It's called being exceptional

bc school prestige isnt the only thing that matters when applying to residency?

cause I didn't like the vibe at the "top" programs, including my home program and loved the vibe at the program I ranked #1

LOUDER

i have a hard time believing that the exceptional applicant at a T10 is not as good as an exceptional applicant from a random medical school. process seems arbitrary

better med school does not necessarily mean better student

nah programs look for random attributes, hard to predict. no such thing as the "perfect" candidate anymore >> THIS. The days of going to a top tier med school, stellar board scores, being top of your class (plus or minus AOA), with a few case reports effectively writing your ticket to any Derm program in the country is effectively over.

some of us are just over the rat race tbh

better med school does not necessarily mean better student >> Hubris to think there is something particularly exceptional about you when most of yall are cookie cutter copy pasted

Went to a T5 for medschool, I am done with the academic rat race and prestige boners that everyone has in derm. I ranked higher a "lower" ranked program (where I ultimately matched and I am incredibly happy!) to be close to family and also receive a great clinical training that would not be diluted by unnecesary research requirements or being an attending's note writer. I know for a fact that many T10 programs have a huge focus in research and residents have little agency, and for many that's fine. At the end of the day I became a doctor to see and treat patients, not do research that most of the time helps no one other than myself and other academic megalomaniacs. I know many of my T5 peers felt the same way about their match approach, not only in derm but other competititve specialties.

Just wanted to add to the discourse, I also attend a T5 med school and ranked a "lower" ranked program (still very strong academically) first because I was so tired of the ivory tower rat race. At some point, you have to break the cycle and prioritize happiness

prestige. I didn't want to stress about doing research as a resident and deal with the high egos of those at top research institutions. The beauty of derm is that we can choose to go to a chill, happy residency program and our training and job prospects are not compromised. Hopefully mine and other top medical students' perspectives on this can encourage future applicants to prioritize themselves over status/prestige.

this makes me sad that some ppl might think i was a weak applicant when in reality i did get 6 T10 interviews and 4 T20 interviews and I ended up choosing much lower ranked program in the end (well outside of T50) bc of location

exactly. and why more people are surprised every year even when they're doing every right

i did this too! so good to hear others doing the same !

I love how this conversation turned into t5 med school applicants defending why they matched at lower ranked derm programs. We've completely ignored the entirely problematic question by OP that automatically assumes students from higher tier med schools are entitled to match at top derm programs. Guess what... some students at lower ranked med schools might actually have stronger dermatology applications than some t10 students, and thats why they were able to match at top derm programs! School prestige isn’t everything… and it shouldn’t be.

exactly. and why more people are surprised every year even when they're doing every right << I understand the frustration though because some Student Affairs and even clinical faculty are giving outdated information. It would be helpful to know what programs are REALLY looking for (not just what they say on websites claiming to be looking for.

this makes me sad that some ppl might think i was a weak applicant when in reality i did get 6 T10 interviews and 4 T20 interviews and I ended up choosing much lower ranked program in the end (well outside of T50) bc of location >> I can say from personal experience going to a "top program" is not always a good thing

exactly. and why more people are surprised every year even when they're doing every right << I understand the frustration though because some Student Affairs depts and even Derm clinical faculty are giving outdated information. It would be helpful to know what programs are REALLY looking for (not just what they say on websites claiming to be looking for).

say more pls

love this perspective! it's honestly so true. stop torturing urselves

i went to a T5 med school and had over 20 interviews and elected to rank a community program #1, because of personal values and long term goals. stop judging where people matched when you have no idea what their rank list was. i know someone who matched harvard and had ranked them #6 so the final list is not the full story and success is multidimensional

yah, echoing this, i went to T5 schools for college and med school. I'm tireeeed and don't wanna grind anymore. I just want to have a salary, work with nice people, live close to family, have kids, own a house with a yard.

man, as someone who ranked harvard #1 and didnt match there, it hurts seeing someone who ranked then #6 and did, wtf is this matching process even

Very mature thinking of you, it will serve you well.