Took SDN specialty selector, #1 Psychiatry, #2 Neurology, # 3 internal med???

[EMDO2018]

I'm only premed, but I have to admit, for some reason the neurosciences fascinate me. So when I got these results, I was surprised they matched so well. Do you think the SDN specialty quiz holds any weight?

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[splik]

no i've just done it and it says for me: 1. dermatology 2. IM - Endocrinology 3. Allergy and Immunology.

and liking neurosciences is all well and good but is irrelevant to a career in psychiatry.

I wouldn't put any stock in it. the grammatical mistakes in this alone were enough to discredit it. I think the Virginia one is a bit better: http://www.med-ed.virginia.edu/specialties/

 

[Fenster]

I think the Virginia one is a bit better: http://www.med-ed.virginia.edu/specialties/

Wow, that one is LONG! And, repetitive? I'm halfway through it and I'm already bored. Does that make it #1 Psychiatry for me?

EDIT: It's the most irritating test I've ever taken, but it's certainly accurate (n=1). I'd probably be happy at any of these 6 fields that tied for first place.

1 occupational med 45
2 pathology 45
3 physical med & rehabilitation 45
4 psychiatry 45
5 preventive med 45
6 neurology 45

 

[digitlnoize]

I'm only premed, but I have to admit, for some reason the neurosciences fascinate me. So when I got these results, I was surprised they matched so well. Do you think the SDN specialty quiz holds any weight?

I think all of these are fairly old and don't take into account changes in the medical landscape. They all pretty still score rads as a lifestyle field...which is becoming less and less the case.

Just do what you enjoy the most on your rotations when you get there!

 

[shan564]

no i've just done it and it says for me: 1. dermatology 2. IM - Endocrinology 3. Allergy and Immunology.

My n=1 was quite different from yours... the results were psychiatry, pediatrics, IM, and radiology, respectively. Which makes sense. I had a very hard time ruling out pediatrics, and I'm still considering child psych. I actually applied to combined IM/psych programs. And radiology was my career plan for the first three years of med school, until I did my psych rotation and decided that I had to do this for the rest of my life.

and liking neurosciences is all well and good but is irrelevant to a career in psychiatry.

I agree that most psychiatrists don't use any neuroscience on a daily basis, but I wouldn't say that it's completely irrelevant. A major chunk (maybe even a majority) of the psychiatrists at my institution do some sort of neuroscience research. And the neuroscience aspect of general psychiatry is growing, although still far from where it needs to be (which also highlights the relevance of neuroscience research in psychiatry). Or you can specialize in neuropsychiatry, movement disorders, behavioral neuro, consults (which can be quite brain-centric if you're at a tertiary referral center), sleep, pain, clinical neurophysiology (less common, of course), interventional psychiatry, TBI, drug/alcohol...

 

[Fenster]

Because I have nothing better to do, I took the SDN one as well. Here are the top 3:

Internal Medicine 89% Personality Match
Psychiatry 88% Personality Match
Neurology 88% Personality Match

And I don't enjoy IM.

It's interesting that the questions on both quizzes were the same and so were my answers (within reasonable limits), but the outcome is quite different.

 

[st2205]

Derm
Radiology
Oncology
Hematology (don't know why these are separate)
Endocrinology
Psych
GI

 

[J ROD]

I find them all fairly accurate. I guess if you answer them all as honestly as possible and know yourself.

1. Path
2. EM
3. Psy
4. Neuro
5. IM


I am really interested in Psy EM and possibly doing a C/L fellowship. Like to consult on medicine and EM cases. Also like Pain and its aspects. Considering trying for a fellowship in that too. Probably a long shot. Got to look into it more. Since it is really more out of Psy.

 

[Fenster]

I find them all fairly accurate. I guess if you answer them all as honestly as possible and know yourself.

1. Path
2. EM
3. Psy
4. Neuro
5. IM


I am really interested in Psy EM and possibly doing a C/L fellowship. Like to consult on medicine and EM cases. Also like Pain and its aspects. Considering trying for a fellowship in that too. Probably a long shot. Got to look into it more. Since it is really more out of Psy.

I suppose you like to read your biopsy slides yourself too?

 

[J ROD]

I suppose you like to read your biopsy slides yourself too?

Not really. I like Path as a class not as a job.

 

[masterofmonkeys]

At the risk of being overly philosophical, one of the major issues with anything like this is that they attempt to define a profession based on their own views on it. Even if they were to somehow use a sample of those within the field, it would still be biased by their own preconceived notions of what the field should and should not be, what it is to them at the moment, and how they think society views it.

We have more freedom to define how we practice within our field than I think many people consider. And as you get to know more psychiatrists you'll get to realize that there are a vast array of personalities within the specialty. In my opinion, moreso than others, but that's another story. The fact that such a diverse group all go into a single profession implies that the profession itself is far more flexible and varied in its practice than any survey could ever hope to capture in a meaningful way.

P.s. Psych was 8th for me, PM&R was 4th, Cards was 20th, and primary care stuff was all in the mid 20s. I listed those in my actual order of preference lol