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Hey guys,
I was offered a D.O. Neurology residency spot for which I have a week to decide whether I want it. I also am registered for the MD match with only 3 PM&R programs interviewed and ranked.
A quick summary about myself. I'm a 4th yr med student who was placed off schedule due to an injury last January, so instead of graduating last June, I am expected to graduate this June. I have had a huge interest in PM&R ever since clinical rotations during my 3rd year and with speaking to many residents. I love the outpatient side in particular but am also interested in managing brain injury and stroke patients. I have done 4 audition rotations on top of 3 private practice (primarily interventional) rotations in PM&R. I applied to almost every single allopathic PM&R program, however, because of my poor board scores (2 retakes + low passing scores), I was only offered interviews at 3 of the 4 places I auditioned at, and no where else. During my rotations, I felt like I did a great job as I am much more of a people person and have learned a lot through my experiences in all of the physiatry rotations. All the attendings, residents and faculty have said great things about me and I feel like my interview only boosted my ranking with these residency programs. That being said, I am unsure if they will rank me highly or high enough for me to land a spot. One program offers 9 spots, another offers 5 and the last offers 4 spots.
Because I chose to participate in the allopathic match, I did not partake in the osteopathic match. However, out of curiosity I realized that Larkin Community Hospital surprisingly had a couple of Neurology spots open after the Match. I have always found Neurology fascinating in my rotations and also felt it complemented PM&R well. The brain is the most interesting organ IMO and I feel like all the cases would be challenging, rather than the same mundane cases you see everyday in certain other fields. I never chose to pursue it simply bc I didn't think I had the grades for it (my GPA = 3.4 but poor board scores). I applied to the program just out of curiosity of seeing whether I would get an interview and sure enough, I had my phone interview the next day with the program director. She just joined in December and asked me if I would be fine with a program that is changing and still growing. The program has existed for about 3 years and they have had 3 residents each year, except this year they plan on having 4. It is categorical and seems like there is only 1 full-time neurologist on board but there's plenty of experience that can be gained by working with other neurologists at other sites (stroke centers, consult services, etc).
I know there are pros and cons to both fields. I feel that PM&R is a natural fit because it includes everything that I enjoy. However, this new opportunity with Neurology opened my doors to research it more and I realize there is a lot of flexibility here as well, whether its outpatient or inpatient, cerebral or more procedural. I realize that Neuro on average pays more but its also a little more demanding since you also have to be on call at least once a week. PM&R there usually is no call but the pay varies depending on what you do. I would love to match into one of those MD PM&R programs, but should I take the chance by missing out on this specific neurology residency opportunity? Or play it safe and go with what seems guaranteed? Is it even worth going to the DO Neurology program? ANY help will be appreciated as time is of the essence! Thanks!
I was offered a D.O. Neurology residency spot for which I have a week to decide whether I want it. I also am registered for the MD match with only 3 PM&R programs interviewed and ranked.
A quick summary about myself. I'm a 4th yr med student who was placed off schedule due to an injury last January, so instead of graduating last June, I am expected to graduate this June. I have had a huge interest in PM&R ever since clinical rotations during my 3rd year and with speaking to many residents. I love the outpatient side in particular but am also interested in managing brain injury and stroke patients. I have done 4 audition rotations on top of 3 private practice (primarily interventional) rotations in PM&R. I applied to almost every single allopathic PM&R program, however, because of my poor board scores (2 retakes + low passing scores), I was only offered interviews at 3 of the 4 places I auditioned at, and no where else. During my rotations, I felt like I did a great job as I am much more of a people person and have learned a lot through my experiences in all of the physiatry rotations. All the attendings, residents and faculty have said great things about me and I feel like my interview only boosted my ranking with these residency programs. That being said, I am unsure if they will rank me highly or high enough for me to land a spot. One program offers 9 spots, another offers 5 and the last offers 4 spots.
Because I chose to participate in the allopathic match, I did not partake in the osteopathic match. However, out of curiosity I realized that Larkin Community Hospital surprisingly had a couple of Neurology spots open after the Match. I have always found Neurology fascinating in my rotations and also felt it complemented PM&R well. The brain is the most interesting organ IMO and I feel like all the cases would be challenging, rather than the same mundane cases you see everyday in certain other fields. I never chose to pursue it simply bc I didn't think I had the grades for it (my GPA = 3.4 but poor board scores). I applied to the program just out of curiosity of seeing whether I would get an interview and sure enough, I had my phone interview the next day with the program director. She just joined in December and asked me if I would be fine with a program that is changing and still growing. The program has existed for about 3 years and they have had 3 residents each year, except this year they plan on having 4. It is categorical and seems like there is only 1 full-time neurologist on board but there's plenty of experience that can be gained by working with other neurologists at other sites (stroke centers, consult services, etc).
I know there are pros and cons to both fields. I feel that PM&R is a natural fit because it includes everything that I enjoy. However, this new opportunity with Neurology opened my doors to research it more and I realize there is a lot of flexibility here as well, whether its outpatient or inpatient, cerebral or more procedural. I realize that Neuro on average pays more but its also a little more demanding since you also have to be on call at least once a week. PM&R there usually is no call but the pay varies depending on what you do. I would love to match into one of those MD PM&R programs, but should I take the chance by missing out on this specific neurology residency opportunity? Or play it safe and go with what seems guaranteed? Is it even worth going to the DO Neurology program? ANY help will be appreciated as time is of the essence! Thanks!
