<knowing that I’d still become a board certified dermatologist << , and to OP, the program probably feels the same way about people who they ranked highly and didn't match with them. <what do you mean by "OP"
< on last year's spreadsheet, on the stats tab, lots of people matched at their 1st and 2nd choices, but it's hard to get a sense of overall how people match
Yeah but maybe thats just a bias based on the people who posted
<PGY-1 matched last year to #12, but honestly not at all dissapointed. There is a notion that not matching #1 there is something wrong with you/ you would be unhappy. Truthfully I would be dissapointed if I matched #15 and 16, but otherwise I would be ecstatic anywhere else.
<- I only have literally half the number of interviews (6). This does not bode well for me :(
< ya super scary for us folks that cant really go 10+ deep into our rank list because we dont have that many invites
Speaking of this, does anyone know on average how far down their list people tend to match? do most people match into one of their top three? -- Absolutely not in derm, some do, but I doubt it's even half. I have the same question, maybe a PGY-1 who already match or a derm resident can help with this one <^PGY1 matched last year. This is a great question, there's no good data on this, it's anecdotal and you have to reason through it. The overall answer is, it's not as common to match top #1-3 as in IM or EM or Peds etc (larger specialties) because class sizes are so much smaller, and it's more competitive. It's also not uncommon, at least to match within your top 3. The way I see it play out is, there's kind of 2 scenarios (2 kinds of applicants) where you're MORE LIKELY to match #1 (not a guarantee and not the only 2 ways but just more likely) -Scenario 1: If you're a very strong applicant and have multiple top 5/10/20 invites, AND one of those programs is your #1 etc., you're more likely to match at your top choice. Those programs usually have larger class sizes so the statistics are much in your favor. Furthermore you're in a group of top applicants who will sort themselves out based on geographic preferences more than actual program rankings (they're all kinda similar in the top 10). -Scenario 2: You're a good applicant overall, and your top #1etc. choice is a program of superior interest or fit to you - e.g. your #1 happens to be your home program where everyone loves you and wants you to stay, or you are from a program that's in your hometown which is very regional - for example let's say your #1 is Penn State and you're from Hershey PA and you make it known you want to be there with family - then you're much more likely to match there as long as they liked you since they know you're a safe choice for coming there and having support etc. This is kind of a niche so you'll know if you're a scenario 2 applicant. -also this is all just like my opinion man