2017 Match Results Thread

[tarheel1408]

The day is finally here! Please post as much information about your match as you're willing to share. If you would like your information to remain anonymous, you may private message your information to me and I will be happy to post it!

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[DrDraco]

Matched into Vanderbilt which was a top choice for me! Super stoked!

 

[tarheel1408]

Anonymous User:
--Board Scores: Step 1: 258, Step 2: 270
--AOA and class rank: AOA, top 15%
--Reputation of medical school: Unknown southern school
--Research: 3 publications (2 ophtho related), several abstracts and presentations
--Honors in clerkships: Honors in all rotations
--# and where you did away rotations: 2
--# of programs you applied to: 52
--Where invited for interviews (both offers and the ones you actually attended): UCLA, Wash U, MEEI, UTSW, Boston University, Yale, Wake Forest, Mayo, UT San Antonio, University of Arizona, Case Western, Henry Ford, Lubbock
--Where matched: #10 ......
--Anything that helped your app: Honestly right now I feel more like I'm not sure what hurt my application. I'm very happy to have matched but really surprised I dropped so low on my rank list. I had great feedback at all my interviews and was told I was a very strong applicant at all the places I ranked at the top of my list. Overall I feel a little hurt that I was passed over by so many programs considering all the hard work and effort I put into my application but in a 4 years I'll be an ophtho and thats what really matters.
--Comments on specific programs:

 

[tarheel1408]

--Board Scores: Step 1: 258, Step 2: 258
--AOA and class rank: Not AOA, top 50%
--Reputation of medical school: Mid tier private MD school in southeast
--Research: 3 publications (2 ophtho related, 2 first author)
--Honors in clerkships: Honors in all rotations except for high pass in Peds
--# and where you did away rotations: 1
--# of programs you applied to: 58
--Where invited for interviews (both offers and the ones you actually attended): Attended: VCU, UVA, Wake Forest, Cleveland Clinic, Augusta University, U Arkansas, UT Houston, UT Memphis, Georgetown. Invited: Boston U, SUNY Upstate

--Where matched: #1. Headed to Cleveland!!
--Anything that helped your app: I think the biggest thing that helped me was very strong letters of recommendation from people in my department that knew me well. No huge big wig letters, but I had 3 letters from ophthalmologists in our department that knew me very well. Almost every interview I attended I received comments on how strong my letters were.
--Comments on specific programs:

 

[tarheel1408]

Anonymous User:
--Board Scores: Step 1: 267, Step 2: 261
--AOA and class rank: Top 1/3rd, not AOA
--Reputation of medical school: Top 5
--Research: 1 non-optho pub, 1 non-optho poster, 1 optho abstract
--Honors in clerkships: Honors in all but 2 rotations
--# and where you did away rotations: 1 - Wills
--# of programs you applied to: 50
--Where invited for interviews: (Rank order) Michigan, Wills, Mt. Sinai, UCLA, WUSTL, UC Davis, Einstein, Rochester, Rush, OSU, NYU, Henry Ford. Did not attend Arkansas
--Where matched: Near middle
--Anything that helped your app:
--Comments on specific programs: Really impressed by the top three on my rank list, less excited about the others.

 

[tarheel1408]

Anonymous User:
--Board Scores: Step 1: 257, Step 2 not available
--AOA and class rank: AOA, top 15%
--Reputation of medical school: Solid state school
--Research: 6 ophtho publications (1 first author), couple ARVO posters
--Honors in clerkships: Honors in surgery, ophtho x3, psych, peds, HP in medicine, neuro, OB
--# and where you did away rotations: 2 (recommend for lending perspective when comparing programs. However very few opportunities to develop meaningful relationship with faculty to get LOR or them to vouch on your behalf)
--# of programs you applied to: 43
--Where invited for interviews (both offers and the ones you actually attended): Attended: BPEI, Iowa, UCSD, OHSU, Baylor, UTSW, WashU, UWash (Seattle), Colorado, Utah, Oklahoma, Florida, UAB. Invited: Vandy, UNC, UVA, Arizona, Louisville, Emory, UC-Davis, SLU, Case Western, Loyola

