DO's and chances for anesthesia

JustDOingIt · Sep 18, 2005

hi, wondering what the chances are of a D.O who only took comlex ( and got average grade) got gettin an anesthesia spot somewhere in the ny/nj area. please advise thank you all...DO'S and chances for anesthesia

Idiopathic · Sep 18, 2005

If you are a 3rd year, you might (stress: might) consider taking USMLE or taking COMLEX Level II early. I think if you limit yourself, you will have a harder time (i.e. NY/NJ only) but in the end, you should find a place. If you have time, try doing some things to help yourself stand out (i.e. research, rotations) and cross your fingers and hope for the best.

JustDOingIt · Sep 18, 2005

Idiopathic said:
If you are a 3rd year, you might (stress: might) consider taking USMLE or taking COMLEX Level II early. I think if you limit yourself, you will have a harder time (i.e. NY/NJ only) but in the end, you should find a place. If you have time, try doing some things to help yourself stand out (i.e. research, rotations) and cross your fingers and hope for the best.

thanks for the advice....im a 4th year and its sept so i dont know...but i was wondering if there was anyone out there who matched into was with comlex scores only !!! 😕 😕 and i must add 😕

xampower · Sep 18, 2005

I am a DO and although I took the USMLE I have many friends that matched with average scores and some in NY. Apply broadly (ie outside of NY/NJ as well) but in the end I think you will be able to match into a NY/NJ program.

JustDOingIt · Sep 18, 2005

xampower said:
I am a DO and although I took the USMLE I have many friends that matched with average scores and some in NY. Apply broadly (ie outside of NY/NJ as well) but in the end I think you will be able to match into a NY/NJ program.

Thanks for the postive feedback....by any chance do u mind sharing where they matched or where u matched and how u approacheed it, as in were they places that u rotated at?

BadVB750 · Sep 18, 2005

Will most community programs except the COMLEX?

supahfresh · Sep 18, 2005

I know a few DO's that matched at some good programs with only COMLEX scores. I myself am a DO but I took the USMLE and it made things much easier for me. But don't cut yourself out of the game just because you didn't take the USMLE. Just apply and be suprised. What's the worse they could say?? No. Well that's better than not applying at all.

VentdependenT · Sep 18, 2005

BadVB750 said:
Will most community programs except the COMLEX?

There are only a handful of allopathic community programs. All programs accept the comlex but I'm doubtful that they can interpret them to the same degree as the USMLE.

From the anecdotal things I've heard, it sounds as if folks do match without USMLE scores under their belt. I say take the USMLE I or II or both if you blew step I.

BadVB750 · Sep 19, 2005

Thanks for all the advice.

residentx2 · Sep 19, 2005

I only took the COMLEX (80ish %tile step 1 and 2). I was offered interviews at some good places Hopkins, SLU; an upstate NY school (NYMC Westchester) and several other academic programs. I matched at a program in the mid west. Only one interviewer (a IMG at Hopkins) asked me if the COMLEX was the DO version of the USMLE (they did not have DOs in his country) and I said yes, and he was alright with that. No one else even mentioned it. I agree with VENT. If you are not competitive with COMLEX, take the USMLE, it can only help. Otherwise, IMHO, it would be a waste of money. Also, I met several NYers on the interview trail who mentioned that the NY programs are becoming much more competitive, you may want to cast your net a little wider. Good luck!!

Stump · Sep 19, 2005

I also took only COMLEX and matched allopathic Anesthesia at Yale. Not once on the interview trail did I encounter any problems with not taking USMLE. So my advice would be to cast a wide net, get your app in early and see what happens.

Good Luck!

timtye78 · Sep 19, 2005

Am I wrong but aren't the NY programs usually the ones with all the unfilled slots anyways? Check out the unfilled lists on scutwork.com for the past couple of years or so.

hermione · Sep 20, 2005

timtye78 said:
Am I wrong but aren't the NY programs usually the ones with all the unfilled slots anyways? Check out the unfilled lists on scutwork.com for the past couple of years or so.

I had a question about that, actually. If a program gives a spot to a DO/FMG outside the match, will that spot then show up as unfilled on the list? I ask because I have heard that Buffalo offers a few spots outside every year, but it looks as though they didn't fill last year. Did they really not fill, or were those spots just already full before the match results came out? I don't get it.

timtye78 · Sep 20, 2005

Generally I believe those are the official lists given to the medical schools immediately post-match, the intent being to identify those programs who should have empty, hence 'available' positions for the non-matching MD/DO applicants. And yes, these in some fields, surgery, anesthesia go very quickly. Whether or not these are reserved for 'under the table deals', I seriously doubt.

