Some Advice

[FootballFan]

Hi

I was wondering if someone could tell me if i have a realistic opportunity to match into anesthesia.

Here are my stats
Step 1 184/202
Step 2 210
Med 3 Clinical grades all pass/satisfactory
Currently taking a year off doing an MPH
Top 25 Allopathic med school

Is there anything i can do to make myself more attractive? Research?

Any responses would be appreciated.

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[FootballFan]

bump. any takers

 

[WholeLottaGame7]

Hi

I was wondering if someone could tell me if i have a realistic opportunity to match into anesthesia.

Here are my stats
Step 1 184/202
Step 2 210
Med 3 Clinical grades all pass/satisfactory
Currently taking a year off doing an MPH
Top 25 Allopathic med school

Is there anything i can do to make myself more attractive? Research?

Any responses would be appreciated.

Minuses: Subpar USMLE scores, particularly failing Step 1 the first time, clinical grades
Pluses: US allopathic school, MPH

You could always lose weight, work out, buy some new clothes.

Oh wait, you meant to the residency programs. Research certainly doesn't hurt. Also, as is the case in the dating scene, as a somewhat less attractive candidate, you have to make yourself available and you can't afford to be choosy. You're going to have to be willing/able to drop some dinero come ERAS season.

I'm not saying it's going to be impossible, but it's going to be an uphill battle, for sure. I would probably apply to another less competitive specialty at the same time, actually, so you have a fallback plan.

Hope this helps.

 

[blight]

I'm not applying to anesthesia, but back when I was considering it I had a step 1 similar to yours (on first try), and had 1 shelf exam failure (but really good clinical grades) and I remember my dean telling me my chances of matching in gas would be very low. My step 2 is also 20 pts higher than yours. And im from a top 50 allo school. Maybe she was just trying to scare me, who knows. Also, I don't know how much an mph will help...I think doing a research fellowship might be more useful if you need to beef up your application. You need to talk to your anesthesia chair or PD or someone of the like...they'll tell you straight up. Good luck

 

[shift_roro]

Agree. You have a lot of things against you as WLG7 already pointed out. To be honest, it's going to be very difficult to match, but that doesn't mean you don't have a shot at matching into one of the smaller programs in a less desirable geographical location. If you decide this is really what you want, go for it. Definitely start thinking about a fallback specialty though...

 

[Tuohy]

How is someone in a "Top 25 Allopathic" med school failing Step I? You must have done okay on the MCAT-I don't get it... What happened with Step I?

 

[FootballFan]

a family member had some significant health problems that required my attention, which in retrospect affected how much prep time i had. obviously i wasnt expecting the results.

 

[FootballFan]

thanks for the responses. I had another question. I was looking at a list of unfilled positions in anesthesia from last year (before the scramble). I was shocked to find some of the following programs on there.
HARBOR-UCLA MED CTR-CA
LOMA LINDA UNIVERSITY-CA
U MASSACHUSETTS MED SCHOOL
UMDNJ-R W JOHNSON-PISCATAWAY
U CONNECTICUT HLTH CTR
YALE-NEW HAVEN HOSP-CT
SUNY HSC BROOKLYN-NY
UNIVERSITY AT BUFFALO SOM-NY
LOYOLA UNIV MED CTR-IL
CASE WESTERN/METROHEALTH MED CTR-OH
U MARYLAND MED CTR
TEMPLE UNIV HOSP-PA
UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA

There seems to be some good programs listed above? Why did they not fill their allotment? Am i missing something here?

Also, i was wondering if you guys would recommend doing any away rotations?

 

[michigangirl]

when a program doesn't fill it doesn't mean it can mean many things--

a. the program has issues (crappy program, crappy city, crappy impression on interview day, the list goes on) and not enough applicants ranked it
b. the program was too choosy and did not rank enough applicants
c. the program was appropriately choosy and there just wasn't enough quality candidates to rank and have a cushion and thus they ended up unfilled when all was said and done

so you can't always judge a program by whether it went unfilled.

I agree, it's going to be challenging to match at a "good" program, BUT, you should think carefully and discuss with people in the know which programs you have a reasonable chance at matching regionally and do an away rotation there. Don't do an away rotation at a "top" program-- it will be time wasted if the numbers foundation isn't there. Do an away rotation at an accredited smaller program and wow the pants off of them. Away rotations are controversial, but in your situation, you need to go in there, be a star, and show them you'd be a good fit there. If you do anything but rock the rotation, you're out. Good luck.

 

[ASDIC]

I interviewed at some of these programs last year and I can tell you why they didnt fill:

UMDNJ-R W JOHNSON-PISCATAWAY
After the interview, the PD requested me to do a 2nd look in order for me to be ranked in the program. I tried calling and emailing the coordinatory multiple times but she never got back to me. Many other applicants were turned off by the PD's requests to do a 2nd look.

U CONNECTICUT HLTH CTR
The PD here stated that they deliberately underfill their spots so that they can recruit unmatched applicants from derm, radiology etc with excellent credentials. It seems like the faculty likes these unmatched applicants.

YALE-NEW HAVEN HOSP-CT
The interview at Yale was pretty stressful. I got pimped a lot and many applicants were turned off by the lack of CRNA support in the program. Also their Pain rotations arent that great.

SUNY HSC BROOKLYN-NY
This is a very malignant program. Applicants from their own medical school know that for a fact. It seems like the residents are worked to death as well.

UNIVERSITY AT BUFFALO SOM-NY
One reason is the city of Buffalo. When I interviwed back in December, it was a cold, dreary city with nobody to be seen on the streets. On top of that, there was no formal presentation by the PD regarding the program, no handouts nothing. So nobody had a clue what the program had to offer.

U MARYLAND MED CTR
This is a very malignant program. I was told to stay away. Apparently they have fired many residents over the past year, especially if they didnt get along with some of the faculty.

TEMPLE UNIV HOSP-PA
The part of Philadelphia that hosts Temple seems to dangerous with a lot of crime. Also I was told the anesthesia residents seem to be overwhelmed with trauma.