--Where matched: #5
--Anything that helped your app:
1. LOR from people who know you personally. Ophthalmology is a very small community. Had many comments about one of my ophtho letter writer's because it was "a name they could trust." Also, asked my mentor to send e-mails to a few programs outside of my geographic region; fortunately received interviews from all 4 of those schools.
2. Research experience. Please know your research because there is not a more sinking feeling than being on the interview trail and being asked about something you are unfamiliar with.
3. Away rotations outside of geographic area. On away rotations, I think the key is finding ways to be helpful without slowing down the work day. I'd recommend not going in as a know-it-all trying to impress residents/faculty with your knowledge base. But rather be interested in learning and helping with patient care,
4. The match process is a game, and to many it might not be fair. I would recommend writing thank you letters (I chose to e-mail). No it likely will not change where you are ranked. But I do think it allows you to keep line of communication open between you and the programs. With that being said try not to read too far into the responses. Just be yourself, and you can't lose.
--Comments on specific programs: updated on MatchApplicants.com

 

[eyesee11]

Is there a spreadsheet where people list where they matched this year? Know there was one last year and would be interested to see it for this year's class!

 

[cdg0404]

tried posting the link but it keeps being weird, there's a Facebook group with it on there

 

[packerstacker87]

If anyone else can try posting the link it would be much appreciated - I haven't been able to find it on facebook otherwise

 

[Dr.Acula1]

https://www.facebook.com/groups/350132432020527/

 

[tarheel1408]

Is there anyone that can post a link to the spreadsheet in a format someone can access without Facebook?


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[Dr.Acula1]

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[tarheel1408]

Anonymous User:
--Board Scores: Step 1: 258, Step 2: 240 (not reported)
--AOA and class rank: not AOA
--Reputation of medical school: teens
--Research: 1 first author, 1 second author, 2 presentations
--Honors in clerkships: Honors: surgery, psych, ob/gyn, peds, High pass: medicine, family med, neurology
--# and where you did away rotations: 1
--# of programs you applied to: 74
--Where invited for interviews (both offers and the ones you actually attended):
Attended: Johns Hopkins, UCLA, OHSU, Cleveland Clinic, Vanderbilt, Mayo, UT Southwestern, Wake Forest, St Louis University, Penn State, Pittsburgh, Med C Wisconsin, Rochester, Georgetown, Mizzou, Case Western, Beaumont
Invited: West Virginia, Henry Ford, San Antonio, Arkansas, Houston, UC Davis, Cincinnati, Tufts, Indiana, Kentucky, MUSC, Memphis,
--Where matched: #2
--Anything that helped your app: Received several comments on the strength of the letter from my research mentor who is very well known in his field. This same mentor made several calls to multiple programs after interviews were finished. I would not have matched where I did without the help of my mentor. So grateful and excited! I also had very unique extracurricular projects that had nothing to do with medicine which showcased my work ethic and leadership skills. This made most of my interviews very fun because we spent the whole time talking about non-medical activities.
--Comments on specific programs:
OHSU: Happiest residents I met on the trail. Amazing schedule and great volume. Loved Portland!
UCLA: LOVED this program! Busier schedule than most, but you get incredible volume and training. Great name, and LA seemed awesome!
Cleveland Clinic: They have started the best microsurgical wet lab course, and as a result their cataract numbers are no longer a worry. In fact, their numbers are great and should continue to increase! Amazing program with a very committed program director and chairman.
SLU: Loved this program. You will never meet friendlier people, and their program coordinator is a gem!
Wake Forest: This program is pretty amazing. Super friendly faculty, happy residents, I thought Winston/Salem would be a great place to live for a family. Great cataract numbers, very prepared to leave residency and walk right into private practice.

