by Jessica Freedman, MD, www.MedEdits.com
I have blogged before about for-profit residency scramble services and do not advocate using these companies.
I found it interesting when a client forwarded me an email that was recently sent to applicants by the NRMP about this topic. If you did not read or have not received this email (which is below), please be aware:
TO: Applicants in the 2010 Main Residency Match
The NRMP has received numerous phone calls from applicants asking about for-profit services that claim to send unmatched applicants' applications to unfilled programs during the Match Week Scramble. The NRMP is a not-for-profit organization that does not cooperate with or condone the use of these services, and we do not provide them with the List of Unfilled Programs. Moreover, many residency program directors have told the NRMP that they do not review applications sent by these services because they clog email inboxes and telephone and fax lines.
We believe the NRMP is the only organization with reliable information about which positions are available during the Scramble, and that information is available free-of-charge to all unmatched applicants. If you have questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at nrmp@aamc.org.
Our best wishes for a successful Match!
NRMP Staff
MedEdits does not offer scramble services.
Showing posts with label Scramble. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Scramble. Show all posts
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
The Residency Scramble Day Interview: What Not To Ask
Last night I attended a medical dinner meeting and a colleague of mine, who is now a leader at a major New Jersey hospital, was telling me about his match experience. This colleague did not match and entered the scramble. On scramble day, he had a phone interview with one residency director at a prestigious program in the midwest. The program director asked him, "So, why do you think you didn't match?" Sightly offended, this colleague instinctively replied, "I don't know; why do you think you didn't fill." This is a great story to tell but, needless to say, he was not offered a position at this program and completed his training elsewhere.
What is the lesson here? If you don't match and end up in the scramble, be prepared to answer the question, "Why do you think you didn't match?" and don't be offended! I know many great doctors who did not match and got spots through the scramble so, if you end up in this position, have faith.
Be sure to read my article about the scramble on the Student Doctor Network.
Visit: MedEdits
What is the lesson here? If you don't match and end up in the scramble, be prepared to answer the question, "Why do you think you didn't match?" and don't be offended! I know many great doctors who did not match and got spots through the scramble so, if you end up in this position, have faith.
Be sure to read my article about the scramble on the Student Doctor Network.
Visit: MedEdits
Friday, January 8, 2010
The Residency Scramble: Do You Stand A Chance?
As I was browsing the web today, I came upon one of those services that claims to help applicants attain residency positions in the scramble. This inspired me to write a post about the scramble so readers can better understand the odds of obtaining a position.
Representatives from the National Residency Matching Program presented some interesting data this year at the Association of American Medical Colleges Meeting. In 2009, the number of unmatched US seniors was nearly equal to the number of unfilled positions. Why is this significant? First of all, US students typically have support from their medical schools to "land" these open spots. Most program directors would rather take a US student who has a reputable advocate at their side with whom they can speak. Independent applicants, most of whom are international medical graduates (IMGs), on the other hand, are often alone in this process. Therefore, the independent applicant has an extremely slim chance of earning one of these open positions.
What are some other important facts? In 2009, the majority of unfilled positions were preliminary and not categorical positions and 2/3 of these positions were filled by 4 PM on scramble day. More than 13,000 individuals, most of whom are IMGs, enter the match just to obtain a list of unfilled positions. As you can see from the numbers, entering the match to obtain the list of unfilled spots is not a great strategy if you want a residency position.
One of the formal definitions of scramble is "to struggle or contend frantically in order to get something." With more than 14,000 people competing for roughly 1000 open positions, you can see that the word "scramble" accurately describes the process in its current form. I wrote an article about the scramble on the Student Doctor Network in 2009, which discusses the scramble in greater detail and, as mentioned in the article, scramble reform is on the way. The proposed "managed" scramble, which may be implemented as early as 2011, will prevent applicants from entering the match just to obtain the list of unfilled positions and will make the process more controlled.
If, after reading this blog entry, you still plan or need to find a residency position via the scramble, you can find the list of important dates and times that pertain to scramble 2010 here.
Please note that MedEdits does not offer any scramble services but we are already working with residency applicants who want to improve their candidacy to apply for residency in 2010/2011.
Representatives from the National Residency Matching Program presented some interesting data this year at the Association of American Medical Colleges Meeting. In 2009, the number of unmatched US seniors was nearly equal to the number of unfilled positions. Why is this significant? First of all, US students typically have support from their medical schools to "land" these open spots. Most program directors would rather take a US student who has a reputable advocate at their side with whom they can speak. Independent applicants, most of whom are international medical graduates (IMGs), on the other hand, are often alone in this process. Therefore, the independent applicant has an extremely slim chance of earning one of these open positions.
What are some other important facts? In 2009, the majority of unfilled positions were preliminary and not categorical positions and 2/3 of these positions were filled by 4 PM on scramble day. More than 13,000 individuals, most of whom are IMGs, enter the match just to obtain a list of unfilled positions. As you can see from the numbers, entering the match to obtain the list of unfilled spots is not a great strategy if you want a residency position.
One of the formal definitions of scramble is "to struggle or contend frantically in order to get something." With more than 14,000 people competing for roughly 1000 open positions, you can see that the word "scramble" accurately describes the process in its current form. I wrote an article about the scramble on the Student Doctor Network in 2009, which discusses the scramble in greater detail and, as mentioned in the article, scramble reform is on the way. The proposed "managed" scramble, which may be implemented as early as 2011, will prevent applicants from entering the match just to obtain the list of unfilled positions and will make the process more controlled.
If, after reading this blog entry, you still plan or need to find a residency position via the scramble, you can find the list of important dates and times that pertain to scramble 2010 here.
Please note that MedEdits does not offer any scramble services but we are already working with residency applicants who want to improve their candidacy to apply for residency in 2010/2011.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
No Medical School Acceptances or No Residency Match?
