Hair loss, hyperpigmentation, vitilgo, lupus, and more

Dermatology residency is way harder than expected.

You don't want to be remembered for what you wore. This means don't be sloppy, but also don't be fashionable. Your interview attire should be generic. You shouldn't stick out from other interviewers in a headless line-up. This is about who you are, not what you're wearing.

Basic items every resident and 3rd and 4th year medical student needs to be prepared and fly.

The path to become a physician is long, highly competitive, and very expensive, but if you're doing it for the right reasons, the journey is fun. 

Name: Michelle Clermont
Age: 29
Hometown: Xenia, Ohio (near Dayton)

Current city: Atlanta, GA

Undergraduate with major: University of Dayton, Pre-Med w/ minor in Spanish, magna cum laude
Medical School: Emory University SOM
Residency program: Emory University, Internal Medicine
Fellowship: University of Pennsylvania, Gastroenterology

Name: Fenwa Milhouse

Age: 33

Hometown: Lagos, Nigeria and Plano, Texas

Current city: Chicago, IL

Undergraduate with major: University of Texas Austin - Biology

Medical school: University of Texas Houston

Residency program: Urology, University of Chicago

Fellowship: Female urology at Metro Urology in Woodbury, MN

Name: Alexis Richards

Age: 31

Hometown: New York/London

Undergraduate: NYU - Psychology

Master's program: London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine - MSc Control of Infectious Diseases

Post-bac: Columbia University - Pre-medical Sciences

Medical School: Emory University

Residency: New York Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center - Categorical Pediatrics, PGY1

Additional Training: Hopefully infectious disease fellowship

I briefly discussed a few of the factors that went into my decision to apply to dermatology residency in the how to chose a medical specialty post (and the price of it all in this and this post), but I intentionally kept it short and vague. I was afraid that I might bias you - that my passion for dermatology might subconsciously affect your desires and your future career. Instead, I encouraged you to reflect internally on who you are, who you want to be, and what you want to do everyday with your life. Since then, I have realized that a person's individual story can be just as useful in helping someone find their path. My intention for this article is to share a little bit more about me and inspire you to work your butt off to fulfill your dreams.

Age: 30

Hometown: Mobile, Alabama

Current city: Ann Arbor, Michigan

Undergraduate with major: Xavier University of Louisiana.  Major Biology/premed

Medical School: University of Alabama School of Medicine in Birmingham, Alabama

Residency program: University of Michigan (dermatology), Baptist Health System in Birmingham (medicine - preliminary)

Name: Natalie Justicz

Age: 29

Hometown: Atlanta, Ga

Current city: Boston, Ma

Undergraduate with major: Stanford, Human Biology

Medical School: Emory University School of Medicine (magna cum laude)

Residency program: ENT/Otolaryngology at Harvard’s Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary

Additional training: Teach for America, New Orleans, La

Whenever you ask for a letter of recommendation, I recommend you offer to provide the letter writer with a draft (it's even better if you've written the draft before you ask so that you can send it to them later that day).

As a medical student, I always lusted after the long white coat. 

Name: Joyce

Age: 28

Hometown: All over the Bay Area in California

Current City: New York City

Undergraduate with major: Stanford University, Human Biology

Medical School: Stanford University School of Medicine

Residency program: New York University Ronald O Perelman Department of Dermatology

Other training: Media fellowship at WHO/NBC

The rank order list is really stressful especially if you don’t understand how the match works. As strongly as I feel against the match system, it does favor the applicant. It’s important for you to really understand this before you make your list. Basically, no one can take your spot from you.  There’s no true incentive to rank a program you think you have a “better chance of matching at” higher than a program you love. 

Name: J.

Age: 26

Hometown: Gainesville, GA

Current City: Chicago, IL

Undergraduate: Johns Hopkins, Baltimore, MD

Medical School: Emory, Atlanta, GA

Residency: Northwestern/Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, Pediatrics

Age: 27

Hometown: Seoul, Korea

Current city: Atlanta, GA

Undergraduate: Georgia Tech University, B.S. Biochemistry

Medical School: Emory University

Residency: Pediatrics, Emory University