 

[tarheel1408]

--Board Scores: Step 1: 253, Step 2 270
--AOA and class rank: AOA, top 25% (school only provides quartiles)
--Reputation of medical school: low tier state school
--Research: minimal ophtho research (2-3 clinical public health posters and talks, a review article in progress, QI project in progress with a resident), but extensive non-ophtho research in an internal med subspecialty for several years before med school (around 15 publications, including a few first author, and around 10 posters at national meetings)
--Honors in clerkships: Honors in ophtho x3, medicine, neuro/psych, peds, family med; HP in surgery and OB
--# and where you did away rotations: 2, got interviews at both (1 top 5 program, 1 top 20 program)
--# of programs you applied to: 87 (yes, I overapplied – definitely worried a bit too much about coming from a lower tier school)
--Where invited for interviews (both offers and the ones you actually attended): 31 offers: Maryland, Tennessee, Wake Forest, Kentucky, Louisville, WVU, Vanderbilt, UAB, Pitt, Ohio State, Wash U, OHSU, Tufts, Rutgers, Wills, Henry Ford, EVMS, Arkansas, UW, LSU-Shreveport, VCU, Tulane, Mississippi, UC Davis, SUNY Upstate, SUNY Downstate, Penn State, Case Western, Cook County, Boston, Mt Sinai (attended 17)
--Where matched: #2!! I had a terrible time deciding between my #1 and #2 and would have been thrilled with either, so I’m ecstatic!
--Anything that helped your app: Obviously, things like grades, test scores, and AOA don’t hurt, but I think my biggest asset was my unique research background and ability to convincingly discuss why I wanted to do ophtho instead of internal medicine. I also had good ophtho leadership and extracurricular activities that were frequently discussed in interviews. Another big thing brought up in all my interviews was my college sports and team captain experience. My ophtho research was almost never brought up – it was always my non-ophtho research. I was repeatedly told I had excellent letters, particularly one from my home PD who knows me very well, for what that’s worth. I know opinions are mixed on away rotations, but for me, I think they made the difference in where I matched. I carefully selected my 2 aways to be at programs where I might be qualified based on stats, but might not get as much notice in the pile of apps coming from a less prestigious med school. I worked very hard on both aways, but really worked to get to know people and to make myself helpful. My away rotations ended up being my #1 and #2 ranked programs, and I think the rotations were crucial in allowing them to get to know me (and also allowing myself to assess them). That said, know yourself – if you struggled on third year evals and take a bit to warm up to people and feel comfortable, aways might not be your friend.
--Comments on specific programs: Will try to update the compendium later.

 

[ophthapp1]

It seems to me that only one type of applicant replies to these types of threads.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

 

[glowiththeflo]

spreadsheet of matches! hope it helps.

 

[JoshyJosh]

--Board Scores: Step 1: 230, Step 2: 249
--AOA and class rank: AOA, top 15%
--Reputation of medical school: Mid-Atlantic school, mid-tier
--Research: 3 ophtho experiences, several non-ophtho projects
--Honors in clerkships: All 3rd year rotations and ophtho at home and away in 4th year
--# and where you did away rotations: 1
--# of programs you applied to: 55
--Where invited for interviews: Buffalo, Cincinnati, George Washington, Kentucky, Louisville, MUSC, Northshore LIJ, Rutgers, Virginia, Wake Forest, West Virginia
--Where matched: #2
--Anything that helped your app: Strong LORs, non-traditional application both in and before medical school
***Not everyone who applies has a 250+ Step 1 (39% of ophtho applicants who matched last year did not score 240+)! I thought it was worth thinking about what I'd do if I didn't match (research year, dual application, etc.) and it was stressful applying knowing I did not have a flawless application (like almost everyone else who posts on SDN), but there are literally hundreds of people who match in ophtho each year without the perfect application. I met many others on the trail in a similar boat, and the AAMC data for board scores backs it up. If you are a strong applicant in most areas and are passionate about ophthalmology, go for it.
--Comments on specific programs:
Buffalo: Lots of new construction and a focus on research - worth considering if you like the area.
GW: Fun residents, diverse training opportunities, and a great, experienced program director. Attending clinic and a couple blocks in West Virginia were drawbacks for me but can be taken as positives too.
Kentucky: Brand new ophtho space, strong surgical numbers, cool residents, and the best program director I met on the trail.
Louisville: More of an old-school program, strong surgical numbers, highly regarded chairman, tends to draw a lot of residents from the Kentucky area and internationally.
Northshore LIJ: On warning for low surgery numbers but they stressed that it has been fixed, the Northwell name is strengthening and I think this program is on its way up.
Virginia: Awesome program, awesome town, didn't like having to travel to SW Virginia to the VA for adequate surgical #s.
Wake: Everyone was extremely friendly, seemed like great training. They interview a lot of people so this was an interview that I would have dropped if I had a conflict, but I'm glad I didn't.

