Pathology Residency Interview Tips

[WAD]

Hello guys,

So Interview season kicked off already, most of us applying will be heading to their first interviews this month. I want to ask our senior residents and pathologists on this forum for advice regarding the interview day... wondering if anyone has any tips for what I should do to prepare that is pathology-specific?

Thanks in advance

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[Napoleon1801]

Try to appear normal. Don't be arrogant. Treat the staff nice. Write thank you cards.

 

[pathslides]

Try to appear normal. Don't be arrogant. Treat the staff nice. Write thank you cards.

I found thank you cards so pointless. I never did them. Many places even said not to send them. All I did was for the two programs I was most interested in, I just sent a brief email stating my interest.

 

[Adrian Cocot]

The residents will give you the real skinny on a program. If your time with them is minimal, that should be a red flag. If they seem miserable, that's a red flag.

Be able to articulate what you want out of a program, including type/extent of research, teaching style, etc.. It gives people a better idea how good a fit you would be.

Have a set of questions ready. You will be asked "do you have any questions about the program?" a LOT.

Don't lay it on too thick. Don't be like, "OMG this is the place for me, everything is perfect here" when it's barely the beginning of interview season. But be honest if you're interested in a program, especially if it's for family reasons -- when ranking applicants, family ties to the area can make a difference.

Follow up. Even a simple email in the vein of "thanks for taking the time" is appreciated. Reiterate your interest if it's genuine. Do it again once you're done with all your interviews. Radio silence can be interpreted as bad manners.

As said above, don't be arrogant, even if it's your practice interview.

 

[TGF beta1]

1. As was said above "appear to be normal" - any sign that you can cause trouble for the program and your rank goes down.
2. Ask questions - it makes you appear interested.
3. "Thank you" email to PD is enough - no letters and no email to every resident you have met during interview
4. Read/search the web about the place you are going and ask specific questions about that.
5. Talk to the residents. You learn more from them than from faculty.
6. Prepare to answer 2 most common questions: "tell me about yourself" and "Why pathology?"
7. It helps to have a story about the place you are from (either home town/state or alma mater). It helps to get the conversation going. I should say quite a bit of the time you will be discussing trivial things not related to pathology or residency at all.

 

[Euchromatin]

YMMV, but I was not a huge fan of getting follow-up emails from applicants when I was a resident myself. Only rare applicants (typically weaker, FMG candidates) sent emails/cards to all the residents that they met and I found the follow-up contact awkward and desperate. Residency program directors likely feel differently (and I would guess probably get follow-up emails or cards from most applicants).

 

[HELL USMLE]

Hi everyone.I am an old IMG.my step 1 score is 210 and step 2 ck 227.no fail.want pathology residency.should I continue with these scores?

 

[deleted314957]

You’ll get in somewhere, but that’s not a very comforting testimony.

 

[HELL USMLE]

You’ll get in somewhere, but that’s not a very comforting testimony.

You’ll get in somewhere, but that’s not a very comforting testimony.[/QUOTEthank you for the reply.which programs should I specifically look for with these kind of scores?

 

[tiredguy]

I'd apply broadly as soon as applications open and then just decline interviews if you end up with too many.

 

[bauber]

Make a connection with the residents and be friendly - Many residency programs listen to their residents input when making ranking decisions
Discuss your experiences and interests in pathology during your interviews
Ask your interviewer what their favorite area of pathology is and why
Don't tell me that back home in Nebraska or whatever landlocked hell you are from that you like to hunt prairie dogs

 

[amideast]

my stats, img graduated in 2017, 213 step 1 (first attempt) 244 step 2 (first attempt) cs (second attempt) 217 step 3 (first attempt)
have a few path interviews that came before my step 3 result. worried about this season.

 

[deleted314957]

my stats, img graduated in 2017, 213 step 1 (first attempt) 244 step 2 (first attempt) cs (second attempt) 217 step 3 (first attempt)
have a few path interviews that came before my step 3 result. worried about this season.

I am confused. You graduated from med school in 2017, presumptively circa
May-June. You are now applying for path residency. What have you been
doing since graduation 1 1/2 years ago? Hopefully a transitional internship rather than sitting on your posterior.

 

[amideast]

ive been working to pay for my residency applications, studying for step 3, and i have some extra pathology rotations planned coming up very soon

 

[deleted314957]

Path rotations?? Working at WHAT to pay for etc, etc. You graduated from med school in 2017! WTF. You seem very confused

 

[StatistPriceControlsFail]

Hello guys,

So Interview season kicked off already, most of us applying will be heading to their first interviews this month. I want to ask our senior residents and pathologists on this forum for advice regarding the interview day... wondering if anyone has any tips for what I should do to prepare that is pathology-specific?

Thanks in advance

Before the interview:
1. Maximize fluency in English. If you weren't proficient in English before puberty, then pay someone to practice with you every day and to give you targeted feedback. Do not use friends or family or anyone you know well for this, as they don't have the heart to correct you. For a primer on US customs, see the video "Rebecca good manners."
2. Prepare non-BS answers to "What experience do you have with pathology?", "Why pathology?", "What do you want to be when you grow up? (i.e. academics vs private practice vs other? subspecialty interest?). Many interviewers do not read your application or, even if they did, they had to read a bunch of them and they tend to run together.
3. Prepare 2-3 non-BS reasons why you want to live in that place & train in the program.
4. Ideally, do practice interviews with pathologists you don't know.

During the interview:
1. Pay attention. Act like an adult. The increasing ADD and decreasing professionalism/maturity among applicants are major sources of anxiety among the faculty. "Will we be able to hire anyone who can pay attention and have a work ethic?"
2. Ask every faculty member you meet, "Do residents write or dictate reports on your rotation?" Not the gross description, but the grownups' report. Or more generally--even for rotations without reports, "Which clinical tasks bypass the resident and go directly to the fellow or faculty?" You don't want to end up at a "glorified PA" program. People know which ones they are, and it makes the uphill climb toward a decent job that much steeper.
3. Relax, the hardest part is over. They invited you so they want to hire you. They are mainly looking for "they can't speak/understand English" and "pissy personality / drama queen" & other personality disorder red flags.

After the interview:
1. If you liked the place, email the PD what you liked--don't send a generic form letter. Many PDs irrationally rank good or even star candidates lower because they didn't "show enough interest."