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Invited Applicant Portal

To help organize all the information you will receive from our Program, we have created this private Applicant Portal. You can only reach this from the link in the email. We encourage you to come back here often.

After You Accept Your Invitation
  1. Complete and return the Applicant Acknowledgment Form to Ashley Thurston, ashley.thurston@erlanger.org. Our GME Office requires that we have this on file for every interviewing applicant. If we do not receive it prior to your interview, we must cancel it.
  2. (Optional) Record the pronunciation of your name on NameDrop (it's free) and email the link to Ashley Thurston. We'll include it in your ERAS file for interviewers.
  3. (Optional) Submit questions to this Google Form that will be answered by residents during the social the night before your interview.
To Review Before Your Interview
  1. IMPORTANT! Before you interview, watch the Program Introduction video by Dr. Karla Garcia, Program Director. You can also download the PDF of her slides in the video here. [Many of your general questions are answered here and you can focus your interview time with the Program Director on other topics.]
  2. Thoroughly review videos and Webpages on our website, as many of your questions are answered here.
  3. View our 360 degree virtual tours of our clinical spaces here:
    1. Children's Hospital at Baroness Erlanger
    2. Kennedy Children's Outpatient Center
    3. Amenities for all UTCOM Chattanooga Residents/Fellows
  4. Review the Applicant Checklist, for before/during/after interview reminders.
  5. Review the Zoom Tipsheet for Applicants.
  6. Review the Interviewer Composite and Resident Composite. You'll be meeting some of these people on Zoom.
  7. (Optional) Schedule a test Zoom with Ashley Thurston to test your tech.
The Night Before Your Interview
  1. REMINDER: (Optional) Submit questions to this Google Form that will be answered by residents during the social the night before your interview.
  2. From 7:00 - 8:30 pm ET, you will Zoom with current residents for a fun, casual and optional social. You'll get to see all the residents' favorite Chattanooga places and have an opportunity to ask lots of questions!

  3. Zoom info:

    Social Night Zoom Link 

    Meeting ID: 941 6629 5202
    Passcode: PedsFun

    Dial by your location
            +1.929.436.2866 US (New York)
            +1.301.715.8592 US (Washington DC)

  4. If you wish to attend a social but cannot, attend any of them. Same link for all the socials. 
  5. If you wish to attend more than one social, feel free. 
The Day of Your Interview
  1. You will interview with three representatives of the Pediatrics Selection Committee and the Program Coordinator.
    1. Program Director
    2. Associate or Assistant Program Director
    3. Pediatrics Faculty - this interviewer is blinded to your application
    4. Program Coordinator - this is an in-depth Q&A opportunity about HR items

  2. Typical schedule:
    1. Log into Zoom 15 minutes before scheduled interview start time (8:30 am, 10:30 am or 1:00 pm ET)
    2. 10 mins. introduction of the interviewers
    3. Interview #1, followed by a 5 min break in your private breakout room with camera/sound off
    4. Interview #2, followed by a 5 min break in your private breakout room with camera/sound off
    5. Interview #3, followed by a 5 min break in your private breakout room with camera/sound off
    6. Interview #4, followed by a 5 min break in your private breakout room with camera/sound off
    7. Optional AMA with Resident Liaison
    8. Exit Zoom at 10:30AM, 12:30 pm or 3:00 pm ET

  3. Zoom info: 
    Interview Zoom Link
    Meeting ID: 998 4479 1569
    Passcode: chattpeds

    Dial by your location
    +1.312.626.6799 US (Chicago)
    +1.929.436.2866 US (New York)

  4. Technology Backup Plans:
    1. Plan B: If Zoom fails on the day of your interview, the interviewers have been provided your cell phone numbers. They will text you a link on your cell phone, to have a video interview call through Doximity. You do not need to download an app, just have your cell phone handy and be able to click the texted link from each individual faculty member.
    2. Plan C: If Internet is down completely, the interviewers will call you on your cell phone for a phone interview.
To Review After Your Interview
  1. Download the Comparison Chart. We have completed all our information on it, but this tool will help you keep your interviews organized for Rank List time.
  2. Find information here about health insurance and other benefits offered to all residents at UTCOM Chattanooga.
  3. Need information about Student Loan Forgiveness and how to supplement your income if you commit to rural pediatrics?
  4. Our residents put together a Things to Do in Chattanooga list of their favorites!
  5. (Optional) Join our GroupMe group! When you message, everyone in the group will see it and as applicants are added through interview season, they are able to see past questions and answers. The current residents and coordinator will field questions as they are posted. It is a closed group with only applicants that choose to opt-in added. The group will be archived after Rank Order List deadline.

    Join by the GroupMe group or by scanning this QR code: QR code for groupme
  6. (Optional) Follow us on Instagram @utchattpeds and follow the Institution's Instagram @uthsccomchattanooga
  7. (Optional) If you choose to send post-interview communication, please send them via email. Email addresses can be found in the Resident Composite and Interviewer Composite. ***NOTE: NRMP prohibits programs from communicating any language that can be misconstrued as a promise of ranking or specific ranking placement. If your note goes unanswered or is answered generically, please know we are following NRMP's strict guidelines. It should not be interpreted as our level of interest in you as an applicant.***
Join Us for Didactic Week!
  1. (Optional) Join us for Didactic Week November 17-21, 2025! Curious about how we structure our didactics? We will broadcast a full week of our lectures:
  • Monday Board Review - Pediatric Genetics 8:00 - 8:45 am ET
  • Tuesday Ambulatory 8:00 - 8:45 am ET
  • **Wednesday Grand Rounds 8:00 - 9:00 am ET "Family Talkback" 
  • Thursday Morning Report 8:00 - 8:45 am ET
  • Friday Resident Lectures 12:00 - 3:00 pm ET - ID, Heme/Onc, PICU

Didactic Week Zoom Link

Meeting ID: 962 2582 3141
Passcode: Lecture

**For Grand Rounds only, use:

Grand Rounds Only Zoom Link 

Meeting ID: 939 9663 0640
Passcode: PedsGR

Dial by your location
        +1.929.436.2866 US (New York)
        +1.301.715.8592 US (Washington DC)

OPTIONAL In-person Second Look Events

After the Program certifies its Rank List on 2/2/26 and locks the rank list (we are participating in the NRMP pilot program), the Program will host TWO in-person second-look events for any candidate that interviewed. These are OPTIONAL events that are designed solely for the applicant to assist in their own rank list determination. An applicant's choice to participate WILL NOT impact their position on the Program's rank list, since it will already be locked.

Friday, February 6, 2026 - Saturday, February 7, 2026

Friday, February 20, 2026 - Saturday, February 21, 2026

Registration will open in January.

Oct 13, 2025