 

[FemaleWoman]

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[thereishope123]

--Board Scores: Step 1: 222, Step 2: not taken
--AOA and class rank: No AOA, unranked
--Reputation of medical school: Top school
--Research: 2 publications (both non-ophtho, 1 first author). 2 ophtho papers to be published
--Honors in clerkships: No honors on shelf exams
--# and where you did away rotations: 1
--# of programs you applied to: 66
--Where invited for interviews (both offers and the ones you actually attended): Only offered interviews at MEEI, Stanford, USC, CPMC, NYU, Cornell, Rochester, Boston Medical Center, U of Washington (Seattle), Washington University (St. Louis)
--Where matched: #5.
--Anything that helped your app: I never post on SDN, but I wanted to give someone else out there hope of matching, even if you are not a good standardized test taker. Everyone on here posts their crazy scores and accomplishments, but I think there are a good chunk of people that are just like me (okay, admittedly, most people's scores will be higher than mine), but put on an air of confidence. I had a 222 and still interviewed at MEEI. So don't be intimidated by people you meet on the trail...you don't know people's backgrounds! I got into arguably the nation's top medical school with average MCAT scores, and I was able to match this year with a below average Step 1 score. I knew my Step 2 CK score would be low too (I might not pass), so I didn't bother taking it before match.

I think my school's name helped me. I also did a lot of extra curricular activity in medical school in ophtho and took a year off to get a master's degree in public health on a scholarship. I had a very good story as to why I wanted to go into ophthalmology because I've been working towards it from first year. I also practiced interviewing through mock interviews with our career services 5 times to get feedback. I don't think people do this enough because they think they're so amazing, but you'd be surprised how much can rub people the wrong way. Practice with friends too. It's scary getting feedback, but if you're weak on paper, you better try 10x harder than the next applicant to shine during your interview. I didn't publish much (no ophtho papers), which is probably the one thing I could have changed that would have made a difference.

I would say that if you have a low score, ask around to see which PDs care about board scores and which don't. I think I got lucky and matched at a top 20 program (according to Doximity) because the PD of the program where I matched doesn't believe in board scores. But I also don't think they would not have ranked me so high except for my school's name because my interview seemed less than stellar from my POV. I could be wrong on that last point, as interviewing is one of my strengths (I've accumulated every scholarship under the sun in my academic career).

Also, an away rotation can help if it's at the right program, but that "right program" is hard to find. So in the end, it could be a waste of time. Again, you kind of have to get lucky. If you do an away at a program that has a strict score cut-off, it doesn't matter what you do, you will probably only get an interview at best and still be ranked low on their list. So you have to be strategic or do 2-3 so that you get lucky with 1. So you need someone like your PD to give you the inside scoop. My PD personally thinks that aways don't have an impact and if anything, can negatively impact you, even if you're just average. Top programs don't want average residents.