I think the point that is valuable is that one might make the inference that these might be a bit easier programs to match into outright, if they continually end up on match days without filling. Please, no offense meant to anyone training there or implication regarding quality of training at these excellent programs. But seriously, geography, and cost of living can make a big difference to many applicants.

DOapplicant · Sep 21, 2005

hey, do matching at yale is pretty inspiring to hear as an msIII DO student interested in anest and surgery.
would you be willing to share a little about your journey? how you set yourself apart and matched so well.
thanks and best of luck not that it sounds like you'll need it. 👍 👍

Stump · Sep 23, 2005

DOapplicant said:
hey, do matching at yale is pretty inspiring to hear as an msIII DO student interested in anest and surgery.
would you be willing to share a little about your journey? how you set yourself apart and matched so well.
thanks and best of luck not that it sounds like you'll need it. 👍 👍

Thanks for the props! 😀

But a DO matching at Yale isn't that far fetched. It seems Yale is pretty good at getting a few good DO's each year. As far as why "I matched so well", I'm not too sure....just lucky I guess 😉 . Seriously, I would consider myself an above average student, but not necessarily outstanding. I was in the top 20% of my class, scored 85th % on COMLEX I and had outstanding letter of recs. I made sure to work my a** off during my anesthesia/surgery clerkships. I also antcipated last years match to be competitive so I made it a point to apply the first day ERAS opened. All other things being equal, I felt confident that I interviewed well, especially at Yale. I basically went in there with a nothing to lose attitude and felt absolutley no pressure.................alot easier said than done!!

Overall I think programs are looking for a well rounded individual who is easy to get along with, works hard, and sincerely interested in the field. If you can convey that message during the application process, you will have no problems with matching at a high quality program. And I can't stress enough the importance of getting your app in early, many of my friends who procrastinated even a little bit were having troubles trying to schedule interviews because all the spots were filled. Don't let bad timing stop you from getting that interview. As I said earlier cast a wide net (a few low, mid and top tier programs) Don't let being a DO stop you from going for that awesome residency, you just never know.

Good luck for the upcoming season and match!!! :horns:

On my way out · Sep 30, 2005

Sound advice Stump, Yale is a pretty awesome score!! Anyone else with any words of wisdom/encouragement for us DO's going through this year's match?? Thanks in advance.

CaliGirlDO · Sep 30, 2005

Just to support what Stump has said in above posts....
I myself am also a DO and I'm in my CA-2 year at Yale. I matched Yale with only COMLEX scores. So it is very possible to find a good residency with only COMLEX. My strategy for applying was not to limit myself early in the ERAS process and I applied to a large number of programs in a wide geographic area. If you're set on gas and set on allopathic residencies, you need to be realistic that the allopaths will discriminate against you, but some programs more than others. There is very little objective data out there as to which programs discriminate and which are friendly. You only have word of mouth.
So if you apply to a lot early and get lots of interviews, you can always cancel the ones you really don't want. It's easier than wondering "what if".

I can say for certain that Yale is DO-friendly since every class of their current residents has a few DO's who are doing just fine relative to peers. You need to be alert for programs who were taking DO's a few years ago but have stopped taking them as the "competition" has increased lately.

Good luck with everything.

javandane · Oct 2, 2005

CaliGirlDO said:
You need to be alert for programs who were taking DO's a few years ago but have stopped taking them as the "competition" has increased lately.

can you elaborate on which programs are no longer taking DOs?

Etomidate · Oct 2, 2005

javandane said:
can you elaborate on which programs are no longer taking DOs?

NW, WashU, Vandy, UofC, Wake, UPenn to name a few.

Arch Guillotti · Oct 2, 2005

Etomidate said:
NW, WashU, Vandy, UofC, Wake, UPenn to name a few.

I interviewed at 3 of those places. Take everything you read with a big grain of salt.

Etomidate · Oct 2, 2005

Arch Guillotti said:
I interviewed at 3 of those places. Take everything you read with a big grain of salt.

I guess that I interpreted the question a little differently than you. I think many of the top programs are still interviewing DOs and FMGs based on the postings here. However, there is a big difference between getting an interview and matching.

A couple of the programs I listed above have trends where one DO matched into their classes last year, while they had several in prior years.

Also, after rotating at a couple of the places I mentioned and speaking with their PDs, I heard similar comments. To paraphrase - you can tell if we have a good match this year if we don't have any DOs or FMGs in the upcoming class. I take these comments to mean that these programs will interview DOs, but they will not have them ranked highly in their match lists. Therefore, the programs would have to go down pretty far on their rank list for a DO to actually match there.

just my two cents.

DO's and chances for anesthesia

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