2016-2017 "What are my Chances?" thread

[volleyballenthusiast]

Step 1: 222
Step 2 CS: Pass
Step 2 CK: waiting for this score, scored 226 on one NBME then jumped up to 258 on another so could be anywhere
School: midwest MD school
Class Rank: Doesn't rank
Grades in Clerkship: honors in all core clerkships except surgery (pass)
AOA: nominated, waiting on this too
Gold Humanism
Research/ Publications/ Extracurriculars: no publications, one poster during med school and two in undergrad, other research involvement and TONS of volunteering
Red Flags: none
Overview of where you want to end up: Planning to apply to triple board programs, but I'm worried about my step 1 score. I'm also looking into programs that have a child fellowship, but don't know how to judge my competitiveness due to the possibility of falling below step 1 cutoffs.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[psychhopefull2016]

It is making me feel so much better that my top choice does not seem to be the top choice of everyone else on here!

 

[thorzaine]

Step 1: 240
Step 2 CK/ CS: Late September
School: mid-range, mid-atlantic
Class Rank: Probably lower third
Grades in Clerkship: Mostly HP, Honors in Family Med and surgical subspecialties, Pass on Ob/Gyn (see below)
AOA: nah
Research/ Publications/ Extracurriculars: Several basic science pubs from undergrad, a few Ob/Gyn papers in med school that led to presentations and are currently in the submission process. No Psych research.
Red Flags: (step failures, etc) Trying to figure out how much of a red flag this is - my 3rd year Ob/Gyn rotation evaluation is fairly negative, says I don't know my limits and don't respond well to criticism. No other rotations say anything remotely approaching this, so it kind of sticks out like an ugly sore thumb. (yes, there is some basis to truth in these comments, and it has led to much self-reflection, but I still feel that it is not a fair characterization. I realize acknowledging my shortcomings and taking responsibility when asked about this on interviews will be important. I'm wondering how much of a red flag it will be in terms of being selected for interviews/ranking especially if I don't mention it explicitly in my personal statement.)
Overview of where you want to end up: NE/Mid-Atlantic, would like to go to the best program I can while staying in this region for family reasons.

 

[splik]

most schools do not critical comments on the MSPE unless there is a repeated pattern so I'd be amazed if they made it on. also no one reads them too carefully because they tend to be so airbrushed they aren't all that helpful beyond grades

 

[OldPsychDoc]

...
Red Flags: (step failures, etc) Trying to figure out how much of a red flag this is - my 3rd year Ob/Gyn rotation evaluation is fairly negative, says I don't know my limits and don't respond well to criticism. No other rotations say anything remotely approaching this, so it kind of sticks out like an ugly sore thumb. ...

If you were applying in OB, that would be a problem. However, splik is correct that most programs are going to gloss over it. Personally, I look at the MPSE for comments on psych, sometimes peds and medicine. And I'll almost always take a negative comment on a single rotation* with a grain of salt. I may ask about it at the interview, but it wouldn't keep you from getting the interview (and you shouldn't feel that you need to justify it in the personal statement). One of my current interns had a similar comment on an early rotation that was completely contradicted by every other comment on his MPSE, including a subsequent sub-I in the same department--so if anything, it's a chance for you to discuss in your interviews that you DO manage negative feedback appropriately!

(*And frankly, sometimes a negative from OB/gyn or surgery is a positive prognostic sign!)

 

[Supramarginalgyrus]

Step 1: 220
Step 2 CK/ CS: CK 249, CS scheduled for september
School: State MD school in Western US
Class Rank: Likely Middle-ish
Grades in Clerkship: Honors in Psychiatry and Neurology, High Pass in OB-GYN, Pass in other 3rd year clerkships, Honors in 4th year Psych elective (my school doesn't offer a psych sub-I)
AOA: No
Research/ Publications/ Extracurriculars: Neuroscience research in med school but no publications, 1 publication and multiple presentations in neuroscience research during job prior to medical school, neuroscience research as an undergraduate. Some volunteering, member of school's rural medicine track (interested in rural psychiatry)
Red Flags: (step failures, etc) None
Overview of where you want to end up: Colorado, Utah, Washington, Arizona, Oregon, UCLA, UC Davis, UCSF, Vermont, Dartmouth, Maine Medical Center

 

[Freddie Mercury]

Step 1: 220
Step 2 CK/ CS: CK 249, CS scheduled for september
School: State MD school in Western US
Class Rank: Likely Middle-ish
Grades in Clerkship: Honors in Psychiatry and Neurology, High Pass in OB-GYN, Pass in other 3rd year clerkships, Honors in 4th year Psych elective (my school doesn't offer a psych sub-I)
AOA: No
Research/ Publications/ Extracurriculars: Neuroscience research in med school but no publications, 1 publication and multiple presentations in neuroscience research during job prior to medical school, neuroscience research as an undergraduate. Some volunteering, member of school's rural medicine track (interested in rural psychiatry)
Red Flags: (step failures, etc) None
Overview of where you want to end up: Colorado, Utah, Washington, Arizona, Oregon, UCLA, UC Davis, UCSF, Vermont, Dartmouth, Maine Medical Center

Solid overall application. You'll have to be more specific about UCLA - there are 3 UCLA programs (NPI, Harbor, and San Fernando) which are of varying competitiveness. NPI may be a reach with your score, and the research might not be strong enough for them either. Harbor might be doable but San Fernando is definitely a good shot. UCSF, like NPI is a reach. I don't think any of those programs will give you much rural psych exposure.