Happy to talk to anyone who feels defeated by their board score. It is possible! You just might not end up at your #1, but you can still match at a top top program like I did. I personally was blown away by 9/10 of my programs and was over the moon to match where I did, especially considering my circumstances. Good luck

 

[eyeFone]

--Board Scores: Step 1: 249, Step 2: not taken
--AOA and class rank: didn't make AOA, school doesn't rank
--Reputation of medical school: middle-of-the-road (at best) state school
--Research: 5 peer-reviewed articles (2 ophtho, 1 first auth), 7 posters/presentations (4 ophtho, 5 first auth)
**To be clear, although 12 "activities" were listed in the research section of my application, really only one of the journal articles was a significant project. I think that it was enough to keep this section of my application from being a weakness, but it was definitely not as strong as you may be tempted to think.

--Honors in clerkships: Pass: Family | High-pass: IM, surgery | Honored everything else
--# and where you did away rotations: 1 - did not work with one attending long enough to request LOR; probably increased my odds of matching at that site, but I ranked it low; and didn't get any other interviews in its geographic region -- ie, doing an away was mostly a waste of time, in my case
--# of programs you applied to: 65
--Where invited for interviews (both offers and the ones you actually attended): Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Case Western, EVMS, Kentucky, Loma Linda, San Antonio, St. Louis, SUNY-Buffalo, Texas Tech, UTMB, Wake forest
--Where matched: #2
--Anything that helped your app:

I checked most boxes without being exceptional in any category. Non-trad pre-med path was probably what came up most frequently during interviews. I'm comfortable in interview formats but most people think that their interpersonal skills are a strength, so hard to objectively tell you that I'm suave. One of my ophtho papers came up frequently and it was definitely convenient to have a topic that I could speak in-depth about that shared the interviewer's vocabulary.

LORs: I definitely undervalued letters of recommendation. They are very important. Here is a run-down of the three that I submitted:
1. One of my ophtho letters was from a guy not well known but it was very strong. This was a great decision to include in my application.
2. My second ophtho letter was from a guy that everyone in the field knows, but I worked with him for less than two weeks before I needed him to write the letter (I switched to ophtho during the first week of fourth year). It was a flattering letter, but he had to be transparent about the length of our relationship. Given my late switch, I think that a stronger letter from someone not well known would have been a better decision. Hard to be sure, of course.
3. My third letter was strong and from a pediatrician who knew me well. Didn't hurt.

--Comments on specific programs: I would have been thrilled to have matched at any of the programs at which I interviewed. I'm tickled pink with where I ended up, but there were specific things to love about each program.

 

[tarheel1408]

--Board Scores: Step 1-258, Step 2-256
--AOA and class rank: Not AOA, 2nd quartile
--Reputation of medical school: (top 10, top 25, etc): unknown school with no home program
--Research: (none, some ophtho with no publications, ophtho publications) 7 products on application; 2 publications, 4 abstracts, 1 poster (some ophtho); 4 additional publications were listed as in progress/sent as update
--Honors in clerkships: (especially surgery and medicine) Honors in Surgery, Medicine, Pediatrics, Psychiatry, Family Medicine, Ophthalmology
--# and where you did away rotations: 2 aways, 1 top program and one upper/middle tier program
--# of programs you applied to: 83 (because of my med school)
--Where invited for interviews (both offers and the ones you actually attended): 15 invites; attended MCG, LSU/Ochsner, Case Western, VCU, UVA, Vanderbilt, Moran/Utah, Storm/MUSC, USF, UF, EVMS, Wake Forest, Icahn-Mount Sinai; didn’t attend U Kentucky and Tulane due to conflicts
--Where matched: 3/13! a great program
--Advice: Things you can do to help are to get involved in research early (not necessarily ophthalmology), board scores (of course), honor surgery/medicine/peds, aways if you have no home program. Know your research very well. I had a combination of basic, translational, and clinical. Though they cared much more for abstracts in ophtho, it was still different to have publications/abstracts in basic research without a PhD. You have to be able to speak in detail about your research, especially if you've published. I think that's fair. I went to a low-tier med school, and unfortunately ophthalmology is very school-centric. You'll see people with lower stats than me with better interviews that come from high end schools. It's unfortunate but it's predictable, year after year. Still, be ready to talk about the strengths and weaknesses of your school, no matter how high (or low) its esteem in academia. Be ready to talk about your future goals in ophthalmology. Also realize that program name does not equal training, and that most of you will be going into community practice not academia. Consider this when ranking. If you can secure a letter from someone well-known that goes very far. I did not, and perhaps I should've, but I'm happy with where I am. Good luck!

