Throaway1q2w3e Posted March 11 Report Share Posted March 11 HI everyone, PGY1 in IM in Ontario trying to set myself up for MSM match to be closer to Toronto/GTA (SO + family located there). Interested in resp/Crit care/GIM at UofT or Mac. Looking at past years match data, it seems that most residents match back to their own schools which worries me as I don’t go to either of those schools. I understand this must in part be because people set down roots and don’t want to leave so they rank their own schools high, but as someone who is keen on matching to a certain location, how difficult is this to do? Is there an in-house bias for fellowships? Should I be trying to network/complete research with people at my desired institution now? Please help Thank you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TARS Posted March 11 Report Share Posted March 11 Not from the east coast but am someone who has just gone through the process and matched in-house. I think the reason why the match data shows most residents matching back to their own school is probably a combination of what you said - wanting to stay in their home program for social reasons but also being more likely to be selected just because they are a known quantity and your 2 years worth of exposure allows for many more to vouch for you. If I did residency outside of my home program and tried to match back (competitive program), I would have been more nervous during CaRMS for sure. With that being said, I think if you are a good candidate, did an elective at the site you want, and was well-liked (as a person and also medically), you chances are reasonable with a bit of luck. My friends from other programs who wanted to come were able to match here (worked hard when they did electives here), and friends from home program who wanted to go elsewhere were able to do so as well (although they all had ties to the program they ended up in). I don't think you need to do research at your desired institution - most people don't do this. Just work hard on your electives (just be a nice reliable hard working person) and make it clear you want to be there. Just remember most programs have a mandatory requirement for your IM Program director to write a reference letter, so build a good reputation at your home site and do well on all your IM rotations. That letter matters a lot! Good luck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bixek31223 Posted March 12 Report Share Posted March 12 . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bixek31223 Posted March 12 Report Share Posted March 12 20 hours ago, TARS said: Not from the east coast but am someone who has just gone through the process and matched in-house. I think the reason why the match data shows most residents matching back to their own school is probably a combination of what you said - wanting to stay in their home program for social reasons but also being more likely to be selected just because they are a known quantity and your 2 years worth of exposure allows for many more to vouch for you. If I did residency outside of my home program and tried to match back (competitive program), I would have been more nervous during CaRMS for sure. With that being said, I think if you are a good candidate, did an elective at the site you want, and was well-liked (as a person and also medically), you chances are reasonable with a bit of luck. My friends from other programs who wanted to come were able to match here (worked hard when they did electives here), and friends from home program who wanted to go elsewhere were able to do so as well (although they all had ties to the program they ended up in). I don't think you need to do research at your desired institution - most people don't do this. Just work hard on your electives (just be a nice reliable hard working person) and make it clear you want to be there. Just remember most programs have a mandatory requirement for your IM Program director to write a reference letter, so build a good reputation at your home site and do well on all your IM rotations. That letter matters a lot! Good luck Can you elaborate on what kind of ties your friends had with the away programs they matched to? Also, how hard was it to get away interviews? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TARS Posted March 19 Report Share Posted March 19 They either studied there or lived there at some point in their life. I dont know if that predicts success of matching rather than them just being good candidates and ranking where they wanted to go. Getting away interviews depend on the specialty. Smaller specialties will often invite everyone for interview. For my program, people got reasonable amount of interviews but there were some people I know that did not have that many. Having a good application on paper I am sure helps - chiefing, research, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MedicineLCS Posted March 19 Report Share Posted March 19 One smaller program's faculty (which shall remain nameless) was boasting about how they picked their own in their socials during the R1 match, take that as you will... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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