Can't comment on the other programs on the list.

 

[splik]

Step 1: 220
Step 2 CK/ CS: CK 249, CS scheduled for september
School: State MD school in Western US
Class Rank: Likely Middle-ish
Grades in Clerkship: Honors in Psychiatry and Neurology, High Pass in OB-GYN, Pass in other 3rd year clerkships, Honors in 4th year Psych elective (my school doesn't offer a psych sub-I)
AOA: No
Research/ Publications/ Extracurriculars: Neuroscience research in med school but no publications, 1 publication and multiple presentations in neuroscience research during job prior to medical school, neuroscience research as an undergraduate. Some volunteering, member of school's rural medicine track (interested in rural psychiatry)
Red Flags: (step failures, etc) None
Overview of where you want to end up: Colorado, Utah, Washington, Arizona, Oregon, UCLA, UC Davis, UCSF, Vermont, Dartmouth, Maine Medical Center

There are not many people who are interested in rural psychiatry so do talk about it in your personal statement - it will be refreshing and make you stand out! I think you would be very competitive for vermont (which I understand is a great program that is quite chill), dartmouth, and maine. U washington has a boise track (and while boise is not quite rural I think this will give you a good exposure to a less urban setting and you get 2 years in seattle - which is a pro and a con). oregon and utah are a little strange in that it is not quite clear how they select people for interview but you have a good shot. you would be a competitive applicant for uc davis. I am not really sure that UCLA or UCSF would be suited to your interests in rural psychiatry and they are among the most competitive programs in the country. In fact I would call UCLA the antithesis of rural psychiatry since you will not be dealing with an underserved population but an overentitled one! I would also check out spokane providence - it is a new program, but the program director is british so that is a good sign and they have some good people there. They don't do abortions, and thus have received criticism from family medicine residents for not providing training in this, but hopefully that shouldn't affect your training as a psychiatrist. Wright State is another excellent program with a rural psychiatry focus (though is one of the most heavily psychodynamically oriented programs in the country). you may also want to check out new mexico, and creighton.

 

[Monocles]

Step 1: 222
Step 2 CS: Pass
Step 2 CK: waiting for this score, scored 226 on one NBME then jumped up to 258 on another so could be anywhere
School: midwest MD school
Class Rank: Doesn't rank
Grades in Clerkship: honors in all core clerkships except surgery (pass)
AOA: nominated, waiting on this too
Gold Humanism
Research/ Publications/ Extracurriculars: no publications, one poster during med school and two in undergrad, other research involvement and TONS of volunteering
Red Flags: none
Overview of where you want to end up: Planning to apply to triple board programs, but I'm worried about my step 1 score. I'm also looking into programs that have a child fellowship, but don't know how to judge my competitiveness due to the possibility of falling below step 1 cutoffs.

I interviewed at Brown's triple board (considered by most as the most competitive out there) with 221/231 steps, so you'll be fine. The biggest thing about TB is showing interest for both the pediatric and psych aspects of the training and being able to talk about how you want to integrate those into your future practice. As far as I know most TB applicants don't have 240s/250s so you should apply to as many TB as you want but with also some psych and/or peds backups.

 

[Monocles]

(*And frankly, sometimes a negative from OB/gyn or surgery is a positive prognostic sign!)

 

[LPpostbacc]

Step 1: low 220's
Step 2 CK/ CS: taking both in Oct
School: Mid-tier MD
Class Rank: probably lower third
Grades in Clerkship: Passes, HP in neurology, Honors in C/L Psych elective
AOA: no
Research/ Publications/ Extracurriculars: Will be submitting one paper, starting another project w/ surgery dept, Bioethics honors, small research projects in first two years w/ presentations
Red Flags: (step failures, etc): none
Overview of where you want to end up: best program possible

Thanks for your input!

 

[psychhopefull2016]

Step 1: low 220's
Step 2 CK/ CS: taking both in Oct
School: Mid-tier MD
Class Rank: probably lower third
Grades in Clerkship: Passes, HP in neurology
AOA: no
Research/ Publications/ Extracurriculars: Will be submitting one paper, starting another project w/ surgery dept, Bioethics honors, small research projects in first two years w/ presentations
Red Flags: (step failures, etc): none
Overview of where you want to end up: likely in Chicago

Thanks for your input!

Do you have any activity that shows your interest in psych?

