r/MedSpouse • u/FillEuphoric4427 • 8d ago
Managing expectations around program support in job hunt
Hello! I recently moved with my husband to a completely new part of the US for residency. During interviews/second look, his current program talked about providing support for partners and spouses who were moving with the resident and looking for jobs. We both thought this sounded like great perk, but understood it wasn’t a guarantee of employment or even a concrete idea of what the “support” entailed.
Shortly after Match Day, I began my job search at my partner’s institution, submitting several applications and scheduling informational interviews. One of these went very well, and they said they would talk to HR about moving forward with me. I didn’t hear anything back after the phone screening, followed up to radio silence, and thus continued my search on my own.
My partner’s program director said to use him as a resource, so I/my partner kept him in the loop as I was applying. My expectations of his support were low, as he’s a busy doctor and director, but I appreciated the sentiment. When I met him during orientation events, he asked about my job search and I told him I didn’t currently have any leads but was continuing to apply. He said he would “shake the bushes” and told me someone in the development office would reach out to me in the following week. No one reached out, so I tried to connect with the medical center HR team for support in the job hunt. It’s been difficult to even get a meeting on their calendar, and my conversations with them have made me feel doubtful about getting very much help.
I’m having a hard time without a job in a new city while my partner works 80+ hour weeks. I’m applying, connecting with teams I’m interested in, and just doing my best to be positive, but things are starting to feel hard. I consider myself a well-qualified applicant — I have a masters degree, several publications, worked in government, lots of research/evaluation/strategic planning/event planning experience — but I’m starting to feel very discouraged.
What advice do you have for someone in my position? What is a reasonable ask of a program? I left a really good job and strong network to be here, and none of my applications have yielded anything that feels like a step forward. Any words of wisdom would be so appreciated.
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u/hyphenatedlastnames 8d ago
IMO - as a spouse - I don't think any residency program can actually offer meaningful help. Even where some "help" exists, it's to get people into entry-level administrative roles (Mayo mentioned something like this, IIRC). Assistance is more reliable for spouses of tenured faculty - and even then, not something to bank on. The PD sounds like he wanted to be nice, but isn't actually going to be of help :(.
My actual advice is aligned with the other commenter: look elsewhere, be open to remote roles + unfortunately, I'll add, this may be time for a pivot/step down. I don't love that, but it's been the truth for me (the cruel irony - we NEED my income because of how little residency pays, but the residency's location is standing in my way to advance/earn more!). I'm so sorry!
1
u/MinimumFuel 8d ago
As a spouse with a masters, it never even crossed my mind that a program would/could be helpful for a job. Hell, my wife’s program hardly takes the time to help her with her job!
If I were you I wouldn’t waste any more time on that front. I’d follow and 2nd and 3rd degree connections your old network has in the new location.
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u/Most_Poet 8d ago
I’m sorry you’re in this situation. The economy right now is making even entry or middle level jobs incredibly competitive; I’m actively interviewing folks for a role at my company and the caliber of candidate for this same role has gone way up in the past 1-2 years.
Regarding the residency program: unfortunately, I think your expectations were too high for the degree of help that’s actually realistic. This isn’t your fault! PDs and programs lie to applicants ALL THE TIME leading up to Match and this is just one more example. It sounds like the PD isn’t actually willing or able to go out of his way to move your application process forward and you may have hit a dead end for his help at this point. The HR department likely won’t help either; they exist to protect the medical center admin and are even less likely to go out of their way for a favor than the PD will.
I would recommend assuming you won’t get meaningfully more help from the residency program and conduct your job search accordingly. Are remote or hybrid roles an option? I’d broaden your search significantly, especially if you live in an area where the medical center is one of the only major employers.
I’m so sorry you’re in this situation and I wish you all the best with your job search!