Fraud Squad

Earlier this month, the Wall Street Journal published a piece on Cal Tech's "fraud squad," a group of four professionals who review admitted students' credentials to confirm they're valid. The squad is looking for fabricated extracurriculars, awards, and research, but the WSJ article also mentions concerns about AI use for essays. (I'll link to the article here, but you'll need to create a free, temporary account to read the piece.)

I heard an excellent conversation about this topic on the Your College Bound Kid podcast (episode 665), a discussion I'd recommend hearing. Where I differ slightly is that I would suggest avoiding AI even for brainstorming a personal statement. It's just too easy to go from there to introducing language that is not authentic to the candidate.

How Do I Strategically Apply in Two Fields?

Occasionally I help residency applicants who are applying in two specialties. This tactic can be strategic in specific scenarios, but it also makes the process more complicated. Here are some quick clarifications to help:

1) Different personal statements can be assigned to different programs. This means you can assign a pediatrics essay to pediatrics programs and an internal medicine essay to internal medicine residencies. Of course, you need to have two versions of your statement, and you need to ensure you assign each correctly.

2) Different letters of recommendation can be assigned to different residency programs as well. (A maximum of four letters may be assigned to each program.) You'll either need to have letter writers for different fields, letter writers who will craft two types of letters, generic letters (less compelling), or a mix of these approaches.

3) Assuming you are not applying in ob/gyn, EM, or their program variants (which require the ResidencyCAS), you will have one application, and it will go to all of your programs. So, for example, if you flesh out your membership in multiple pediatrics organizations in your ERAS activities, that list will be viewed by your internal medicine readers as well - and might make them question your commitment to IM.

NRMP's Charting Outcomes 2026 is Out. You Should Read It.

The NRMP just published their Charting Outcomes™: Characteristics of Applicants who Match to Their Preferred Specialty for 2026, data I keep bookmarked because I refer to it so frequently. There are separate reports for US MDs, DOs, and IMGs, and results are further broken down into specialties. Charting Outcomes includes extremely helpful information, including what the median board scores, number of contiguous ranks, and number of research experiences were for those in each specialty who successfully matched - and those who did not.

It's important to make sure you are in the range for your intended field. (Median Step 2 CK score for successful versus unsuccessful family medicine matchees: 244 versus 230; for dermatology: 258 versus 252.)  Also, make sure to compare the competitiveness of different specialties if you're seeking to apply in two fields.

Of note, until recently, Charting Outcomes was published every two years, but the NRMP has recently committed to publishing it annually.

The Residency and Medical School Application Process: Moving Past Impostor Syndrome

First described by psychologists Drs. Suzanne Imes and Pauline Rose Clance in the 1970s, impostor syndrome (IS) occurs among high achievers who can't easily internalize their successes. They often externally attribute their accomplishments to luck and worry others will eventually realize they're frauds.

Recognize this phenomenon of self-doubt? You're not alone.

Although many people suffer in silence (because they don't want their perceived deficiencies revealed), IS is quite common, especially in medical school. According to one often-cited 2016 study by Villwock et al, almost a quarter of male medical students and nearly half of female students surveyed suffered with IS. A 2026 metaanalysis by Abouelmagd et al reported the overall pooled prevalence of IS was 49%. The phenomenon can be associated with depression, burnout, and anxiety. The American Psychological Association offers a few tips for overcoming IS including speaking to mentors, recognizing where you excel, and talking to a professional.

Here's a fun article on IS by Joelle Borhart MD, the Program Director of the MedStar Georgetown University/Washington Hospital Center Emergency Medicine Residency Program. I also recommend Amy Cuddy's TED talk with over 77 million views.