Highly Recommended Reading on Letters of Recommendation
You know how Netflix or Amazon recommendations sometimes make you feel like, wow, they’ve really nailed me? Well, fortunately or unfortunately, there is no such algorithm (yet) when it comes to education or career candidacy. A letter of recommendation (LOR) is a required and important component of an application for medical school, residency, and fellowship. It may be requested in written or…
DIY Guide to Writing Good Multiple-Choice Questions
Do you write multiple-choice questions (MCQ) for the American Board of Radiology, or the American College of Radiology, or for CME meetings or online/printed CME materials? Do you create exams for medical students, residents, or other learners? Perhaps you’ve been writing MCQs for a number of years. Or maybe you’re just getting started and haven’t had any training in creating effective items.…
Top Ten Tips for Academic Radiologists
The first few years in academic radiology, especially year one, can be overwhelming. If you’re lucky, you will get excellent advice from colleagues from within and outside your department. If not, you may feel like you’re sailing in a boat without a rudder. Going into it without a solid plan and supportive guidance can mean the difference between early success and early failure. As a…
Negotiation: Everything You Wish You Knew But Nobody Taught You
Q: What do a doormat and a bull-in-a-china-shop have in common? A: Neither are good approaches to negotiation. In a previous post I briefly discussed contract negotiations. Because this is something that can greatly influence one’s career, I feel it’s worth taking a closer look at what it takes to be a successful negotiator. If you’re already a pro at this, you might want to read on anyway so…
Enhanced Education Through the Application of Adult Learning Principles
What are adult learning principles? What does it mean to apply “adult learning principles” to one’s teaching? Are you already doing it? If you don’t know the answers to these questions I invite you to keep reading. Research that looks into how pre-adults (pedagogy) and adults (andragogy) learn shows that if you apply adult learning principles, you can be a more effective teacher. Adult…
Elements of an Effective Presentation: a Cheat Sheet
I’m guessing that most of you have been inundated with presenting or watching webinars during this time when many face-to-face conferences have been canceled or made virtual. You probably have a few pet peeves about some of the webinars you’ve seen (watching someone’s chin for an hour?). For many people, giving a live-streamed (or in-person) presentation can be a scary proposition. As…