ENT residency suggestions

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Hi all,
First post on these forums. I'm a 3rd year med student trying to decide between a lot of different fields now, and I think I would love ENT but am a little concerned I wouldn't match. Last NRMP data showed a number of people in the 220's matching (30 matched, 4 unmatched, even though the avg matching student had around a 243), which is where I am, I was just curious as to which programs I should be shooting for. I'm trying to think about lining up some away rotations at that place to get some connections going in my favor.

Step 1 = 223, I've honored 3/4 of my 3rd year clerkships, mostly A's/B's in pre-clinical grades. Org Chem research in undergrad and EMed research in med school, but no publications, currently working on getting some ENT research .

My understanding from the data is that I'd have around a 65-70% chance of matching based on my board score, but before I decide to go "all in" for ENT, and getting screwed, I'm curious if there are some programs that are less competitive b/c of location/size/not a big name academic center/etc. Any suggestions?

Thanks for the advice!

There are no "less competitive" programs out there, but you still have a pretty good chance if you continue honoring M3 rotations, improve on step 2, get some research under your belt, and get good letters.

If you really want to do ENT, you need to start meeting the chair/PD/faculty in your school's department ASAP. They will be able to give you better advice than this messageboard.

Hi Striker - hope I can help.

Some programs will not grant you an interview with that step 1 score. The problem is no one on this forum will tell you which programs are more or less "selective" for Step 1 scores. I could name a couple, but that would be totally out of context, and I don't feel like badmouthing specific ENT programs. Additionally, programs change their ranking tactics from year to year, so the only people who really know the ranking processes are the faculty who review applications year in and year out. Practically speaking, the way to find out which programs accept lower board scores is to apply widely and see who gives you an interview invite.

The good news is that the playing field evens out significantly during interviews.

If you have a good personality, are easy to work with, come off as intelligent and interview well, then you have a good chance of matching. As you mentioned, getting exposure at your home ENT program and some regional programs will help demonstrate these things.

Regarding the NRMP stats - you seem to realize this, but I will state the obvious - the stats apply to 4th year students who went through the match. You don't have all your clinical grades, LORs, research etc.. You haven't interviewed. There are a lot of factors that go in to ranking besides step 1. If you are a rockstar besides your step 1 score, then you will have a better than 70% chance of matching.

Good luck figuring it out!

I don't think there are "less competitive" ENT programs. Even some of the small places I went to did not give interviews to a lot of my friends that had scores in the 250s. There are just so many applicants that have huge scores these days. Pretty much every program is getting applications from students with Step scores above 240s. People with scores in the 260s are applying to 50-60 programs!!

I don't think this means you can't match with a score in the 220s, you're just going to have to sell yourself in the rest of your application, and more importantly to your home department. Do a few away rotations as well. Most importantly, have a back-up plan. I don't think I'd go all-in for ENT, at least apply for some surgery pre-lim spots.