Advice for planning clerkship electives and getting LORs?

[Jaded Soul]

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First off, congratulations to all those who matched yesterday!

I'm an M3 and I'm going to apply in ophthalmology. I really don't want to defer a year for personal and financial reasons, but it's not excluded as an option. I wish I would have figured all this out sooner, and I'm hoping it's not too late. The only ophtho clinical experience I have is a 3 week sub-surgical elective. I haven't done any meaningful research.

I'm starting to plan out my elective schedule, which begins in the middle of May. The goal is definitely the need for at least 3 good LORs, as I don't think I could get a strong letter from the attendings I've worked with during my core clerkships.

Here are my questions:

- I'll definitely be doing 4 weeks of ophtho at home from mid-May to mid-June. Is it a good idea to do more than that?

- Is it a good idea to try to schedule an elective at an institution with renowned faculty to attempt to get a good LOR?

- My school requires the following in Year 4:
- 4 weeks Medicine
- 4 weeks Neurology
- 4 weeks acute care selective (ICU/ER)
- 4 weeks med/peds subspecialty
- 4 weeks x 2 med/peds/surgical subspecialty

Should I do any of these during those precious short summer months?

I'm really worried that there's just not enough time to take the electives to get the letters I need and meet the September target date. I'd be extremely grateful for any advice anyone can give. I'd also be interested to read what other people did. Thanks for your time!

 

[Visionary]

Originally posted by Jaded Soul
- I'll definitely be doing 4 weeks of ophtho at home from mid-May to mid-June. Is it a good idea to do more than that?

I did 3 months total: 1 retina service, 1 ambulatory general, and 1 research. Of course, most people I talked to did 1 month total and matched fine.

Originally posted by Jaded Soul
- Is it a good idea to try to schedule an elective at an institution with renowned faculty to attempt to get a good LOR?

Depends on whom you ask. I did no away rotations--mainly because of family obligations. Keep in mind, you'll have to be prepared to talk about it in interviews. One guy I ran into on the trail did an away at *****; when interviewing at another program, one of his interviewers said "So, I guess you really want to go to *****." 😱
Of course, others found it a good way to let their favorite program see what they had to offer. Nice when it works.

Originally posted by Jaded Soul
- My school requires the following in Year 4:
- 4 weeks Medicine
- 4 weeks Neurology
- 4 weeks acute care selective (ICU/ER)
- 4 weeks med/peds subspecialty
- 4 weeks x 2 med/peds/surgical subspecialty

Should I do any of these during those precious short summer months?

Definitely front-load your year with ophtho electives. Aside from that, do whatever floats your boat.

Originally posted by Jaded Soul
I'm really worried that there's just not enough time to take the electives to get the letters I need and meet the September target date. I'd be extremely grateful for any advice anyone can give. I'd also be interested to read what other people did. Thanks for your time!

Best advice is to make an appointment with your home ophtho department's chairman NOW. You'll need a chairman's letter, and he/she can give you more guidance in the context of your home program. I got a letter from my ophtho chairman, the retina specialist I rotated with, and my grad school advisor (research).

Finally, don't be too concerned about the time. Many don't decide on ophtho (or any specialty) until late. Actually, you're early by some standards. 😀

 

[Gottschalk]

Welcome to the forum,

I started planning my 4th year electives at about the same time you are (OCPD fits well with Ophtho as you'll soon find out). I did one month at home on a retina service so that I could get my examining skills up to par. My school has a lot of one on one with the attendings which really helped. Knowing how to examine a patient well will really make you shine on the aways, and allow you to contribute in a VA or clinic setting.

After my home experience, I planned two aways: 1 research (basic science) and 1 clinical. I obtained the aways by directly e-mailing the attendings my C.V. and intent. This really made a good impression and allowed me to work directly with influential people. You just have to figure out what your interest is and look into the program to figure out who to contact (departmental secretaries are very helpful if you ask nicely and explain your intentions). Of course, pick aways at places that you are interested in attending and that has influential people whose letters would carry some weight on the interview trail.

Hope this helps.

 

[Stark]

It's a good move to start planning your away rotations now because you'll have to start in July. I did two one-month rotations and a two-week rotation (all away) to see what different programs had to offer.

My suggestions:

1> Start with the programs 1. you might be interested in and/or 2. big name programs (just to see what they are all about).

2> Many places have their away rotation information or application on their websites. If they don't, just call or email the secretary.

3> Apply for away rotations at about six or so places because some of them will fill up and you won't be able to go there. You might have to accept a rotation somewhere and then turn it down later, but I don't think that really hurts you as far as interviews go.

4> If you do an away at a big-name institution (Wilmer, Iowa, or whatever) and you are really interested in getting an interview there, you need to make sure that you are working with someone on the residency selection committee (the residents will know who these people are, and I guess all of us who interviewed this year will know as well). If you just want to learn and have a great experience, then it really doesn't matter if the person is on the selection committee or not. Either way, you will have a great experience.

5> No matter where you go, you will probably have a great time and learn a lot (after all, you're doing ophthalmology). Make an effort to do exams, present patients to your attending and show them that you are really interested and know what's going on. Take a little call, it will be fun!

6> I agree with getting a chairman's letter from your institution. There is really no excuse not to. If you haven't gotten to know him well enough already, I recommend you spend some time with him.

7> Finally, if you go on an interview and they say "well you did an away Bascom, you must really want to go there." Just tell them what a wonderful learning experience it was, the great clinical skills it taught you, and how reinforced your idea that you really want to do ophtho. Never, never, never, denigrate a program to another program. And always be honest.


8> Finally, Finally - If you don't get an interview at a place where you do an away, don't be discouraged! Lots of places have 400 applications for 6 to 8 slots and a lot of the decision making is political. The letters you take with you from other institutions will still be of great benefit to you.

Best of luck,

Stark

 

[Garp]

Here's an idea that worked awesome for me. Defer your last core rotation of your 3rd year if you can (mine was April/May). Take 2 ophthalmology rotations during that time- 1 at your home school and then 1 away somewhere where your interested in going. You will have a good basic understanding of ophtho when you start your away rotation, and will look like an all-star compared to most 4th years that come through. Plus, there will be very little competition for rotation spots- most 4th years are done at that point and are graduating. You will have plenty of time to ask for and receive LOR's as well. My buddy and I both did this and we both matched at our away rotation sites!

 

[Jaded Soul]

Thanks for the replies. Does anyone have anymore advice?