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Check Yourself Before You Wreck Yourself: How to Create a Match Rank Order List

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As you look toward the NRMP Match rank order list open date on February 3, you’ll want to avoid simple missteps. Improving written materials and interview skills are critical, but all of that work can go to waste if applicants do not understand basic strategies for the Match. Way back in November 2015, the NRMP published an article called, “Understanding the interview and ranking behaviors of unmatched international medical students and graduates in the 2013 Main Residency Match” in the Journal of Graduate Medical Education. The data is still relevant today.

Sadly, the authors found that some applicants made strategic errors including the below:

1. Declining to rank all programs at which they interviewed or not ranking all programs they would be willing to attend.
2. Not attending all interviews, thus failing to capitalize on every opportunity to market themselves. (I suspect this error is less common now with the advent of virtual interviews.)
3. Misunderstanding the Match and, thus, ranking programs at which applicants did not interview.
4. Failing to rank programs based on true preferences or ranking programs based on the perceived likelihood of matching.

It kills me to read about these mistakes :(. Here is a video explanation of the Match algorithm. If you do not understand how the Match works, it is absolutely critical that you learn about it to avoid destructive errors.

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More Medical Students, Fewer Applicants, and a 3.86 (!) GPA Mean

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The AAMC published information recently demonstrating several trends about last year’s cycle:

1) The number of medical students has expanded because of new medical schools. First-year matriculants increased 0.8% from the previous academic year to 23,048.

2) On the other hand, the number of applicants decreased for the third year in a row. There was a 1.2% decline versus 4.7% the previous year and 11.6% two years ago. Remember, though, that there had been a huge increase in numbers during the height of the COVID pandemic.

3) Underrepresented minority group matriculant numbers generally declined.

4) What impressed me was that the current incoming class had a mean GPA of 3.86. Wow!

You can see all of the numbers and the AAMC’s conclusions here.

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Great Podcast Episode for the New Year

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I’ve  blogged before about Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman. This wonderful nonfiction book is targeted at those of you who – like me – are productivity geeks. However, unlike other time management authors, Burkeman recommends you surrender to the fact that you cannot get everything done and that traditional time management strategies, which are supposed to help you multitask, will fail and cause anxiety. He recommends recognizing that our lives are finite and that we make choices about our time accordingly.

Burkeman was recently interviewed by Ezra Klein, and I strongly recommend listening to their conversation, especially now, at the beginning of the new year. I found it extremely affecting.

With regard to the book’s title, four thousand weeks is how much time the average human has on this earth.

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Letters of Interest: No One Wants to be your Second Choice for the Prom

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Imagine you’re back in high school, planning to ask a fellow classmate to the prom. You approach your potential date, “Would you be interested in going with me to the dance? You’re one of my top three choices.”

Not very compelling…The same is true for letters of interest or, really, any outreach to medical schools or residency programs: Over the years, I’ve edited many letters in which applicants mention that an institution is “one of my top” picks.

Avoid that type of language. Instead you can say something like “I would be thrilled to be at your institution,” or “I am confident I can make a positive contribution.” In other words, you can stay honest while not shooting yourself in the foot.

p.s. I’m a huge Flight of the Conchords fan. See this song for reinforcement.

Let me know if you need assistance with a letter of interest.

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Is Making Medical School Tuition-Free Doing What it’s Supposed to?

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Six years ago, when Kenneth and Elaine Langone generously donated $100 million so that students could attend NYU Medical School tuition-free, the philanthropists’ main goal was to encourage more graduating doctors to enter primary care fields. 

Fast forward: In 2024, the number of NYU graduating medical students who went into primary care was about the same as it was in 2017. Furthermore, in the interim, the number of African-American students has declined – although the number of Latinos grew slightly. Additionally, at least in the first two years of the experiment, the percentage of incoming matriculants categorized as “financially disadvantaged” fell from 12% to 3%. 

One thing that has improved is NYU’s rankings and reputation.

All of this begs the question: Is making medical school tuition-free the most effective way to increase the number of primary care practitioners and improve equity?

See this clearly-written Atlantic article by Rose Horowitch for a deeper dive into the query. She was also recently interviewed by Kai Ryssdal on NPR’s Marketplace . 

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About Dr. Michelle Finkel

Dr. Michelle Finkel

Dr. Finkel is a graduate of Stanford University and Harvard Medical School. On completing her residency at Harvard, she was asked to
stay on as faculty at Harvard Medical School and spent five years teaching at the world-renowned Massachusetts General Hospital.
She was appointed to the Assistant Residency Director position for the Harvard Affiliated
Emergency Medicine Residency where she reviewed countless applications, personal statements and resumes. Read more

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Listen to Dr. Finkel’s interview on the White Coat Investor podcast:

Listen to Dr. Finkel’s interview on the FeminEm podcast: