1st year DO student trying to get into surgey

[Rcwaite]

I am an OMSI. I am shooting to match into general surgery or orthopedics. I got two C's this last quarter and am very worried about the outlook. Are there any surgeons on here who could give examples of grades and things that helped them in the match? Thank you!!

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[DOVinciRobot]

The issue isn’t the C’s, it’s what the C’s represent. Grades don’t really matter all that much, although with a P/F Step it’s more than previous, but I personally don’t know anyone who got a strong surgery level board score after getting C’s… and that goes for DOs and also the MD students at my current program.

I recommend you evaluate your study strategies and correct course quickly if you have surgical aspirations.

For me, I was dead middle rank wise. No C’s. Mainly Bs with scattered A’s. Overall my app was very good otherwise. I have an AMA post somewhere around here you can look at if you want to see specifics. Feel free to PM if you want.

 

[DrMcLovin]

Grades/GPA never mattered much in the past given you did well on boards and had a good rotation with the program. USMLE/COMLEX got you in the door and rotation got you the spot. I have a feeling grades/GPA will get used more often when applying for a 4th year rotation given USMLE and COMLEX 1 aren't graded.

I would work at getting solid grades the rest of your preclinical years and be on top of lining up rotations. Research and/or things ortho related can also make your CV look better.

 

[Rcwaite]

Grades/GPA never mattered much in the past given you did well on boards and had a good rotation with the program. USMLE/COMLEX got you in the door and rotation got you the spot. I have a feeling grades/GPA will get used more often when applying for a 4th year rotation given USMLE and COMLEX 1 aren't graded.

I would work at getting solid grades the rest of your preclinical years and be on top of lining up rotations. Research and/or things ortho related can also make your CV look better.

Thank you so much for not fear mongering. I feel motivated to improve and not disheartened after your comment. God bless

 

[MedBoardTutors]

Agree with the above--you're not going to be hurt by the preclinical grades. Especially gensurg; they're unlikely to even look at them seriously. Your clinical grades, letters, board scores, and performance on Sub-I's will be the entirety of how you're considered.

But yes, you need to understand WHY you got those grades. And if you're taking NBOME style exams, you need to fix whatever is preventing a better performance, since you'll need high scores on Step/COMLEX going forward. Plenty of time to fix things!