 

[Giselle.go]

Long time reader, first time poster. With ERAS opening soon, just wanted to get some of your opinions.
Step 1: 201 first attempt
Step 2 CS: passed first attempt
Step 2 CK: let my school talk me into taking it end of Sep. after 203 on NBME one week before.
School: Average MD school
Class Rank: Middle
Grades in Clerkship: All pass, honors in 3 humanity courses. Good MSPE comments.
AOA: N/A
Research/ Publications/ Extracurriculars: 2 Grand Rounds presentations (one in psychiatry), 1 online home institution publication, numerous mentorship volunteer activities, underserved population volunteer work, long time interest in psychiatry/psychology with background in psychology from undergrad, leadership position held in student organization, tons of child volunteer work, interested in CAP.
Red Flags: (step failures, etc): None, no schedule delays or clerkship failures.
Overview of where you want to end up: Any where, preferably would like to return to Texas where my SO and family live.
Do I have a chance?

 

[promotemma]

I'll take a stab at it. I've replied to a few others in earlier pages here and that advice still applies. (Definitely read those). Bottom line, the game is tight for D.O.s at some places, especially on the coasts and in the traditionally more competitive places. Sure, it's "still psychiatry" but the landscape appears to be changing with an increased interest and with that will come the bump in applications. Regardless of what you will hear (or what one may want to believe), most programs will want to fill top to bottom with an MD roster. Yes, everyone would rather have the best applicant, period, but from what I'm seeing just at my program right now, there are a lot of really solid MD students demonstrating interest. Attendings have mentioned a perceived increase in interest as well. (I know, anecdotal, but I'm guessing this isn't so unique). That said, you will need higher scores and a better application overall as compared to your MD counterparts. (Nothing new there). Even then, you may still be at a disadvantage. The upside is that this may not be the case everywhere (think Midwest) and with a (demonstrated) genuine interest you have a shot.

My advice pretty much applies to all DO students: take the USMLE, apply to 30-40 programs, utilize the rule of 1/3s in both applications and interview acceptances (but apply this rule relative to your situation), and hope for the best. In all honestly, if I lacked a USMLE and/or had scores on the lower end for either USMLE or COMLEX, I would consider adding in a few programs from another specialty of interest. I would say that if you spread yourself out evenly with the 1/3 thing and you're not hearing back from ~1/2 of those places, then it's time to start calling audibles. This especially applies to those with lower scores or any red flags (btw DO is not a red flag). If the interviews aren't rolling in on the psych side of things, start attending the back-up places. It would be much better to match into your back-up specialty in a program you like than to scramble for the scraps in the SOAP. And I'm talking the scraps in the back-up specialty because odds are there won't be many psychiatry spots left-over. (I think there were 11 last year).

So yeah, this process is a bit of a crap shoot. It kind of sucks TBH, but it is what it is. Either way, you'll survive and end up exactly where you need to be. Keep the faith. Do your best. Trust your gut. And try to enjoy it because there are good moments and experiences to be had on this bumpy road.


I'm a DO student, USMLE 1 of 242, step2 of 233, solid applicant all around with good evals, no research though who didn't match last year. I ignored the middle and lower 1/3 when accepting interviews.

Feel free to PM with questions.

 

[jpudge12]

Step 1: 233
Step 2 CK/ CS: 247/Pass, all on first attempt.
School: Carrib top2?
Class Rank: N/A
Grades in Clerkship: All A’s
AOA: N/A, graduated with highest honors.
Research/ Publications/ Extracurricular: 2 neuroscience publications in undergrad. 1 in the works right now with a psychiatrist.
Red Flags: (step failures, etc): IMG, Graduated this July. Needed time for the PTAL.
Overview of where you want to end up: Los Angeles or Miami. Only applying to Psychiatry, don’t care enough about any other field to apply to anything else.
I am currently working as a scribe for a psychiatric office.

 

[drkamikaze]

dd

 

[clausewitz2]

Hi guys! Just a quick question, how bad is it to have your step 2 ck scores arrive in october?
I have a low Step 1 score and I've been struggling with Step 2. I'm thinking of postponing my exam but I'm stressed out this will impact my app negatively - like programs rejecting my app solely on step 1 scores without a step 2 score.

The rest of the app should be complete by sept 16 - just the step 2 would be missing. (oh, and the dean's letter - which he says he usually submits by the end of september)

I appreciate any thoughts and opinions on this!

Provided you update them to let them know your step 2 scores came in, better to score well on CK at the cost of it arriving a month later.

 

[thorzaine]

Step 1: 240
Step 2 CK/ CS: Late September
School: mid-range, mid-atlantic
Class Rank: Probably lower third
Grades in Clerkship: Mostly HP, Honors in Family Med and surgical subspecialties, Pass on Ob/Gyn (see below)
AOA: nah
Research/ Publications/ Extracurriculars: Several basic science pubs from undergrad, a few Ob/Gyn papers in med school that led to presentations and are currently in the submission process. No Psych research.
Red Flags: (step failures, etc) Trying to figure out how much of a red flag this is - my 3rd year Ob/Gyn rotation evaluation is fairly negative, says I don't know my limits and don't respond well to criticism. No other rotations say anything remotely approaching this, so it kind of sticks out like an ugly sore thumb. (yes, there is some basis to truth in these comments, and it has led to much self-reflection, but I still feel that it is not a fair characterization. I realize acknowledging my shortcomings and taking responsibility when asked about this on interviews will be important. I'm wondering how much of a red flag it will be in terms of being selected for interviews/ranking especially if I don't mention it explicitly in my personal statement.)
Overview of where you want to end up: NE/Mid-Atlantic, would like to go to the best program I can while staying in this region for family reasons.

New development in my saga:
I just started my first Psychiatry sub-I of fourth year (didn't finish choosing my specialty until mid-summer), and it's likely that I won't be able to rotate with the awesome faculty member I was intending to get a letter from until the last week of the rotation (9/19-23!). This means I'll be submitting ERAS with no LOR from a Psychiatrist. I will still have 3 LORs from non-Psychiatrists, including my earlier sub-I's this year, all of whom know I am going into Psychiatry.

[My other options: 1) ask for a letter from a more busy, less friendly faculty member who does not spend much time with the medical students or 2) contact my 3rd year Psychiatry attendings, but it's been almost a year since my rotation and I don't think I could get very a meaningful letter from anyone I worked with.]

Will no Psych LORs mean no interview invites? I'm still hoping I can be competitive at the more competitive programs, but some will not consider ERAS complete without a Psychiatry LOR...

Thanks for the input
Also PS I am aware I spelled my username wrong, apparently it's now set in stone and can't be changed ever, awkward.

 

[Psychotic]

New development in my saga:
I just started my first Psychiatry sub-I of fourth year (didn't finish choosing my specialty until mid-summer), and it's likely that I won't be able to rotate with the awesome faculty member I was intending to get a letter from until the last week of the rotation (9/19-23!). This means I'll be submitting ERAS with no LOR from a Psychiatrist. I will still have 3 LORs from non-Psychiatrists, including my earlier sub-I's this year, all of whom know I am going into Psychiatry.

[My other options: 1) ask for a letter from a more busy, less friendly faculty member who does not spend much time with the medical students or 2) contact my 3rd year Psychiatry attendings, but it's been almost a year since my rotation and I don't think I could get very a meaningful letter from anyone I worked with.]

Will no Psych LORs mean no interview invites? I'm still hoping I can be competitive at the more competitive programs, but some will not consider ERAS complete without a Psychiatry LOR...

Thanks for the input
Also PS I am aware I spelled my username wrong, apparently it's now set in stone and can't be changed ever, awkward.

Option 2. Contact them NOW and thoughtfully explain your recent epiphany about psychiatry, and attribute your move to psychiatry starting with the psychiatry rotation in 3rd year. You need to have at least one psych letter in ERAs. Honestly, you should have asked for this letter at least a month ago, or at the time you decided on psychiatry in "mid summer."

Also ask this so called "awesome" faculty member for a letter, too. It will eventually get to ERAS. Many programs will offer interviews before all letters are in ERAS, anyway.

 

[Bifteck]

Step 1: 260
Step 2 CK/ CS: taking end of october/early november
School: NE school
Class Rank: does not rank
Grades in Clerkship: honors in ob/gyn, neuro; high pass is others; honors in psych C/L elective
AOA: No
Research/ Publications/ Extracurriculars: MSTP, publications in developmental bio/neuroscience, multiple presentations at meetings. Psych review paper in review.
Red Flags: (step failures, etc): none.
Overview of where you want to end up: Applying to programs in NE (mostly NYC, Philly, Boston) with strong research programs, ideally dedicated research track programs. Hoping to be in NYC or Philly.

 

[MacDonaldTriad]

I would say that it looks like the world is your oyster. 260 and a PhD will open most or almost all doors. The only cherry on top would be AOA but far from necessary.

 

[Monocles]

Step 1: 260
Step 2 CK/ CS: taking end of october/early november
School: NE school
Class Rank: does not rank
Grades in Clerkship: honors in ob/gyn, neuro; high pass is others; honors in psych C/L elective
AOA: No
Research/ Publications/ Extracurriculars: MSTP, publications in developmental bio/neuroscience, multiple presentations at meetings. Psych review paper in review.
Red Flags: (step failures, etc): none.
Overview of where you want to end up: Applying to programs in NE (mostly NYC, Philly, Boston) with strong research programs, ideally dedicated research track programs. Hoping to be in NYC or Philly.

Yeah... unless you bomb your interviews you probably got this lol. MGH, brigham, NYU, cornell, Columbia, etc should all be within reach.

 

[eizeral]

Step 1: 201 USMLE, 516 COMLEX
Step 2 CK/ CS: Not taken yet
School: PCOM
Class Rank: top 50%, my class average is an 88.4%, I have an 88.6%
Grades in Clerkship: I'm a third year and have only rotated in surgery and psychiatry. I received an honors for my psych rotation, but I missed honors for the shelf by 1 point and ended up with a high pass. Received a pass in surgery.
AOA: No
Research/ Publications/ Extracurriculars: oncology club and dermatology club Vice President, member of Latino medical student association, LASOH (LGBT club), administered STI testing at an LGBT clinic, took a course in Addiction Psychiatry in med school, member of Pediatrics club, member of Psychiatry club
Red Flags: None, did above the average on all exams for all classes
Overview of where you want to end up: somewhere urban. Philly would be nice. Open to northeast and west coast especially.

