SignalMD Advising opens soon

One written plan for your research year, summer research and away rotations. Every next step has a date, so nothing slips past you.

Join the waitlist See how it works

How a cycle runs

Five steps, one plan. You do the applying. We make sure you know what comes next, and by when.

Send your packetYour CV or activity list, at least one draft, your goals, and the SignalMD listings you saved.
Intake callWe talk through where you are, your exam blocks and what you want from this cycle.
One plan, one passWe write the whole plan in a single pass. A founder reads every line before it reaches you.
Debrief callWe settle the open decisions together: a research year, which targets to drop, who to ask for letters.
You applyWith dated next actions, protected exam weeks and a plan you can check off.

Signal Check: MS2, orthopaedics Prepared by SignalMD Advising

Your packet

CV or activity listreceived

One draft statementreceived

Your goals, in your wordsreceived

Saved SignalMD listings4 saved

Intake call

What you're aiming fornoted

Exam blocks and rotationsnoted

What would change the plannoted

Your plan, in one pass

Situation and assumptionswritten

Priorities, most important firstwritten

Targets for now, next and laterwritten

Notes on your draft, no rewriteswritten

Founder edit

Every date traced to its sourcechecked

Nothing upgraded from your packetchecked

No paragraph you could pastechecked

Debrief call

Research year, yes or nosettled

Which targets to parksettled

Next actions

Nov 20Ask your chair about the nomination

Dec 2Email two mentors from the program list

Dec 4Ask two letter writers, eight weeks out

Dec 7Decide on the research year

Dec 14Shelf week, protected

Jan 29Application due, verify on the program page

One planEvery step dated

Three ways in

Start with a Signal Check. Go further when your cycle needs it. Prices come with the first opening.

Signal Check

The first step. Where you stand, and what to do about it.

Where you stand, in plain words
What to fix first
Which opportunities to aim at, now and later
How to talk about what you've already done
What to do next, with dates

Next actions

Date	Action	Done when
Nov 23	Pick one summer research target from your saved listings	Two programs named, one parked
Dec 5	Rework the lead experience on your CV	Three prompts answered in your words
Jan 8	Ask one mentor for a 20-minute call	A call on the calendar
Protected	Step 1 block	No plan work that month

Target List + Story

For when you know the specialty and need the list and the story.

Ranked targets, one line of reasoning each
Edit notes on your materials, tagged must fix, should fix or polish
One round of written edit notes on your revision
An optional 30-minute debrief

Ranked targets

Summer research, inflammatory skin diseaseFits your T cell work. Mentor matched by the program.Last cycle closed Feb 13; verify
Mentor-based research yearBring your own mentor; email two from the list first.No deadline listed
Society student fellowshipNeeds a dermatology mentor you don't have yet.Parked until Mar 1

Cycle Sprint

For three to five program-specific applications at once: research years, summer research, away rotations. Scoped at intake.

A requirements matrix for every target
A calendar with exam weeks protected
A letter map with ask-by dates
A research-year decision date
Your workload, week by week
One edit round and a 60-minute debrief

Requirements matrix

Target	Deadline	Letters	Verify
Home research year	Jan 29	2, via portal	Dean approval order
Eye research fellowship	Dec 15 nomination	missing: verify	Cycle dates
Away rotation	Opens Mar 1	1, through VSLO	Visiting student rules

How we work

Written by: Medical students and engineers who went through it recently
Edited by: A founder, before it reaches you
Built on: The SignalMD listings

Advising is for the student who has the listings open and isn't sure which to chase first. You send what you have. We send back one plan that says what to do, in what order, and by when.

Your words stay yours. We don't write your essays. You get prompts and skeletons, and the sentences come from you.
Every deadline has a source. It comes from the program's own page, or it's marked to verify. We never guess one.
Peers, not gatekeepers. We write as students and engineers who did this recently, never in a program director's voice.
No promises we can't keep. No guaranteed interviews, no odds, no match predictions. We tell you what tends to help, and why.

Join the waitlist

We're opening to a small first group. Leave your email and we'll write when there's a spot.