Residency Interviewing

Following is a compilation of questions to ask at your interviews as well as questions that you can expect to be asked. These were originally written for applicants into Emergency Medicine. However, most questions are very broad and can apply to candidates interviewing for any other specialty.

Questions for the Program Director

1. Where are your graduates? Geographic areas? Academic vs. community?
2. How have your graduates done on the board exam? Did all pass on the first time? How did they do on oral exams?
3. How have residents done on in-service exams?
4. Any new faculty coming on? Any leaving?
5. Type of resident evaluations? How often? How is feedback supplied to residents?
6. What changes, if any, do you anticipate in the program's curriculum? Why?
7. Have any residents left the program? Did they enter the same field elsewhere? Why did they leave?
8. Do you help graduates find jobs? How do you accomplish this ... counseling sessions, faculty contacts? Will faculty review job offers with residents?
9. What are the weaknesses of the program and how are they being improved?
10. What are the strengths of the program?
11. I am very interested in your program, what else can I do as an applicant?
12. What can I expect from you as a resident in your program?
13. What do you expect from me as a resident in your program?
14. What are your future plans and how long do you intend to stay here?
15. How are faculty chosen? What are their strengths, weaknesses, interests?
16. What is your accreditation status?
17. Has the program ever been on probation? If so, why?
18. How often are you reviewed by the RRC and when is the next review?
19. Do you support resident involvement in national associations?
20. How many national conferences do residents get to attend and when?
21. Does the program pay dues to ACEP/EMRA/SAEM?
22. What processes are in place to deal with issues for residents?
23. What is the policy on maternity/paternity leave?
24. How are resident treated by the ancillary staff?

Questions for the Faculty

1. What types of non-clinical responsibilities are there? (Research, projects, writing, administrative)
2. What research projects are the faculty and residents currently working on? How is funding obtained? Who gets first authorship?
3. Is there time to do research? If you need to present at a national conference, will the department pay for your way there?
4. Is there training in administrative and legal aspects? Is there hands-on experience dealing with insurance, billing, contracts, hiring?
5. What are the population demographics? (Indigent, insured, etc)
6. Who does airway management and who does it in trauma? Does anesthesia come down?
7. Is there conference time? Is it protected time?
8. What is the pediatrics exposure and experience?
9. What is the underlying philosophy of the program? What is the mission statement of the program?
10. Are there any required/provided certifications? (ACLS, ATLS, PALS/APLS)
11. Are there any skills labs?
12. How are procedures recorded and credentialed?

Questions for Residents

1. What contact will I have with faculty and how often?
2. What is the faculty ED coverage? (Single, double, triple)
3. What is the faculty per hour per patient ratio?
4. How often do you want faculty input but find it is unavailable?
5. Who teaches ... senior resident, attending, both? Do you feel you have the opportunity to teach as a senior resident?
6. How much didactic time is there? How much time is spent in lectures, seminars, journal clubs?
7. What has higher priority: attending conference of clinical duties?
8. What are the types of clinical experiences I can expect?
9. Are there struggles between services for procedures?
10. Is it difficult to obtain consults from other services?
11. Are you boarding lots of patients in the ED?
12. Have graduates felt comfortable performing all necessary procedures by the time they graduate?
13. What type of ultrasound and hyperbaric experience is there?
14. Will I have time to read?
15. What type of support staff is available? Who starts IV, blood draws, clerical work, takes patient to x-ray? How often do you wheel patients to X-ray?
16. What is the call schedule? Is it home call or hospital call?
17. What is the patient population like? (Indigent, insured, HIV, penetrating/blunt trauma?)
18. Do the residents go out as a group? Are the events for all residents or just those in the program?
19. How often do social events occur? Any activities of special interest to the residents?
20. Are the majority of residents here married, single, any with kids?
21. Where do people live?
22. Is parking a problem?
23. What if there is a problem, will the program stand up for the resident?
24. How are shifts done? What is their length? Advance from days to evenings to nights? Time off?
25. Are there any away electives? Where?
26. Is there research time? How much and what is required?
27. What are the weaknesses of the program and how are they being improved?
28. What is the one thing you would improve about this program if you could?
29. Are you happy here?