My preceptor for my psych rotation also asked to write me a recommendation for me because she'd "love to", if that says anything. I also would really like to match into the psych program at her hospital, which is also dual-accredited (Albert Einstein medical center).

I am confident I can do better on step 2--both of my scores were much lower than expected, especially compared to my NBME and COMSAE score averages. I also am confident I will have a good personal statement, if that says anything. I am very passionate about psychiatry, and would prefer to match into programs with an emphasis on therapy. If I had not gone to medical school, I would have been a therapist. I'm very compassionate, relatable, empathetic, and a great communicator. I am also hispanic (and bilingual), and gay. I know being a DO will put me at a significant disadvantage, especially with my crap USMLE score, but would it be totally unreasonable for me to match into a semi-decent ACGME psychiatry program? Or should I try to match into 1 of the 19 AOA Psychiatry residencies (obviously not what I want to do)? Any advice and insight would be much appreciated!

 

[QOTSA]

...

 

[splik]

First time poster here. I'm hoping to get some feedback on the list of programs I am considering applying to.

Here are my stats:

• Step 1: ~210
• Step 2: I've taken both CK and CS, but haven't received scores yet
• School: Top 25 US MD school
• Class Rank: Don't know, but probably low
• Grades in Clerkship: B to B+ average. Passed all rotations, a couple with honors
• AOA: No
• Research/ Publications/ Extracurriculars: Pretty minimal/bare on the EC side. Working on a research project right now with a renown faculty member, which should help.
  
• Red Flags: Repeated MS1 because I failed two classes. I experienced a personal tragedy (don't want to get into details here) that affected me badly. After I started seeing a psychiatrist, I turned my grades around. I've addressed this on ERAS and in my personal statement.

Below are the programs on my list right now, in no particular order. I really want to match to a program in Texas (ideally in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area), hence the many Texas programs. I don't want to be on the East Coast. And finally, given my "red flag," I want to make sure I have enough safety schools on here.

• BCM
• Emory
• Georgetown
• Jackson Memorial
• JPS
• Larkin
• Meharry
• Morehouse
• OHSU
• San Mateo
• U of Arizona-Phoenix
• UC Irvine
• UCSD
• U of Colorado
• U of Hawaii
• U of Nevada-Las Vegas
• UT Austin
• UT Houston
• UTHSCA
• UTSW
• U of Utah
• Vanderbilt

I would suggest applying to more programs in texas. You shouldn't mention red flags in your personal statement. The personal statement is supposed to showcase your strengths. The only place you should mention this is in the box on ERAS that asks about time out/extensions etc. And You should not mention anything about having seen a psychiatrist or any mental health issues. Anything you put on your application is fair game for interview fodder. If people have questions they can ask when they interview you, but you might find the number of interviews you get are fewer if you draw too much attention to this on your application. I would simply suggest mentioning you experienced a personal tragedy (maybe briefly stating what what was) on your ERAS application and saying nothing about any of this in your personal statement.

Is this "renown faculty member" writing you a gushing letter of recommendation and also able to comment on your clinical skills? If not, sorry not gonna enhance your application. No one cares about research, they want to know you can publish stuff or have a PhD. Dabbling in a research project without something to show for it is worthless for the purposes of your application. If its a particularly interesting project then it might be nice interview fodder and make you memorable however.

For the Texas programs you may want to explain why you want to end up in Texas and highlight in your application what ties you have if oyu don't go to med school in Texas. if you do then hopefully you will be fine. it's not a competitive state, they just seem more suspicious of outsiders and its a little incestuous.

 

[QOTSA]

...

 

[clausewitz2]

Hey everyone, long time lurker and first time poster. I had a late developing interest in psychiatry. I didn't rotate until April/May of this year and ended up loving the rotation. I was dead set on EM for a long time until I had the opportunity to rotate, and later go on externship. While it's not 100% certain, I'm considering making the switch an applying to psychiatry. I'm finding that psychiatry might be a better fit for my personality, interests, and future practice style.

Step 1: 260
Step 2 CK/ CS: Not taken yet
School: Mid-tier, University of Miami
Class Rank: Top 25%, rank by quartiles only
Grades in Clerkship: 97%, rank unknown
AOA: Yes
Research/ Publications/ Extracurriculars: Nothing pertaining to psychiatry. 2 presentations and 1 case report in the american journal of EM (novel substance overdose), 1 presentation and 2 manuscripts in progress in antibiotic resistance trends in opthalmic infections, one research experience in wound healing / repair. I've been an anatomy TA, clinical skills trainer, academic tutor, and involved in medical simulation. Otherwise, I've done the typical volunteer and community service experiences that most students do.
Red Flags: (step failures, etc): None
Overview of where you want to end up: I'd obviously like to end up at the best academic program I can get into. Ultimately, I would like a program that is strong in both pscyhopharmacology and therapy. No geographic restrictions, though I'd prefer to stay on one of the coasts.

Please offer any recommendation on the best programs that you think would be attainable. Also, while I am interested in both psychiatry and EM (very different fields, but both rewarding in their own ways), I haven't yet committed. The deadline to submit applications is getting very close... I have heard mixed things about applying to 2 different specialties through ERAS. Any advice regarding that would be greatly appreciated. Feel free to PM. Thanks!

