GamecockDoc

This rank order list establishes a binding commitment

That is the scariest thing I've ever read. After putting it off for over 2 weeks, I finally logged on to NRMP and made a rank order list. For those of you not in the medical field, the process of getting a residency position involves applying to and interviewing at a bunch of programs and then putting them in order on a rank list. This list is then entered in to the NRMP computer and compared to all the programs' lists of who they would accept. If you like them and they like you, you match into the program and have a job. It's some crazy formula that no one really understands, but in theory a student will get placed in whichever program who will take him that he has placed highest on his list. Seems simple enough, just put them in order from best to worst and then wait until Match Day, March 16, when everyone in the country finds out where they're going at noon EST.

So I finally put my list in. Of course this list can be changed an infinite number on times between now and 9pm Feb 22, but it's still really scary. Whichever list is in the computer at that time is it, a binding contract to go wherever the computer sends you. So clicking the "certify" button made me sick to my stomach, literally. I'm going to try to stop obsessing about it though, at least for today. Maybe I'll try to study for my Neuro exam, or maybe I'll knit instead. Knitting is really good for calming me down lately. Something about just watching the yarn move and the piece grow, the feel of it in my hands, and the way I stop thinking about all the other crap going on in my life. Just counting, remembering when to knit and when to purl.

posted by GamecockDoc @ 12:40 PM