An Application Survival Guide with Advice from Current VA Chiropractic Residents
An Open Letter to Prospective Residency Applicants:
One short year ago we were all in your shoes, filled with excitement and apprehension about the upcoming Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) residency application cycle. This message may find you at one of the many stages of the application process; maybe you have already submitted your application and are counting down the days until interviews, or potentially scrambling to secure letters of recommendation, researching residency sites, and drafting your personal statement (for the 4th or 5th time). Or maybe you are still contemplating if the residency program is the right next step. You might be experiencing excitement, anxiety, a little self-doubt or even all of the above. Regardless of where this finds you, our hope is to be another resource.
Residency is challenging, but equally—if not more—rewarding. While plenty of resources are already available outlining the logistics of the Chiro Match algorithm, we hope to provide you with something a bit more personal.
Rather than another step-by-step guide, the current 2025-2026 residents spent some time reflecting on our own experience navigating both the application process and first six months of residency. Each participating resident has included their contact information to answer potential site-specific questions or elaborate more on their experience in their respective program. We are happy to help and excited to support you as you take this next step. Residency pushes you in ways you don’t always anticipate while providing meaningful growth, confidence and purpose.
Pre-Application Process
Having exposure to interdisciplinary chiropractic care by completing a clerkship, or student rotation, at a VA or Department of Defense (DoD) facility is one of the most important experiences you can have as a prospective candidate to a VA residency position. This provides insight into patient care as well as the general patient population one might see as a resident, or ultimately a staff chiropractor, within the VA.
Don’t be afraid to reach out to the current residents or previous residents if you are interested in a particular location. All the sites have unique aspects and the best way to determine if you may be a good fit is by reaching out and starting that conversation. More information is listed on the VA Chiropractic Residency Programs website.
Fun Fact: All members of the 2025-2026 residency class had exposure to VA/DoD chiropractic care and participated in a clerkship or student rotation.
Application
While the application process can seem daunting, familiarize yourself with the Chiro Match website as it has resources outlining the requirements, timeline and process. Residency is an isolated year of training to further develop one’s skillset as a chiropractor and physician within the VA healthcare system. Exposure to a new location not only pushes you outside your comfort zone but allows you to learn and grow as both a chiropractor and individual.
When it comes to writing and crafting a personal statement, this is your opportunity to provide a snapshot into who you are as an individual as well as why you believe residency is the next step. If there is a particular location that piques your interest, tailor the statement to that site and speak to what qualities you possess as a candidate that could prove to be advantageous. Letters of recommendation are where individuals who you have seen as mentors within the field can speak to you as a potential residency candidate. Letters of recommendation are most impactful when written by someone who knows you as not only a student or chiropractor, but also who you are as an individual. A well-rounded individual is not one who only displays their strengths but also allows their weaknesses to be areas of growth. When determining who to ask regarding letters of recommendation many people often gravitate towards someone who has first-hand experience with your skills clinically or your leadership skills. It’s important to ask an individual who can speak about your strengths as well as weaknesses and how you overcome them.
Interviews
Interviews are an opportunity to let not only your clinical knowledge shine through, but also your personality. Remember to familiarize yourself with clinical practice guidelines and be able to speak about how you might handle a particular patient encounter. The VA has standard Performance Based Interview (PBI) questions and familiarizing yourself with this interview style can potentially be beneficial. Regardless of interest in a location, the interview practice should be welcomed. Remember to pause and take a deep breath rather than ramble on.
Fun Fact: All 2025-2026 residents accepted every interview they were offered!
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Resident Reflections
We collected reflections from each resident and included them below in plain text. There is also an option to create a graphic for each resident reflection if word count is an issue. Please see example of graphic below.
VA Finger Lakes: Tyler Snodgrass, DC
- My best interview advice would be: It is really important to research each site and gain insight into their dynamic and interests and see how your personality and interests align.
- Made it through the interview, now it’s time to rank. Here’s what I would recommend: Rank both where you want to go and where you think your interviews went well.
- Favorite aspects of my residency site: I have individual time with each of the attendings and exposure to three different facilities. I have zero fear going to my attendings with questions, concerns or feedback. I immediately felt welcomed to the team and am a member of the team, not less than.
- My learning style: I am a very hands-on learner, so workshopping is very important, as is contact time with patients.
- One unique thing I have done in the location I am in: I joined an orchestra made up solely of people working in health care that puts on performances for the public.
- Ways I have grown in the first 6 months: I have developed in all areas, particularly manual skills, time management, professional and interpersonal communication, prioritization, education and documentation.
- Last piece of advice! It is one thing to look good on paper, but the interview is what sets you apart. Practice interviewing, answering Performance-based Interview (PBI) questions, be up to date with the literature, and be you – not who you think they want you to be.
VA Western New York: Danirose Marandino, DC
- My best interview advice would be: Review Performance Based Interview (PBI) questions and familiarize yourself with clinical practice guidelines. Interviews are an opportunity to demonstrate your knowledge base as well as who you are as an individual, don’t forget to let your personality shine through and ask questions!