Really at this point unless you fail Step 2 it is much more a question of where you want to go. If emergency psychiatry is something that interests you I can tell you Pitt has a very busy and interestingly varied psych ED you will spend a great deal of time in as an intern and is an excellent internal moonlighting gig. It is also a thousand pound gorilla in the UPMC system is incredibly well-resourced. If there is a topic in psychiatry you are interested in, chances are someone in the building has published on it.

Could do with more racial diversity and shame about the weather, but if it is not too far from the coast for you, definitely one to consider.

 

[Monocles]

I would suggest applying to more programs in texas. You shouldn't mention red flags in your personal statement. The personal statement is supposed to showcase your strengths. The only place you should mention this is in the box on ERAS that asks about time out/extensions etc. And You should not mention anything about having seen a psychiatrist or any mental health issues. Anything you put on your application is fair game for interview fodder. If people have questions they can ask when they interview you, but you might find the number of interviews you get are fewer if you draw too much attention to this on your application. I would simply suggest mentioning you experienced a personal tragedy (maybe briefly stating what what was) on your ERAS application and saying nothing about any of this in your personal statement.

This x1000. I've had an advisor/dept chair say that you should absolutely NOT disclose any mental health issues or treatment because a lot of programs directors are looking for "normal" people without any mental health issues. It's very ironic that the one field who is supposed to be most sympathetic to the mentally ill do not want any as residents, but it is what it is...

 

[psychatross]

Hi!

Step 1: 246
Step 2 CK/ CS: 265/Pass
School: Regular southern MD
Class Rank: Top quartile
Grades in Clerkship: (H/P/F system) all pass and one honors in family
AOA: Maybe, currently being considered for it
Research/ Publications/ Extracurriculars: no significant publications (contributed to one that idk if it was published or not), minor research presentation required for school, typical EC's of leadership and volunteering in school stuff
Red Flags: (step failures, etc): none
where I want to apply: (recently edited)

UCSD
U Colorado
Vanderbilt
U Washington - Seattle
U Oregon - Portland
UT Austin
UTSW
UTHSCSA
Baylor
UT Houston
Emory
Cleveland clinic
Case western
UNM

Thoughts?

 

[kalos7]

deleted

 

[Pseudobulbar]

Step 1: low 200's
Step 2 CK/ CS: taking in august
School: texas medical school
Class Rank: bottom quartile
Grades in Clerkship: all pass, but excellent feedback.
AOA: no
Research/ Publications/ Extracurriculars: Technology chair first two years.
Red Flags: (step failures, etc): none
Overview of where you want to end up: Would like to end up in California to take care of my father. Community program is ok. Arizona, New Mexico, Oregon, Washington, Texas the area's that are lower on the list but still happy with. Not really sure how viable this is, but it is my goal.

Along with what I posted earlier above, I recently started ERAS. Applying to 65 spots, just wondering if that is enough to get a spot. They are a mix all over the place. If anyone can recommend any community residencies that I would have a shot at that would be super awesome.

 

[Sorgun]

deleted

 

[clausewitz2]

Step 1: 241
Step 2 CK/ CS: 228 / Pending
School: mid/low-range, south east
Class Rank: either 3 or 4
Grades in Clerkship: Honors in Psych, OB/GYN, Internal Medicine, and Surgery
AOA: Yes
Research/ Publications/ Extracurriculars: >6 Oral presentations, 1 article publication (non-peer reviewed), 3 research experiences including acting as a project coordinator for a hospital program, leadership role in psychiatry student groups, many leadership roles at my school, started/founded a company during my first year that now provides a service to patients with certain mental impairments
Red Flags: (step failures, etc): I recognize that the drop in Step 2 CK is notable.
Overview of where you want to end up: NE/Mid-Atlantic/SE, ranging from programs like Wake Forest, MUSC, USC Palmetto Health, Emory, Carolina's, UNC to BWH, MGH, Duke, Yale.

If you are shooting for top places and apparently don't mind the cold, consider Pitt.

 

[md4dawin]

Step 1: 226
Step 2: 240
School: Average state MD school
Class Rank: Lower third
Grades in Clerkship: Passes
AOA: No
Research: Unrelated presentation & paper
Red Flags: LOA for medical reasons, Shelf remediation, lack of Psych electives in M4 year
Programs: Want to be in a cush, non-malignant, non-hypercompetitive university program anywhere (preferably east/west coasts, midwest, or Texas with heavy Outpatient > Inpatient emphasis.
Can anyone suggest any programs please??

 

[clausewitz2]

Step 1: 226
Step 2: 240
School: Average state MD school
Class Rank: Lower third
Grades in Clerkship: Passes
AOA: No
Research: Unrelated presentation & paper
Red Flags: LOA for medical reasons, Shelf remediation, lack of Psych electives in M4 year
Programs: Want to be in a cush, non-malignant, non-hypercompetitive university program anywhere (preferably east/west coasts, midwest, or Texas with heavy Outpatient > Inpatient emphasis.
Can anyone suggest any programs please??

USC Palmetto has historically had very little call and is not super competitive. It does require living in Columbia, SC, which is not for everyone.

 

[skillman_shale]

Step 1: 247
Step 2 CK/ CS: 238/waiting for results
School: Average state MD school in urban environment
Class Rank: 2nd quartile?
Grades in Clerkship: 4 honors, the rest HP, good comments in MSPE, (I'm told) strong letters from my away SubI's and my (urology) research mentor
AOA: nada
Research/ Publications/ Extracurriculars: Research - formerly wanted urology, built a ~1000 patient database of our prostate biopsy men and research racial differences in screening and diagnosis; "anonymously" peer-reviewed papers submitted to various attendings in our psych dept; worked in genetics laboratory for a few years before med school... Publications - 2 1st author manuscripts (1 urology, 1 psych case report), 1 3rd author ms; 3 urology abstracts; 5-ish urology poster/podium conferences, 2 psych posters... Extracurriculars - published poet with readings at prominent North American art museum, and some other interesting venues; guitar player in rock and roll bands; treasurer of PsychSIG; some random volunteering
Red Flags: (step failures, etc) nada
Overview of where you want to end up: Northeast, with any luck NYC. My psych interest is in personality disorders and psychoanalysis, so Weill-Cornell is probably my top choice, though I know NYU and Columbia place strong emphases on psychodynamics as well. (I love emergency psych as well, so the NYU/Bellevue combo has a TON of appeal). Very interested if anyone has perspective on other programs (Northeasterly or otherwise) that fit this bill. Curious about Sinai, Yale, Thomas Jefferson, Brown/Butler... what else? Hofstra/LIJ/Hillside is on the list too. I don't love that I dropped between Step 1 and Step 2 (I swear I didn't mean to!), but figure I'm still a reasonable candidate.

 

[psychonaught18]

Hey everyone, I know this isn't my year to post because I am a third year but really curious if I'm going to be ok. Would really appreciate any feedback or advice.

Step 1: 215
Step 2 CK/ CS: Taking CK in August, CS in October
School: unranked public MD school in midwest
Class Rank: 2nd to 3rd quartile (about half honors and half high pass first two years)
Grades in Clerkship: so far, HP in Psych (ouch) and internal med, Pass in Obgyn and Peds
AOA: most likely not
Research/ Publications/ Extracurriculars: Very involved in college of medicine's admissions committeev (helped transition over to MMI format), honors council (med student ethics and behavior committee), volunteer at homeless shelter. Open to other ideas on how to beef up application, especially in relation to psych interest.
Red Flags: (step failures, etc) none
Overview of where you want to end up: My interests include private practice, child and adolescent, and psychotherapy. Addiction is also growing on me. I am interested in staying in midwest but honestly am open to applying to/going to any residency that isn't malignant and has a CAP fellowship. I am worried about my HP in psych along with low step 1. Any advice? I know without Step 2 much of this is guessing but would appreciate advice non-the-less.

 

[MacDonaldTriad]

High Pass isn't bad, it just isn't good. A 215 is below average, but it isn't rock bottom or failing. If you are willing to stay in the mid West and you are fine at not being at the top crust places, you will have multiple opportunities. Just don't trip up by failing step II or bomb a rotation. You may see yourself as average, but average is fairly good in psychiatry. A lot of posts will scare you into believing we are becoming more competitive, but this is still relative.

 

[psychonaught18]

High Pass isn't bad, it just isn't good. A 215 is below average, but it isn't rock bottom or failing. If you are willing to stay in the mid West and you are fine at not being at the top crust places, you will have multiple opportunities. Just don't trip up by failing step II or bomb a rotation. You may see yourself as average, but average is fairly good in psychiatry. A lot of posts will scare you into believing we are becoming more competitive, but this is still relative.

Thanks a lot I really appreciate the reply especially on an older thread. Is joining the American Psychiatrist Association something that should be on my CV? Other than avoiding red flags from now until next October, is there anything else I should do?

I left out this detail on accident but I should have good to strong letters as I have already lined up 2 of them. I would consider myself an above average interviewer (although those bad at interviewing probably would too, so who knows, I've been told I interview very well).

 

[MacDonaldTriad]

Join the APA if you are interested in the APA. It isn't very important to an application. Extras would be form an interest group, do some research and present a poster or better a paper, apply for a travel fellowship to a psych conference. This probably isn't if, only where you will get in.

 

[W19]

I thought there will be a new WAMC thread for the 2017-2o18 application season after the 2017 match...

 

[postbacpremed87]

I thought there will be a new WAMC thread for the 2017-2o18 application season after the 2017 match...

Which would be after March 2017. Give these folks their due. They will be the senior PGY-2s when we are green PGY-1s asking for help. They will not help us out and they will cite stealing their thunder on the 2017 SDN Match thread as the reason.

 

[splik]

seriously, wait until the summer. WAMC is not "how can i improve my chances" (which we would be happy to explain those this information is already available if you search this forum). There is absolutely no reason (or point) to asking WAMC before ERAS opens which is after july. the answer to people who post before then is "you are annoying and that will greatly diminish your chances of matching, not your stats."

