Richard Chao

I’m Richard, an anesthesiology resident at Columbia (T10 residency) and a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine (T15 medical school). I’ve navigated both application processes firsthand, receiving 21 medical school interview invitations with only 1 rejection, followed by 28 residency interview invitations, including 18 in anesthesiology. My experience with Pitt’s student admissions process also gave me perspective on how adcoms view and assess applicants. Over the past 6+ years, I’ve taught and mentored students in multiple settings, including more than 200 hours of tutoring. I’ve worked with applicants who have gone on to programs including Hopkins, Cornell, Yale, and NYU. Teaching is something I genuinely enjoy, especially helping someone recognize the strengths in their own story and find the words to express them. Our sessions are collaborative, practical, and tailored to what you need. For medical school applicants, we can work on school lists, application strategy, personal statements, secondary essays, and interview preparation. For residency applicants, we can focus on program selection, signaling strategy, application experiences, personal statements, and interviews. Strategy sessions are also a place to ask general questions and get help deciding what to prioritize. You can expect specific, honest feedback. During live essay reviews, we’ll work through your writing together, strengthening its clarity, structure, and examples while preserving your voice. For interview preparation, my most common package starts with a session working through common questions one at a time: you answer, and I give immediate feedback. After you’ve had time to practice, we meet for an uninterrupted mock interview followed by a detailed debrief. This format is especially helpful for applicants preparing for their first interviews. My goal is for you to leave each session knowing what’s working, what needs attention, and what to do next—with greater confidence in how you present yourself.