Program reviews:
-Moran: Awesome program, gorgeous setting, great for academics and training. Super nice faculty, loved Dr. Pettey. Ranked it highly. Great retina and cornea fellowships.
-UVA: Loved c'ville, nice people, very good training and nice faculty, laid back and intelligent residents, feels a little less academic than some places but the research is there if you want it
-Vanderbilt: Great for academics, lower surgical numbers, super nice residents, seemed a bit distant from faculty, Nashville is a great city, great retina and plastics fellowships. Ranked it highly
-Sinai: Loved the people here, NYC is fabulous, great resources and combination of patient populations, merger with NYEEI and Sinai system unclear of regarding details, best surgical numbers in NYC.
-Storm: Loved Charleston, but I always have. Really great program, I think should be ranked higher nationally. Very bright and nice residents. Good fellowship match. Arguably the best peds fellowship in the country, recent chair left for Yale.
-UF: phenomenal surgical numbers, very bright residents, Gainesville was OK though I haven't spent any time there previously, absolutely loved the chair. One of the best residencies in the country for clinically focused applicants.
-Wake: Essentially ditto from UF but with lower numbers (still high though), liked WS a lot though actually, residents less academically oriented, everyone very nice

 

[tarheel1408]

--Board Scores: Step 1: 238, Step 2: 258
--AOA and class rank: Not AOA, middle 1/3 of class
--Reputation of medical school: average/mediocre state school in midwest
--Research: No publications, however 3 ophtho-related articles (case report (2) and actual project) submitted by time of application and interviews, and some undergraduate posters/research programs to fill up the box
--Honors in clerkships: Half honors, half not
--# and where you did away rotations: 3 aways, at lower-tier institutions - didn't use them for letters, application was already underway, but it netted me 3 extra interviews and I felt I could match at any of them if I ranked them high enough
--# of programs you applied to: 75
--Where invited for interviews (both offers and the ones you actually attended): Out of the 75ish applied to programs, received 7 total interviews, one of which one was my home program and 3 were from away rotations
--Where matched: #2
--Anything that helped your app:

My opinion is that if you have a step 1 score below 240, and have an overall average application in terms of research and letters, you can't really count on any random interviews.

My advice is that if you have a home program, obviously start there by making connections, showing interest, working hard, etc. Try and get your letters (probably 2) from the most important people in your home department that actually like you. These will potentially help you get those scattered (for me, 3) random interviews that will expand your rank list and increase overall odds of matching. However, at the end of the day, your home program will probably be the most biased to ranking you high and depending on the year and the program -- it can provide a great opportunity for a mediocre applicant to match well.

Secondly, for less competitive applicants (including myself) away rotations are VERY important, but you have to pick the programs wisely. There is a common misconception I heard from people in this process (faculty, PDs, and even students along the trail) that as students we shouldn't do away rotations because you won't impress people at the program in just a few weeks and thus they will only hurt you. They admit that it can net you an extra courtesy interview, but that in reality these don't mean that you would match there. While I agree with this for some programs (a few come to mind where friends rotated and didn't receive interviews --> UT SW, UIC, Utah, Ohio State, etc) if you pick the right, less competitive programs they can be HUGE. For me, my 3 away rotations were at less competitive programs (still great training, but either in less desirable areas, tougher work hours, etc.). I worked hard on these rotations, learned a ton about ophthalmology, and overall had great experiences. These programs were also great in that they had resident clinics where the students could basically get their own lanes and work up patients on their own. This is huge because it makes it easy for a student to show attendings they can operate as a PGY-2 and are competent enough to be in their residency program. The expectations were so low that if I could make basic observations about the cornea or retina, everyone seemed impressed. I got great feedback following the rotations and interviews, and in the end would have had great options to train had I needed to match at any of them.

