Psychiatry Residency Application Tips
Written by Dipavo Banerjee, DO
Where do I start?
Download the Roadmap to Psychiatric Residency from the following:
Where can I look up programs?
Residency explorer, FREIDA, and Doximity are good resources to use in compiling a list of programs.
How important is a strong personal statement?
According to the AAMC program director surveys from the past few years, the personal statement is the number one factor that is considered in terms of who is granted an interview. Reflect on your life and career experiences and pick one unifying theme that highlights your interest in psychiatry. Find a mentor, family member, or friend to look over this statement for you.
How do I network and make myself an appealing candidate?
Networking is a skill and is an ongoing process as you progress in your career. Going to conferences and meetings is one method of networking. PsychSign http://www.psychsign.org/sign-up-for-our-newsletter/ can help you gain more information about programs through residency fairs and link you up with resident mentors.
Make an Instagram and Twitter account and follow residency programs. You can also follow #psychiatry, #psychiatryresidency, etc. This way, you can find out about residency fairs, snapshots of a day in the life of residents, and Q&As. While you’re at it, follow Inside the Match on Twitter and Instagram.
What aspects should I be looking for in a program?
It depends on your life situation and your needs.
-Do you need to be close to family? What does your significant other need (if applicable)? Do you need to be close to an airport? Good weather?
-Location: urban v. suburban v. rural
-Can you afford a higher cost of living area?
-What kind of patients do you want under your care?
-What kind of people do you want to date, be around, or hang out with?
-How much traffic can you handle?
-Do you have a desire to help underserved patients?
-University v. university-affiliated v. community?
-Do you want to do a fellowship in addiction, geriatrics, consult-liaison, child and adolescent, forensics, or sleep? Consider an academic center.
-Do you like research and want it to be a part of your training?
-Does prestige matter to you?
-Biologically oriented v. therapy oriented v. mixed
-Do you see extensive therapy training as a vital part of being a psychiatrist in the future?
-Or, do you want to gear yourself most toward a strong psychopharmacology training program?
-Or both--can you tell based on the website if they make therapy a priority?
-Are they DO-friendly? Open to DOs?
I’m stuck between a couple of specialties and psychiatry--are there options to do combined programs? Should I apply to multiple specialties separately?
Yes, they are several combined programs including family medicine-psychiatry, internal medicine psychiatry, neurology-psychiatry, and triple board(pediatrics, child psychiatry, psychiatry. They can be found here: https://assocmedpsych.org/studentstrainees/residency-programs . Applying separately will depend on how competitive your application is for both specialties. Find a trusted mentor or advisor through your medical school or networking and consider your decision carefully.
How many letters should I have to apply?
3 letters are reasonable, but requirements will vary from program to program. Some places will ask for a letter from your psychiatry department chair.
