Question About Radiology Fellowship Interviews:
Hi Dr. Julius,
Thanks so much for the great piece about writing a fellowship personal statement. I recently went through the process myself and can appreciate the truth behind the points you stated.
As a follow-up, do you have any tips when preparing for the fellowship interview, after being shortlisted?
Thanks once again for all the high-quality posts. 🙂
Yours sincerely,
A Concerned Fellowship Applicant
Answer:
Thanks for the excellent question. It turns out that I have never delved into the differences between residency and fellowship interviews. And, there are a few significant differences between the two that I should mention. So, I thought that in addition to answering your question, it would make an excellent post.
To begin with, I highly recommend that you take a look at my original posts on residency interviews called How Important Is The Interview, Really? and Ten Ways To Sabotage Your Radiology Residency Interview. These rules still apply. And, once you have gone through some of this essential advice, take a look at some of the other specifics below about what you should look out for on your fellowship interview trail.
Radiology Fellowship Interviews: What’s The Diffference?
First of all, you will notice that different from a residency interview, most fellowship interviews tend to be more intimate. Most of the time you will be the only candidate at the site at this time. So, you will get to know the few interviewers much better than on a typical residency interview day because you will no longer be just another one of ten candidates. In that sense, it will often be a bit less nerve-racking. However, the general rules for interviewing still apply!
Next, the interviewer will expect you to have a background and a specific interest in the fellowship field of choice. So, you cannot have makeshift answers to why you are choosing to train in the field of radiology in general. Instead, you need to get down to brass tacks and come up with specific reasons for choosing this area of specialty.
Moreover, you will need to know more about the individual program to which you are applying. It is not enough to say that this will be a well-rounded program for your radiology training. No. You need to say why this particular fellowship would be an excellent fit for you. So, you should verse yourself in the specific equipment and unique training that this program has.
Also, make sure that you can talk about specific areas of research that may interest you. Fellowships, more so than residencies, tend to expect that you will perform research. So, talk intelligently about some projects that might interest you in this specific facility.
Other than that, it comes down to the same rules for interviewing in general. Be enthusiastic, conversational, well-dressed and groomed, etc.
So there you have it: some additional rules of the road for the residency interview. Let me know how it all goes.
Regards,
Barry Julius, MD