Specialties for IMGs in SOAP

[ButIwantneuro]

This post is for an IMG friend, not myself.

Chances of matching are low during the Match, which specialties are most IMG friendly specifically during SOAP??

How competitive child neurology, PMR, and preventative med during SOAP?

Anyone have any insight?

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[Law2Doc]

This post is for an IMG friend, not myself.

Chances of matching are low during the Match, which specialties are most IMG friendly specifically during SOAP??

How competitive child neurology, PMR, and preventative med during SOAP?

Anyone have any insight?

Nobody will know until tomorrow if there will even be any spots in the fields you describe in soap. How competitive it will be to get some gem that falls through the cracks will depend on how many US grads end up soaping and what they plan to go into. So everyone would be guessing based on no data.

 

[FoundAWay]

Just a note, based on 2013:

There were 878 positions filled in the SOAP; zero PMR, 4 child neuro.

There were 3745 SOAP eligible US-IMGs and 5976 non-US-IMGs.

74 US-IMGs and 52 non-US-IMGs obtained positions.

But of the 878 total positions, almost half were PGY1 only positions like prelim surg and prelim med. No data for which position the IMGs obtained.

Best of luck on Monday, because while some will get spots in the SOAP, it will be rough.

 

[Law2Doc]

Just a note, based on 2013:

There were 878 positions filled in the SOAP; zero PMR, 4 child neuro.

There were 3745 SOAP eligible US-IMGs and 5976 non-US-IMGs.

74 US-IMGs and 52 non-US-IMGs obtained positions.

But of the 878 total positions, almost half were PGY1 only positions like prelim surg and prelim med. No data for which position the IMGs obtained.

Best of luck on Monday, because while some will get spots in the SOAP, it will be rough.

bear in mind that programs that ended up soaping last year probably interviewed and ranked even more people this year so the distribution could be totally different. Last years data is only helpful if the parameters are expected to be largely the same, but with more applicants different amounts of interviews and different things being more or less popular year to year, it's really anyone's guess.

 

[ButIwantneuro]

Would prelim medicine spots be more competative than categorical medicine?

 

[luCZky]

Would prelim medicine spots be more competative than categorical medicine?

Do you really believe that that anyhow matters? Guessing he applied broadly for reasonable speciality... thus not match = no soap spot for him. His best shot is during match... not in soap fight. Just run the numbers... only 126 spot for IMGs during soap last year which was 14% of all spots and almost 10 thousand IMGs eligible and probably applying for these... thus only 1% of IMGs got a spot in soap. But yes I would guess so... since prelim is important for advanced specs which is important mostly to US grads and he doesn't want to compete with them...

 

[MadHopsMD]

Just a note, based on 2013:

There were 878 positions filled in the SOAP; zero PMR, 4 child neuro.

There were 3745 SOAP eligible US-IMGs and 5976 non-US-IMGs.

74 US-IMGs and 52 non-US-IMGs obtained positions.

But of the 878 total positions, almost half were PGY1 only positions like prelim surg and prelim med. No data for which position the IMGs obtained.

Best of luck on Monday, because while some will get spots in the SOAP, it will be rough.

Those are some scary numbers. The reason I cant sleep....so afraid of Soaping.

 

[Law2Doc]

Would prelim medicine spots be more competative than categorical medicine?

No. There are many many more prelim spots than categorical spots. Programs tend to have bottom heavy structures where you have a handful of categorical seniors overseeing lots of prelims. Transitional years, the cushy spots that derm, optho, rad onc, rads fight over are the ones that are uber competitive. But the average community hospital prelim spot that doesn't lead to anything? Not that competitive. And prelim surgery even less so.

 

[ButIwantneuro]

As an IMG, how to connection work?

For AMGs a med school dean or another PD can contact PD of a program of interest during scramble. For IMGs can a past co-worker put in a good word for you?

 

[gyngyn]

As an IMG, how to connection work?

For AMGs a med school dean or another PD can contact PD of a program of interest during scramble. For IMGs can a past co-worker put in a good word for you?

If you have been contacted by a program, you can provide names/contact info of those who can vouch for your personal or clinical strengths. Your mentors may not primarily contact the programs! This would constitute a match violation.
These rules hold for both AMG's and IMG's.
During scramble, primary direct contact from the school would have been permissible. With SOAP it is not.

 

[ButIwantneuro]

I don't understand, but then how is that fair that med school deans can call to support the application of AMGs?

 

[throw away]

I don't understand, but then how is that fair that med school deans can call to support the application of AMGs?

Anyone can call a program in support of an applicant BEFORE the week of match including the applicants themselves. However no one can contact programs during SOAP week (even deans). The rules change for the SOAP but remain consistent for both AMGs and IMGs.

 

[Psychotic]

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[gyngyn]

I don't understand, but then how is that fair that med school deans can call to support the application of AMGs?

As previously indicated, SOAP rules are the same, without regard to the school one attended.

 

[ButIwantneuro]

They can't per SOAP rules. Programs initiate contact with applicants per SOAP rules, not the other way around.

Yes, I agree with you, per SOAP rules you can't. However, at least 6 of my friends who were SOAPing last year all had one of the deans of the med school call for them. Were they breaking the rules then? This seems to be a very common (and apparently accepted occurrence) at most schools.

 

[Psychotic]

.

 

[ButIwantneuro]

It was and is against the rules, and on the NRMP site if you look under the tab for violations, it lists institutions and residency programs that were cited for inappropriate contact last year.

Again, I completely agree with and understand your point, however, fact still remains that for some reason, deans call for students in their schools - and this is a very common practice. Why is this the case?

 

[Psychotic]

.

 

[gyngyn]

Again, I completely agree with and understand your point, however, fact still remains that for some reason, deans call for students in their schools - and this is a very common practice. Why is this the case?

This is not a common practice. I'm willing to bet that they called after the program contacted the candidate, which is perfectly acceptable. No rational dean would risk a match violation.