Thanks for the great thread! Seeing your scores is extremely encouraging. Edinburgh fourth year here. Ortho hopeful but our department is very strong, (we host this every year:
http://www.trauma.co.uk/) and I have a fantastic Ortho mentor from my four week home rotation with recent US connections who's a real advocate. Now doing Ortho research on top of my rotations. Also have a previous publication. Planning ahead for the 2014 Match and have started studying for Step 1. Would be starting F1 in August 2013 but not finishing it if I lucked out on getting a US residency spot.
My plan so far:
-June 2012: Step 1 (lighter rotation March-May with part-time study, 3 weeks off if I'm done with research + 4 weeks off in June before Year 5)
-Christmas break 2012/3: mini-elective (2-3 weeks), possibly where I have friends - to get my feet wet in US ortho
-March 2013: Step 2 CK (we have a 3 week assistantship, hoping to get study time in before that)
-April-May (before finals): 2 electives, hopefully 2 great LORs
-Late June (after finals, before graduation): 2 week mini-elective
-July (after gradution): research elective
My questions are:
1) Does Year 5 give an advantage for Step 2 CS? I will get 2 weeks off in Feb 2012 during Year 4 after my haem/onc/renal/urology/neuro exams (OSCE+OSCA). Should I just spend a few days flipping through FA and get Step 2 CS over and done with? I could be studying for Step 1 but I'll probably have enough time to take a little break, as my Step 1 will be in June. I'd get to spend time with friends and family as well. My other options are Oct 2012 and the 2012/12 Christmas break.
2) Do you think I have enough elective time planned, even if I use June 2012 for Step 1 prep? I am a little on the impatient side. I keep thinking I should take Step 1 in April/May 2012 and spend June 2012 (summer break between Y4 and Y5) doing an elective in the US. But in the back of my head I think that an extra four weeks for Step 1 prep, to make sure I get the score that I need, is probably better in the end.
Thanks for your help!