- Made it through the interview, now it’s time to rank. Here’s what I recommend: Keep an open mind as all programs have something unique to offer. Consider your interview with each site and see where you will shine best.
- Favorite aspects of my residency site: Flexibility and autonomy with my schedule as well as quality and variety of observational rotations. The attendings tailor this program to you and your goals and create a safe learning environment where they genuinely care about your development in this year.
- My learning style: Kinesthetic, learning through hands-on experiences and by observing other patient encounters.
- One unique thing I have done in the location I am in: Buffalo has a lot more to offer than just snow. The culture here is warm, welcoming and truly the city of good neighbors. Chicken wings have become a staple of my diet as well as exploring the city.
- Ways I have grown in the first 6 months: I have gained a greater understanding of how to be a chiropractor within an integrated system as well as confidence in myself and my ability to manage high complexity patients.
- Last piece of advice! Residency will be a time of both personal and professional growth and development where you’re forced into an uncomfortable space; however, that is when advancement occurs. It is truly a privilege to have so many mentors and resources at your disposal where everyone is rooting for your success.
VA Connecticut: Andrew Flack, DC
- My best interview advice would be: Review current clinical practice guidelines and familiarize yourself with the faculty that will be involved in the interview process. Familiarizing yourself with their current work can inform questions.
- Made it through the interview, now it’s time to rank. Here’s what I would recommend: Only rank sites you are committed to. If you can’t see yourself working well in a particular location, you can always withdraw your application from that site prior to final submission.
- Favorite aspects of my residency site: Diversity of chiropractic roles (e.g., leadership, research, clinical). Exposure to interdisciplinary teams and autonomy to develop my own research projects.
- My learning style: I am a hands-on learner who prefers face-to-face interactions above self-paced learning. Clinical work provides ample hands-on learning, while research and didactic work requires more self-paced efforts.
- One unique thing I have done in the location I am in: I work weekly within the chronic pain management and opioid safety clinic as part of an interdisciplinary care team. The team is comprised of pain pharmacists, health psychologists, addiction fellows, and internal medicine/addiction medicine specialists. The clinic allows me to experience the full scope of chronic pain management from a nonpharmacologic, pharmacologic and psychologic point of view.
- Ways I have grown in the first 6 months: My communication skills with both my attendings and patients have improved to clearly articulate necessary information. I have also expanded my research competencies.
Miami VA: Denasan Spalla, DC
- Prior to applying I wish I knew more about: Clinical practice guidelines, VA specific guidelines for low back pain, exact day-to-day schedules of each location, and what didactic work would be included
- My best interview advice: Be yourself but be prepared to answer clinical questions regarding how you would evaluate and treat certain conditions as well as red/yellow flags and contraindications to care
- Made it through the interview, now it’s time to rank. Here’s what I recommend: You are going to be spending a year directly working with these doctors. Rank them according to who you vibe with the most.
- Favorite aspects of my residency site: Range of experience and knowledge of my attendings, rotation specialties and the location!
- My learning style: hands-on learner. I need to do something myself to feel confident in doing it
- One unique thing I have done in the location I am in: explore all that Miami has to offer (bars, restaurants, festivals, art, beaches).
- Ways I have grown in the first 6 months: Residency has elevated every aspect of my clinical competency from patient interactions, diagnostic skills, time management, and documentation as well as being an advocate for our profession and working in an interdisciplinary setting.
- Last piece of advice! Residency takes you to the next level as a clinician. You truly set yourself apart from other chiropractors and grow your knowledge drastically. I would highly recommend residency to anyone who has a passion for being a lifelong learner and who sees themselves thriving in a hospital/interdisciplinary setting.
Cincinnati VA: Caley Nolen, DC
- Prior to applying I wish I knew more about day-to-day expectations at each location and the patient load.
- My best interview advice is: Be able to acknowledge when you don’t know the answer to a question. You don’t need to try to make something up to sound or look better. This is a learning opportunity and they want to know you are open and willing to learn.
- Made it through the interview, now it’s time to rank. Here’s what I considered: The dynamic during your interview to determine compatibility with attendings. You will be working closely with them and want to be able to mesh and get along well.
- Favorite aspects of my residency site: Variability in locations, diversity of patients, and rotation opportunities.
- My learning style: Hands-on learning, I have to go through it to learn it. This relates directly to my learning experience so far as I have had to navigate complex patients and patient cases that are difficult to prepare for.
- One unique thing I have done in the location I am in: I have gone to lots of sporting events! Baseball, hockey, football and basketball!
- Ways I have grown in the first 6 months: Development of patient preparation, clinical decision making, time management and patient visit management to be more efficient and concise.
- Last piece of advice! Be yourself! You don’t want to go to work every day pretending to be someone you aren’t. The confidence will come, but your personality sets you apart.
VA St. Louis: Tanika Lee, DC
- My best interview advice would be: Know what makes each location special.
- Made it through the interview, now it’s time to rank. Here’s what I considered: Be open to moving somewhere outside your comfort zone or you will be limiting yourself of potential opportunities.
