thank you letters

[ophtho_gunner]

what's the verdict on this? Yes or no? If yes then via email or hard copy? Addressed to PD?

[burrb]

I'm doing thank you letters for my referees and then email in March to up date them on where I ended up (hopefully somewhere heh).

 

Wouldn't thank the programs I interviewed at -- seems a little kiss ass ish to me.

[Renin]

I sent thank you letters to all of the programs who interviewed me.

 

I worded it rather generically - thanked them for the interview, and highlighted one or two things about their program that stood out. You don't have to write them a love sonnet.

 

I don't think it's kiss-ass-ish, it's a lovely way to thank someone for taking the time to interview you.

[BK47]

I sent thank you letters to all of the programs who interviewed me.

 

I worded it rather generically - thanked them for the interview, and highlighted one or two things about their program that stood out. You don't have to write them a love sonnet.

 

I don't think it's kiss-ass-ish, it's a lovely way to thank someone for taking the time to interview you.

 

I was wondering about this to.

 

Who would you write to? Email or letter?

If multiple people sat on a panel interviewing you, would you write each of them?

 

Is there any way sending a letter would be viewed negatively?

 

Wondering about IM specifically.

 

Any insights are appreciated. Thanks!

[Ttoronto]

I am sending thank you emails to PD, assistant/coodinator and chiefs. Not sure if that is welcomed or not but I wanted to verbalize my appreciation. For the PD, I am directing the thank you to everyone who helped organize the carms interviews, and actually a PD replied to my email. I thought that was nice of them.

[Lactic Folly]

Email is faster and strikes the right note of in/formality I think. Don't misspell people's names.

[Satsuma]

It certainly isn't standard. I am sure alot of PDs would find it a bit kiss-ass-ish depending on the field and individual involved.

 

I can only speak from my experience in my program. But if you are doing it to help your matching chances, it probably isn't going to. The ranking is done so quickly after the interviews that a thank you card will arrive after all is said and done. And sending a thank you email the same day might seem a little eager.

 

Sending a thank you to your references is a no brainer IMO.

 

Letting any "mentors" you've had know your plans too is always nice. I was matched through our association to a med student who apparently had an interest in my field. Around the end of the second year of mentoring I think her interests changed, which is fine, but she just kind of went MIA. Since I took the time to meet and discuss things, have coffee, dinner etc. it just would have been nice to know where she ended up! To me this is just common courtesy.

 

I don't think you need to go out of your way to send thank you letters to PDs. But if you happen to be a person who sends thank you letters to everyone, then I guess it wouldn't hurt. Just not help. If I was a PD though I probably wouldn't want to read through like 80 thank you cards!

[burrb]

I can only speak from my experience in my program. But if you are doing it to help your matching chances, it probably isn't going to. The ranking is done so quickly after the interviews that a thank you card will arrive after all is said and done. And sending a thank you email the same day might seem a little eager.

yikes, that quickly eh?

[Lactic Folly]

Why would they wait? Better to do it while all the candidates are fresh in everyone's minds. Therefore a thank-you letter is unlikely to affect ranking. Do it only if you sincerely wish to express appreciation.

[rogerroger]

A lot of ranking occurs within hours of the interviews, often it occurs immediately after the last interview is finished...

 

If I ended up interviewing you I wouldn't care if you sent me a thank you note. This is just the honest truth.

 

What is nice is thanking those that sent you reference letters. These guys actually know you and spent time writing and sending a letter on your behalf. It is nice to let them know how things ended up. I thanked mine within hours of matching by email.

[Satsuma]

A lot of ranking occurs within hours of the interviews, often it occurs immediately after the last interview is finished...

 

 

 

Exactly

 

.

[Talon01]

dont send letters to the interviewers.

[doc88]

Was told by a vascular program director to send thank yous to all the staff in the department. He said that he's not the only one ranking me and wanted me to leave a positive impression in everyone's mind. So do it!