Radiology Interest Group- Secrets of the Match May 5, 2009 Faculty Advisor: Richard.stern@mssm.edu (contact for shadowing opportunities) Our website: http://www.mssm.edu/students/groups/radiology/index.html (includes a more comprehensive list of MSSM Radiologists to shadow) Summary of Q &A with 2009 MSSM successful Radiology Match applicants feel free to e-mail participants directly. Nimesh Pandey- Nirnimesh.pandey@mssm.edu Matched at U Penn Spent a year as a Doris Duke Fellow on an orthopedics research project. For most of medical school until right before 4th year he planned on entering orthopedics. However he had significant exposure to radiology throughout medical school and took his "Anatomic Radiology" elective early (end of 3rd year), which really sparked his interest in radiology. Andrew Schweitzer- andrew.schweitzer@mssm.edu Matched at Cornell Spent a year as a Howard Hughes Research Fellow- his project spanned radiation oncology & internal medicine. Decided on radiology during his research year (between 3rd and 4th year), though he had considered radiology throughout med school. He likes the Cornell program because he is interested in cancer imaging and Sloan Kettering, the affiliated hospital, is top in cancer research/treatment. Avner Yemin- Avner.yemin@mssm.edu Matched at NYU Involved in many leadership activities, including Student Council President and Rad Interest group leader. Knew throughout medical school that he wanted to do radiology and got a lot of early exposure (ie. electives at Sinai Interventional radiology dept). A good asset at his interviews. Choosing Radiology: Shadow physicians, do anatomic radiology elective in your third year to get a "head start". Be careful to not choose your specialty too early and neglect considering other fields throughout medical school. NP thought he was going to do orthopedics throughout and only decided on radiology before his 4th year. Research This is important to have if you are interested in academic programs, but not so much for community programs. 1st years- pick a summer project that spans the multiple fields you are interested in so you can "spin" it as related to radiology if you end up applying to radiology. This is good so radiology residency directors can understand your research and feel comfortable talking to you about it at your interview. If you choose a non-radiology project, that's OK, just try to make your involvement meaningful (ie a paper authorship, poster or oral presentation) Extracurriculars overall- On your CV, try to mainly list activities you made a meaningful contribution to (in terms of time, accomplishments and leadership roles). It's embarrassing at an interview if you list something that you only spent a few hours on and/or didn't care much about. Leadership activities (student council involvement, interest groups), teaching (tutoring, mentoring), community service and "interesting" (unique activities like teaching yoga) were assets for these applicants. Made for good conversation and demonstrated qualities good for research/academic settings since they are interested in clinical medicine, teaching & research. Electives Away electives may be worth doing especially if you are trying to 1) see if you're a good fit at the program or 2) demonstrate your interest in the program. AS and AY spent time at Cornell, AS liked his rotation in MRI because he realized Cornell was a great fit for him. Try to get an elective with the Division that the program director works in because he/she has the most influence. Be careful though--an elective means multiple weeks at a program with plenty of "face" time with program directors and other influential people. That extra time could be risky if you have a "personality clash" with someone, or whatever. Whereas at an interview, you have one day to make a solid, positive impression (as do they). Consider doing an away elective at programs outside of the northeast if you are really interested in those programs to show that you are actually dedicated to leaving NYC. Applying to programs Apply everywhere--radiology is competitive. Maybe be selective about where you interview at if you have a lot of programs to choose from--they are significant time/money investment. Don't interview at programs you absolutely wouldn't consider (because of location, academic vs clinical focus etc.). But be careful since radiology is competitive. If you apply West Coast, like California, be prepared to write in your personal statement, or demonstrate in your interview, that you actually want to live in that region. Selective programs are hesitant to invite East Coasters to interview because they don't trust you'll actually move to California. Similarly, you may have to tailor your personal statement to various programs. NP for example had two personal statements- one for clinical/community programs, another for research/academic programs. Interviews Interviews are really important- residency directors want to know you are personable, confident, articulate, and reliable. Radiology, unlike many other fields, have their residents working directly alongside attendings. When ranking programs, pick a program where you feel you'll fit in. Ie if you like cancer imaging, pick a cancer center. Etc. If you like community medicine and you know you want to only go into private practice, an academic/research center might be less suitable. What's important: Grades, board scores, letters of recommendation, quality extracurriculars, and the interview! Closing Remarks: Don't get "freaked out" about how competitive radiology is. Many radiologists started out in other fields (internal medicine for example) and enter a radiology residency later. Sinai is a good school, so if you want to be radiologist, you can become one!