- Favorite aspects of my residency site: Louis is a Whole Health site and has the best BBQ!!!
- My learning style: Reading/writing and kinesthetic learner. The doctors are very accommodating to my style.
- One unique thing I have done in the location I am in:
- Ways I have grown in the first 6 months: Development of manual skills.
VA Central Iowa: Alexis Cornelius-Webster, DC
- Prior to applying I wish I had stayed in contact with residents who spoke at my school and got their contact information.
- My best interview advice would be: PREPARE! Feel good going into the interview, nerves begin to dissipate when you are asked questions you feel confident answering. Mock interviews, reviewing research, and clinical practice guidelines were the most helpful for me. Be prepared to discuss clinical scenarios that you may see in a multidisciplinary setting.
- Made it through the interview, now it’s time to rank. Here’s what I would recommend: I wrote a little reflection after each of my interviews so I would remember the experience. This helped me get better at my interviews as the process went on and helped me with the ranking process.
- Favorite aspects of my residency site: I love that my attendings are very intentional on giving both positive and constructive feedback, it has helped me learn and grow so much in a short period of time. They care about my personal goals and aspirations and help place me in positions to achieve them.
- My learning style: Kinesthetic learner. I do well when I have to apply the knowledge that is discussed. My attendings have adapted some of their practices to my learning style.
- One unique thing I have done in the location I am in: Downtown DSM farmer’s market. Best fresh produce I have ever had. There is a lot more to do in Iowa than I thought!
- Ways I have grown in the first 6 months: One thing I struggled with coming into the residency program was my overall confidence. I knew that I personally needed a program that would push me to utilize and trust my clinical skills and decision making.
- Last piece of advice! Ask questions during your interviews. As much as each site wants to get to know you better, you should want to get to know them too.
VA Greater Los Angeles: Valerie Moreno, DC
- My best piece of advice for interviews: Be personable as well as compassionate. Veterans are a unique patient population often with many comorbidities so just being the provider that they can confide in makes all the difference. Being open-minded is a key asset to receive constructive feedback.
- Made it through the interview, now it’s time to rank. Here’s what I considered: LA is close to home, so I am able to live comfortably due to my living situation.
- Favorite aspects of my residency site: It’s LA! There’s so much to do here: the food, culture and locality of it all.
- My learning style: I am very hands-on and I learn from my mistakes!
- One unique thing I have done in the location I am in: I get to work with UCLA Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation residents.
- Ways I have grown in the first 6 months: Manual skills, overall competence as a provider and motivational interviewer.
- Last piece of advice! Be yourself and make sure you are comfortable and confident in your abilities. Differential diagnosis is key as a patient interview skill. Make sure to ask proper follow-up questions and learn how to redirect a conversation during a patient intake.
VA Palo Alto: Tomas Fermor, DC
- My advice prior to applying is… research the general area where the site is at. It’s important to like the area where you are living.
- My best interview advice would be… prepare well, and if you have a preferred site then I would recommend performing the interview after a couple of others to be more comfortable with the process
- Made it through the interview, now it’s time to rank. Here’s what I considered: Amount of facetime with the residency director and faculty research interests. Figure out what matters most.
- Favorite aspects of my residency site: Academic affiliation with Stanford for research exposure, and exposure to a large variety of rotations.
- My learning style: Watching how something should be done and then replicating. The attendings at this site are malleable in terms of teaching method and will adapt to their respective resident.
- One unique thing I have done in the location I am in: Weekly rotations in the Emergency Department and ability to see various patient presentations that wouldn’t typically present to a chiropractic clinic.
- Ways I have grown in the first 6 months: Ability to examine, differentially diagnose and manage more complex patients. I have been doing weekly Neurosurgery rotations since the beginning of residency where I examine a variety of more severe spinal cord pathologies. This has greatly improved by examination, differential diagnosis and general understanding of patients coming into the chiropractic clinic with spinal cord involvement.
VA Puget Sound: Matthew Smolen, DC
- Prior to applying I wish…I spent more time learning about each individual site.
- My best interview advice would be: Stay up to date on VA/DoD Clinical Practice Guidelines. Make Sure that you are able to adequately describe who you are and why you would be an ideal candidate for residency.
- Made it through the interview, now it’s time to rank. Here’s what I considered: Highest emphasis on overall fit with the location.
- Favorite aspects of my residency site: Constant and consistent mentorship, free housing and research emphasis.
- My learning style: Auditory learner; so the more that is said the more that I will retain.
- One unique thing I have done in the location I am in: Attend multiple Seattle sporting events due to proximity of a major city. Also visit many of the popular tourist attractions like the Space Needle and Mount Rainier.
- Ways I have grown in the first 6 months: In about every aspect of being a chiropractor, specifically in diagnosis and management of patients with chronic pain.
- Last piece of advice! This experience is an awesome one for those who have a desire to work in a hospital-based system. The amount of learning is incredible and will set up a career in a wonderful way.
Resources
- VA Chiropractic Residency Programs website
- Chiro Match website
- Performance Based Interview questions