 

[ThrowTowards]

US MD, no failures, very low step 1, 222 step 2. Bottom 1/4. Only extracurricular is social chair. Only 10 interviews out of 80 applications, would imagine I am in the bottom 1/4 on 8 of them. They are academic and honestly don't know why they invited me, when talking to others on the trail they all had much better applications. Chances to match?

 

[Seroquel]

US MD, no failures, very low step 1, 222 step 2. Bottom 1/4. Only extracurricular is social chair. Only 10 interviews out of 80 applications, would imagine I am in the bottom 1/4 on 8 of them. They are academic and honestly don't know why they invited me, when talking to others on the trail they all had much better applications. Chances to match?

10 interviews = very very very high chance. Don't worry too much and rank them based on how much you like the programs, not where you think they will rank you.

 

[splik]

US MD, no failures, very low step 1, 222 step 2. Bottom 1/4. Only extracurricular is social chair. Only 10 interviews out of 80 applications, would imagine I am in the bottom 1/4 on 8 of them. They are academic and honestly don't know why they invited me, when talking to others on the trail they all had much better applications. Chances to match?

No one can answer your question but the one thing that concerns me is you saying things like "honestly don't know why they invited me." If you communicated that (you probably did unconsciously), that will significantly diminish your chances of matching (the other stuff would not imho). When I see applicants not match, it is more often their lack of confidence and belief in themselves (or conversely overconfidence and poor selection of programs) that killed them. Programs have to invite a range of applicants in order to fill. Outside maybe the top 5 or so programs, psychiatry programs tend to have a range of residents even at top programs from exceptional to marginal or even questionable. Programs often go further down their rank list than they intended. It is also important to note that the interview is a huge part of the process (I would say at least half of it) and coming across as a likeable, interested, teachable person who isn't going to cause any problems and has a genuine interest in psychiatry goes a long way. Unfortunately coming across like you feel you don't belong there goes a long way to having to bump further down the rank list and be less likely to match.

otherwise you would have been in good shape. no murders. no failures and a US MD would typically get you in somewhere with 10 interviews

 

[ThrowTowards]

I think I had a moment of weakness here on SDN, normally I am not like this. I interviewed well, did not feel like this during the season. Must be all this idle time sitting or SAD.

 

[DjPsychotic]

Step 1: 242/COMLEX 578
Step 2 CK/ CS: COMLEX PE in May, COMLEX II in June, STEP 2 June (Still debating whether to take Step 2)
School: DO School in NE
Class Rank: Bottom Half
Grades in Clerkship: HP (or As) in every rotation including Psych
AOA: No
Research/ Publications/ Extracurriculars: Public Health publication before med school, clinical research in Anesthesiology, Class VP, Extracurrics in EM, Americorps Volunteer in low-income urban area.
Red Flags: (step failures, etc) none
Overview of where you want to end up: ACGME Northeast program (preferably in NYC) but willing to travel for great programs.

Any suggestions on target programs in Northeast/NYC or top tier programs elsewhere? Thanks!

 

[Amygdarya]

Step 1: 242/COMLEX 578
Step 2 CK/ CS: COMLEX PE in May, COMLEX II in June, STEP 2 June (Still debating whether to take Step 2)
School: DO School in NE
Class Rank: Bottom Half
Grades in Clerkship: HP (or As) in every rotation including Psych
AOA: No
Research/ Publications/ Extracurriculars: Public Health publication before med school, clinical research in Anesthesiology, Class VP, Extracurrics in EM, Americorps Volunteer in low-income urban area.
Red Flags: (step failures, etc) none
Overview of where you want to end up: ACGME Northeast program (preferably in NYC) but willing to travel for great programs.

Any suggestions on target programs in Northeast/NYC or top tier programs elsewhere? Thanks!

For Pete's sake!
1) At least wait for this cycle's applicants to match. Then we'll have a dedicated thread for the 2017-2018.
2) What makes you think you should be applying to top tier residencies? Aside from your Step 1 score (congrats!), nothing stands out - not to mention lack of evidence of specific interest in psychiatry. If you realized you're not competitive for EM and Anesthesia, it doesn't make you competitive for top psych residencies.

P. S. - I'm generally a nice and polite person. But as someone dedicated to the field and doing all kinds of psych related stuff since MS1, it pissed me off that a very average applicant without proven interest in the field expects to be taken seriously by top programs.

 

[abcdior]

For Pete's sake!
1) At least wait for this cycle's applicants to match. Then we'll have a dedicated thread for the 2017-2018.
2) What makes you think you should be applying to top tier residencies? Aside from your Step 1 score (congrats!), nothing stands out - not to mention lack of evidence of specific interest in psychiatry. If you realized you're not competitive for EM and Anesthesia, it doesn't make you competitive for top psych residencies.

P. S. - I'm generally a nice and polite person. But as someone dedicated to the field and doing all kinds of psych related stuff since MS1, it pissed me off that a very average applicant without proven interest in the field expects to be taken seriously by top programs.

add to that the NE generally have a HEAVY bias against DO's
as a matter of fact even the mid-tier program almost never interview DO's, forget top
whats the "best program" in the NE that has matched a DO last year?
maybe SLR? lol that aint saying much