Questions to Ask IM Programs

"Do you have any questions for me?" is not a formality. "No, I think you've covered everything" reads as disinterest — and questions answered on the program website read as laziness. Both get noted. The questions you ask are also the last impression you leave in each interview, so they should do double duty: show genuine curiosity and reveal something good about you.

The principle: ask what Google can't answer

A good interview-day question has three qualities. It's specific to this program — it shows you did your homework. It invites a story, not a fact — "tell me about" beats "do you have." And it signals what you value — your questions quietly tell the program who you are.

Questions about training and the resident experience

• "What does the continuity clinic experience actually look like here — how much ownership do residents feel over their panels?"
• "What's one thing about the training here that surprised residents when they started?"
• "How has the program changed in the last few years based on resident feedback?"

These show you're thinking about the actual day-to-day, not the brochure. The last one is especially strong: it tells the program you expect a program to listen to its residents — and asks whether this one does.

Questions about fellowship and career development

• "For residents interested in [your subspecialty], what does mentorship look like here?"
• "What do graduates who don't pursue fellowship tend to do — and how does the program support that path?"
• "How do residents here typically get involved in scholarly work?"

The second question is a quiet strength move: it shows you respect the generalist path even if you're fellowship-bound, and it gives you real information about the program's range.

Questions for residents (the most important audience)

On interview day, residents are evaluating you just as seriously as faculty — sometimes more. Ask them the questions only they can answer:

• "What's the team culture actually like on a hard service month?"
• "When the census is brutal, what keeps the team functioning?"
• "What's something you wish you'd known before ranking this program?"
• "Do you feel like you know your co-residents outside the hospital?"

Residents answer these honestly, and their answers tell you more about fit than anything a program director will say. Asking them also signals that you take the resident perspective seriously — which residents notice.

Questions for the program director

• "What are you most proud of about this program right now?"
• "What kind of resident thrives here — and what kind struggles?"
• "Where do you see the program in five years?"

The second question is the boldest one on this list, and it's worth asking. The answer tells you whether you'll fit — and asking it shows the kind of self-awareness programs want in their residents.

The closer

Save one question for the end of the day, when someone asks if there's anything else: "What would you want me to know about this program that I haven't thought to ask?" It's humble, it's open-ended, and it reliably produces the most interesting answer of the day.

Going deeper

This article gives you a starting set. The full bank — 30 questions organized by fellowship and career development, call structure, continuity clinic, research, mentorship, wellness, board pass rates, the program's identity, and questions specifically for the program director — is in The Internal Medicine Residency Interview Guide, with guidance on which questions to ask whom.