If you are applying to medical school this year and have not yet received any interviews, it is unlikely that you will. You must consider now if you will reapply in the upcoming season and what you will do to enhance your candidacy.
If you did not obtain a residency match this year, you must also consider reapplying for the match in September. Some prospective clients who did not match this year have emailed me to inquire about available positions for July 2009. The only service I recommend using is FindAResident which is sponsored by the AAMC. Many for profit "post-scramble" companies are a scam and I do not advocate using them.
I am already working with medical school and residency clients for the upcoming application season. Based on my clients' success in 2009, I anticipate that I will become booked and encourage all interested applicants to retain my services early. As a commitment to my clients, I limit the number of applicants with whom I work.
If you did not obtain a residency match this year, you must also consider reapplying for the match in September. Some prospective clients who did not match this year have emailed me to inquire about available positions for July 2009. The only service I recommend using is FindAResident which is sponsored by the AAMC. Many for profit "post-scramble" companies are a scam and I do not advocate using them.
I am already working with medical school and residency clients for the upcoming application season. Based on my clients' success in 2009, I anticipate that I will become booked and encourage all interested applicants to retain my services early. As a commitment to my clients, I limit the number of applicants with whom I work.
Monday, March 16, 2009
The Residency Scramble
Consider that you can always enter a new personal statement via ERAS for the scramble. Depending on your situation, this could be optimal. For example, if you applied to internal medicine, did not match and are now going to scramble for psychiatry, you would want to send a psychiatry focused personal statement to programs.
Keep in mind that during the scramble period you can apply to a maximum of 45 programs (30 new programs and 15 programs to which you have already applied). At 12 noon on Thursday, March 19th, the scramble period ends, this limit is lifted and you can start applying to more programs that still have open positions.
ERAS has published a scramble advisory for applicants. I advise anyone participating in the scramble to utilize this resource. Click Here to access the advisory.
We will not be offering any scramble services but, to increase your chances of obtaining a match next year, we encourage interested applicants to retain our services as soon as possible.
Keep in mind that during the scramble period you can apply to a maximum of 45 programs (30 new programs and 15 programs to which you have already applied). At 12 noon on Thursday, March 19th, the scramble period ends, this limit is lifted and you can start applying to more programs that still have open positions.
ERAS has published a scramble advisory for applicants. I advise anyone participating in the scramble to utilize this resource. Click Here to access the advisory.
We will not be offering any scramble services but, to increase your chances of obtaining a match next year, we encourage interested applicants to retain our services as soon as possible.
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Residency Match Week 2009
Read Dr. Freedman's article on the Student Doctor Network about the scramble and the upcoming match.
Click Here to read the article.
Visit: www.MedEdits.com
Monday, February 16, 2009
Residency Match: Important Dates and The Scramble
As the 2008/2009 residency application season comes to a close, I thought it was a good time to review some important dates. Most programs have finished interviewing applicants, have had their annual "rank meeting" and are in the process of entering their rank order list (ROL). Applicants should also be submitting their ROL now.
Some dates:
February 25th: ROL certification deadline.
March 16th: Applicant matched and unmatched data posted at 12 noon EST.
March 17th (Scramble Day!): Filled and unfilled results for individual programs posted at 11:30 AM EST.
March 17th (Scramble Day!): Locations of unfilled positions released at 12 noon EST. Individuals may start contacting programs at this time.
March 19th: MATCH DAY! Match results posted at 1 PM EST.
As announced at the AAMC meeting this fall, the NRMP and the AAMC are jointly establishing a scramble work group to address issues related to the scramble and to propose changes for reform.
In 2008, roughly 13,000 applicants competed for 1,300 unfilled positions during the scramble. More than half of these unfilled positions were filled by 4 PM on scramble day. Many applicants (mostly IMGs) do not submit a ROL and register for the match just to receive the list of unfilled spots. Thus, the chances of obtaining a spot via the scramble is slim. For-profit companies who claim to "fax" materials to programs on behalf of clients also jam fax machines and lines of communication making the process challenging for unfilled programs.
While I will be available for my existing clients during the scramble (although I don't anticipate they will need any help!), I will not be offering any services for new clients during the scramble. We wish all of our residency clients good luck in the match this year and look forward to hearing about your success. If you are interested in hiring us to help you through the application process for the 2009/2010 season, we encourage you to retain our services early.
Visit: www.MedEdits.com
Some dates:
February 25th: ROL certification deadline.
March 16th: Applicant matched and unmatched data posted at 12 noon EST.
March 17th (Scramble Day!): Filled and unfilled results for individual programs posted at 11:30 AM EST.
March 17th (Scramble Day!): Locations of unfilled positions released at 12 noon EST. Individuals may start contacting programs at this time.
March 19th: MATCH DAY! Match results posted at 1 PM EST.
As announced at the AAMC meeting this fall, the NRMP and the AAMC are jointly establishing a scramble work group to address issues related to the scramble and to propose changes for reform.
In 2008, roughly 13,000 applicants competed for 1,300 unfilled positions during the scramble. More than half of these unfilled positions were filled by 4 PM on scramble day. Many applicants (mostly IMGs) do not submit a ROL and register for the match just to receive the list of unfilled spots. Thus, the chances of obtaining a spot via the scramble is slim. For-profit companies who claim to "fax" materials to programs on behalf of clients also jam fax machines and lines of communication making the process challenging for unfilled programs.
While I will be available for my existing clients during the scramble (although I don't anticipate they will need any help!), I will not be offering any services for new clients during the scramble. We wish all of our residency clients good luck in the match this year and look forward to hearing about your success. If you are interested in hiring us to help you through the application process for the 2009/2010 season, we encourage you to retain our services early.
Visit: www.MedEdits.com
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