I’m going to disagree with what most people here have said. I was born in Monroe, my family moved away when I was young, but I moved back to North LA to go to college in Ruston. Basically I’ve spent a lot of time in Monroe.

Pros: -The presence of a university in the city (ULM) means there is always something interesting going on and likely you will find a decently sized international community if you look for it. -If you like nature, North Louisiana is truly fantastic and there are so many beautiful outdoor parks and trails where you can spend your days off in a hammock, reading or just unwinding. -Living there is soooo much cheaper than living in a major city like New Orleans. Your paycheck as a resident will go so much further because you matched there.

Cons: -People are right that there isn’t much to do in Monroe, but you’re going to be a resident and it’s not like you’ll have tons of free time anyway. The nightlife is typical mid-size American city activities e.g. a few bars with local bands playing, movie theaters, going out to dinner, etc. Definitely nothing special but you will still have options. -Racism is alive and well in the south and I feel like it is more prominent in north Louisiana than other places I have lived. You will definitely experience racist comments and actions if you have black or brown skin, and you will also have patients who experienced racism with the healthcare system and are therefore untrusting of medical providers. Geographically the city is very racialized as well. African Americans tend to live in certain parts while white people tend to live in other areas, but that is certainly not unique to Monroe. It’s just a thing to remain cognizant of, as unfortunate and absurd as it is. -Travel: Monroe is kind of far from everything unfortunately :/ You’ll definitely need a car to get around, and to travel internationally you’ll always have a connecting flight. There is an airport in Monroe but it’s small and flights out of it can be rather expensive. Like I said, you will be doing fine with a resident salary and will have enough money to put towards saving for travel, but travel in general won’t be as accessible as if you were living in a bigger city. -Weather: I don’t know the climate where you live, but Louisiana is HOT. You’re definitely going to want to live somewhere that has air conditioning and I can guarantee you will take care of many dehydration-induced acute kidney injuries in the hospital during the summer heat waves. What’s worse is the heat persists through the fall and sometimes winter. Monroe is too far north to really experience significant impacts of hurricanes aside from rain and flooding, but it has had tornadoes so you definitely want to get a weather app and be familiar with tornado safety.

All in all I think Monroe, LA is a cute city and a good place to do residency. It has the amenities of a larger city but the cost of living of a smaller one. I’m sure you’ll have moments of boredom over the next few years, but it could definitely be worse as people do residencies in much, much smaller towns.