So I was wondering if anyone had any advice on whats the best order to complete your third-year clerkships in? The goal is to finish my last clerkship and study for step 2 in ideally two weeks and then sit for it.
I had some fellow classmates saying they want to schedule IM last because studying for that shelf exam is in a way kinda also studying for the Step 2 CK and will help you be better prepared for taking it sooner. Others suggested wanting to put something like Psych last since it has the more lax hours and you could probably do a bit of step 2 studying while also prepping for the Psych shelf.
My timeline for entering the Match for 2022 is kinda on a tight schedule and I don't want to have to take too much dedicated time for Step 2 ck studying if I can avoid it. So any opinions or advice would be appreciated!
There's too much interschool variation to give a one-sized fits all approach. I applied IM. There are pros and cons to every possible combination. Just take advantage of lighter rotations (Psych, Elective, ?Family) and I would try to get the heavier rotations out of the way earlier (General Surgery, OB/GYN).
Here was my order:
1.)
Surgery-Rough but necessary intro to clerkships allowed me to shine later on
Pros: Really good foundation for clerkships, learned some GI IM stuff.
Cons: No time to do UWorld and sleep deprived so glad I got it out of the way
2.)
OB/GYN-Got it out of the way. Basically surgery part 2.
3.)
Neuro/Psych-Gave me time to recover.
Pros: Lot of free time on Psych. By far the easiest shelf. This is when I started Uworld
4.)
IM: Had enough clinical exp. to excel here.
Pros: Got my letter situation figured out. Studying for the shelf prepares you for CK.
Cons: Worked quite hard and IM Floor Material =/= CK Material. Your clerkship will teach you how to manage COPD exacerbation and empiric anti-microbials. CK will ask you about Sarcoidosis and second line Malaria treatment.
5.)
Family:
Pros: Good break from IM. The material was broad and served as a really good review for CK. Fun rotation overall. The shelf was also super easy for me.
Cons: Not as chill as I thought, clinic ran M-F 730am-6pm. Weekends off were nice.
6.)
Elective: I chose my desired IM fellowship field
Pros: Got an additional letter. Good time to study for CK.
7.)
Peds:
Pros: Clinic was chill.
Cons: Inpatient Peds is 6-6pm so not as light as I was expecting.
8.)
Step 2 CK Prep. Spent a month. my score wasn't amazing, but good enough.
Pros: Doing it here got it out of the way and helped with my Sub-I. Even though my score wasn't amazing I wouldn't have changed how I did it.
9.)
IM Sub-I. Reinforced a lot of CK knowledge, felt good that I had gotten the exam out of the way as I didn't have much time on my SubI to study for CK.
10.)
ED Sub-I my school required and after that I was in home stretch. I did a few electives to prep for IM residency. In retrospect I recommend ID, Nephrology, and ICU if you have the chance. It's not mandatory and I didn't do all three but helps quite a bit.
11.)
Step 2 CS was a monkey on my back. I should have done it after Step 2 CK but I delayed it and after my subIs, interviews started coming in and I didn't get around to it until January. Took a lot of mentally to get back into medicine mode. I recommend you take it after a SubI/ED rotation, or Clinic month.