Anyone receive communications from programs after interviews?

[propofol1]

Just curious if anyone has received any communication from programs after interviews. I've interviewed at 4 places so far in past 2 weeks and have not heard anything post interview. Anyone know if programs normally contact you afterward and if so when?

Also I had one interview with a PD who at the end of the interview said "Good Luck" Is this code for "good luck at some other program but you won't be going here" or am I just paranoid ? I thought the interview went well. Any thoughts?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[abords]

I have interviewed at 7 places and have received 5 post-interview communications. Some of them came the next day via email while others came in the mail a week or 2 later. good luck.

 

[NaeBlis]

Would you mind saying what programs sent replies? And what did they say? I interviewed at 5 places and only got one post interview contact. The one reply was from my first choice, so thats good. It seemed to be positive, saying that they were sure i would be accepted to many programs, and that they felt their program had what i was looking for. Made no comitiments though. Also who sent the letter/e-mail, mine was sent by one of the attendings who interviewed me, not the program director. Not sure if that is important.

 

[Tenesma]

just a word to the wise..

i remember getting post-interview letters, and feeling very flattered.... now that the process is over (a few years ago), i realized that it is a bunch of crap.... Quite a few programs indiscrimanetly will send out letters, handwritten notes from the chairperson, phone calls from the chief residents... They do that so that they can get the best match list possible...

Please don't design your match litst based on where you think you will get in - instead rank based on where you think you will be happiest and where you really want to go... so ignore all that extra marketing.

of course you can mess with the programs right back by sending out letters claiming that that program is your top choice...

 

[Sandpaper]

As far as I know, if you are a decently qualified candidate and the program likes you well enough to rank you highly on the "list", they will often contact you post-interview. They will email, call your house, send snail-mail, etc. However, with that said, I matched at a program where I thought I was a total long-shot because they didn't give me any sort of feedback. So what's the point? Dunno.

 

[OldManDave]

Like the above posters, I am assuming that a large portion of this is merely advertising and a way to ensure that they, the programs, get the best recruitment class that they can. Honestly, I don't blame them...were I to be in their shoes, I would want the same thing. With that in mind, I try to maintain my objectivity when ever I do receive post interview feedback. One thing that I try to do is to see if the "warmth & fuzziness" of the post interview contact is congruent with what I perceived when I was there in person. If not, then I essentially ignore it. However, if I truly felt welcomed, recruited and as though I & the program would be an excellent fit -- I placed more credence in the communique, esp if the letter/note/e-mail echoed what the PD or Chair had also said to me.

All in all, even though I am still on the applicant side of things, I think the poster above makes the most valuable point of all. Rank your programs in the order of your own preference and not in the order that you perceive them accepting you. The selection algorithm was designed to weight the rankings of the applicant higher than the program's. So, by trying to ESP how the program's will rank, you are essentially corrupting the algorithm. Besides, folks reporting that they landed slots at places they felt were long shots is very very common...so why not take your shot at doing the same?

 

[Yogi Patel]

I agree with Tenesma that you should not believe *anything* you hear from a program after you interview there. I got a letter last year from Brigham & Women's that they "definitely intend to rank (me) highly," and another from Hopkins stating "we are encouraged by your candidacy." Fricking liars, ended up not matching at either program!!! Unless the program is at your home institution, ignore the feedback you get from them. Design your rank list solely according to how much you like each program.

 

[sechen]

hi guys,

similar to yogi, i also interviewed at hopkins and brigham and have received contact information from both places after my interviews. i have to say that the letter from brigham is VERY ambuigous but since i like the program i may decide to go for a second visit. i did my 2nd visit at hopkins not too long ago and really like the place.

maybe it's just me, i dont know how many of you have gone to mgh. i felt so BAD AND AWFUL after the interview. i was so intimidated by the chairman, who sure has a very unique way of getting to know the applicants. each person is different, a program may not for everyone. seriously, it's the first time i felt awful after so many interviews this winter and my last one too. what an experience to conclude your interview trail.