September 15th, 2014
How to Ace Your Fellowship Interview
Ethan J Weiss, M.D.
The following compilation of fellowship interview tips was originally published on Twitter between August 15th and 18th by Ethan Weiss, a cardiologist with 13 years of experience interviewing fellowship applicants. Matthew Pirotte also supplied this helpful graph categorizing potential applicants.
1. Prepare like you are interviewing for a job. You are. Know who you are meeting and who you want to meet with.
2. Learn the strengths and weaknesses of the institution you are visiting and use the information to help you.
3. Your choice of a research mentor is the most important decision you will make. Be ready to discuss who and why.
4. Do not overvalue opinions of first-year fellows in the first 3 months of training. Seek senior fellows or junior faculty.
5. Address any issues, problems, and obvious questions in your application head-on.
6. You do not need to know what you will do for your career, but you need to explain how you will figure it out.
7. You can be bold and dream, but be realistic about what you are likely to accomplish in fellowship.
8. Be prepared to discuss the things you think are important in healthcare, cardiovascular medicine, and science.
9. Even though it is a “seller’s market”, you are the consumer and should think about which program is best for you.
10. If you are interested in a program, demonstrate that meaningfully.
11. Do not tell multiple programs they are your first choice.
12. Be nice to other applicants and to program administrators. Programs pay attention to these things.
NEJM Journal Watch — Recent Cardiology Articles- Transcatheter Valve Replacement for Severe Tricuspid Regurgitation
- Time in Blood Pressure Target Range and Outcomes in Hypertension: Real-World Data
- When to Start Anticoagulation After Ischemic Stroke in Patients with Atrial Fibrillation
- Aortic-Valve Replacement vs. Clinical Surveillance for Asymptomatic Severe Aortic Stenosis
- Secondary Hypertension in Young Adults