Medical College of Wisconsin Affiliated Hospitals Individual Response

What is your in-state status?:

Out of state

On what date did the interview take place?:

2/1/2008

How do you rank this residency among ALL other residencies?:

8 out of 10

How do you rank this residency among other residencies to which you've applied?:

8 out of 10

What is your ranking of this program's facilities?:

8 out of 10

What is your ranking of this area's cultural life?:

3 out of 10

How do you think you did?:

9 out of 10

How did the interview impress you?:

Positively

How was your interview day? Please summarize.:

The Bottom Line/Impression: A hardworking, outstanding program that greatly suffers due to location.<p> Lodging/Dinner: Department “discount” gets you $3 off at Radisson ($92 otherwise) but you can find similar nearby for substantially less – however the Radisson’s airport shuttle is crucial if you’re not driving. Dinner at local restaurant.<p> Schedule: Morning and afternoon sessions w/ info session from PD Dr. Ebert. Very informative presentation including Milwaukee, changes to department, and lots of details regarding #’s of cases, application #’s and how far down the ROL they go. Big focus on Step scores, and PD seems to be very direct/honest/blunt regarding where you’ll be on the ROL and what they’re looking for. 3 interviews total, lunch, tour, and out the door for the morning session by 1330. Interviews were friendly and faculty knew my application, and threw in some pretty tough behavioral questions.<p> Program Info: Approved for 66 CA 1-3 residents but due to dropouts/out-of-matchers the class size is usually but not always 22: 14 CAT, 3 ADV. Rotations at Froedtert, Children’s, VA, county hospital for OB, and local private hospital for cardiac. Offer most fellowships.<p> Pros: Known best for research and peds. Peds experience is very high-quality. For research, residents seemed emphatic that it is nearly impossible to do substantial research during residency since you work really hard. Bosjnak (researcher) just won ASA Research Award which goes out once a year, pretty high-profile stuff. Otherwise, solid experiences in all subspecialties and lots of diverse experiences at the different hospitals. Good cost of living. Senior faculty seem responsive to resident feedback.<p> Cons: Location in Milwaukee hurts the program without a doubt – this program in Philadelphia or Dallas or Miami or Atlanta would be known as a powerhouse. This leads to most of the residents being MCW’ers, DO’s, and Caribbean grads. Residents seemed a little tired/annoyed and a tad overworked, but 60 hrs/wk is the quoted workload, so that is tough to interpret. A bit concerning that every class has 1 or 2 dropouts or switchers which was not openly addressed. Report as inappropriate

What was your primary mode of travel?:

Automobile

What was your total time spent traveling?:

7+ hours

Where did you stay?:

Hotel

What is the name of the hotel you stayed in?:

Crowne Plaza Wauwatosa

How would you rate the hotel?:

10 out of 10

Would you recommend the hotel?:

Yes

About how much did you spend on room, food, and travel?:

$101-$200