Resident Other

… plus it happened on the ides of march!

So the great news is that my wife matched at her first choice and we are definitely happy about that! Now comes the finding housing part, which as I promised, deserves a rant…

So most residency programs start in late June, leaving medical students only about 3 months to find housing, figure out how to move, if and (especially in the case of married students) what the heck their spouse or significant other will do about job, etc all the while still working and doing extra academic work. Now, it doesn’t seem very fair to me for the match to happen this “late” in the year. Granted that most medical spouses are aware that this moment will come and they need to take all of those factors into consideration when ranking, for many, if it requires a move it will likely be a cut in income. Surprisingly, residents don’t make that much. So you end up in a short time having to start house hunting, looking for a job, rethinking your finances and planning a move. I can’t even imagine the nightmare that it must be to figure out what to do about children’s schooling in just 3 months. I am so glad we do not have children yet. But I digress… so my point is that since residency interviews are done in mid-February, why not let us know by the end of the month?! You might think “what difference does 2 weeks make?” but it definitely does if you’re looking at apts or having to tell your boss you are quitting or starting the job hunt.

As for us, my wife will be going to a program about an hour from where we live. Since my job is approximately 45 minutes in the direction of the program we will only have to move within the state and I won’t have to change jobs. Thank God. But you know, I can’t help but feel a little guilty that I kept her from going to a much better program or a more interesting experience at a program out of state. If my career field were not so specific and we were at a point in our lives where we could financially manage for me to be out of work in the short-term it would have made some sense even if it required some step of faith. We are young and we are looking for new opportunities, but I think I wussed out of throwing my hands up in the air and throwing it all to the wind of change. Ultimately, though we’ll be closer to family and I will still have a job, which should be good. I wonder how others’ experiences have been as medical spouses going through the match. I’d love to hear what you couples with children think.

So, residency is now a reality… and I’ve become “the resident other”.

Filed under: the match