Sub-I vs. audition rotation vs. away rotation

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Can someone explain the differences in these terms? I always thought a Sub-I was an audition rotation and they were both the same as aways, but I see people saying they did a sub-I one month and an away the next month and an AI the next month. What's the difference?

subi = ai = acting as an intern for a month usually on medicine or surgery

away = audition = any rotation not at your home

an away/audition can be "subi-like" depending on the specialty

Originally Posted by MrDocMD

Can someone explain the differences in these terms? I always thought a Sub-I was an audition rotation and they were both the same as aways, but I see people saying they did a sub-I one month and an away the next month and an AI the next month. What's the difference?

Sub-Internship (Sub-I): A 4th year rotation designed to mimic an intern rotation. While an MS4 can't do most day to day things an intern can for legal reasons, cognitively, there is a huge overlap between interns and MS4s. They therefore can function on rotations much in the same way an intern would. They can handle consults, do admissions/transfers, hold team pagers, discharges etc. The purpose of a Sub-I is two-fold. First, it allows the MS4 to see what it is like to be an intern on a particular service and the opportunity to be a more integrated part of the team. Second, it is a learning ground for MS4s. Like most things in medical school, you get what you put in. How to deal with nursing calls, how to setup basic plans, how to run a service etc. All things that can be learned while a Sub-I.

Externship (Aways): Rotations done at other institutions. These come in a variety of forms and can be broadly categorized into 2 sub-categories based on the purpose of the rotations. 1) Purpose: Education. These rotations are like a Sub-I, but the emphasis is on content rather than how to survive as an intern. 2) Purpose: Interview/Audition. These rotations are Sub-Is at institutions that you are applying to for residency. (See next section)

Auditions (Extended interviews): Typically done at other institutions. MS4s will spend time on a service functioning much like a Sub-I. The purpose is to impress. It is essentially a month long interview. Many students will give presentations to the department, either an overview on a topic or about their own research, kind of like a mini-grand rounds. From my experience, people on these rotations go a little nuts. Work hours go out the window. Very much a first one in, last one out, know every patient better than anyone else in the hospital kind of rotation.


As you can probably tell, there is a fair amount of overlap between these categories, but they are different.

For example, my MS4 year... I was planning to go into Vascular Surgery, so I did a Sub-I in the Trauma ICU at home. Then I did a Sub-I on my home Vascular service. Then I did an away on the Trauma service in a different city. I love trauma, but this was also so that I knew the hospital better before... Then I did an away/audition in Vascular Surgery at the same hospital which at the time was my first choice program. I had a full month under my belt at that hospital. Knew the computer system, the OR system, where everything was, etc. So when I showed up on day 1 of my Vascular away I knew where everything was, I could round effectively and just plain hit the ground running.

Originally Posted by dude1344

subi = ai = acting as an intern for a month usually on medicine or surgery

away = audition = any rotation not at your home

an away/audition can be "subi-like" depending on the specialty

You can also do "elective" aways that are not in something you are interested in going into and therefore not auditions. Usually in neat or easy specialties or at a location near the beach or ski slopes

And at my school we have to do one inpatient subI and one outpatient subI at our school. So subIs are definitely not all away.