In summary, for <240 step 1 and overall average applicants, focus first on your home program, increase your odds there, then very carefully pick 2-3 away rotations at programs that aren’t the super popular, “awesome” departments everyone hears about. You will end up with 3-4 great options of programs to hopefully have a good shot to match at, and then any random interviews on top will just increase the quality of your rank list.

 

[BostonDoc27]

--Non-success story from a DO--

--Board Scores: COMLEX 1: 574, COMLEX 2: 545. USMLE Step 1 (taken 4 years later): 208
--AOA and class rank: SSP (DO equivalent of AOA). Ranking not available.
--Reputation of medical school: Top DO school
--Research: 10-12 papers (3 in top ophtho journals) 6 or so as 1st author. 15 or so oral conference presentations, 15+ poster presentations. My research was reported in the NY Times (twice), TIME Magazine, the TODAY show, BBC, and lots of other places. 1 of JAMA-Ophthalmology's "most talked about" articles one year. 3 of JAMA-ophthalmology's top 15 highest Altmetric scores of all time (first author on all 3).
--Honors in clerkships: Not available at my school. Almost all A's.
--# and where you did away rotations: 8 aways at DO programs (prior to ACGME merger).
--# of programs you applied to: 109
--Where invited for interviews (both offers and the ones you actually attended): None
--Where matched: None
--Anything that helped your app: MPH from Johns Hopkins, doctorate in health policy from Hopkins, fellowship at Harvard Med, another fellowship with WHO-related project in Europe. Spent two months at CDC. LORs from CDC, Harvard, and U Iowa.

In short, USMLE is way more important than COMLEX, and it's an uphill battle for DOs. Beefing up your CV with great research and big names doesn't necessarily overcome those barriers, but can't hurt. My advice to the DOs who follow: destroy the USMLE, develop strong relationships with residencies. Don't do all your away rotations BEFORE the ACGME merger is announced, just to have them all close before the match. All in all, it is what it is! Best of luck to you all!

PS: Still looking for an opening! Let me know if you hear of one!

 

[sab3156]

--Non-success story from a DO--

--Board Scores: COMLEX 1: 574, COMLEX 2: 545. USMLE Step 1 (taken 4 years later): 208
--AOA and class rank: SSP (DO equivalent of AOA). Ranking not available.
--Reputation of medical school: Top DO school
--Research: 10-12 papers (3 in top ophtho journals) 6 or so as 1st author. 15 or so oral conference presentations, 15+ poster presentations. My research was reported in the NY Times (twice), TIME Magazine, the TODAY show, BBC, and lots of other places. 1 of JAMA-Ophthalmology's "most talked about" articles one year. 3 of JAMA-ophthalmology's top 15 highest Altmetric scores of all time (first author on all 3).
--Honors in clerkships: Not available at my school. Almost all A's.
--# and where you did away rotations: 8 aways at DO programs (prior to ACGME merger).
--# of programs you applied to: 109
--Where invited for interviews (both offers and the ones you actually attended): None
--Where matched: None
--Anything that helped your app: MPH from Johns Hopkins, doctorate in health policy from Hopkins, fellowship at Harvard Med, another fellowship with WHO-related project in Europe. Spent two months at CDC. LORs from CDC, Harvard, and U Iowa.

In short, USMLE is way more important than COMLEX, and it's an uphill battle for DOs. Beefing up your CV with great research and big names doesn't necessarily overcome those barriers, but can't hurt. My advice to the DOs who follow: destroy the USMLE, develop strong relationships with residencies. Don't do all your away rotations BEFORE the ACGME merger is announced, just to have them all close before the match. All in all, it is what it is! Best of luck to you all!

PS: Still looking for an opening! Let me know if you hear of one!

Sorry to hear you didn't match. Do you think you would have matched had you taken the USMLE Step 1 after your second year and had scored around 240ish?

