Another topic not often discussed is the opportunity to interview at newly accredited residency programs. During my match year the Residency Match registration opened up September 15, after registration opened up several new residency programs became accredited! I assume part of the reason why applicants don’t discuss these newly accredited programs is that there is a competitive advantage in keeping quiet about them.
Many applicants finalize their list of residency programs that they would like to apply to before registration opens. When registration opens up they apply to their desired programs and subsequently sit back and wait to hear from programs. Often what happens is that there are residency programs which receive their accreditation after registration opens and as a result not many applicants know about these programs! One great resource to track such programs is https://apps.acgme.org/ads/Public/Reports/Report/8
I personally came to know of a few newly accredited programs through friends of mine that were kind enough to share that information with me. I applied to some of these programs and they resulted in interview invites. For these new programs it might be difficult to receive a desired number of applicants since not many applicants may know about their program in the first place.
Standing out in a pool of fewer candidates coupled with the fact they might need a year or two to figure out who their ideal candidate is may help you gain an interview invite. Furthermore in my experience the Program Directors for these programs were highly ambitious in wanting to make their program successful.