not), refugees, asylum seekers, prisoners, patients who don’t speak English, and those who struggle with substance use. Caring for those in need is at the heart of what we do.
- Kindness: It doesn’t matter how brilliant or accomplished you are if you’re not kind. So, as I read applications, I search for comments about compassion and generosity. I seek candidates who put patients’ needs first and those who treat everyone—colleagues, staff, patients, and families—with respect. We want residents who speak gently and lead with compassion. In short, we seek residents who embody our residency motto, “as good as any, nicer than most.”
Since late September, I’ve spent countless hours reviewing applications. With the first batch of invitations out, it’s time to turn our attention to meeting the candidates, beginning Tuesday, October 28.
But before that, I have a busy week ahead in the MICU. Time to bike in to join my team.
Enjoy your Sunday, everyone.
Mark
P.S. What I’m reading: applications (stay tuned for next week for selections to share)