 

[BostonDoc27]

Hard to say-- I can't really see the counter-factual. I would like to think that I would have had a better shot had I done well on USMLE, but I can't say I would have matched. There may have been something on my application that PDs didn't like, but that wasn't obvious to me. One of my LOR writers at Iowa (full professor, dept chair) that he approached 2-3 committee members to 'sell' me, and was told over and over that they don't look at DO applications at all; I doubt that's the case in too many places, but it may play a role in some of the big programs. My educated guesses: 1) USMLE too low; 2) Maybe some didn't like the post-grad fellowship at Harvard and Europe? 3) Maybe some didn't like the MPH during med school? Not sure if no class rank (they don't rank you if you change classes, and my MPH meant I changed graduation classes) played a role or not.

USMLE was probably the biggie. I'm confident it's doable, though, so good luck, but make serious plans for a backup just in case!

 

[tarheel1408]

Anonymous User:

--Board Scores: Step 1: 241 Step 2: 242 (consistency is key)
--AOA and class rank: Not AOA, top 50% (probably 49th percentile, just being honest)
--Reputation of medical school: Top ten (like every other SDN user right?)
--Research: Lots, none of it published, but lots. 3 posters, 2 of which were Ophtho related, a couple of Ophtho review articles, two mediocre podium presentations and several poorly edited unpublished manuscripts. I did present at ARVO - do this if you can.
--Honors in clerkships: Honors in IM, OB/GYN, Psych, Ophtho, High Passes in everything else.
--Where you did away rotations: I did not do any aways… My thoughts on aways: you most likely look better on paper… Unless you don’t… If you think you do then save your energy, save your money, save your time and go on vacation instead, that’s what I did. It worked out.
--# of programs you applied to: Applied to 79 programs. I felt good about my decision to apply to more rather than less. I would recommend this.
--Where invited for interviews: Invited to 14, went on 12. Iowa, OHSU, WashU, UWSOM, UF- Gainesville, UT-San Antonio, OSU, Arizona, SUNY Buffalo, SUNY Stony Brook, UT- Houston, SLU, Loma Linda, EVMS. I did NOT attend the EVMS or SUNY Stony Brook interview.
--Where matched: #4, so happy. I would have been happy at most programs on my list (they are mostly all very solid programs) and definitely in my top 8 so I was very grateful to have matched where I did.
--Anything that helped your app: LETTERS OF RECOMMENDATION. It doesn’t make a ton of sense, but your LOR are so very important. I had some cool, unique things to talk about on my personal statement, but after those conversations, I felt I was “welcomed in” to the field practically because of my letter writers. Interviewers would mention “Oh, I know so and so! You worked with Him/Her huh, that’s great! Tell them I said hello!” Make sure those LORS are at least above average if not strong, excellent if you can swing it.
--Comments on specific programs: I will update the forum later.

***To those reading this during the 2017 interview season, good luck applying! Ophthalmology is an excellent field. I thank God I made it in on the first go around.

 

[DrZeke]

Hard to say-- I can't really see the counter-factual. I would like to think that I would have had a better shot had I done well on USMLE, but I can't say I would have matched. There may have been something on my application that PDs didn't like, but that wasn't obvious to me. One of my LOR writers at Iowa (full professor, dept chair) that he approached 2-3 committee members to 'sell' me, and was told over and over that they don't look at DO applications at all; I doubt that's the case in too many places, but it may play a role in some of the big programs. My educated guesses: 1) USMLE too low; 2) Maybe some didn't like the post-grad fellowship at Harvard and Europe? 3) Maybe some didn't like the MPH during med school? Not sure if no class rank (they don't rank you if you change classes, and my MPH meant I changed graduation classes) played a role or not.

USMLE was probably the biggie. I'm confident it's doable, though, so good luck, but make serious plans for a backup just in case!

USMLE sunk you hands down. Even >90% of MDs can't match with a sub 210 score. DO certainly didn't help, but even with MD it would have been very very difficult


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